Buyer's who don't leave feedback

I thought Ebay changed the rules last year that sellers could no longer give buyers negative feedback anyway? Did they change that back? I only use ebay for those things that are hard to buy or sell locally. I often do my feedback as a group, so it may take me a few weeks to get to it. I did have one person who emailed me 5 or 6 times over 2 weeks to leave feedback, and I almost didn't leave any just because I was annoyed with it. I do agree though that if a buyer pays quickly and doesn't have any drama then they get a positive no matter what. Drama normally causes me to not leave any feedback at all, and of course negative dealings get a Negative feedback (remember this is the only clue to the next buyer/seller that this person is trouble). I also always leave positive feedback as a buyer (even when I regret my purchase) if the item is accurately described, packed well and shipped timely.

 

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I've seen all of these on the other forums as well as sellers pining that they should not have left feedback as soon as payment received.

You are absolutely correct Conder. The transaction is NOT complete until both parties are either satisfied or dispute resolution has been addressed and resolved.

Sellers fee's are based upon feedback and DRS percentages and some buyers use that to extort lower prices on already purchased items. Once seller feedback is left, it cannot be changed.

 

How does not leaving feedback help a seller? What's the advantage (other than it gives him the opportunity to leave negative feedback)?

If a seller's fees are based on feedback, that is all the more reason to show the customer appreciation by leaving feedback.

If I have 100% positive feedback as a purchaser, what are you scared of? I buy a lot of stuff, and I remember seller names. I don't bid if i don't like the seller.

 

It gives the sellers a huge edge. I personally will not buy from sellers with 99% or less feedback unless there are extenuating circumstances. I even avoid 99.5%.

BTW, seller's fees are based on the feedback. They can get at least a 20% discount when their feedback is top notch.

 

you can't leave negative feedback for sellers so the point is moot.

Once the buyer has paid, they can do NOTHING else to help the transaction. They have done their part and at that point deserve positive feedback. All other problems that could arise have received no influence from the buyer.

When the buyer is satisfied, then positive feedback should be left.

This whole idea of I won't leave feedback until you do is little more than extortion. Do your part, leave your feedback and hope that the buyer does the same. If the buyer doesn't leave feedback, there's nothing that could have been done anyway.

Live up to your end of the bargain. Let others wrestle with the decision to leave for you or not. Little you do will affect their decision.

 

This is my opinion. I rarely leave feedback, (I would if Ebay had a generic, "transaction fine" that I could click for all open purchases), but I reward sellers who I like with saving the seller and going back. About half of any purchases I do on Ebay are repeat purchases. It sucks multiple purchase feedback is not counted since I think I have bought from Numislit about 300 times over the years there.

Anyway, I reward good dealers with more sales, not always with feedback. I think most would prefer my money.

 

Sure they can: they can be satisfied with the item. It takes two parties, the seller and buyer, to achieve this. Surely you'd agree that there are many fickle buyers out there, especially when it comes to something like coins. As has been pointed out several times, many things can happen after payment has been made that can derail a transaction.

 

For the past couple of years, "ALL" buyers have 100% positive feedback because sellers CANNOT leave anything BUT positive feedback.

The terms "couldn't be bother with" and "holding back" or "withholding" are totally negative in the context being used since sellers are not withholding but instead "waiting" for some type of communication from the buyer regarding either pleasure or displeasure. Communication can be in the form of positive feedback or an email indicating that the item will be returned for whatever reason.

Additionally, using the term "dealers" instead of "sellers" also presents a negative connotation to the comments since not all coin sellers on eBay are actually dealers.

The purpose behind the feedback system is so that other potential buyers AND sellers can view historical opinions regarding past transactions and IMO the transaction is NEVER complete until both parties are satisfied with either completing the transaction or cancelling the transaction for whatever reasons.

