Sellers lack of feedback -

Hi Dawn,
I started including a handwritten note on the packing slip thanking them once again for their order and saying "Please consider leaving feedback for me. I'll also leave it for you." This has resulted in more feedback for me, often with comments such as "friendly" or "great communication" even if my only communication was the Thank You I include in the comments when doing the shipping label.
If I haven't received feedback from them within a month, I go ahead and leave them positive feedback if I don't suspect there to be any problem. Most will then leave positive feedback for me.
Some people won't leave feedback no matter what so I don't push it for fear of them leaving me a negative. Fast shipping seems to be the most common positive feedback.

I wouldn't push the issue. One friendly reminder is probably OK, but then leave it at that.

Honestly, I'm not sure I'd even bother, although I understand the desire to build your feedback score up quickly. Some buyers find it distasteful for a seller to contact them regarding feedback.

Thank you both for your reply - I always send a "thank-you card" with all my shipments, and I leave feedback once I receive payment. Thank you for confirming "not pushing the issue" - that's what I was leaning toward - thank you again for your reply - Dawn

Dawn, just so you have another perspective on leaving feedback, there are two schools of thought on who should leave feedback first.

I used to be of the firm mindset that, as a seller, I had no problem leaving feedback first, as I'm honest and treat my customers right, they would respond in kind.

After getting more sales under my belt, and having a few "close calls" with difficult buyers, it quickly became apparent to me that feedback had the potential to be used unscrupulously by some buyers. I now only leave feedback after it is left for me - it is another level of insulation from fraud that you can give to yourself. Nobody likes to have problem buyers, but the fact is... you can't please everyone, no matter how hard you try. There will always be that potential buyer who will be gunning/threatening to give you a neg, and you have ask yourself what your level of tolerance will be when faced with that situation. Ask yourself, if a buyer contacts you one day and demands a refund for something they say is "not as described in the auction", when you know good and well that it was, are you willing to deal with the aggravation of that buyer threatening you with negative feedback if you don't comply? If you already gave him positive feedback after he paid, you've lost a bit of leverage.

Of course, this is all entirely my opinion, and your mileage may vary - there's really no "right way" to do it - it all depends on how much risk you're willing to accept.

Edit - If you want to see some of the fallout that can develop from this sort of thing, take a look at some of the threads on Seller Central. As a new seller, you can learn a lot there.

http://forums.ebay.com/db2/forum.jspa?forumID=143

I have seen where people put that in their listing that the seller will leave feedback after they know that the item has been received and feedback has been left for the seller. This may just be one of those "use your own best judgement" types of things. Thank you for your input - Dawn

I wouldn't push the issue, or send reminders at all. Some people will leave feedback, and others won't. That's just the way it is. Be patient, your feedback will grow.

I appreciate your input Jeff - I'm up to 13 (Yee Hawwww!!!). All of you have very good insight and opinions. Thank you again for your time - Dawn a/k/a msalien1

I DID NOT POST THIS MESSAGE BUT I WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT TO THANK BISCUIT FOR TAKING THE TIME TO OFFER HIS WISDOM. I AM NEW TO ALL OF THIS AND HAVE A 0 FEEDBACK AND FIND THAT THE WIDSDOM AT THIS SITE IS BETTER THAN THAT OF ANY BOOK.

GANDALF456

BUT SINCE I AM HERE. IS IT ONES ONES OPINION AND I THINK I KNOW THE ANSWER AS A BUYER TO ASK FOR FEED BACK. I HAVE NOTHING TO SELL AT THIS POINT OR VERY FEW THINGS.

I think it's OK as a buyer to leave a "kindly reminder" to ask for feedback from a seller, provided you have already left feedback for them. I get feedback request from buyers all the time. I don't use auto-feedback, so often a buyer will send a message kindly asking for positive feedback in return.

As a buyer, you have a bit more leeway - I wouldn't exactly recommend begging, but most sellers are unlikely to get upset if a buyer requests feedback once or twice. If you don't get any after that, I would probably just leave it alone.

As a seller, it's the right thing to do to leave feedback for a buyer who has left if for you. It is voluntary, however, so you don't really have grounds to complain if the seller doesn't.

I don't even bother asking buyers to leave feedback any more ...

I used to do that and someone left an upsetting comment about my being just a so-so seller (she did give me a positive, but still...!)

I don't leave feedback for buyers who haven't left me feedback. I've never gotten a bad feedback after doing it, but it does leave a seller vulnerable.

I never leave negative feedback. I have before and immediately got it right back. We ended up retracting our feedback, but it was a big hassle.

If I'm not pleased, I just tell the seller or buyer offering a solution. If they ask me to leave feedback, I simply ignore.

I don't communicate outside of ebay for security reasons & ability to have evidence should I ever need to file a complaint. I try to remember to block my email address.

In simplicity......It is safer to leave feedback when a buyer has left a positive feedback. If they have left you a neutral or negative, you have the option to shoot back. All the auction host companies have this kind of option available to sellers for auto feedback. That says the sellers needed something like this at one time. Now it is standard practice.

I do not chase a customer for feedback. You are only focusing on it because you do not have much feedback at the moment. I have noticed that neutrals and negatives get thrown around a lot between buyers and sellers when either party has less than around 50 feedbacks. After that, both sellers and buyers are generally savvy enough to be more careful on feedback less than a positive. If you are not getting any feedback, this is saying "leave well enough alone".

This is EXACTLY why e-Bay's feedback system isn't worth crap anymore.

Daddyo does have a point about safety and leverage, but think from a buyers perspective.

I have paid immediately, the transaction for the SELLER is completed, so they should leave feedback and not wait.

