topic Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback. in Selling

Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

ekrabappel — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 08:20:28 GMT

Hi all,

Nearly a month ago i sold some DVDs. Because I am not a full time seller I put handling time as 3-5 days after payment. This allows me to go to the post office when convenient and when I have several items to send. One item sold on the 30 July. I eventually recieved payment from the buyer on the 17th August (a Friday). I was actually going to launch a NPB dispute but am preparing for a caravan trip so running around and not really keeping on top of who hasn't paid. Anyway, check my email this morning Monday (before start of business) and there was an item not recieved dispute opened by the buyer. In the message she said that the item was not showing as sent and to contact her ASAP. Man, my blood was boiling when I read that. I must also point out that despite taking 18 days to pay for the item this was the first bit of communicatiuon from her and she is unhappy that I have not posted the item the same day she made payment. In my response I questioned which planet she was living on and that if she was going to take 18 days to pay for an item she can hardly expect an immediate response from the other party. I told her the item would be posted on Tuesday within the 3-5 day handling time as described in the listing. I have a feeling that I will cop negative feedback for this even though I've done nothing wrong. Advice appreciated.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

foxette-in-sox — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 08:40:36 GMT

In my response I questioned which planet she was living on

Please tell me you didn't? :O:O

The only way to avoid a neg now is to pray ;\

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

thesoulyearns — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 08:43:29 GMT

Having a little bit of experience with a questioning buyer or two who, my advice would be not to ask things like which planet she is living on... 😉

Treat them courteously, because you don't know how it will turn out in the end. If you posted the item within 3-5 days, that is all you are expected to do within the confines of eBay. It's not your fault that they've launched the dispute as you haven't done anything wrong. They'll receive their item shortly and aslong as the item is as described, they may even give positive feedback. Some people just get cautious because it's their hard earned money. Even if they did give unfair negative feedback, eBay can and probably will remove it. Main thing is to keep your cool throughout the whole process.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

***super_nova*** — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 09:04:04 GMT

You say you deceive the payment on the 17th, but that does not mean necesarily that they paid on that date. I would have just calmly responded with something like this:

Your payment has only cleared on Friday the 17th; I am unable to post on Monday but will do so Tuesday. 🙂

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

digital*ghost — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 09:06:13 GMT

Your buyer is rude, unreasonable and unrealistic, but the best thing to do is not let that sort of thing spur a response. You can be firm, but the majority of the time I find it's better to be impersonal, polite and factual, with straight-to-the-point sentences that simply a) acknowledge what the buyer's problem is and b) let them know what I'm prepared to do about it.

Truthfully, in this situation, I would have been sorely tempted to respond as you have (particularly after a dispute effectively the next business day after payment! 😮 X-( ), but if I wanted to point out their unreasonableness, I tend to go for a little more subtlety ]:) (eg " As stipulated in the listing, this item is subject to a handling time of up to 5 business days. However, I can appreciate that after waiting nearly three weeks to pay, you must be getting very impatient to receive the item, so I will fast track the postage for you and have it sent Tuesday, shortening the handling time by two business days - rest assured that it will be marked as posted as soon as it's on its way....")

As it stands, I'd wait and see what - if any - response there is to the latest message is, you may be able to put yourself in a better position for good feedback if she engages further with communication.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

*sparklz* — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 09:17:53 GMT

If you have not put tracking on the item it would be worth registering it at your own expense so that you can PROVE postage as they have stated item not received and if they escalate the dispute you will have to supply some form of proof of postage by click and send or registered post.

Do it for your own protection.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

the3coopers — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 10:00:12 GMT

Advice appreciated.

Treat others with respect. Not necessarily because they are a good person, but because YOU are.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

phorum_junkie* — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 10:36:07 GMT

In my response I questioned which planet she was living on and that if she was going to take 18 days to pay for an item she can hardly expect an immediate response from the other party. I told her the item would be posted on Tuesday within the 3-5 day handling time as described in the listing.

I am almost certasin you will get a neg and your stars reduced as well.

You CHOSE to allow the buyer to wait that long to pay, you could have ensured that they paid within 8 days so youb cannot now castigate them for taking longer, not that doing so could even be remotely described as good customer service.

Do you make it VERY clear in your listings that you may not be posting up to 5 days after cleared payment?

I would have handled it completely differently, my email would have read something like: Hi, sorry I won't be able to post your parcel off until Tueseday, it is because I cannot get to the PO very often that I state such a long handling period in my listings. I really hope AP get their act together and it is delivered speedily once posted. Cheers etc

Now you have almost certainly alienated them completely I think I would probably email an apology, tell them I was hormonal :^O and was sending their item off straight away with a free gift/partial refund included!

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

jameshouseofstyle — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 10:44:25 GMT

Hi Op,

you can always write back and tell her you are one of the lecturers at the University of Mars and thought you recognised some common traits in her message - hence the question.

Something that was definitelly "out of this world" - not the usual approach amongst the Earthlings.

