Read the Fine Print!

[rose-dee]

I just went through the 2014 Spring Seller Update line by line, and would encourage all sellers who are serious about their status on EBay to do the same.  EBay is tightening up their expectations of sellers, and there are some critical points in the "fine print". 

I've put the link here for easy reference, but I'd also say that the Seller Checklist (at the top left on the page) is a good thing to keep handy, to avoid suddenly finding yourself with a bunch of defects as of Aug. 20th:

http://pages.ebay.ca/sellerinformation/news/springupdate2014/sellerstandards.html

Items that particularly caught my attention: 

1)  Don't initiate a cancellation process if the buyer hasn't specifically requested it -- you'll get a defect.

2)  Neutral FB will now count as a defect;

3)  Don't bother to ask a buyer to revise negative or neutral FB anymore -- if you do, the transaction will count as a defect;

4)  Open cases will be counted as defects, but only if the buyer chooses INR or INAD in the resolution centre or through "Contact Seller".  This may be important, because a lot of sellers have been complaining that "Contact Seller" leads buyers to open cases when they really didn't intend to.  We'll see how that works out in practice.

5)  Sellers get a bit of leeway on Shipping Time DSRs (has to be a rating of 1 to count as a defect), but the "Item as Described" DSR will be counted more strictly -- a "3" will be enough to count as a defect (ouch).  So good photos and accurate descriptions will be more critical than ever.

Some positive news:  eBay has given sellers a bit of a gift on the "Shipping Cost" and "Communications" DSRs.  These will still be able to be rated by buyers, but won't count toward defects (i.e. for seller information only).  All I can say about that is: Finally!

Defects will be rated more stringently for Global TRS and US TRS, although the other programme requirements haven't been changed.  US TRS+ is another story: package tracking and the new "Extended holiday return" policy will make that designation even more difficult for Canadians to achieve. 

All in all, I imagine that sellers who aren't up to speed on the new defect rules are going to find themselves with a not-so-pleasant surprise on their dashboards come August 20th.  EBay obviously wants all its sellers to behave like professionals, and consistently.  Toughen up everybody!

[mr.elmwood]

Rose, a friend and I were discussing all of this. I pretty much have to TRIPLE all of those to reach the 5% threshold.

It is based on total sales. In my last 1,000 sales, I have had a total of about ten: neutrals, negs, INAD, INR. I am "allowed" fifty (50). Fifty? That cannot be right. That is way too many for a conscientious seller, which, I will never be.

[Anonymous]

Very disappointing that eBay felt that they need to continue to "penalize" the sellers again and again.  And why does eBay needs to go on and on and on with too many annoying insane policies.  I just printed it and it is 19 pages.  Can't it be sufficient for just 2 pages instead of go on and on and on like 19 pages??

Actually I never look forward to any seller updates as they are always never "good news" for sellers.

The way I see, our DSRs will be trashed badly no matter how much "reasonable" shipping costs are even it is actual shipping costs which doesn't include the so-called handling charges, the buyers are NEVER satisfied and will trash our DSRs.  Because of that I have changed to Free shipping and increase the Buy It now or starting price.  But that is not easy with Buy It Now prices, if someone use make offers (it is not include free shipping), then I have to include the shipping costs which is a no win situtation.

Hello anyone, is there another site that is much better than eBay that we can switch??

[mr.elmwood]

How are you being "penalized" when they are allowing you more errors than before? We are being penalized less under the new system.

Under the old system, I had approximately ten defects. under the new system I am allowed fifty (50). How is that a penalty?

A good seller will never have a problem.

[recped]

I suggest that most sellers NOT read any part of the Spring Update that has to do with Seller Performance!

All that is likely to happen is that they will go into panic mode for no reason. Overall the requirements are LESS stringent than before.

On the US boards there is a seller with 5's across the board, no negs or neutrals, no feedback revisions yet they still think they will be indefinitely suspended immediately in August when the new rules take effect.

Another seller who insists that the lack of a scan = a defect

More sellers posting "how to avoid defects" tips, tips that will almost certainly result in "defects". Nobody suggests that the easiest way to avoid defects, give buyers what they want & expect and get it to them as efficiently as you can.