I rarely leave feedback on items sold until AFTER the buyer has indicated their satisfaction with the transaction. Granted I cannot leave negative or neutral feedback but I can indicate my satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the transaction. If they are dissatisfied, I'll do what I can to make them satisfied with either a return and a refund or a replacement. To me, its just that simple as I DO NOT view my buyers as potentially negative conflicts but instead regard every one as a "customer". As such, I am not "withholding" feedback as if it were a weapon I could pull out and use on the buyer to justify my position (which seller's cannot do anyway) but instead I "wait". If a buyer wants me to leave feedback first, I always comply but at least the buyer has "communicated" with me regarding the transaction.

IMO if folks really view eBay buyers and sellers with such negative animosity then perhaps they should not deal with that venue and instead restrict their buying and selling to coin shows, Teletrade or perhaps Heritage where feedback is not such an issue?

 

That is how it traditionally was handled, but two of those require slabbed coins, and the third is a high cost way of selling. The beauty of Ebay is that I can buy from non-traditional sellers, sellers in Europe or anywhere in the world, cheaply. They get a better price than locally, and I get access to items I would not normally see. This is why Ebay is successful in the first place, other venues like you described are simply much more expensive for the transaction.

If people just want to buy slabbed coins, (especially US coins), then the options you list are decent ones, but a large number of us do not want them, and none of those three options do any good for me. Ebay is for the esoteric and for deals, if you are interested in neither of those then Ebay is probably not for you. Its still, for everyone complaining about their fees, about the cheapest method to buy and sell goods. Its like Democracy, being "the worst form of government except for every other type". I wish there was a cheaper version of Ebay, but there isn't.

 

As a buyer only if the seller does not leave feedback first I do not leave feedback. I pay quickly and on time, so the seller should leave me feedback first. Once I receive the item and I review it then I will leave feed back. So if a seller does not leave me feedback first they do not get feedback from me. And if they sent me a reminder I would respond explaining how I do this. No offense intended, just how I do it. I did not read the rest of the posts. Now to review them.

 

I think the last statement you have here sums it up. If the seller has bad intentions, he's going to win no matter what. Sp, I prefer to treat everyone as if hey have good intentions and...when the occasion arises, deal with the bad customer on an individual basis.

 

I ask this one simple question:

If I, as a buyer, have bid and paid promptly, what have I done or what can I do that would further illicit satisfaction from the buyer?

What hoop must I now jump through in order to gain the seller's approval?

When I have completed my end of the contract (paid in full) and have received the item, then my responsibility is complete. eBay would rather I leave feedback, but I don't have to nor did the seller. It is an eBay convention only.

If you want to know if I received the item, check the tracking from the carrier. It's what you need to prove the buyer received it in case of a dispute either way.

Even if I return it or am dissatisfied, what else do you want me to do for positive feedback? I think you're holding feedback hostage and while many do so, I believe that in the long run it discourages people leaving feedback more than helps your rating.

If someone wants to neg you, they can do so. Your feedback won't influence their decision

 

I understand your points and am playing devil's advocate. What if, as a buyer, you won a nice piece of crystal, upon receipt decided you didn't want it (through no fault of the seller's listing), mailed it back but repackaged it so poorly that it cracked in transit. Even with insurance, this transaction now becomes a hassle for the seller to reconcile. Have you, as a buyer, held up your end of the bargain? Have you deserved the positive feedback even though the transaction became problematic because of your negligence?

My point is, what harm is done simply by waiting until the end of the entire transaction? And I really ask this in principle, not in practice.

 

As a buyer, it's no big not to receive feedback. If the seller doesn't want to express appreciation for my business that's fine. They can take the money and drop the item in the mail and that's that. I do remember sellers who look at me as more than an anonymous internet buyer, though.

A seller should be a little more concerned. If he has 100 customers and only 50 of them leave feedback (because he/she didn't leave feedback for them), then his feedback is going to be skewed because the guys with something negative to say will say it no matter what. Would you rather have 1 negative feedback in 100 or 1 in 50? If you don't leave feedback for your customers, I guess you don't care.

 

If I am happy with a buying transaction I will leave feedback regardless if I have received feedback or not.

Buyer feedback doesn't mean anything (to me) unless you are doing really unethical things and the sellers are able to covey it in vague ways.

If a seller leaves me feedback ahead of me receiving the item, I will generally make a point to leave feedback if I am okay with the transaction.

