Defect rate - from bad to worse

For those who have not seen this new eBay fiasco - here it is.

 

 

New way to measure performance rewards sellers providing great service

  • Starting with the August 20 monthly seller evaluation, a new measure, the transaction defect rate ("defect rate"), will replace the current four individual detailed seller rating requirements in evaluating seller performance. This new rating may impact your status.
  • The defect rate is simply the percentage of a seller's successful transactions that have one or more of the following transaction-related defects, the top predictors that a buyer will leave eBay or buy less:
    • Detailed seller rating of 1, 2 or 3 for item as described
    • Detailed seller rating of 1 for shipping time
    • Negative or neutral feedback
    • Return initiated for a reason that indicates the item was not as described
    • eBay Money Back Guarantee (previously known as eBay Buyer Protection) or PayPal Purchase Protection case opened for an item not received or an item not as described
    • Seller-cancelled transactions
  • Starting with the August 20 evaluation, to meet eBay's minimum standard, sellers can have up to a maximum 5% of transactions with one or more transaction defects over the most recent evaluation period. A maximum 2% will allow a seller to qualify as an eBay Top Rated Seller. The  same requirements apply both to your Global and US seller performance  standards.
  • The defect rate won't affect your status until you have transactions with defects with at least 8 different buyers (at least 5 different buyers to impact Top Rated status) within your evaluation period.
  • Just as today, sellers can have a maximum of 0.3% of eBay Money Back Guarantee or PayPal Purchase Protection closed cases without seller resolution over the most recent evaluation period. That means the buyer opened the case, you weren't able to resolve it, the buyer reached out to eBay or PayPal to review it, and eBay found you responsible.
  • Just as today, sellers with 400 or more transactions over the past 3 months will be evaluated based on the past 3 months and sellers with fewer than 400 transactions will be evaluated based on the past 12 months.

In general, the lower your defect rate, the better your position in Best Match search results

  • By focusing squarely on what matters most to buyers, the new transaction defect rate allows eBay to recognize and reward sellers who consistently deliver the great service buyers expect—and to identify and respond to the experiences that erode confidence and drive buyers away.
  • If you maintain a low defect rate, eBay will reward you with an enhanced position in Best Match search results, so your track record for great service can pay off in more visibility and potential sales.
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Old enough to know better. Young enough to do it again. Crazy enough to try
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Defect rate - from bad to worse


@westernstargifts wrote:

Another question I would have liked to ask in regards to these transactions being reviewed and eBay deciding whether or not they are considered a "defect"......Are the going to review every single case where a refund is given, item not received, etc. or are we supposed to contact them each and every time we have a possibly defective transaction?  Good luck with that...if so, I hope they plan a huge increase in the number of staff they have to answer the calls.  Or even just to review each case.


This was exactly my reaction when I read Raphael's response to cumos.  It's fine to say that a particular action shouldn't be considered a defect once reviewed; the problem (as we can all see) is going to be getting it reviewed

 

What I understood from what he was saying is that yes, the seller will receive a defect (automatically), but it will be up to the seller to pursue the matter with eBay.  As you say, good luck with that!  Just imagine even one unfair defect per month times -- how many eBay sellers?  

 

My guess -- eBay won't do it properly, it's impossible in fact.  They'll simply let sellers get frustrated trying to get through by phone, or trying to get through to CS reps who don't speak fluent English and are basically reading off a cue card.  Eventually sellers will stop calling.  Sad...

Message 181 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

well, doing a call back on every call might give them an idea- that way they will see actual numbers instead of sellers hanging up...

Message 182 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Canada Post

 

My two most recent situations had to do with...

 

(1) The Calgary situation

 

Calgary, where tracking showed it was delivered...Paypal closed the claim because it was delivered....  Buyer was a difficult type, and would not wait for anything..

 

Buyer filed with Paypal,  left neutral feedback,  and was extremely unhappy....

 

Canada Post could not find the parcel and settled the claim....  Buyer had already done everything "wrong"... Only when I got the cheque from Canada Post did the buyer get his refund.....

 

(2) The New York situation

 

Canada Post was alerted when the parcel  was on its way back to me  and then went through Toronto, Montreal and back to New York, and could not be traced..

 

----------------------------------------------------

 

As soon as I saw a problem, Canada Post was contacted.... and Canada Post  very quickly settled the insurance claim.

 

 

The keyword to this process was the word "tracking".... With both Calgary and New York, and the parcel was in "limbo"  and could not be found by Canada Post...

 

The time period for a wait was not important..... for these situations

 

 

In previous situations  I have had buyers wait, if it was short wait... Then make a claim .... but NOT recently.

 

and then sometimes  I refunded the buyer, and waited before a claim was made......

 

Each situation was unique  was dealt with in a uniform manner once the insurance claim was made

 

 

One gets the impression that what actually happens in relation to selling on eBay   is based on what one sells and the integrity of the buyer.

