How eBay Changes to Feedback Will Impact Sellers

by: bd greatbuys

80% negative feedback from  amazon  is a extruding way , good that eBay have adopted a more fair way  

by: AddyUp

"Sandra sold a pre-loved dress and received negative feedback that said "There was a small stain on the inside of the dress. However, the item description clearly stated that there was a stain on the inside of the dress."

Cases like that must be outnumbered by a thousand to one by buyers returning items as not working and leaving feedback saying it's not working. When those items were listed for parts and not working.

I really have little confidence in ebay changing anything when the main root cause of buyers problems is the hidden description when using the app. Even on the PC you have to scroll pass rows of ads to see the description.

by: terry55

@AddyUp
Truth, half don't look at descriptions if they can find them. Good luck even trying to get past AI to talk to a human for FB removal. Still won't stop a NAD return or the buyer filing a charge back

by: pace306

Smoke Screen

These 2 cases happen so infrequently that this change - as positive as it may sound - makes little to no difference for %98 of sellers.

Im in 1 of these types NOW and eBay is of zero help. I wanted to escalate the case and try to talk some sense into a cs agent (after they spend 3 mins thanking me for being a seller on eBay since 1998), but of course they auto escalated the return so the whole thing becomes moot.

My buyer or rather EBAYS buyer, was "out that day" in class when they taught english, reading comprehension and civility. After gently explaining that RECHARGEABLE and what ever the item does or does do - doesnt come from me but the maker itself. Amazon (where the item came from) and 3 other websites agree.

The "Im going to ruin you and your business and punish you with a negative - wasnt helpful either.

Will eBay help? will they even step in? will they do the right thing? (are all politicians corrupt? do taxes REALLY ever go down)(stuff like that).

I have zero confidence that this new policy will do very much ..... at all ... for anyone .

by: my2cents

@AddyUp

These changes have actually been on the site for at least a couple months now.  It appears that they are working a great deal better with sellers.  The feedback that breaks the policies is getting removed.

by: Rexford

"eBay explains on the policy page that it uses automation to proactively remove feedback that goes against policy, "but in cases that are not clear-cut, we carry out a manual review." "

Note the term automation.  that means "non-human decision".  How hard will it be to escalate cases to a human. That remains to be seen.

As for those buyers who ask for a cancellation?  I'll continue to accept those.  I don't have time for fickle buyers or their wrath if I don't accept their return. And they'd like file  SNADs when the item arrives, seller will pay shipping and you will get it back anyway.  Will they then have five or more of their friends order items and open cases?  

The eBay buyer is like no buyer on any of the other sites I sell.  I will cancel and then block.

On the face of it all this does seem like this is a step in the right direction.

by: pace306

“ How hard will it be to escalate cases to a human. That remains to be seen.”

%101 correct!

The OTHER change that was MISSED was that you can’t get a live human on the phone “for this category “ anymore. It’s email ONLY now!

by: my2cents

Some just can't take it that Ebay may have made a policy change that benefits sellers.  

The appeal process for feedback removal is NOT automated, it is handled by a human as are appeals for other reasons.

by: Rexford

my2cents says "Some just can't take it that Ebay may have made a policy change that benefits sellers. "

Really?  I am a seller. Why would I not like an eBay benefit?  I just know that the way eBay has cut back on paying humans to do what bots / automation can do how do we really know that a human will review appeals?  I mean you can't even get a human on the phone anymore.  I hope that you are right, but this would not be the first initiative / promise that eBay made to sellers that did not roll out as promised.  

I've been selling for 22+ years.  Based on my eBay experience over the last few decades I've been taught not to not start doing cartwheels and throwing pixie dust when eBay announces a change. I am risk averse therefore I look at the potential positives and the potential negatives. One needs critical thinking skills to navigate many of eBay changes due to the fact that their changes sometimes disrupt one's business.  When they make a positive change that benefits my business I will be the first to applaud.  Time will tell.

by: Jim Y

What is eBay's intent here?  Have they decided that they should be more fair?  Are they trying to help sellers?  Maybe they want to make it look like eBay is a fair trading platform.  If that is the case, they have a long ways to go, but at least they are trying.

by: my2cents

@JIM Y

So we should write them and tell them unless they are willing to fix everything we don't want feedback removal fixed !!!!

That is sarcasm in case anyone questioned it.

by: None Such

The eBay feedback rules have for years been heavily biased toward buyers.  It was not so blatant at the beginning.   Any small change that rebalances the feedback system and favors sellers is welcome but as others note, these changes affect only a very small sliver of sales.  Personally, I'd hope eBay would at at least let sellers leave negative feedback for deadbeat buyers who don't pay.  And not allow those sellers to leave any feedback on that sale.  What about it, eBay?  

by: pace306

“Some just can't take it that Ebay may have made a policy change that benefits sellers.”

