quote:: "Take a look at the feedback that others have left for them" (buyer) "and note a couple of key points."
Um.... is the author even READING what she's written? Yes, I think I'll go take a look at the buyer feedback that sellers CAN NOT LEAVE so WILL NOT EXIST to see a warning that I WILL NOT SEE because SELLERS ARE CENSORED from leaving this kind of useful information.
The first piece of advice is to do research on the buyer's activity. How on earth is that supposed to work when sellers can't leave this information by the way of feedback? You're limited to whether the buyer has a habit of leaving negative feedback and what good does that do you? It only persuades you to give in.
Saying that the buyer's job is done once they pay is another puff on the peyote pipe. Feedback is supposed to encompass the entire transaction's experience. So what you're saying is that the seller is held to five or more points of critique and the buyer only one... whether or not they paid? Bogus bogus bogus.
There probably isn't a seller on eBay who doesn't have a boatload of horror stories about The Buyer From Hell. Like many others, I have been on eBay since the beginning and had the occasional bad buyer experience as a seller. But only AFTER the feedback changes did I start getting the extortionists. Within a month of the change, I was hit up for everything from free shipping, additional items, different items, refunds on non-refundable USED merchandise, you name it. It was incredible!
Yeah, in the beginning, I went for that "badge of honor", standing on principle, but drew the line at PayPal disputes, which they started next, because there was absolutely no recourse. Report them to eBay? Surely, you jest. Get a lecture about how improved customer service can avoid these situations, because we all know that it's my fault, after all. Never mind that the sale is a contract between me and the buyer, and I have laid out terms to which they have agreed. But as we all know, the seller is the only party held to the rules. The only possible recourse is for buyers who don't pay at all; they get a useless unpaid item strike and as one buyer blatantly said to me "I can always get another eBay account, but your feedback is ruined." Reported to eBay... and what do you think they had the nerve to say? "The buyer is entitled to leave honest feedback based on how they feel about their experience." I asked what about MY experience? No answer, which sort of says it all.
I could go on forever.
Badge of honor. How laughable. You call it badge of honor, eBay calls it a blemish on your record and it is that record that determines everything from where you place in search listings to how much you pay in fees. This is the double whammy. You can't leave truthful feedback, yet a buyer can destroy you with a new ease, all which came about at roughly the same time. Coincidence?
I will continue to use eBay if only for the traffic it generates, as that is about all it is good for these days. People expect to find super deals but don't realize that eBay's policies make the prices go up for everyone, so even the traffic isn't what it used to be.
But the moment a viable alternative comes along, consider me there.