The same thing happens every time, announcement comes out, sellers go nuts, the sky is falling.......

Rinse and repeat once or twice a year!

[rose-dee]

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@recped wrote:

I suggest that most sellers NOT read any part of the Spring Update that has to do with Seller Performance!

All that is likely to happen is that they will go into panic mode for no reason. Overall the requirements are LESS stringent than before.

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I think the problem is that people don't read the Updates carefully and critically.  In my view, ignoring the Seller Performance changes isn't wise; at least if you know in advance how you'll be assessed, you can take steps before there is some impact. 

On the other hand, I doubt such considerations will apply to sellers like you and Mr. E., who have been running a tight ship for years, or anyone with a high transaction volume.  But newer sellers need to understand where their threshold will be and what behaviours will now be no-no's. 

For example, although these changes appear on the face of it to be more lenient toward sellers, the typeof issue that will create a defect is broader than the DSRs were.  Seller-cancelled transactions, open cases for INAD, open cases for INR, any negative or neutral FB, as well as two of the DSRs, and returns (INADs) will now translate directly into defects.  Sellers who are used to ignoring these issues, or passing them off may need to start paying attention.  Although 5% is a fairly generous allowance, there are now 7 factors involved instead of the old 4 DSRs.  A few more things to keep in mind.

How many times on these boards have I seen new sellers wondering what to do about open cases, cancelling transactions, buyers wanting to return because the item wasn't as described, and how to deal with neg/neutral FB -- a lot.  They are going to have to understand that those battles aren't worth getting into anymore, in fact they are issues to be avoided in the first place.  In other words, they will have to keep up with what eBay says this marketplace expects - professional-quality sellers.  There are lots of sellers who rage and complain against the rules, but it seems fewer who actually discuss how to be the best possible seller on eBay.

I realize the US boards are fully of fruitless paranoia and panic.  My point was that Canadian sellers who have been "coasting along" may need to understand what eBay is going to expect of them by August 20th.

By the way, just a note to 'honeybed' -- shipping cost DSRs are no longer going to be relevant to your Seller Performance - you won't get defects from those DSRs.  However you can monitor them to find out what your customers are thinking about your shipping charges. 

[rose-dee]

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@mr.elmwood wrote:
Rose, a friend and I were discussing all of this. I pretty much have to TRIPLE all of those to reach the 5% threshold.

It is based on total sales. In my last 1,000 sales, I have had a total of about ten: neutrals, negs, INAD, INR. I am "allowed" fifty (50). Fifty? That cannot be right. That is way too many for a conscientious seller, which, I will never be.

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That seems to be the case - 50 if you have 1,000 spread fairly evenly over 12 months.  But under the new rules if you have 400 or more transactions over the 3 previous months (before an evaluation), your defects will be based on those 3 months.  So, 25 allowed if you have 500 over those 3 months.  Or, if you want to be Top-Rated, 2% is the limit (10 out of those 500 transactions). 

This still seems generous, but keep in mind there are more potential evaluation factors than there were before (7 possible defect factors now, as opposed to 4 DSRs previously), so close to twice as many.  My personal view is that open cases and neutral FB are going to be the big problem for a lot of sellers who were used to being blasé about those issues.  They're going to have to do a little more work in advance now to avoid such potholes. 

[ricarmic]

Whilst I am a chronic worrier, I am worried about the open cases counting, because buyers, at least in my world do tend to use them to ask questions....like how long I think delivery will take (after a couple days, long before they expect it to arrive) or one of my favourites.... I've even had a buyer use an INAD case to ask it I had other stamps that were from the same stamp issuing timeframe....I think it happens because they want to ask a question and pick whatever they see first in the list that at least comes close to what they're thinking about...

[rose-dee]

'ricarmic', I agree with you.  I don't think eBay has done a very good job of properly routing buyer questions. 

It started when they moved the "Ask Seller a Question" down to the very bottom of the page and automated the inquiry process.  The safe option "other" is now at the very end of the list and buyers really have to understand the process to get to it. 

