topic Re: Impossible to please buyers in Selling

Impossible to please buyers

shoppingbag* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 05:27:54 GMT

Please tell me what I must do to please buyers. DSR ratings, the usual gripe. Now we can no longer find out who left them.

I struggled very hard in the beginning with ridiculous DSR's. $2 postage for a large letter (actual postage cost), rated as 3 stars, even though I supplied the padded envelope. (Just one example) I have always, only charged the actual postage, and stupid me buys boxes, tissue paper, bubble wrap, and sticky tape, as well as I drive to the Post Office every day that there is a parcel that can be sent. AND, stupid me, never charges a handling fee of any kind. Only sometimes, I can cut costs a little by recycling a box. So, after finally getting my 5 star ratings on everything, some kind soul has given me 4 stars for postage costs, (just wondering if only one would suddenly drop me down to 4.9)

So to all you who have hardened up against inconsiderate and ungrateful buyers, please tell me how much handling costs I should charge. I think it is probably about time.

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

twyngwyn — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 05:40:43 GMT

Why can't you find out who left them? Is this another 'new improvement'?

Re: Impossible to please buyers

imastawka — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 06:22:43 GMT

And what would you do to the ungrateful buyer if we told you the formula for

finding out who it was that dented your stars?

DSR's no longer matter in the scheme of all things ebay.

Once they meant a defect, but not anymore.

They have no relevance IMO.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

melbourneclearance — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 06:35:57 GMT

I charge $9.70 for under 500g nowadays, and that's not even covering all costs. A buyer recently complained (after buying, of course) that she could get my $20 item for $7 where she lived.

Physically restraining myself from pointing out that she should have got it where she lived in the first place and not bothered me, I replied with:

Australia Post - $8.30, ebay commission on postage - $0.83, ebay commission on the rest - $1.17, PayPal transaction fee - $0.30, PayPal commission $0.70, box - $0.80, packing tape & material & fuel to post office - $0.90. Yeah, $7 is about right. You have a good local seller.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

imastawka — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 06:49:28 GMT

I think she meant the local seller only charged $7 for your $20 item in a B & M store -

no postage involved.

She should have bought local and not whined about the postage.

Don't know that you should have pointed out all your fees though.

It's none of their business, really

Re: Impossible to please buyers

melbourneclearance — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 06:57:13 GMT

Yeah, I think she did mean a local B&M shop. My item was a "Free Postage" - so she probably thought that it got from me to her on a free Aladdin carpet ride.

But I am always suspicious of "I can get it cheaper" claim after the fact. It always sounds like they're just after a discount.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

imastawka — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 07:00:11 GMT

Yeah, I used to work Sunday markets, and when I heard

"I can get that cheaper at so and so's"

I used to reply with

"Well, you'd be silly to buy it from me then" and promptly put it under the table.

It was worth it for the reaction.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

shoppingbag* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 07:04:36 GMT

They have taken away the feature to find out, some time back now. I have located the culprit who has admitted they rated it on what they wanted to pay (not what the postage cost is) so they have offered to remove it, but I cannot request that ,as they have left a Positive feedback, I told them to contact eBay, doubt if they will. Meantime they are on my blocked list. I take my reputation as a Seller seriously, and as I bend over backwards and supply all packaging, they can just go buy somewhere else. I am only a casual seller, selling my personal stuff, so I don't care if I sell in a hurry or not.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

shoppingbag* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 07:07:38 GMT

Well I disagree, DSR's are a reflection on my selling practices and reputation. I certainly look at others when I am buying, and it just makes me furious when I am actually out of pocket for packaging only to be told "you charged too much" These buyers are welcome to go elsewhere, I am not in any mad hurry to sell. I am not running a business, nor in desperate need for the money.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

imastawka — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 07:10:26 GMT

You can't change the DSR's.

Once they're done, they're done.

If the buyer rings ebay, they will be told that.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

twyngwyn — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 08:05:09 GMT

I have my DSRs changed all the time.....especially for late postage, when it was at the buyer's request, or postage was expensive....I just take a photo of the relevant page in the Postage Charges book.

I ring eBay and get it altered....I must be keeping their staff employed...lol....and I tell them that!

Re: Impossible to please buyers

*tippy*toes* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 08:06:57 GMT

@imastawka wrote:
And what would you do to the ungrateful buyer if we told you the formula for
finding out who it was that dented your stars?

DSR's no longer matter in the scheme of all things ebay.

Once they meant a defect, but not anymore.

They have no relevance IMO.

.

They removed the option of checking 6+ months ago. Buyers must be aware of it too because some of my stars have taken a hammering since. I love when you get feedback like "awesome item, super fast post, better than described", then you know they've given you 1 star for everything because it's an obvious drop.

Maybe buyers were complaining that sellers were blocking them for trashing their stars.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

imastawka — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 08:27:55 GMT

I don't look at them, cos they don't matter for defects anymore.

Must run off and see what they are............

Wow......4.8 for p & h on one, and 4.9 for p & h on the other

Someone didn't like the description, or the postage time OR communication either!

Oh well

Re: Impossible to please buyers

digital*ghost — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 10:22:08 GMT

@shoppingbag* wrote:

Please tell me what I must do to please buyers

Any seller will make themselves crazy (or broke) if they try to cater to every buyer expectation / perception, because for every buyer who prefers something one way, there's guaranteed to be a bunch of others who prefer the opposite, and few others still whose primary preference is to find fault, or so it seems, with any and everything but themselves - the later aren't worth catering to, or engaing with, because you will never change their opinion about the way they think things should be done, while the rest have something of value in the sense that they can guide a seller's decisions or practices.