The difference is if a seller goes out of their way to ship quickly and communicate along the way, they will get great feedback. If the seller does not communicate, the item is received in a reasonable amount of time, and the item meets the description, me leaving feedback will depend on if they have already left feedback for me. If there is any reason I am mildly unhappy with the transaction the seller will not get feedback regardless of any other variable. I will also not buy again from them.

I have just over 250 feedback responses and about 15 of those are for selling (all positive). I have had about as many buys that received no feedback from the sellers. I have had about 15 additional selling items that received no feedback. I always pay the moment the auction is over (only with paypal). I am perfectly okay with the fact that I did not receive that additional feedback because it will not affect my ability to buy and I go out of my way to make sure a customer is happy/satisfied with something I sell.

Just my opinion on ebay feedback. If you build a good reputation selling, word will spread within the collecting community and you will get good repeat business regardless of a bad buyer or two.

 

I'm also very frustrated with buyers who don't leave feedback. I always received positive feedback as a buyer, because I pay for something the second after I've won it. As should every consumer. As a buyer, once you've done that, you've fulfilled your end of the bargain. As a seller I leave positive feedback as soon as I receive payment.
What shocked me as a seller, is that about 25% of the buyers out there don't leave any feedback at all. I'm no power seller, but I've probably sold 50 or more coins on eBay.

Feedback is a critical part of the online shopping system that eBay has set up, and it is good both for buyers and sellers. In the on-line world, you don't have the opportunity to touch the merchandise. You are relying on a photo which is subject to being altered, photoshopped or otherwise modified.

EBay's way of overcoming this limitation is to create the feedback system. By reviewing a seller's feedback, the buyer can have some confidence that the item for sale is accurately described, and is as represented in the photo and the listing. It's absolutely critical that both buyers and sellers participate. It is also a great way to weed out crooked sellers, and to a lesser extent deadbeat buyers. If used properly, the feedback system creates a safer online market. So I agree with the OP, those who don't leave feedback, just don't get it.

You need to view feedback as similiar to a credit score. It's a great tool to evaluate whether or not you want to do business with the other party.

As a seller, both buyers who never paid me had bad feedback scores. One had two total feedbacks. The other had tried selling some items and had an 80% positive. Meaning that one in 5 of his customers were dissatisfied. My favorite Neg feed back left by an angry buyer on this guy was the following: "I feel used."

 

I am a buyer far more than a seller....

If I buy, I will only leave FB if the seller did.
I have had to remind them, and have also had sellers that insisted the buyer should leave FB first...
When I get a seller like that, I ding them on communication, leave a neutral saying 'thanks', and never buy from them again.


If I sell, I leave FB when I am paid. The buyer has held up his duties when he pays.
When I don't get FB from a buyer, I will send them a friendly note reminding them, and haven't been let down yet.

 

You raise good points and I see them as three disctinctly different questions and will adress them this way:

Tough luck. You bid, you bought it. It is NOT the seller's responsibility to save you from your own stupidity. You may regret the purchase but it was your choice to bid on it. This was also one of the scenarios that I had suggested before. The buyer may regret buying the item and therefore may not have left feedback at all.

This demonstrates the generosity of the eBay seller. He is compelled by eBay to accept the return and will do so. This changes when the buyer returns the item damaged. And is an issue that should be adjudicated.

The buyer deserved positive feedback as soon as they made payment. The harm is in holding their feedback hostage.

Let me try a different tack. Let's try to look at this situation strictly from the standpoint of trust.

Seller lists item. Buyer pays seller (<---buyer extends trust to seller) Seller sends item (<----seller validates trust to buyer)

In feedback the street goes the other way. Seller leaves + feedback for buyer. (<---- seller extends trust to the buyer.) Buyer leaves + feedback for seller (<--- buyer validates trust to seller)

Sometimes you have to trust people. Sometimes you get burned, but that's life and there's no helmet for it.

 

I think this about sums it up and your posts and some others on this thread have convinced me it's better to engender trust in the buyer by leaving pos. feedback upon receipt of payment.