posted on July 16, 2002 02:37:29 PM
This is the last time I buy from a powerseller!! The transactions almost always go like this:
-I pay for the item through Paypal or Billpoint
-The "powerseller" usually doesn't have the courtesy to confirm receipt of my payment. But no problem, I figure he'll ship it right away.
-2 weeks pass and still no package and no notice from the seller.
-So now I have to email the seller to see if he has shipped the item.
-No reply to my emails. Meanwhile, I'm getting increasingly pissed off.
-After the 3rd week, the package finally arrives.
I'm tired of the bad service from the "powersellers." Two powersellers actually overlooked my Paypal payments, requiring me to email them several times before they shipped my items. Out of the last 10 purchases I've made through powersellers, 6 have been headaches. Who needs the hassle? Unless it's something I just can't live without, I won't buy from a powerseller again.
That little "powerseller" ebay logo really means "bad service!"
posted on July 16, 2002 03:08:55 PM
A powerseller is just like any other seller.
I am a powerseller, which only means I sell $2000 a month or more on ebay.
I do not confirm payment unless asked to.
I DO let my winners know the day I mail the item.
I also leave feedback soon after mailing the item.
Just like all the other sellers or businesses in the world- Everyone runs their business their way.
When I am looking to buy an item on ebay -
I always come up with a question to ask the seller - if they never answer, I never bid. If they take the time to answer my sometimes silly question I will bid as I originally wanted to.
You might try the ask them a question first idea before you give up on all powersellers.
Prior to the new powerseller icon next to my ebay id - I never displayed the fact I was a powerseller. I felt that it was no one's business how much I sell in a month.
Does eBay give you the option on the icon next to your feedback, or is it mandatory, meaning they automatically put it there?
I know you can 'opt out' of the logo in your auction ad.
I've run into a few 'bad' powersellers before... no communications, just 'bad' customer service, but then again, I've bought from small time sellers who were just as bad with their own customer service.
posted on July 16, 2002 03:29:21 PM
Interesting. That sounds exactly like a situation that I'm currently experiencing. Except the guy I'm dealing with isn't a Power Seller. And I haven't received my package yet. Otherwise...
posted on July 16, 2002 04:26:02 PM
I am a powerseller and do not display the icon as it is optional.
I answer every single email, send notice of payment received immediately and ship the same or next day at the latest. The buyer receives a ship notice as well as an invoice with every purchase. And I am still shipping upon receipt of Paypal even though my account is restricted and I do not have access to my funds. Customer satisfaction is my top priority.
posted on July 16, 2002 04:28:25 PM
NearTheSea - I believe you can opt out of the powerseller icon. I read that here on the board when it first started. I thought I would leave it and see if I can tell if it makes any difference. BUT honestly, the summer is not the time to tell if anything makes a difference.
I personally think feedback records say alot. Not the number of negs but the unrated feedback. The repeat buyers. I currently have about 1200 feedback from repeat buyers. I believe if a seller has customers that come back time after time - that's a good seller. Just my opinion!
posted on July 16, 2002 06:56:20 PM
Gee, this was a nice thread to stumble across.
I'm a power seller, and customer service is my top priority. If you e-mail me, you will get an answer immediately if I'm online (and I'm online 15+ hours a day), or no later than 8 hours later (I do everything myself, and I do have to sleep sometime!).
When your payment arrives, I send you an e-mail to let you know. I give you the shipping date, which is the next business day 99% of the time. I also post positive feedback for you at that time.
My feedback is 4,139 unique, and 10,730 total. As you can see, many (if not most!) of my customers are repeat bidders. I only have 3 negs ... one from a lousy seller when I first started eBaying in 1998, one from a bidder who didn't understand how to use PayPal and blamed me for it, and another from a bidder who thought she was getting something else and negged me without even bothering to e-mail. Both of these transactions were caused by lack of communication on the buyers' parts, and both ended up on positive notes.
Not all power sellers are "bad". Sure, some are ... just as some regular sellers leave a lot to be desired, as well.
