on 03-08-2015 09:23 AM
Someone is listing their item and as part of the encouragement to buy from them say : we are online but we also have a retail store .....you will get service from us ...not like other online stores who can disappear if there is a problem.
Is this type of disparaging remarks about other sellers allowed?
03-08-2015 09:29 AM - edited 03-08-2015 09:34 AM
yes, they can say what they like. within reason. As long as they are not naming and shaming other sellers or businesses.
on 03-08-2015 09:38 AM
on 03-08-2015 10:58 AM
on 03-08-2015 01:24 PM
It depends a bit on what they are selling Harley
If it is an item where guarantees are important then the reassurance that they are an Aussie registered business can give some reassurance of follow up service or at least some redress through the Australian consumer services.
on 03-08-2015 02:40 PM
@harley_babes_hoard wrote:
In my opinion it makes businesses look desperate when they do this.
I guess it is how they present it (attitude) sour grapes bitter knocking vs pround service record claims.
I think any kind of knocking or put downs in listings makes sellers look they buck pass by nature. even blaming Ebay policies looks bad to me.
on 03-08-2015 03:48 PM
lane & harley,
don't really agree with either of you.
harley,
I am a buyer - to me that statement about the store as a back up is most reassuring! Especially here on Ebay, where people DO vanish without the trace, with other people,s money.
Nothing "desperate" about his statement, just wants to sell things - as you do, I'm sure.
lane,
nothing wrong either with blaming Ebay's policies (although I must say I haven't seen a listing as yet where they do that).
But sellers have every right to say that - as buyers wouldn't otherwise understand the most adverse conditions under which sellers have to operate in!
If and when I see any reference to any of that in a listing - I would be most sympathetic, much more understandable and much more ready to bend backwards to sort it out with them if there is a problem, help the seller any way I can - certainly in a much less of a hurry to crucify them at the drop of the hat.
If it wasn't for these boards I wouldn't even know how slanted Ebay's policies are - and most of the buyers probably would lnow even less if the don't read the boards
on 04-08-2015 08:25 AM
fixnwear said:
am a buyer - to me that statement about the store as a back up is most reassuring! Especially here on Ebay, where people DO vanish without the trace, with other people,s money.
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I agree, I see nothing wrong with the statement itself, it is giving information and I would find it relevant.
If I had been writing the ad though, I think it would have been more diplomatic to write
we are online but we also have a retail store .....you will get service from us ...not like some other online stores that can disappear if there is a problem.
or even just writing the same info but with a more positive twist eg
we are online but we also have a retail store which has been operating for many years, so we are here for the long haul .....we are readily available to give personal and online service should you ever have any problems or queries.
on 04-08-2015 08:48 AM
It's not so much the statement as how it is phrased. I would replace the last sentence with "so you know we're here when you need us".
As a buyer it puts me off big time to see sellers running down competitors.
04-08-2015 10:35 AM - edited 04-08-2015 10:39 AM
@pennyforum14 wrote:It's not so much the statement as how it is phrased.
Or framed - some marketing strategies can completely (and specifically, rather than generally), run down competitors, but not seem offensive at all (unless you're the competitor, or a major fan of them, I suppose 😄 I actually thought this was quite clever, though I don't like the drink 🙂 ).
It happens all the time, every day, in marketing, though. Any - and every - thing that suggests the advertised business or product is better than competitors.
Personally I think the statement in the OP doesn't make the most sense - any business can disappear, because a shop (wherever it's located / conducted) can only be there for people if there are people there to run it, and people can easily disappear (i.e. stop responding and assisting). Not to mention putting the idea of disappearing into play isn't the wisest of moves anyway (IMHO).
They'd be better of by saying something more like "Company" is a registered Australian business, comitted to providing superior after-sales service.