As soon as I see a change that benefits sellers I’ll say doo - BUT AS IM IN THE MIDDLE OF ONE OF THESE AND NOTHING HAS CHANGED…….

Some people also can’t admit that the emperor doesn’t have new clothes

by: LJW

It makes no difference what the policies are, CSRs don't know them and just do what they want anyway.  

by: cillianred

I like the change. It's very frustrating when you receive a negative or a neutral from a buyer who specifically states in the feedback that "such and such" was not stated in the listing, when "such and such" was literally stated in the listing.  

by: careerseller

 I will believe it when I see it! This comes from all the negative heat ebay got when they did away the few courtesy feedback removals per year for top rated sellers. They stabbed us in the back by quietly taking away something that cost them NOTHING yet kept good sellers happy. They already showed their true colors towards the good sellers.
 As for the statement about manual reviews I call B.S. 99.9% of feedback removal requests are handled by bots in record time with an automated no email reply to get rid of you.
 And finally are they going to remove the feedback entirely or just the comment? I took a negative because the guy opened a buyer remorse return and stated he was mad about the cost of the return shipping label right in the feedback comment. This was a label ebay sold him that I had nothing to with. After several calls to the so called concierge number I was told no removal then finally they said they would  remove the comment only (because it reflected badly about them) but left me the negative in the feedback count for me. THANKS EBAY for 25 years of a paying you fees as Top Rated Seller, you treat us like garbage!!!  

by: That Guy

"...but in cases that are not clear-cut, we carry out a manual review."

'manual review' = AI

by: NYSteve

I've had more Ebay negatives (just 1 or 2)  in 1 year than i do in Etsy in 10 years (0)...I almost never get a review on Amazon (with 2x the sales), as most buyers think they are buying from Amazon directly ( incidentally, the reason why i never buy on Amazon)

by: Snapped

“Some just can't take it that Ebay may have made a policy change that benefits sellers.”

Know what the difference is between a scientist and a crackpot, perhaps one with ulterior motive?  The reality of the scientist’s conclusions do not depend on the scientist.  They hold true no matter WHO ‘publishes’ them.  

Meanwhile then, it seems eBay is to be congratulated  🎉 for FINALLY getting around to at least (at present) appearing to acknowledge the need for improving the ability to not only ‘recognize’ SOME untruthful information related to a given transaction - at least under some strictly limited conditions - but actually ‘do’ something about it to preclude unjustly damaging a seller’s reputation.  

And, oh, btw, ta daa!  ‘Automation’ will now ‘magically’ handle the stuff that even one of the most recent SCOTUS appointees would have had no choice but to uphold.  Moving forward of course.  Unless it doesn’t.

“For example”:  when the buyer doesn’t actually ‘admit’ to any ‘culpability’ in the transaction ‘anomaly’ data that ol’ Tobor (that’s robot spelled backwards) has to peruse, even though (it should be clear) they should.  What they call not so “clear cut”.  Apparently.  Or rather, not so much.

And all this ignores the possibility of a ‘glitch’.  Perish the thought.

So how’s all this ‘change’ going to work?  Oh wait - no change there.  This is just a new way to get you invited TO the gauntlet.  

First off - EVERY transaction will be subject to Tobor’s scrutiny now; and for this particularly finite set of circumstances, the default will be…  No. Per usual.  Guilty until ‘proved’ innocent.  Addressable only by the other guy’s actions to assume responsibility.  Unless they don’t.  Or some ‘checksum’ fails.  

And that’s where the fun begins.   Let’s see - “manual review”….here we are.  
1.  Obfuscate the process for being able to speak to somebody ‘live’.  (Incidentally, why do they make you push ‘one’ for English, then connect you to someone who barely speaks it?)
2.  Scripted Platitudes and commisseration from the CSR, who others have pointed out, is typically wholly unaware of the ‘change’ and its nuances.  Doesn’t matter though - they’re not empowered to do anything even if they were aware.
3.  Except maybe ‘forward’ the to some ‘team’ who (reportedly) will act and “get back to you within two days, promise!”.  
4.  Which, unless THAT particular aspect of eBay ‘tier two’ CS has undergone a radical sea-change itself, will not happen.
5.  Return to step 1.  Repeat until patience is exhausted, business is depleted, and cynicism for all things TANGIBLY ‘annoying’ by eBay has been maximized.

It’s not just ‘sour grapes’ when they really ARE, and continue to be after every ‘promise’ to the contrary, rotted on the vine.  As another has noted so well, they have a loooooong way to go.  

by: my2cents

@Snapped and @Pace

Your responses just prove my point.