I do display the logo because ... well, because "I can". I work HARD to reach that $2,000 monthly figure (I sell $2 - $3 items, so it takes a lot of sales to reach $2,000!).
Besides, if the only power sellers displaying the logo are the "bad" sellers, there will just be more threads like this one popping up in the future.
posted on July 16, 2002 07:15:43 PM
I don't hate powersellers, but I wish they would not have that logo for them. It means diddle squat to me how much someone makes.
Remember most powersellers this is all they do and that is a full time job. Other smaller sellers that sell part time probably have a full time job also, but they don't get noticed for that.
I am a small seller probably $100.00 a week. I take my own pictures, edit them, upload them to AW, launch auctions, send WBN (I hope) wait for payments then Pack and ship and in between I email my buyers to tell them I received payment, when I will send item and leave feedback. I also work part time in retail.
Now before you feel sorry for me, I don't, and I enjoy what I do. I love to correspond with my buyers. I have met a lot of nice buyers. I am sure there are many like me. So hats off to these sellers. I wish that they had a logo for us.
posted on July 16, 2002 07:23:22 PM
For once I agree with saddam. This is an increasing problem with powersellers.
richierich,
Your post is a classic example of the powerseller problem. You state, "I do not confirm payment unless asked to." I hate to say it, but with small time sellers, you almost always get a "I received your payment e-mail." Since most powersellers don't do this, it is no wonder the bidders are getting turned off by the whole ebay experience. I am going to go out on a limb and say that you are averaging 2-3 negs a month the state "did not respond to e-mails" If you don't, congrats. But the majority of the powersellers I check out, this is very much a common theme. Even in positive feedbacks left.
The simple steps as a buyer I want my seller to do is,
1: Give me a personal e-mail at the end of auction. Never an automated WBN.
2: Give me an e-mail to let me know you get payment and when you expect to send the package.
3: E-mail me when the item is actually shipped. Do not say it will ship tomorrow. That statement says, I will get around to it, but if something happens, like an accident that prevents you from sending it out, I am still under the impression it has been sent.
posted on July 16, 2002 07:25:32 PMRemember most powersellers this is all they do and that is a full time job.
I personally know a couple of powersellers that also work at full time jobs during the day and they concentrate on ebay in the evenings. They are very good sellers.
When buying from a powerseller check the feedback and see if they are slow shippers and read any other complaints. This is the same as when buying from any seller. Also check how many auctions they have running at one time.
I know some powersellers that have worked their butts off and are proud to display the logo. They have earned it. To knock all powersellers because of a few is not fair.
posted on July 16, 2002 07:28:53 PM
Sounds like you enjoy being a victim so I don't know why you would stop buying from Power Sellers.
Three weeks for package to arrive is not so bad, at least not to the point where you have to whine and stomp your feet.
I buy a lot from Power Sellers and most are exceptional, and a few have taken a couple weeks to get package to me but I think that is still exceptional. At least not any different from the non-Power Sellers, overall.
posted on July 16, 2002 07:34:28 PM
saddamhussien, for a package to arrive from the US to Iraq in 3 weeks is quite good. You shouldn't be whining at all. What did you buy?
posted on July 16, 2002 09:28:27 PM
caffeitalia - You wrote "richierich,
Your post is a classic example of the powerseller problem. You state, "I do not confirm payment unless asked to." I hate to say it, but with small time sellers, you almost always get a "I received your payment e-mail." Since most powersellers don't do this, it is no wonder the bidders are getting turned off by the whole ebay experience. I am going to go out on a limb and say that you are averaging 2-3 negs a month the state "did not respond to e-mails" If you don't, congrats. But the majority of the powersellers I check out, this is very much a common theme. Even in positive feedbacks left."
I have NEVER had one complaint or comment from a buyer about not telling them I received the payment.
I have 3 negs, 8 neutrals, and 3861 total feedback. A rating of 2671.
I do not use automated emails. I personally send every winning notice.