Cheers, January.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

phorum_junkie* — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 11:48:36 GMT

you can always write back and tell her you are one of the lecturers at the University of Mars and thought you recognised some common traits in her message

:^O:^O:^O:^O:^O:^O:^O:^O:^O

Welcome home January, hope you enjoyed your visit.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

jameshouseofstyle — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 12:36:58 GMT

Hellooooooo gorgeous! (phorum j - just in case there was a confusion who is being addressed here.

Had a great time, thank you - better than expected.

Hope you are well and enjoying life.

****I must apologise to the OP for a little intrusion on your topic, very poor form - so sorry.

Cheers, January.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

phorum_junkie* — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 16:32:16 GMT

I don't think you need worry January, I don't think the OP got the response they wanted and probably won't be back lol.

Glad you enjoyed our little island, the weather was kind to you too, doubt if you even needed to unpack the thermals 😉

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

fats017 — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 16:46:58 GMT

guys need help !!!! have sold this thing on ebay for 4$.

the buyer now recons its not the right one and has already left a bad feedback without consulting or mess me. i would have returned his 4$ in a flash but he has already screwed me on feedback this guy is new and thus not know what FEEDBACK means to US.

what can i do now???? PLZ HELP

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

digital*ghost — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 17:20:34 GMT

guys need help !!!! have sold this thing on ebay for 4$.

the buyer now recons its not the right one and has already left a bad feedback without consulting or mess me. i would have returned his 4$ in a flash but he has already screwed me on feedback this guy is new and thus not know what FEEDBACK means to US.

what can i do now???? PLZ HELP

Send your buyer a calm, polite message and ask them if by 'wrong item' they mean that they were sent the wrong item, or if they received what was advertised and it didn't suit their needs. Depending on the answer to that, I would suggest different tacts. If you sent the incorrect item, I would explain that "no returns" doesn't apply when there is an error in the order or faulty items, and that they are entitled to a refund or exchange.

If they received the item that was advertised, then you may be able to have eBay remove the neg, though you would need the buyer to confirm that they received exactly what they purchased, and you may have to try more than one way for removal.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

digital*ghost — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 17:24:47 GMT

If you sent the incorrect item, I would explain that "no returns" doesn't apply when there is an error in the order or faulty items, and that they are entitled to a refund or exchange.

I forgot to add that if the wrong item was sent and it gets sorted out quickly etc, you can ask your buyer if they will agree to revise the negative.

Although for $4, there would probably be a number of sellers who would just refund in full regardless and request the revision.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

ekrabappel — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 22:06:53 GMT

Phorum Junkie - I wake up early and go to bed early so your assumption that I didn't get the response I was after and probably won't come back was not right and very judgemental. Anyway - a post at 2.32AM? My god, when do you get sleep time?

In view of the replies yes I probably was a bit over the top with my reply to the buyer and I do regret it (just a little bit). I worked for many years in the service industry and I do have to say that the customer is not always right.

In the postage section it clearly states "Will usually post within 5 business days of receiving cleared payment" . How can it be clearer?

Although I draw the line at reducing the cost (I am probably making a $1 on the sale as it stands) I am considering sending it registered even though I will then be running at a $3.00 loss for the sale. I did think of it earlier and if I someone else has the same thought then it is probably a good idea.

Interestingly the lady has not responded to my response through paypal even though she wanted me to respond ASAP.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

putney32 — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 22:12:25 GMT

Phorum Junkie - I wake up early and go to bed early so your assumption that I didn't get the response I was after and probably won't come back was not right and very judgemental. Anyway - a post at 2.32AM? My god, when do you get sleep time?

pj sleeps during the night, and uses her computer in the UK during the day

(of course they are different times to those here in aussie, where she lives part of the year!!!)

see, we all 'judge' on what we read, not necessarily on what we know

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

ekrabappel — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 22:23:23 GMT

Putney 32 - I did not judge PJ, I was curious as to when she slept with a post at 2.32AM. Being in the UK makes sense. I did not make predictions as to how she would respond to the replies as PJ did in regards to myself. That is judgemental.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

ekrabappel — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 23:39:15 GMT

I also just checked what time the payment from Paypal came through - 5.12PM on Friday. So it was impossible to post on Friday and before the Post Office has even opened on Monday she has lodged an item not recieved dispute and queries the fact the item hasn't been posted. Sorry, but perhaps on her planet the post offices are open 7 days a week but not here on earth in Australia. Even allowing 2-3 days for clearance by Paypal she is still being hasty lodging a Paypal dispute without even a courtesy message beforehand to ask if item has been posted. When lodging a dispute Paypal asks you to contact seller first before lodging dispute yet she went straight for the dispute. Frankly, I don't have much time for this buyer even if my response was a little over-cooked.

Re: Unreasonable buyer - how to avoid negative feedback.

koalablue12 — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 03:14:35 GMT

fats017 - what you never ever do is leave a positive with negative comment - all you have done is increase the buyers stars 😞