valis2 | eBay updates

The rather bizarre frog interaction proved to be harmless; she's left postive feedback. Thank goodness.

However, I've just had a rather off-putting interaction with someone else. A customer bought thirty items out of my eBay store in one afternoon, which is pretty much unprecedented for me. I mean, I've had customers get to that many items before, but usually it's spread out over a few days. She waited for my auctions to end, and added more items. She just paid for everything today.

And then she sent me a message telling me she doesn't want two of the items and wants me to send her a Paypal refund. Um. I have already relisted one of the items. And even though Paypal will refund the Paypal fees, eBay will not refund me the final value fees and the listing fees.

I had been planning on insuring the package for free as a thank you for having such a large order, but I think I'm not going to. grah.

I'm just writing a note to her now and it's taking my entire will to not start a sentence "In the future, when you flake out, please don't pay me for the items first and then have me refund--No, wait, don't select items you don't really want."

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Has she ever sold anything or just bought on ebay? She probably doesn't know that you get hit with fees once she pays. Not that it's still not annoying.

Oh yes, she has plenty of fb, well over 1000. grah.

Are you sure eBay won't refund the fees? I've had them do that if I prove that I refunded the purchase price. But it's been a while, so I can't remember all the particulars. Maybe the rules have changed. And when dealing with a flake, insuring is a good idea. You can always deduct it on your taxes. Small comfort, but it's what I got.:)

Hmm. I'll have to investigate. *nodnod*

And yeah, I probably should insure, but damnit, grah! Now that eBay makes sellers insure out of their own pockets, it sucks.

You can't charge the customer for insurance anymore? We always made it an option, but we started having trouble with people not insuring delicate things (clocks, vases), and then saying they broke in shipping and we should give a refund since it was our fault for 'poor packaging'. Which was total BS, since M was an awesome packer. After a while, we started insuring everything, and suddenly stuff stopped breaking. It was like a postal miracle.:)

I always had insurance as optional, but now eBay has just changed the rules again, and you're not allowed to charge the customer for insurance. You have to provide it yourself. And since most of my packages are about $5 worth of stuff, it's just not worth it.

I actually am relieved about this, because I was sick of taking packages to the post office and having to go through the ridiculousness of getting insurance for a $2 item. No, really.

That's so weird. They're totally rigging the game on the customers. If you have to pay for the insurance, and they fix the shipping (which they do on most of the things I buy, like books and cds and stuff), that just means the sellers will up the opening bid and have to pay higher listing fees. They totally sacrifice the seller to please the buyer, but all it does is weaken the system.

It makes me very glad we don't do it anymore, even if means we have a cubic buttload of junk in the basement, and probably always will.*g*

ahhh!! Denis!

Yeah, there was apparently some sort of scam that kept getting run, where people would charge $78 for insurance or something. I don't know.

eBay is saying that it has always been the seller's responsibility to get the stuff to the buyer, so the insurance should be the seller's responsibility, too. I can't include insurance, though; my items are too low-cost, and lower shipping prices is the only way I can keep going.

Insurance is really to protect the Seller, so if it's a big order you should definitely insure it.

In the past, I've charge a "kill fee" to cover listing fees for items that people change their minds on. If you've already agreed to a refund, then it's too late to ask for a kill fee.

Yeah, I'm thinking I have to insure it. And she still hasn't replied to my email I sent to double check which ones she wants me to pull--her description of one of them was pretty bizarre and there's nothing exactly like that in the order. But of course she hasn't replied, and I really have only today or Friday to ship, and if I wait until Friday it will be past my handling time estimates. GRAH.

How is it that I am still learning lessons on eBay? This is crazy.

Just refund her cash minus the Ebay fees and explain that in the email.
And in future put in your listings that all sales are final! No tag-backs!
Or at least have a 25% cancellation fee. i.e.- $20 item is sold, and she wants to cancel - you keep $5

You're totally right--some policy revision is in order! Thanks so much, hon. *hugs*

*head. desk. head. desk.*

There's a reason I stay away from Ebay (as a seller) now... it's just too biased in favour of the buyers. Hard for sellers to get a fair shake, and idiot customers don't help.

Yay Etsy. I put my shop in vacation mode when I moved, but it's almost time to re-open.

It's pretty scary. I'm getting a little annoyed at the weird questions and the continual chipping away at the sellers' ability to do business there. :(

I mean, Etsy has its own issues, too, but jeepers.

I'd be more than a little annoyed, honestly. >.< It's getting kinda ridiculous.

EXACTLY. Etsy's not perfect, but it tends to be a better system for handcrafters. (If it only had as much exposure and certain auctioning abilities...)

Yeah, you're right about the handcrafted thing, but jeez, when will they understand about advertising? At least eBay understands that. *nodnod*

Etsy can't stay grass-roots forever, leaning on all of its vendors to advertise for them.

Yeeees.

I kinda worry, though, that if it grows too much it'll start clamping down on people and limiting sellers like Ebay does.

But you're right. It relies on its vendors to promote their own "shops", instead of promoting itself, as a whole, as an alternative to Ebay for certain categories.

Perhaps you should advertise a 'cancellation fee' that would dissuade people from flaking out?

Call it that, or an "administrative fee" (which is retail-ese for 'Pain in the ass fee')and see if that works.

I'm almost afraid to put it in people's heads that they CAN cancel! And this was the only time I've had this happen, so I suppose I shouldn't be that freaked about it.

Though I do love "administrative fee." In fact, I think most of my customers are administratives. lol.

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