From Ebay Zero to Power-Selling Hero: Using Feedback Effectively

When I talk about feedback to new Ebay sellers, I usually
compare it to having one note posted on the door of a
brick-and-mortar business for every transaction. At
almost any business--no matter how bad the service--you
would have a lot of positive transactions; and thus a
lot of positive notes. As a potential shopper, you
probably wouldn't bother to read all of these positive
notes. Instead, you'd look to see if there were any
negatives.

If you were planning to eat at a restaurant and you
found a bunch of notes in big, red marker that said
the food was moldy; the waiter dumped hot coffee on
me on purpose; and the manager chased me out of the
store with a gun, you probably wouldn't go
there--or at least you'd think twice about it.

And likewise, if you wanted to buy an engagement
ring, but you found a number of notes on the local
jeweler's door that said I bought an engagement ring.
The diamonds were fake. And the owner refused to give
me a refund, you would drive out of town to another
jeweler.

Feedback is a powerful tool that will ensure either
your success or failure selling on Ebay. This is why
it is so important to use feedback carefully. You
should do everything possible to see that each of
the following happens: 1) every buyer gives you
feedback; 2) all of that feedback is positive;
and 3) every dispute or misunderstanding is
resolved, resulting in: a) positive feedback,
b) mutually-withdrawn feedback, or c) neutral
feedback.

A lot of Ebay sellers have a written feedback
policy that requires the buyer to post feedback
if they want feedback from the seller. This
allows the seller to factor in the buyer's
feedback when leaving feedback. It also forces
people who wouldn't otherwise give feedback to
do so.

I personally do not use this system. When I
receive payment, I leave feedback immediately.
My feedback is always positive and descriptive.
If I have something bad to say, I try to work it
out with the buyer first, rather than posting
negative feedback.

In the example I used above, giving negative feedback
to a buyer would be the equivalent of a store owner
driving out to the buyer's house and posting a big,
nasty letter on the person's door for everyone in the
neighborhood to see.

Leaving negative feedback like this is not only is a bad
reflection on my business, but it can also prompt
retaliatory negative feedback from the buyer.

Afterall, if someone left that nasty note on your
door for all of your neighbors to see, wouldn't
you at least exercise your right to leave a response
on the door of that someone's business?

. . .again, this is why it is so important to
avoid these exchanges altogether.

In general, it is pretty easy to avoid negative
feedback as an Ebay seller. If you create a clear
store policy and adhere to it, give refunds when
they are warranted, and communicate with your customers
whenever there is a problem, you shouldn't ever have
to worry about negative feedback.

About the Author
http://www.workathomerightnow.net/ebay.html -
Written by Isaiah Hull, author of "How to Profit
on Ebay In Seven Days Without Spending A Single
Penny." For a limited time only you can get a
pre-publication copy of his book for
ONE-FOURTH the post-publication price!