At the end of the day, the best thing for a seller to do is find a happy balance between what they need and want to do (or charge) and what the majority of their buyers need / want - in some cases you make a concession in favour of your buyers, in others your decision will be in favour of yourself; any buyer who doesn't like it is simply not part of your primary target market - if they still buy, but begrudgingly, that's a problem for them, and with their own conceit, not you - a ding to the DSRs can be seen less as a tarnish on your reputation, and more a reflection of the occasional buyer's attitude - I'll put it this way, I'm not going to look at one of your items, find everything (including shipping costs) acceptable, but then see a 4.8 postage cost DSR and all of a sudden think you're shady and the $2 (or whatever) postage cost must be a bit of a rip-off.

I honestly don't think the average buyer pays any attention to DSRs, since unless something is considerably amiss they generally look just fine, especially at 4.8+, and therefore not worth a second look. At 4.7 one might pay a little closer attention to other things (feedback, listing details, etc, but even still if it's for postage cost, it will probably just make a few more people ask for combined postage rates before buying. 4.6 or less is when things start to look alarming, presuming there's been enough sales for that to be the average, and not the result of one buyer in 10 leaving 1's for everything.

Personally, I work out what my fixed costs per order are (the ones that don't accrue with additional items), and put that in the P&H charge, add approximately 10%, and then all other costs go into the item price, with a few odd exceptions here and there - I don't do "free" post on eBay, but I do subsidise costs with item prices in some cases, just where I feel the item would benefit from a more aesthetically appealing price : postage ratio (eg a $30 item with $9 postage I'd probably list at $33 with $6 postage).

Re: Impossible to please buyers

davewil1964 — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 11:10:21 GMT

I charge AP rates for AP stuff, eBay rates plus a bit for eBay stuff.

I rarely check my DSR's as they are irrelevant to my purpose on eBay, which is selling stuff for money. As DSR dings aren't relevant to my ability to do that, I don't worry about them.

I'm currently running 4.9, 5, 5 and 4.9. As half my stuff goes as 'free' postage and automatically gets 5 stars, that means the rest are averaging 4.8. (well, between 4.75 and 4.84) ie 1 in 5 gives me 4/5. Which anywhere else in the world would certainly count as an excellent result.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

brerrabbit585 — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 13:15:48 GMT

What's your primary aim - to please buyers or to get a fair price for your items? If you want to please all buyers then you may as well give up selling now because to please them you'll lose too much money to be worth doing it.

The only DSRs I look at are for item description and that's pretty much how it's been for the 14+ years I've been on ebay. If that star''s low then I might look at the others as well, but given that postage costs are stated upfront I've NEVER seen any need to take notice of postage stars. Given that there's little communication on ebay these days I generally don't take much notice of those either. Postage time is also fairly irrelevant unless all the other stars are low, in which case I wouldn't even think about buying.

I think postage costs are a bit like item prices - the higher they are (within reason) the less people complain. Not only do you attract a different type of buyer, buyers seem to perceive that you've got confidence so they don't attack you or try and hold you to ransom. If you look like you'll bend over backwards to please them because you're afraid of ratings, they'll use it to intimidate you or they'll mark you down just because they can. A lot of it's about perception and if you've got confidence they don't seem to take out their frustrations on you, or be as spiteful.

Also, remember that with the new feedback format it'd be very easy to leave a 1 by mistake. I almost did it myself, and I'm not even using a phone.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

shoppingbag* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 21:43:31 GMT

Of course you wouldn't care because you don't have any, not on this profile anyway.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

shoppingbag* — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 21:51:33 GMT

You hit the nail on the head here. I got glowing feedback, and dinged on the stars for postage costs. I have only just realized that this was when my printer went bung, so I had to pay over the counter, so the postage cost would have been printed on the label. What makes me so furious is that I BUY boxes, bubblewrap, tissue paper, sticky tape all supplied free to the buyer, just to keep costs down for them, and this is what I get in return. To those who think it is no big deal, well it is to me..it means buyers will think I over charge on postage. I use calculated postage on my listings and that is all they ever pay. I will ring eBay and complain, I have proof of the postage cost and that is all they paid. Why do so many think sellers own Australia Post or can dictate what they charge? Are the public really that stupid?

Re: Impossible to please buyers

digital*ghost — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 22:26:32 GMT

@shoppingbag* wrote:
To those who think it is no big deal, well it is to me..it means buyers will think I over charge on postage.

I genuinely think you are over-estimating the importance of DSRs to buyers.

I am a buyer, and I don't even look at them 99% of the time. And as I said in my previous post, the cost of postage displayed in the listing is what I base my opinion of postage costs, on, not what 20, 100, 10,000 other buyers thought of a seller's postage costs, and I am willing to bet the vast majority of other buyers are the same.

Buyers don't need a star rating to tell them what to think about a seller, a transaction, or postage costs.

Re: Impossible to please buyers

collect247 — Tue, 23 Oct 2018 22:55:18 GMT

4.9 out of 5 for postage come on you have to be pleased with that?

And stalka is a big time seller on ebay but she just posts on the ID we all see as many of us do,hell I have 7 other personalities on here and some you don't really want to get in a tangle with let me tell ya even I keep my mouth shut with some of them.