 

----------------------------------------------------

 

My craziest situation....  ( and there were more)

 

Book was bought...  topic was vintage farm tractor manufacturer....  It was bought before  Christmas....

 

Buyer wrote to me and asked ...Where is my purchase?....  Then he found out his wife had put it aside so that he would get it for Christmas....

 

I have had many crazy situations in the lead up to Christmas

Message 183 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

yes, the first thing I ask is "is it possible someone picked up the package for you?"  I used to work for a phone company and one time I had a customer who was asking where their new phone was- I saw it said delivered- while on the phone I had them walk around the house and it was tossed into the bushes by Fed Ex-apparently they couldn't open the gate and tossed it over the fence!!..I've seen Canpar drop my tv set marked VERY FRAGILE from the back of the truck to the ground....so I'm glad to hear Canada Post is doing better....The reason I stopped shipping to Brazil was-every single package was refunded only to find out months later that it arrived, at least Canada Post covered those claims due to the time it should have been delivered- those packages were tracked but at that time Canada Post still didn't start a claim until 45 days elapsed. 

Message 184 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Well, I read through yesterdays session as I had forgotten about it.

Quite the little game of dodge ball, non-answer, deflect, obfuscation Raphael plays.

At the end of the day, Raphael wants us to phone eBay about every defect and argue the point with them. That is not helpful. So, every problem that eBay deliberately creates, we are to phone and argue?

Here is a thought. Do not create the problem,.

In an hour long session, Raphael posted four (4) times. Sounds a lot like lip service to me.

Cumos asked very good questions and received very poor answers.
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Message 185 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

My conclusion.

 

 

If you do it right and take careful steps it will not become a defect.... and if it does  one should ask why

 

Not all defects will be eBay's mistake in application of the rules..

 

 

That neutral feedback was over a year ago....

 

New York City was not a defect.

 

It is important not to get caught up in situations where it becomes a defect...

 

Make adjustments if at all possible...

 

and then..sometimes things are outside of one's control.

 

We have an adjustment period as does eBay.

 

It is not going to be easy...

 

Perhaps ... knowing what not to do will be an important part of adjusting to this defect challenge

 

 

Message 186 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Cumos, that is all well and good, except, why are we being forced to jump through "should, shouldn't, dunno, when you call dispute resolution" without clear policies?

eBay is quick to slap and suspend with their policies, then, ask what they are and the answer is Raphael's game of dodge and non-answer.

I get it, minimize any wrong doing, but, they will not tell me what that is. Ask and I get a stack of flap-jack answers "flip flip flip flip" just like you got yesterday.

Hopefully they are sitting back, behind the curtain, pulling their levers w/o telling us what is happening and they will fix some of this.

How much effect will any of this have on me? Probably none except that the defects will be clearer and more frustrating.
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Message 187 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Mr E....

you might be surprised, I looked at your feedback and you are under the range for 3 month reviews so everything in 12 months will count.  You are showing 4 defects which look like they won't clear off by August so already you are generating a defect percentage.  Come August, how that affects us, well I hate to think about it.... 

Message 188 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse


@mr.elmwood wrote:
Cumos, that is all well and good, except, why are we being forced to jump through "should, shouldn't, dunno, when you call dispute resolution" without clear policies?

eBay is quick to slap and suspend with their policies, then, ask what they are and the answer is Raphael's game of dodge and non-answer.

I get it, minimize any wrong doing, but, they will not tell me what that is. Ask and I get a stack of flap-jack answers "flip flip flip flip" just like you got yesterday.

Hopefully they are sitting back, behind the curtain, pulling their levers w/o telling us what is happening and they will fix some of this.

How much effect will any of this have on me? Probably none except that the defects will be clearer and more frustrating.

I have had a decrease in the number of sales to the U.S. lately.  Since all of the INR cases I received in the last 30 days were for U.S. sales I assume I am no longer considered a "best match" for buyers there and thus my listings are not being shown to them as often in search.  All because of perceived "defects".

Message 189 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Western,

not true, it depends on how someone searches for an item, if it's by more recent listings, yours will show up first if you are the latest,

if it's by shipping lowest , or highest then that will depend on your price and shipping for each area.  If it's by distance and you are nearest you will be on top.  Personally I always search by newly listed only because my store defaults to that so I can see what I have currently listed.  

Message 190 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

I looked at my dashboard, I am well above standard. I am well below the 5%. Even being below standard means very little. I was theer a couple years ago. I would get two emails a month.

One stated that I was improving, doing well, and keep up the good work.

The second was that I was below standard and that I should try to improve, try to do well, and try to do good work.

I would get these, every month, a couple days apart.

Any conversation, with eBay, about anything, was a litany of "You don't know so we won't tell you." Any attempt at following their policies was met with a decision in direct opposition to their written policies followed by "Well, you shoulda known to do different".

I should do the opposite of policy, based on what you won't tell me?

