posted on April 23, 2001 03:28:39 PM
Perhaps this is the norm? The last three auctions I've won the sellers did not notify me that my payment had been rec'd (I always use paypal and pay the same or next day) or that my item was shipped or will be shipped.
At the most I'd like to receive an email stating "item shipped".
Perhaps I'm being a bit uptight since I'm usually a seller and always notify my winning bidders that I've rec'd their payment and tell them when the item was shipped.
Hmm....maybe I'm working myself too hard and shouldn't bother emailing people about the status of their items?
As a seller I email all my customers (1) when I receive their payment and (2) when their item ships.
I've purchased some things lately and I think about one out of a dozen sellers emailed me to let me know the status of my payment/shipment. Now, I don't expect all sellers to run their businesses like I do, but when I email asking if they can at least acknowledge my payment, I would like an answer. Most of the sellers I dealt with did not even answer any of my emails after the auction had ended. I still left positives for every transaction because I was pleased with the items, but it makes me wonder if that is how all the new sellers are running their businesses.
posted on April 23, 2001 03:37:28 PM
I had a bidder use BIN during the middle of the night. The next day I had five emails from them asking me why I didn't email them right away!
As a seller I let people know when their payment was received and give them the ship date. It keeps me organized and earns me good feedback.
posted on April 23, 2001 03:38:00 PM
That has happened to me too, that and buyers who don't respond but just send payment( just about the time I'm writing them off as a deadbeat) make me nuts. Even a one or two word email would be fine. I guess if I send someone something and don't hear they got it or get feedback, I'm just glad for no problems. Especially after the horror stories here!!
Maria
posted on April 23, 2001 03:38:05 PM
It is pretty normal for the person to not email you when receiving payment, then just shipping the item, then they wait until you leave feedback before they leave their feedback. About the only way I know they got my payment is that I see the check on my account statement, because every body is holding checks for 10-14 days, then they take a few more days to ship it. I keep wondering why nobody gives me a tracking number, and it is because they are sometimes waiting 20 days to ship.
Buyers don't always send an email because they see leaving feedback as notice.
I've been using Ebay since 1998!
posted on April 23, 2001 03:44:42 PM
I leave feedback as soon as ship, sometimes just before and I ship within 48 hours of getting the payment. I don't email a customer unless they email me to ask and then I will always reply. I didn't realise it was necessary to email a buyer after payment arrives and/or when you ship, I always thought that leaving feedback covered that, seems maybe I'm doing it wrong?
posted on April 23, 2001 04:09:26 PM
I try to notify upon receipt of check or money order (& indicate shipment in the same mail) as there are lots of variables to that...not upon receipt of paypal.
posted on April 23, 2001 04:24:22 PM
I include a line in my EOA that asks them that if want to be notified when payment arrive to respond to my EOA. If they don't reply to it then i usually don't say anything about their payment arriving. Sometimes i do though. If they use paypal or billpoint i let them know i got their payment and when i'm shipping.
This Sig File Has Been Censored By Steven Richards And The Right To Censor!!
posted on April 23, 2001 04:55:57 PM
Thanks for the helpful comments.
I suppose I'm just a bit of a perfectionist. I still plan on continiung my habit of emailing winning bidders about pymnt rec'd and item shipped. Even though lately I haven't gotten much feedback from them.
As for leaving feedback for the sellers who never gave me the time for an email, I haven't bothered. It may be silly but I consider the whole process of the sale and receiving the item to be transaction related.
posted on April 23, 2001 05:09:52 PM
I wouldn't get worried if the seller doesn't email every step of the way. As long as the seller ships within a reasonable amount of time from when payment was sent, the item is as described and arrives safely, I would consider the transaction a good one and leave appropiate feedback.
If it were important enough to me that I get emails at every step I would email the seller before I bid and ask if he would do this for me.
posted on April 23, 2001 05:24:49 PM
As a seller I send an email when I ship.
I don't email when payment comes in, I don't feel it is necessary.
Because I don't hold checks for clearence unless they are over 100.00 and I would hold it for 7 days.
I leave feedback for every buyer who emails me to tell me the item arrived and they are pleased, If they decide to leave me feedback then I just got a bonus!
I also feel if a buyer emails you with a request to email them when there payment arrives you should honor it.
posted on April 23, 2001 05:41:51 PM
I'm guilty of not emailing buyers to let them know when their payments arrive. I do realize that it would be polite to do and on really big ticket items or if someone sends cash then I do. There just aren't enough hours in the day to do all of this. If someone asks me to, I'd be glad to do it.
I normally mail everything within 24-48 hrs upon recieving pymt. Even checks unless the item is $20+. My buyers seem happy with it.
