How do "good" sellers guarantee the speed of the postal service?

[found-in-australia]

As part of a system designed to make me a better and more conscientious seller, I have become a defective seller.

I have received three defects in my global ratings since August. Two were for a parcel to Russia, which was sent insured at the buyer's request, and at the same time on a Friday that I put in the insurance claim, the buyer put in a claim through PayPal that the items were not received. He closed the claim on the Monday - the following business day - three days later, because the parcel arrived and he was very happy with what he had bought, and was hoping that I could supply him with similar Australian items. The parcel was sent the day following a night time payment, and took 33 days to get to a Post office box address in Moscow.

The other was for an item sent to a buyer in Canberra. The buyer paid at 8:38 pm on Thursday 28th August, and was sent on the afternoon of Friday 29th August, registered. The buyer has left the feedback "Very happy with item. Thanks", but has left a rating of one for postage time. The item was sold on the Tuesday night, so I could have sent it to the buyer on the Wednesday or Thursday PRIOR to them paying. I am not convinced that I should have sent the item before payment from someone I have never dealt with before, but I have a defect for unsatisfactory shipping on an item that was sent on the first business day after payment.

I used to hold Top-Rated-Seller status on three Ebay sites, I am no longer even good enough if I send items on the first business day after night time payments. I am not sure that the constant message that a seller is not good enough actually improves their customer service, once they become convinced that good customer service is unattainable in the system Ebay has consistently weighted against Ebay's paying customers.

How do the "good" sellers here ensure that they ship in a more timely manner?

Regards, Kevin 

Note: While I am based in Australia, because I established my Ebay business before there was an Ebay Australia, I am rated on the US site system, and deemed to be American for the purpose of promotions etc, even though most of my listings are on the Australian site, and I use an Ebay Australia store. Therefore I am already being defected in the way that most Australian sellers will be after the beginning of November.

[mydiyau]

I don't know why you bother? You have got enough positive feedbacks to not care about all the bull.

[putney32]

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@transoceania wrote:

I don't know why you bother? You have got enough positive feedbacks to not care about all the bull.

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Kevin bothers, as you so bluntly put it, because

defects mean he is loosing position in Best Match listings and

defects can mean he'll loose the possibilityof running an eBay business.... too many defects now and ebay shut you down.

sorry Kevin, dont know what to suggest to ''improved'' your defective posting times !!   eBay are making it almost impossible to run a business here anymore.

[digital*ghost]

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@found-in-australia wrote:

How do the "good" sellers here ensure that they ship in a more timely manner?

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Personally, on the customer level, I believe it's not about shipping time but good impressions. 

I post most items as large letters within 24 hours of payment, quite often the same day because I don't tend to go up to the post office until 2pm (I also have this completely unfounded theory that AP processes mail on a last in > first out basis), but I actually have a 2-day handling time specifically to manage customer expectations about when to expect arrival of items.

The ETA eBay have kindly placed in listings on behalf of sellers is just that - an estimate - but it doesn't look like one, many buyers take the first date as a "due date" and think if an item arrives after that, then it took too long. The earliest date eBay use is the optimum time-frame from Australia Post, and an outdated one (AP  increased average delivery time by 1 day, eBay's ETA never adjusted for this). 

So, my listings "promise" arrival 4-8 days after purchase, most buyers get their stuff in 3, I look awesome. 

Edited to add: I only sell within Australia on eBay though, and I suspect it wouldn't change much for international buyers. If you're prepared to send each buyer a manual message confirming postage of an item, they will get an immediate indication of when their item is going to be posted instead of maybe waiting for an automated one from ebay. The plus side to that is a lot of buyers will respond to seller messages rather than send a new one if they want to query something. 😉

[mydiyau]

Because we care, ebay was able to tame us into accepting its ridiculous rules.

When I shop on ebay, price and item condition is the only thing i care because I know as a buyer I am protected by paypal. So the seller shouldn't care too much about the defect rating etc. I am sure Kevin is a professional seller, there is no way his rating can get so low that he can't sell anymore. 

We sellers only need to worry about getting the goods cheap and available. If you care too much, you life will be hell.

[found-in-australia]

Digital_Ghost wrote: "If you're prepared to send each buyer a manual message confirming postage of an item, they will get an immediate indication of when their item is going to be posted instead of maybe waiting for an automated one from ebay. The plus side to that is a lot of buyers will respond to seller messages rather than send a new one if they want to query something"

My own process is to pack as the payment is received, and confirm by both direct email and through Ebay messages (unless the buyer regularly communicates with me by direct email and I then know that they are receiving my emails) that payment has been received and the item is either being shipped either today or tomorrow, and something equivalent to "Hopefully you will have it by about Friday" for Australian buyers, or "It will normally take 7 to 12 days to get over to you" for international buyers.

While most Australian buyers in the Eastern states will get their parcel in about 3 or 4 days, or 7 plus days into Western Australia (where I say "Hopefully you will have it by about this time next week" in my confirmation message), I get occasional parcels which take 10 to 14 days to arrive, moreso into South Australia for some reason, but since our local Australia Post sorting was moved to Canberra, some items into central Victoria now take 10 days, when they used to take 2 days from Albury.

More or less, my system is probably very similar to yours, although it looks like I get more delayed mail, probably because I am regional (and friends who are more remotely regional than me get much bigger delays in their mail, particularly into Queensland).

Kind Regards,  Kevin

[digital*ghost]

Oh... Not much help unfortunately, I suppose, not for trying to change impressions anyway. 

The defect you have for slow postage might be removed, though. Since it was sent registered, you'd be able to prove to eBay that it was posted within your handling time, especially if you uploaded to the tracking number to eBay within 24 hours of payment, (I'd say they would be typically stubborn when trying to get them to remove it, but persistence is key, if you can handle talking to them).

From the Defect removal policy:

• Sellers may request the removal of defects that we haven't automatically removed when they followed selling best practices and they believe the buyer experience did not have a defect.

[found-in-australia]

Quote: "especially if you uploaded to the tracking number to eBay within 24 hours of payment"

I need to start bringing in my tax book each night and upload anything with tracking numbers. I only register items over a certain value, and mainly only manuals go parcel rate, so it is generally a small percentage of my items that get tracking numbers (which I think is similar to your situation from memory). Most of my items are fairly low value large letter rate, and I am not keen to increase my postcard shipping from 70 cents to $4.40 to include registration. It is very rare that I get anything go missing, but some stuff travels slowly for no apparent reason.

Kind Regards,  Kevin

[digital*ghost]

0 for 2, I'm going well.  Sounds like our post-sale methods are pretty much the same, though, but I do live in suburban Adelaide so I suppose I have a bit of an advantage with speedy post between most major cities. 

You could always use my fortune cookie idea (though I do have to refer back to my strike rate up there), include one in every parcel and have them all say something not-so-sublte and deflective, like "Enjoy good fortune, I hope Australia Post delivered this as fast as I posted it".

Don't include lotto numbers though, you might get a defect for description if they don't win.