I stated doing ebay and worked full time. It came to the point that I had to decide either I work full time or I continue to make my business grow. I opt to grow my business. I became a powerseller the next month. I have time to do whatever I want and run by business.
My point is that saddamhussien problem is not a powerseller problem BUT an individual seller's problem. The fact that this person is a powerseller is not the problem. The fact that seller does not run their business in a smart way is the problem.
posted on July 17, 2002 12:53:43 AM
"Three weeks for package to arrive is not so bad"
You've got to be kidding! This is the kind of seller I want to avoid! Sellers should always ship the item within 5 business days of payment and unless it's going media mail, the package should arrive in about a week (on average) from the shipping date.
I definitely have noticed a pattern of lousy service by power sellers and/or high volume sellers. I'm not saying all power sellers are bad, but there are enough of them that I won't buy from them anymore. Buying something on ebay should be not have to be a hassle.
Small sellers are more hungry and they seem much more concerned about their feedback ratings and I've found that they usually provide very good service.
BTW- I have 4 ebay seller id's with no negative or neutral feedbacks (850 total).
posted on July 17, 2002 01:00:29 AM
"Small sellers are more hungry and they seem much more concerned about their feedback ratings and I've found that they usually provide very good service."
Trust me I am hungry! I am proud of my feedback rating! And I do my best to give excellent customer service!
My question is - if the icon is not displayed and they don't use the big logo in the ad - do you really know if they are a powerseller? Do you check out and add up they past 30 days of sales? Or are you assuming that someone with a high feedback number is a powerseller?
Again, I'm not saying all power sellers are bad. But 6 of the last 10 transactions I've had with power sellers were headaches. They were weren't crooks or frauds, they just provided very poor service. They don't seem able to properly handle the large volume of business they get.
posted on July 17, 2002 05:12:21 AMI Hate Powersellers!!
I have a tendency to steer clear of anyone who uses the word hate so easily but...
I'm a PowerSeller. BFD. I have 99.5% +FB, list from 50 to 100 auctions at any given time and ship within 48 hours of receipt of payment. Add at least 30% to my rating if you count repeat customers. I send an automated WBN, a reminder after 5 days, & a thank you when payment is received stating item will be shippied priority mail in the AM. In all honesty, if I get hit by a bus, who really cares about your item or what feedback you leave? System works for me, no complaints about communication.
You see, caffeitalia, I am not a babysitter.
You do not need me to tell you you've won. That's yourresponsibility. eBay sends you an e-mail as well. My auctions all state how to pay but then an automated EOA is sent (for the bidders who didn't read!). When I get money, I e-mail pmt has been received & item will ship the next day. (PERSONAL thank you e-mail). I then post feedback.
Do you really need me to send you (1)a personal EOA (all info is in the auction initially as well as in the wbn), (2)a reminder to pay, (3)got your payment & (4) now I'm shipping e-mails? You need four e-mails from me regarding one auction? No way your package is getting shipped as quickly. Sorry, bidders should not need that much hand holding.
Do you want to be my friend or do you want what you won?
hmmm... maybe I'm missing out on an entire market...
new auction:
I will e-mail you every day for one month.
posted on July 17, 2002 07:27:26 AM
"You've got to be kidding! This is the kind of seller I want to avoid! Sellers should always ship the item within 5 business days of payment and unless it's going media mail, the package should arrive in about a week (on average) from the shipping date."
You can avoid any type of seller you want. I'm not kidding, I'm a major buyer on ebay and I don't mind waiting three weeks for an it to arrive. If I needed it faster I'd tell the seller I need it right away and pay Express shipping.
Many buyers are spoiled. You want things at the lowest price but you expect the best service. That is unrealistic. It costs a lot of money to provide top knotch service. Small sellers can often do it because they do it all themselves and don't pay someone, and they have lower overhead, not a luxury all Power Sellers have.