A TON of sellers use Daddyo's method... more often than not.

As a new seller... personalize feedback and leave it first. Most buyers appreciate it and will leave feedback for you when they get their item and they are happy with the purchase.

Some will not... and as a new seller its imperative to get your feedback built up positively and in a quick fashion.

If they don't leave feedback... just tell them that you are a new seller and are trying to build up your feedback... so if they are happy with the transaction... leave feedback.

Thats what I did as a new seller and it worked for me. Now that my feedback is built up, I use the feedback reminder in the email options on eBay.

Note as a new seller... if you are using Daddyo's method... you best not ask for a feedback without have given them one first... obviously.

Feedback Score: 506
Positive Feedback: 100%

Members who left a positive: 506
Members who left a negative: 0

All positive Feedback: 596

The one that was mutually withdrawn was from a seller that left a feedback that was obviously positive but accidently picked negative... eBay wouldnt even get involved in this case... even when the buyer told them it was an accident.

The one neutral feedback I have was from a seller that used Daddyo's method.

I had left him a neutral feedback after it took me a week and 3 messages to get a total so I could pay and an additional 3 weeks to get the item after I had paid.

He then immediately left me a neutral which was suprising since it took me 3 messages to get a total... basically he just denied I had sent him 3 messages etc etc etc. I responded to his neutral feedback with the end date, pay date, recieved date, and each message sent date.

His neutral message "SELLERS THIS IS NOT THE MOST PATIENT PERSON ON EBAY ."
Reply by bigmadpie (Oct-13-06 18:22):
Retalitory feedback is childish. Taking a month to ship makes me impatient?

So people that are eager to find my neutral feedback and pull up my entire feedback history can see that information.

I am not "flaming" Daddyo. I am simply using his name to reference a method. Rest assured that he wasnt the first or the last to use this method.

Don't take anything I write as a fact, because it isnt. Its an opinion of what I do, and how it appears to have helped me out.

Hope thats useful!

-jack rollins

quote:

Daddyo does have a point about safety and leverage, but think from a buyers perspective.

I have paid immediately, the transaction for the SELLER is completed, so they should leave feedback and not wait.

The argument, of course, is that the transaction isn't over.

What if the buyer is dissatisfied with the widget? What if the package never arrives? What if the package arrives and the USPS has destroyed it?

In any situation like that the buyer would obviously expect the seller to take care of the problems. But if the buyer has already considered the transaction to be over for the seller then how can they expect the seller to make good?

While this method does allow for the seller the possibility of leaving retaliatory feedback it's just not a good argument against it as retaliatory feedback goes both ways. Besides which, it's usually in the buyer's best interest to go to the seller first and try to get any problems worked out before they go and leave feedback of the sort that inspires retaliation.

It's more an issue of customer service. If, based on my service, packaging, listing, promptness, personal e-mails, etc., a buyer is still afraid that I might leave them false feedback, well, there's nothing I can do about that. All a seller can do is perform as professionally as possible and hope for the best.

YOUR SELLING ITEMS, FORGET THE FEEDBACK, or every crazy out there giving you an eventual retaliatory negative will drive you crazy. I would rather have no feedback than bad feed back, remember, no news is good news! Just keep on selling and the occasional neg won't matter, and you'll be busy counting your sales instead of meaningless feedback!

Interesting points of view - and I can see all sides. Thank you again for your perspectives - Dawn

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Bradford:


The argument, of course, is that the transaction isn't over.

What if the buyer is dissatisfied with the widget?

that's exactly what happened to me. when i first started selling, i left feedback as soon as i got paid. it's what i always thought should happen when i was just a buyer. then one time someone left me neutral feedback, stating that they thought it took too long and wasn't worth it. they had never contacted me, and it took 9 days parcel post (the max) from fla. to ca. i contacted them, telling them i would have given them a refund. they ended up accepting the refund offer, and adding a positive comment that they'd left the feedback too hastily. it's still there, but at least it looks better. now, i don't leave feedback til it's O-V-E-R.

as for buyers not leaving feedback, i've only done that if i wasn't really satisfied (usually pet hair/smoke issues) but didn't want to make a big hassle out of it, as i was gonna keep whatever it was anyway.

but i kinda like mattroy's view on it.. count your money instead! lol

I have tons of transactions that feedback was never left for. I learned pretty quick not to leave feedback untill the buyer does, becuase there are a lot of people that will leave negitive or neutral for no real reason

Please be gentle with me, I'm still a new seller,still under 100.

I always leave feedback as soon as the buyer pays. The way I look at it , their 'job' is done. I believe after that, if I haven't gotten feedback or heard there is a problem after about 10 days of sending the item, I think it's up to me to write to them and ask if they received it or not. I have a standard note I send,,

HI,
We just wanted to write to see if you have received your ** yet.
And if you have , We would like to make sure
are happy with your purchase.
Thank you, blah, blah...

Then if I get no reply or feedback, I leave it alone. sometimes I get neither, sometimes I get an email and that's all, some people just don't do much feedback, and sometimes it reminds them that they forgot the feedback. And there also have been just a couple of times where the buyer hasn't received the item yet.(usually Canada, and they never seem to worried about that)
I'm not saying that is for everyone, it just seems to work for me. I think it has to be a personal choice how you leave your own feedback and you have to work out your own system that works for you. Me, I love sending my customers emails, and so far, I have had no complaints, they all seem to love the communication.
Good luck whatever you decide to do !
Tari wi_angels_heavenly_treasures

You know, it is really interesting to read different points of view on this topic, it's not as "black and white" as I had originally thought - lots of grey in this topic - Thank you all again for time to post - Dawn