posted on January 14, 2009 11:31:38 PM new
WHY can't we see ALL the feedback buyers leave for us, including the star ratings? Suddenly I have a lower star rating for shipping costs, and I really want to know who left that. Since we can no longer "retaliate" for negs, it shouldn't matter if we know which sale we might have goofed on. I think that feeling in the dark about the ratings leaves me a bit paranoid.
_____________________
"Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from revolutionists and rebels - men and women who ***dared to dissent*** from accepted doctrine. As their heirs, ***may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion."*** --Eisenhower
posted on January 15, 2009 02:25:31 AM new
You don't have to "goof" on anything to get a lower rating on your stars. Your buyer could have been having a bad day and took it out on you. Who knows and we shouldn't care but it's hard not to when it can mean the lost of business for you.
But I do agree - there is no reason unless ebay thinks sellers will send angry emails to anyone that leaves bad feedback.
posted on January 15, 2009 04:33:14 AM new
You may not have goofed at all. As a matter of fact, the buyer may have left you a good rating in the star system feeling that you did give good service. Problem is, in eBay's eyes, if it isn't great, it's bad. Good = Bad in eBay's eyes. But for most everyone else, Good means Good.
Frankly, I wouldn't worry about it. There is really nothing you can do about it anyway. Just keep on giving great customer service and let the chips fall where they may.
posted on January 15, 2009 06:11:26 AM new
Roadsmith, since the stars "fall off" after a year, you'll have no way to determine who left you the bad stars. It could have happened a year ago. Last Friday, I was 4.99 all the way down. Now, I'm 4.9. I only care about the stars because of the discounts. There's really not much you can do.
posted on January 15, 2009 01:34:41 PM new
We all know the stars suck, one cranky or misinformed person and your goose is cooked.
As cblev, I am only interested in the discount. I managed to get 20% last month. This month, so far I will only qualify for 5%. I am not kissing any butts or changing my shipping practices. I offer good service at a reasonable price, all policies stated, etc. No change in policy from last month to this one.
So....how can you protect yourself from one month to the next?? You can't. It is a capricious and unfair system and we have no say in the decision making process.
posted on January 16, 2009 08:37:50 AM new
The way I see it is that bidders shouldn't be able to rate us on Shipping Costs to begin with. We are required to show our shipping rates, and if they bid on the auction, they agree to the terms... including shipping costs.
I think shipping costs are outrageous in general and the looming fee hike isn't going to make it better.
I understand how the DSR works, and I would never give someone less than 5 stars for it as long as I knew what the rate was before bidding. The only exception is obvious gouging. Example: I have purchased an item that was quoted at the Oversized Rate of $40.00, but then is dissassembled and shipped in a small box that cost them $10.00. In this case I would email them and ask them for a refund for the difference.
If ebay is going to have bidders rate sellers on shipping and handling, they might as well rate sellers on the final price of the auction too. Not that I'm trying to give them any ideas, but there really isn't much difference between rating sellers on shipping fees vs. rating sellers on the final price of the item. It is all there for someone to see before they bid. They control the bidding, not the seller.
posted on January 16, 2009 09:42:04 AM newbidders shouldn't be able to rate us on Shipping Costs
Do you really not get it yet? The cynical and sole purpose of DSRs was to strong-arm sellers into offering free shipping. The only way sellers can offer free shipping is by raising their prices. Higher prices = more revenue for eBay.
That's all it is and that's all it ever was. It's not about getting rid of fraudulent sellers; they were only a small percentage to begin with and the DSR program hasn't even canned some of them. eBay could give a rat's fart in a high wind what kind of customer service we're delivering. It's all about the fees.
I sell something for $17 and eBay gets about $3.00 in fees. It wasn't that long ago that my eBay fees were less than 10% of sales.
Wise up, people. There is no "should be," there is only what is.
fLufF
-- Jody Coyote earrings, free quick shipping and coupon discounts. With over 240 designs, they're the ideal stocking stuffer.
posted on January 16, 2009 02:20:57 PM new
I've emailed people I thought left me a crappy DSR because a rating suddenly dropped - oops, turned out they had given me all 5 stars, but a good rating from 30 days previously had probably dropped off.
I just had my feedback drop, and was going crazy trying to figure out why, I had not received any negatives - it's because I'm not listing as much, and many of my positives dropped off and aren't being replaced by the same number one year later.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Caroline
Caroline