I think it is different if you are waiting a long time to mail or something. :0)
posted on April 23, 2001 06:00:37 PM
I have found, more often than not, that customer service ends at the exact moment my payment is received by the seller.
minon9 Fight the good fight!
[ edited by sandvet on Apr 23, 2001 06:03 PM ]
posted on April 23, 2001 06:05:01 PM
I agree with tomwiii. I send one "payment received/good shipped" e-mail and include the DC tracking number where applicable. The template is already set up and takes me less than 30 seconds to do. I have never had a buyer e-mail me and ask the status of their package.
I wish other sellers would do the same instead of leaving me to wonder if payment was received or if they have shipped. Is common courtesy not that common anymore?
posted on April 23, 2001 06:35:29 PM
When I receive a PP payment, I email the buyer know right to thank them, also to let them know that item will be shipped within a couple of days and that I will be posting feedback.
When I receive snail mail payments, I just send a quick thank you, and that item will be sent within the next couple of days. I also go in and post feedback at the same time. I never ever say "item will be shipped tomorrow" or set my self up in case something happens. After my car accident on the way to the PO, I learned......Bidders probably thought I was making up some lame story, but it was true....
posted on April 23, 2001 08:11:10 PM
I'm guilty. My paramount priority is to get those purchases into the mail as soon as I can, often same-day. I neatly organize my notes....and then next thing I know, a day or two goes by and I haven't followed up. I need to get into a system of doing my follow-up email first thing every morning or something. I tend to use my computer time to list new items.
I'm also slower than I used to be about leaving FB. I always do, but I batch and do it once or twice a week now. It's mostly a factor of running more auctions than I used to.
I'm also getting lots and lots of "no reply" buyers who just send the money without answering email. One upside of being too busy is that I'm less crazed about the whole thing, and find that 90% of the time, payment shows up, even if I haven't gotten around to sending a lot of reminder emails.
posted on April 23, 2001 09:29:34 PM
I always e-mail buyers to let them know that I received payment and when I'll ship the item. My customers seem to appreciate the info...and it does cover the rare time when something happens to the mail...I've found that more communication is always better than less! However...had one customer recently who e-mailed me saying she had sent payment and specifically asked me NOT to respond to her e-mail NOR let me know when i shipped...she said she'd let me know if there was a problem! That was a "first" for me and, even though she asked to NOT be notified, I still feel a little twinge that I've "fallen down on the job."
posted on April 23, 2001 11:51:42 PM
As a buyer its nice to get notification, but the only time it really make a difference to me is if the TOS states that the seller holds checks. In that case I really do appreciate knowing that my check arrived instead of waiting 2 to 3 weeks before realizing that there is a problem.
posted on April 24, 2001 12:09:22 AM
As a seller I do it only on request because most of my items are in the $10-30 range. I think you'll find resistance to adding more steps to the process strongest among sellers with higher volume, cheaper, lower-margin items. It's easier to do with more expensive and fewer items, and I would probably do it for those. One excpetion: I always do acknowledgements for payments arriving in the mail from outside the U.S.
posted on April 24, 2001 03:16:03 AM
In the past 6 months I have made it a point to email the buyer and let them know payment has arrived and that I will be shipping in 2 Business days(gives me a little extra time in shipping)
I simply find their end of auction response email(if they did respond) in my filing cabinet/folder hit reply and then click on one of my signature files I have specifically set up with a form 'payment recieved' note. Hit 'Send'. It takes seconds.
I've noticed the feedback I've received from buyers has increased - nearly 95% leave it now versus 75% from this time last year. Of course I post feedback for them the day I ship(Side note: I have never had a problem posting feedback for the buyer first and then have them turn 'ugly' later)
Doing this has also slowed down the number of "Where's my package emails" to almost nil. Not bad for running nearly 200 auctions a month. Makes record keeping easier, I think.
Wanted to add, I've made about 20 purchases in the past 2 months and only 5 sellers let me know payment was received - be it PayPal or personal check. Most of the sellers did ship fast so I got the package in a timely manner. 1 never did answer my emails after 30 days - he just shipped the package the day I emailed him asking what was up - I guess his answer was on the post mark.
posted on April 24, 2001 04:20:28 AM
I always notify my buyers both when their payment is received and when their item ships. Granted, I don't run hundreds of auctions at one time, but I think that if you can't keep up with customer service, it's time to re-evaluate and either cut down the number of auctions or get some help with the work involved.
posted on April 24, 2001 04:21:20 AM
No offence intended to anyone, but on $9.99 items I am not about to send extra emails that are not needed to complete the auction. If buyers expecting emails at every single jucture of the sale becomes the norm, I will stop selling anything for less than $25.00 on ebay.
That being said, people that buy stuff from me that goes for over $100 DO get these emails.