It almost seems as if eBay wanted to make cases the buyer's first alternative -- I've had buyers email me to say they were so sorry they'd opened a case accidentally, and what should they do to get rid of it.  I just wish eBay would put an "Ask Seller a Question" button back up top in listings for ordinary, everyday questions.

[reallynicestamps]

2)  Neutral FB will now count as a defect;

Oh, bloody hell, not again! We had that fight a few years ago and neutrals were taken out of the feedback mix. There is a distinct lack of corporate memory here.

More sellers posting "how to avoid defects" tips, tips that will almost certainly result in "defects".

Seems like a good way to get rid of a seller's more gullible competitors.

[recped]

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@rose-dee wrote:

'ricarmic', I agree with you.  I don't think eBay has done a very good job of properly routing buyer questions. 

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I don't see the lack of routing. When I click on any "contact seller" i see this.....

[recped]

screwed up that post..........

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@rose-dee wrote:

'ricarmic', I agree with you.  I don't think eBay has done a very good job of properly routing buyer questions. 

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I don't see the lack of routing. When I click on any "contact seller" link I see this.....

 

Obviously if I'm asking about my item that has not yet arrived I'm going to pick the first choice on the list, it's the only one that makes sense.

After I select that and click on continue I get this

If I'm not happy with the info eBay provides I can continue and can send a message to the seller which may or may not open a case.

How else would you route a message from a buyer who wants to know why they haven't received their package yet given that they are in the estimated delivery window?

[ricarmic]

Rec, you are too fast for me, I'm going to answer in two parts:

Part 1:  Hmmm when in doubt look at statistics.

I decided to try to figure out my statistics, doing so was well worth the effort it seems!

Cases against transactions in the last 18 months:

1.3% resulted in unpaid item cases (which I'm not penalized for)

0.6% were cancellation requests by me (which I will stop doing now)

0.5% were Item not Received Yet Cases

0.1% were item not as described cases (so 1 in 1000 transactions received an INAD)

I have to say I am very surprised that the INAD % is so low, it seemed to me like I got a lot more than 1 in 1000 transactions.

It is amazing how much our minds like to focus on the bad stuff!!!

So now I am not going to worry so much.

Part 2.

Regarding what more could eBay do for the where's my item question routing? You have a very good point. I have never really looked at what estimates show up when people look at stuff they bought from me, I always just use flat rate "standard shipping" - it is possible that it shows the delivery date being past when they are looking, although usually they are saying in their note to me that they don't expect it yet but they are wondering how long it usually takes. Not sure why they would ask that if they've seen what you pointed out....assuming they read it.....unless they are just being super polite.....having said this, now that I realize that all told I'm at just over one half of one percent being "defect" style cases, I'll shift my worrying off to something else..... 

[ricarmic]

An addendum, I just realized part of the reason for the difference statistically for INADs - I specifically request buyers to contact me via email if they have any issues, which would not show up as a case of course. I don't have an easy way to figure stats for that out but it still probably is not that big of a number, doesn't really matter since as long as I fix it and they don't open a case it's not a "defect" anyway....

[recped]

here's something sellers can do to deflect INR (and SNAD) cases being opened.

Do not depend on eBay to send an Item Shipped Notice, send your own and don't send it through eBay send it direct to the buyer's email address.

Include a delivery estimate of YOUR choosing and mention that if they have any issues all they need to do is "reply to this message".

This is the last communication they receive, so it's usually the one they remember, if they go back and look they see YOUR delivery estimate and if that's passed they see "reply to this message" which will go directly to you instead of through eBay where a case may get opened.

If they receive the item and there is an issue the same thing applies. they may contact you directly instead of through eBay. It's also a good idea to clearly state on your packing list / invoice "if there is any problem with your order please contact me at myemail@mydomain".

Neither of these will guarantee they won't go through eBay and open a case but it will certainly deflect a few.

[cumos55]

Negative and neutral feedback are included as a defect.