You are manipulative! "You should...do this; You should do...that," You know what, you should pay the seller more money and the seller just might cater to you.
posted on July 17, 2002 07:40:01 AM
Pretty much the same thread rehashed every couple weeks. I have to laugh. As a powerseller, I too try my darndest to offer supurb customer service but I would rather people like Saddam*ss to stear clear of my auctions. I sell about 200-300 auctions a week now and every morning wake up to people who can't read an email asking for my address, what their total is, what forms of payment, etc.... ALL OF WHICH WERE EXPLAINED IN THE AUCTION AND THE EMAIL I SENT. But you just smile and reply with their information they wanted and let them pretend that it was your fault they couldn't read.
What I don't understand is how people can buy from let's say JCPenny catalog or any other catalog for that matter and it takes them eons to get the product or they find out that the product isn't in stock and they still keep buying from them. But Oh No, we didn't get it shipped the same day payment arrived and they didn't get it two days after they sent payment and we are the bad guys, give me a break.
As quickdraw29 says, they want cheap prices and 100% supurb service. Give me a break. eBay customers are spoiled and that is ok but they need to have some patience. Things happen in peoples lives... problems arise that take your focus away from customers for a couple days sometimes and they have to send 10 emails a day.
Oh well, must be one of those days.
posted on July 17, 2002 09:03:26 AM
I'm not in the PowerSeller catagory (yet) and ship approx 50 pkgs a week. I too am beseiged by the buyers that cannot read the TOS.
I can only sympathize with those of you that ship in greater quantities. I my auctions I do state to please allow 7 to 10 days after auction close to allow for processing & shipping. Most items are shipped within 24 hours of receipt of payment. The only exception is to those buyers whos payment takes 3 weeks (or longer) to be received. It seems that the shipping response time for those purchases are directly related to the delay in receiving payment. (I'm considering adding that statement in my TOS).
Normally I do acknowledge receipt of payment & send notification of shipment. (My notification of shipment contains the statement "Upon receipt of your feedback, I will post your feedback." It seems to work for me.
I have received emails from Ebayers telling me they don't like the my TOS. My first action for them is to add them to the "banned bidder list". I don't need the hassle. Then I will respond to their email stating that the products I am selling are on MY TERMS, not theirs and they don't have to worry about buying from me because I won't accept bids from them. Then I tactfully explain that when they buy from their local stores they don't have the option to dictate their terms of purchase.
A fellow who once worked for me in the oilfield trucking business told me that I had a gift for tact. Them explained the his understanding of the term "tact" ment, "Telling a person to go to hell & have him be
greatful to go on his way".
posted on July 17, 2002 09:21:19 AM
This is an interesting thread. I actually lead a double life doing full time ebay sales for someone else (as a Powerseller) and part time for myself (as a non Powerseller). My own stuff is usually antiques, one of a kind stuff that goes for big $$$.
My "job" generally offers widgets that are available from many sellers on eBay. From the Powerseller side, I realize that my widgets are the same as the next guys and the only thing that's going to make my widgets sell is something extra. For me, that's great pictures, well written descriptions and extraordinary customer service.
As a rule, I don't acknowledge receipt of payment directly. When payment is received, feedback is posted (I don't accept personal checks but sometimes get them anyway - I don't hold them and have never had a bouncer). I do ship all items the same or next business day and use UPS software which generates an email confirming shipping and providing the tracking number.
We are closed on weekends and only answer emails between 9 and 5 - and this is clearly stated in our item descriptions. But all emails are answered (emails received over the weekend are answered on Monday morning with a reply that begins with an explanation that the office was closed when the email was received).
With over 1000 feedbacks there have only been something like 3 negs, Some silly and some legit. Mistakes happen.
I could care less whether I'm doing business under a Powerseller logo or not. I just don't like to see all Powersellers painted with the same brush. The law of averages dictates that when you have a certain number of Powersellers, chances are there are bound to be bad apples in the bunch. But the same holds true for non-Powersellers. An awful lot of sellers are on eBay, imagine the bad apple possibilities...........
posted on July 17, 2002 09:48:28 AM
saddamhussien, giving us your selling record means nothing. Some people can be good sellers and really lousy buyers.