What difference does having a defect % mean? eBay wants everyone to have one. I will never do business with someone who is "perfect" because perfect cannot exist.

I have a lot more than four. What you are not seeing, and is none of your business, is how many sales I have had and what the defects are. You are also not seeing all the ones that have dropped off in the last month. You are not seeing how my % is trending.
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Message 191 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Mr E

I was not trying to pry into your private affairs, I was only pointing out that this will adversely affect every seller regardless of how well they perform, how good they treat their customers and how much they adhere to policy.

Message 192 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

This is where I disagree. It will NOT adversely affect sellers. They have moved the bar so that instead of a few defects, in one area causing a problem, they have given us a pool to work with. They have also removed some defects.

The cumulative pool is far larger than a localized grouping in, say, DSR.

What they are providing, is greater clarity of what is being counted. Before, no-one could tell. Perhaps, ignorance is bliss. Now, they are allowing all the micro-managers to stay up nights analyzing every tiny detail.

I am not going to do that.

I am above standard and will stay there. I will never have TRS, so, I do not care.

As Cumos alludes to, if you continue to hold yourself to high selling standards, none of this means anything and you have nothing to be concerned with.

If you choose to micro-manage, well, this is the programme for you! There is plenty of detail to work with. You get to micro-analyse so much!

What does all of this "detail" mean to me, end of the day, close the door, go have a beer? Nothing.

Tell ya what Isis, you worry for me because I am not going to do that.
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Message 193 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

I am missing a post? Something I said? I responded to post #192 in a friendly sort of spirit of discussion. Looks like I must have said something wrong. No idea what it was. sigh
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Message 194 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Mr E...LOL...should my ears be burning...LOL

Message 195 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse


@isis1313 wrote:

Western,

not true, it depends on how someone searches for an item, if it's by more recent listings, yours will show up first if you are the latest,

if it's by shipping lowest , or highest then that will depend on your price and shipping for each area.  If it's by distance and you are nearest you will be on top.  Personally I always search by newly listed only because my store defaults to that so I can see what I have currently listed.  


True, but not all buyers know that they can select another search besides Best Match.  If they do use Best Match then defects will definitely affect whether or not your listings will be shown to the buyers.  Raphael said it himself in post #19 on last week's weekly board hour.

 

RE: Defect Clarification

 

 

Message 196 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse


@isis1313 wrote:

Mr E...LOL...should my ears be burning...LOL


Well, from the point of view that I referred to what you said, and mentioned yer delicate name, yes.

 

From the point of view that I was derogatory, absolutely not. Just a give and take in the spirit of discussion.

 

I am the poster boy for slapped and suspended.

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Message 197 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse


@westernstargifts wrote:

@isis1313 wrote:

Western,

not true, it depends on how someone searches for an item, if it's by more recent listings, yours will show up first if you are the latest,

if it's by shipping lowest , or highest then that will depend on your price and shipping for each area.  If it's by distance and you are nearest you will be on top.  Personally I always search by newly listed only because my store defaults to that so I can see what I have currently listed.  


True, but not all buyers know that they can select another search besides Best Match.  If they do use Best Match then defects will definitely affect whether or not your listings will be shown to the buyers.  Raphael said it himself in post #19 on last week's weekly board hour.

 

RE: Defect Clarification

 

 


You don't actually believe that drivel? Look how Raphael answered the question!

 

I have no doubt that a Seller's "defect rate" is on the list of factors used in the Best Match algorithm. Right there on the list with the other 287 things eBay has suggested might, maybe, under certain condition, possibly be of some importance to the ranking........

 

I wonder it it comes before or after.

 

Number of views

Number of Watchers

Price

Free Shipping

Location

Previous Sales History

Handling Time

Keywords Used

Item Specifics Used

Return Policy

Shipping Service Offered

 

Note that none of the above are directly related to Seller Performance ratings, they are all based on WHAT IS MORE LIKELY TO SELL and buyers are not even privy to defect rates so they have essentially no influence on buying decisions.

 

If all things are equal between two similar items the Seller with fewer defects may be a few lines higher up on the page but that's about it.

 

 

 

 



"What else could I do? I had no trade so I became a peddler" - Lazarus Greenberg 1915
- answering Trolls is voluntary, my policy is not to participate.
Message 198 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

"with the other 287 things"

 


Horkin' snorkin' laughter! Along with, maybe buyers took the day off.

 

My focus is: keywords, pictures, pricing.

 

eBay is as consistent as the shifting sands of Shilo. Expect the unexpected.

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Message 199 of 219
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Defect rate - from bad to worse

Sounds like ebay added this "defect" thing to discourage sellers from cancelling transactions to get their final value fees back. A seller has the right to cancel a transaction if needed without being penalized for it. This is ridiculous to say the least. Do you get a defect for mutually cancelling a transaction at a buyers request? Do you get a defect if you file an unpaid item dispute? Still trying to figure this defect thing out.

Message 200 of 219
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