Revise that negative or neutral,  and the defect stays on your record as a defect

However,  potential buyers do not see the negative or neutral.

Sellers with a lot of revised feedback  will  have a high defect rate.

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One buyer can leave negative feedback.  leave low DSRs,  and then file  a not received case ....  and this will show as one defect.....

Each  defect is associated with an unhappy buyer... no matter how a buyer  hits a seller  with factors that relate to the counting of a defect.

One unhappy buyer = one defect....  

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and ... Finally... the lower the defect number,  the better the placement in a search....

So... even though you are allowed a maximum of 50 defects with 1000 sales annually.....  it is important to keep that number low....  if only to maintain a high placement in search.

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Many sellers have done the minimum to meet eBay's requirements.

It was always necessary to do more than the minimum...

effectively constantly improving one's selling activities  before they are imposed by eBay...

[cumos55]

An opened case  counts as a defect  if the seller does not resolve the problem.

If eBay steps in and resolves the case, it counts as a defect.

That 0.003 % for opened cases not resolved by the seller  is critical

effectively forcing a seller to accept returns...  and/or refund all money to the buyer...

  and even with this, certain cases are not a part of the defect profile... unless the buyer does something that will affect the defect number....

[ricarmic]

cumos, my understanding, which may be wrong, was that any opened case will count as a defect whether we resolve it or not.....once one is opened, it counts....

[mr.elmwood]

opened case = defect? Unsure.

I want to know how this ends as well. There has been plenty of chatter of how eBay tricks buyers into opening cases when all they wanted to do was ask a question. However. Lately, I have been getting questions with no case being opened. I have been doing returns without a case being opened.

This may end up being just another red herring.

It is not our defect rate that is important, it is how it relates to everyone else.

I find it hard to believe eBay will count a question as a defect. I want to think that it is only if the case is escalated. Buyers make egregious errors and want a refund. Why would that be my fault?

[rose-dee]

My understanding from reading the "fine print" is that, while specific opened cases will count as defects, cases that are referred to eBay/Paypal and are ultimately found in the seller's favour will not.  In other words, there are situations where opened cases can be cancelled out.  Here are the relevant references from the Spring Update:

"An opened case is a case filed for an item not received or not as described through the eBay Money Back Guarantee or through PayPal Purchase Protection that passes checks for eligibility or fraud.

Aren't all buyer contacts through the resolution center or eBay's member-to-member communication system counted as opened cases?

No, opened cases are only counted when the buyer chooses:

• "I haven't received it yet" or "I received an item that does not match the seller's description" in the resolution center
• "I haven't received my item yet" or "Item I received is not as described" from the "Contact seller" link in My eBay.

Neither of the "item not received" options can be chosen until one business day after the estimated delivery date.

What if a case or return is referred to eBay for resolution and found in my favour or found no fault of the buyer or seller?

Any case or return that is referred to eBay or PayPal for review and is found in your favour—or found to be no fault of the buyer or seller—won't count against your performance rating. It won't be counted as a defect and it won't count toward your percentage of cases closed without you resolving them."

I'll be interested to see how eBay will specify the "estimated delivery date" now that defects will depend on it.

We sellers need to remember that defects are transaction-associated, i.e., you won't get more than one defect for the same transaction.  That being said, if you make an error in a transaction and you can't fix it quickly for a buyer, you're going to get "dinged" perhaps more certainly than with the previous DSR/FB programme (which was basically up to the buyer to control). 

Returns are going to have to be made more quickly and cheerfully, without as much argument with eBay as previously.  Although eBay says "buyer remorse" sort of reasons for returns won't be counted as seller defects (apparently the returns system is being updated to oblige buyers to state the reason for a return), INAD reasons will be valid, and will defect the transaction.  

I've managed now and then to bring buyers around to end up as happy customers who were either confused or in error, and avoid neg FB/poor DSRs.  That may not be as easy to do with this new system, since eBay will be the one determining what is a defect and what is not.  I think 'cumos' hit the nail on the head: it will be up to sellers to be educated and pro-active to avoid the pitfalls of defects in the first place.  In other words, hone our skills.