To paint all powersellers as bad because of a few experiences that did not live up to your expectations is wrong. Keep buying from the "little guy" and sooner or later, law of averages, you will start to have problems with them also.
posted on July 17, 2002 11:19:39 AM
If you are Taking 3 weeks to get a Package to a Customer, after payment (Unless some media mail has been agreed to) get Ready to GIVE out a LOT of refunds. I Know this, because I have Buyers after 3 Days emailing me ,"Where are My Items??" (Granted the "Other" Extreme). Three weeks is way to long, and if a seller is doing that , they should cut back or look for something else to do.
posted on July 17, 2002 11:24:21 AM
I SEND AN EOA WITHIN MINUTES. IT STATES, SEND ME YOUR ADDRESS. WITH SOME FLOWERS PLANTED AROUND IT. THAT ADDRESS IS WHAT I WANT. I SEND THE SHIPPING RATE RIGHT BACK. I ONLY ASK ONE FAVOR IN THE EOA PAY PAY PAL OR MONEY ORDER. DING! PAY PAL...MORE$$. IF THEY ARE PAY PAL BUYERS,,,RIGHT IN THE PAY PAL NOTICE. THANK YOU. IT'S ON THE WAAAAAAAY. IF THEY SEND A MONEY ORDER,,,,,,HA! WHO KNOWS WHEN IT WILL SHOW UP. WITH MANY SALES...THERE IS NO WAY I AM GONNA KEEP TRACK OF THAT. I SEND IT AND THAT'S IT. MY EOA ALSO SAYS I RETURN YOUR FEED BACK LIKE ZAP!
VENT,,,,,DON'T YA LOVE THE ADDRESSES:
HI MY NAME IS MERRY DUH 123 N. MAIN ST. #G ANYTOWN, NEW WHATEVER, 98456.
THAT'S NO ADDRESS THAT'S A SENTENCE. GREAT MAILING LABEL.
I WON! HOW MUCH IS SHIPPING? TO WHERE YOU FOOL.
AND,,,,,,THE CHECK. WITH NOTHING ELSE. THEY ARE MY ONLY CUSTOMER.
OH, WHERE IS MY ITEM? ITEM, E BAY PUT THIS NON DESCRIPT THOUGHT IN THERE MIND. AAAAAAA!!!!!!
ZOOMIN,,,,,,,,,WHEN YOU SAY BUDWEISER, YOU'VE SAID IT ALL. AND YOU CERTAINLY DO. HATS OFF TO YOU. PRETTY MUCH WRAPS UP MY THINKING. THE NON READERS. AAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!
posted on July 17, 2002 12:18:02 PM
If someone mails a check, that's four days right there, plus ten days for check to clear. Add a weekend and you're up to 16 days! If you wait a few more days because you mail big packages with big, and small with small, you're up to 19 days. Mail it media mail and add ten more days. 29 days, and the seller gets blamed for slow shipping?
posted on July 18, 2002 08:15:17 AM
Quickdraw 29 and alwaysfun you hit the nail right on the head. A good majority of ebay buyers do not read the TOS that are in an auction. They tend to dictate what you should be doing. These are the people that Paypal you the money at 5pm on a Friday and still expect you to ship their package so they can receive it on Monday morning. Get real. Three weeks is perhaps a tad long to wait but it is still reasonable.
Do these people scream to JC Penney or Taget when they purchase from a company's website and wait 2 weeks before their products arrive. I dont think so.
With any product that is sold on TV via an informercial people can expect to wait 4-6 sometimes 6-8 weeks before receiving their product. Do these people scream to Ron Popiel about not receiving their pocket fisherman the next day. Again I dont think?
Ebay buyers need to remember that purchasing off of ebay is mail order and mail order may take up to 3 weeks before they receive an item. If they want it sooner then they should start looking into transporter technology.
"An Army of One"
I love to correspond with my buyers. I have met a lot of nice buyers. I am sure there are many like me. So hats off to these sellers. I wish that they had a logo for us. 
It seems to work for me.