I Think I'm Starting To Notice An Ebay Pattern

Scooby, something I have noticed to go along with that... Slow shippers--
i don't mind if it's a day later when they post feedback, I also know that ebay isn't a full time "job" for most- but when I wait 3,4, even 5 days and haven't seen feedback, or gotten notice my package has been shipped, I start to wonder

there have been a couple times I've gotten neither feedback nor notice, something pops up in the mail box, and I'm delighted by what I find- more often it's junk , and most of the time it would cost me more by the time I ship it back than to just keep it- toss it in a box, or use as a filler




i do agree
with unpleasant coins I have won, more often than not, I haven't gotten feedback at all- seems to me the same thing, wait to see what I leave them, give them a chance to put a bad mark on my feedback for telling the truth

One of the reasons I don't buy through e-bay anymore is the feedback system. When my payment has been received, I have fulfilled my end of the deal, so why wait to leave feedback? As the buyer, I wouldn't leave feedback until I received the item. If I held up my end of the deal, and seller blows his, why would he/she "retaliate" against bad feedback? At that time the system seemed unfair, and biased toward the seller. So I just went elsewhere.

I rarely leave feedback...
It is the most flawed Dumb --- part of ebay.
I still have feedback from people I never did business with and about 6 from some goofball woman that tried to scam me. Yes I have been on ebay long enough that stuff like that happened. I think it stinks that the seller has no recourse if the buyer is a jerkweed.
The only chance there is that I leave feedback is if I at least see the postmark or delivered within 48hrs of auction close and the item is exactly or better than described.
I never leave feedback for buyers until I know they have the item and are satisfied....regardless of how fast the payment was. I have nothing to hide when I sell, I sometimes describe to much, but full disclosure and no "cryptic" descriptions are always key

That's exactly what I wanted SuperDave and mrwisker. Food for thought. Maybe it's just been the luck of the draw on my end. But, I'm trying to get more selective in who I deal with and what I bid on.

Some of those 10% were my fault, bidding on shoddy pics "hoping" to hit a score - that almost always never pans out. I've seen a few threads where people have scored some nice coins because of shoddy pics, but I'm not one of them.

Lately, I have been more selective, and I still got bit. The coin is (I believe AU) as advertised, just the pictures where taken in such a way as to not reveal the hairline scratches and no mention was made in the listing. In fact, the ad was almost misleading in the fact that they claimed BU and actually quoted a "value" of more than twice as much as I paid. "Leading" everyone to believe that was the price range we should be in.

I just can't help but think if that were me selling (maybe one day), there would be full disclosure. No funky, shaky pics, WYSIWYG. Then there's the real world, I guess.

You are missing an important fact- sellers have not been able to leave ANYTHING BUT positive feedback for quite a while now, seller retaliation is now impossible(short of email threats of violence...). There are still plenty of bidiots out there who will bid on an item without reading the auction, pay quickly, but then complain about the coin when they get it even though they skipped reading the auction and missed the bold red sentence about the coin being cleaned. Or a buyer who complains about slow shipping even though a DC shipping label was printed out the same night the auction ended and the package was dropped in the mail the next morning, sellers have no control over USPS delivery but many buyer couldn't care less. Those are the types of transaction that run a high risk of neg FB but there are other situations as well.

In all my auctions, I state that I will not leave FB until I know the buyer is happy. If they do not like a coin, I offer 14 day returns and will even refund the return shipping if they feel I did not describe a coin properly(I always describe properly but will not argue with someone who thinks differently). My pictures are never ambiguous, what you see is what you get. My buyers always know when the package has been mailed because they will either get an auto-email from the shipping label print or I will email them myself. I proactively make all attempts to avoid the possibility of a refund or a dissatisfied buyer. I display the ANA logo in all my auctions with the hope that buyers see me as a more reputable seller because I am an ANA member that has to follow the Code of Ethics in all numismatic transactions.

Too many buyers do not understand the selling side of ebay. They think that once you pay, your responsibility is done but not so. The transaction is not complete until both parties are satisfied and FB should not be left until then, simple as that.

Interesting thread. I also pay ASAP. I win most of my auctions in the last few seconds anyway, as I determine days in advance what I want to bid on, write down a top price I'll pay on a sheet of paper, and then if that auction is still in range - snipe. If it goes above the top price, I delete it from my watchlist so I'm not tempted.

Most sellers I deal with are repeat, and I know what they'll send and say. But I've also had those who even after I paid within 2 mins of the win never ever left any feedback.......and neither did I. Right now I have 8 open feedback threads on ebay where the seller never left any - so I didn't either. If it wasn't important to them, its not to me.

I can definitely see your point, SuperDave. You state your case well. While I used to get miffed at delayed feedback given to me as a buyer, I am coming around.

I think my "problem" is that I've had nearly a hundred great transactions in a row as a buyer. And I'm not a "bidiot" -- I'm very reasonable and almost always happy. As an example, I bought a key-date Lincoln one time and it took over a month to get here -- I just kept patiently waiting and when it arrived I left perfect feedback. The seller seemed amazed at how patient I was.

I realize that you (as a seller) have no reason to trust me (the buyer) beforehand as being a good honest guy. But let me throw this out there: the buyer has no reason to trust that you'll honour your policy. If it takes a seller a year to make a transaction right, when does the feedback waiting game stop?

I guess most of us here on CCF (and definitely you guys Scooby and SuperDave) aren't the problem. We complete so many transactions on here smoothly with no formal feedback system. You gotta love CCF!