You can only provide a certain level of "customer service" on a $10 item. Prompt shipping, good packaging, and posting feedback is about as much as I want to do on a $10 sale. I don't work for $2.00 an hour.
You should add this to your TOS...If this item sells for under $25, communication is not included. Or maybe you could charge an extra fee for it, for those of us who like to pamper ourselves.
Why would I want to do that? I provide MORE than enough communication for the sale to be completed, and the customer to get his/her merchandise in a timely manner. Why oh Why do buyers come in here wanting to make doing a $10 sale more complicated than it has to be? Doesn't anyone see that the profit on a $10 item doesn't leave $ for spending a lot of time on frivolous emails.
The obvious flip side to this is including the following in a TOS:
Due to buyer requests, I require 6 emails to complete this sale. If you don't want to spend an hour answering emails, don't bid.
I'll bet THAT would turn bidders off on $10 items.
FYI, I am a seller and I deal exclusively in items that sell under $25 dollars. I keep my buyers informed and extremely happy because of it. I use inexpensive software to send my emails in bulk. Touch of a button. Oh, I'm worn slap out from treating my customers with the respect they deserve!
Regardless of time or ability, I certainly don't think that a seller should limit the amount of communication a/k/a customer service based on the amount of a sale.
Your implication is that you do not provide frivolous customer service on a low end items.
Do you shop at Wal-mart? Don't you expect the same service when you purchase a pack of gum as when you purchase something pricier?
posted on April 24, 2001 05:11:56 AM
I sell a lot of under $10 items & mercifully have a program which will send a notice w/the click of a button, so it's only a few seconds to let a customer know payment has been received & the item shipped.
Other, perhaps, don't have that luxury.
One reason I do let buyers know is I often see complaints how the buyer doesn't communicate..they don't respond w/their addresses...they don't let me know the item has arrived...they don't let me know their payment has been delayed...so I take a few seconds to keep the communication open on my side.
IF you don't send notices & you aren't getting any complaints from customers, then your process is working for you. If you are getting emails asking about when items were shipped, you might want to "consider" changing your approach.
BTW, some seem to place some kind of "stigma" on those who sell under $10 items. The assumption seems to be you can't make money on it. I can assure you that isn't the case.
Granted we may not be making $50, $60, $70 on each sale, but then again, we didn't pay $30, $40, $50 for it either.
A good volume combined with a good profit built in can be quite lucrative.
>Do you shop at Wal-mart? Don't you expect the same service when you purchase a pack of gum as when purchase something pricier?
Yes, I shop wal-mart. I bought a new TV the other day, and spent 30 minutes talking to the Sales Clerk about the warrenty, about where it would have to go if it goes on the blink, etc. Do you think I would spend 30 minutes over a pack of gum? Do you think Wal-mart would make a *profit* if I used up 30 minutes of one of their employee's time over a pack of gum?
>Should it matter at all how much you spend?
Gee... I wouldn't think you would have to ask a question like this. It ALWAYS matters what you spend. (Have you ever heard the old saying "You get what you pay for"?)
The real point here is what is required to complete the sale... Let 'em know where to send the payment, and how much to send. Post feedback. Beyond that, Tell me (please) what is really needed to complete the sale?
>Your implication is that you do not provide frivolous customer service on a low end items.
No I don't, not on ebay, OR in real life. When someone walks in my shop, I will be polite, and spend a certain amount of time with them, but if I see it going nowhere, I cut it short (politely if possible, rudely if they won't take a hint). I am too busy to let people waste hours of my time. (my "shop labor rate" is $50.00 / hr.) A walk in customer that wants to buy something for $10 isn't going to get an hour of my time along with his purchase.
Maybe part of the reason we see things a little differently is the difference in the items we sell, and our over head expences.
Eventer:
>BTW, some seem to place some kind of "stigma" on those who sell under $10 items. The assumption seems to be you can't make money on it.
It depends on your overhead. In my case, I can't make enough to justify it. I sell mostly used parts for outboard motors, and figure I have at least 15 to 20 minutes in each sale (Pictures, Listings, Emails, etc.)
When I sell new stuff that I have serveral of, I can simply "relist" everytime an item sells, and the amount of time spent per item drops real quick. I can see where selling new merchandise for less than $10 a pop could be very profitable. (you can re-cycle the listing a bunch of times.)
If I tie up an hour in a ten dollar sale, I figure I gave the merchandise away.
>mercifully have a program which will send a notice w/the click of a button, so it's only a few seconds to let a customer know payment has been received & the item shipped
What program are you using for this? I am a firm beleiver in "Time is Money". It isn't that I am really opposed to sending "payment recieved" emails, I just can't justify spending time manualy typing them on small sales.
Oh, BTW, I knew I would get "flamed" over this, so everyone else feel free to jump in.
