posted on April 26, 2001 08:32:41 AM
Re: getting a receipt
I include an invoice with every item that I mail out - listing the item(s), purchase price, S/H fees, date payment was received and date item was shipped.
I think the receipt issue is a totally different one than email notification to buyers - but I think its another piece to customer service that buyers do appreciate.
posted on April 26, 2001 08:40:59 AM
Mrpotatoehead...your mother and mine must have been related! LOL
I used to tell my kids (oh those many years ago when they were young ) that if I had the ability to read minds like they obviously thought I did, they would be very sad indeed because they would be punished WAY more often than they were as I would be able to KNOW EVERY TIME they had been bad!
posted on April 26, 2001 09:00:47 AM
mrpotatohead and amy:
I don't understand the defensiveness of your posts. Where was it said what a Seller "ought" to do? Where was it inferred that those that fail to do so should change their practices to accomodate my preferences? I stated that I personally do not do repeat business with that Seller and the reasons therefor. *Shrugs*
My posts directed concerns and preferences from one Buyer's perspective & mindset (me!). I addressed the advantages of providing notices concerning payment/shipping. This could be as simple as a Seller just doing a simple click and provide an automated response regarding payment received/and anticpated shipping date directly from the auction management software they use, or from "My ebaY" page. Is that REALLY so difficult & time consuming?
Let's see, the Seller thinks that the Buyer should be the one running to them & take the time to email to request generally accepted business practices (even in light of automation)!?!? Hmm, wonder if that concept has worked well for others. I bet NOT! Whether online or RL, customer service IS customer service. Some provide and see the rewards. Others could give a flip. Ok. Thanks for the warning.
I wasn't addressing anyone in particular before- just a general comment based on many posts over a long period of time regarding this subject.
Defensive? Hardly. I keep reading posts from unhappy buyers because they are not getting the customer service they expect, and I offered a suggestion that might alleviate some of that unhappiness. If it's a bother to email a seller and make a request, the buyer doesn't have to do it.
If, as a buyer:
1) there is a level of customer service you feel is necessary...
2) you know that all sellers do not provide this level of service...
3) you choose not to verify that the seller you are considering buying from provides that level of service...
it appears to me that you are setting yourself up for disappointment somewhere down the line.
Given the fact that sellers are not going to change their ways to suit your needs when they are not aware of those needs, you have to decide whether it's more of a bother to ask the seller up front or be disappointed later.
As to sellers running their auctions according to
...generally accepted business practices
you have to be aware that not all sellers are businesses. Some are just people clearing out the garage, some are selling items from a family member's estate, some are doing it as a hobby, and some are doing it for... well, you get the picture. There are lots of different reasons that people sell on eBay, and many of them are not even remotely related to "running a business".
If buying from someone who operates according to generally accepted business practices is important to you, you might be better off shopping at brick and mortar stores, where you can be assured that they are indeed a business, but again, it's your choice.
edited to add...
mitzee, I had no idea amy's post would follow so closely on mine, and I assure you it is not an attempt to "gang up" on you over this.
[ edited by mrpotatoheadd on Apr 26, 2001 09:40 AM ]
posted on April 26, 2001 09:31:33 AM
Mitzee...I can't speak for Mrpotatohead but I can for me. You ask why I am so "defensive". I think your antenna needs a little tweaking as the signals it is recieving are a little jumbled . Like you, I am only giving my opinion...it is not defensive. Since it is my practice, and has been for about two years now, to send out emails when I recieve snail mail payments and when I ship there is no reason for me to be defensive. I am not taking any of this personally. But I still am able to look objectively at the situation being discussed and offer my opinion on the matter at hand.
You state that the sending of these emails are "generally accepted business practices" and ask WHY the buyer should have to request them. I think that the posts in this thread pretty much show that these practices are not "generally accepted". Since, as Mrpotatohead pointed out, every seller does it the way he sees as acceptable and since the seller does not have ESP, if it is important to the buyer to have this type of transaction contact then the buyer needs to contact the seller first to find out if he does send these type of emails. If the buyer chooses to forgo that question then the buyer takes his chances...its that simple.
I can tell you from my personal experience of not sending any of these types of emails for the first year I was on ebay and from then sending them for the past two years it seems to make no difference. My sales are the same, I have the same rate of returning customers, my feedback ratio hasn't changed...the sending of these emails or the lack of the same has had no bearing on my business at all.
posted on April 26, 2001 09:38:25 AM
I wouldn't bother with Payment Received e-mails unless you plan on holding a check for 10 days or the buyer requests it. If you ship within a day or two of receipt, then an item shipped e-mail is sufficient.
Outlook Express and Outlook provide a "Insert Signature" feature that you can use to paste specific messages into your e-mail. I used to do this for End of Auction, Payment Received, and Item Shipped messages until I switched over to AuctionTrakker.
