How do you deal with eBay's ratings and fees?
Summary: stromi2000 started the discussion with concerns about their eBay performance being classified as "below average," which has affected the visibility of their shop. perfect-sally suspected that the low service status was the cause and advised making more defect-free sales. stromi2000 criticized the AI rating system and mentioned problems with shipping times and eBay’s handling of deliveries. petersmodellbahnstuebchen and bixtron gave further advice on dealing with shipping problems. The discussion continued about problems with the rating system and eBay’s buying behavior, without any significant resolution to the frustrations raised.
Hello Seller community,
I recently noticed that my performance has been classified as "below average," which has led to cuts in my visibility. At the same time, the monthly reassessments seem endless, while the shop fees stay the same. That raises a few questions for me:
How do you deal with this situation, especially when your performance gets downgraded at some point?
Have you developed strategies to improve your ratings and restore visibility?
What tips can you share when it comes to dealing with the unchanged shop fees?
I'm curious to hear about your experiences and advice and hope we can support each other in order to succeed together.
Looking forward to your posts!
Best regards,
A concerned seller
lidor3073
·2 weeks agoI agree with the previous speakers.
Even as a private seller like me, there is no other option than to offer Hermes or DHL. For small items with tracking for 20 euros, there is registered mail with handover option.
You just have to familiarise yourself sufficiently with the terms and conditions of the postal service or shipping providers.
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoAs I see it, it can’t actually be because of your ratings, because I only see 1 neutral one and that has no effect on anything.
I suspect it’s because of your service status, which for some reasons only you can know is in the basement. You’ve probably picked up several defects, maybe because of shipping too late or who knows what.
Getting back up from below average is very hard.
What you need are lots and lots of sales and no more defects on the account and, of course, no negative ratings either, but so far you don’t have those either - at least not in the last 12 months.
stromi2000
OP2 weeks agoHow am I supposed to get more sales if I’m only allowed to list a few items? That’s where eBay’s AI rating system is lagging behind, and I’ve already pointed that out several times. You can forget about all the many positive reviews there.
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoWhen your service status is better again, you can also apply for a limit increase.
Right now you’re offering special items that probably won’t sell like hotcakes, so to speak, and that means it takes forever until you get out of the mess.
I’d look for cheap items that almost everyone needs or wants now and then and offer them cheaply or, depending on the item, even below cost. Of course, keep the loss as small as possible.
As I said, only through lots of sales without any further issues do you get out of that little by little.
stromi2000
OP2 weeks agoDo you really think that’s GOOD? When you’re treated like that as an over-20 customer at Ebay?
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoNo, I don’t think that’s good, but all in all the sellers are really to blame themselves for the low service status.
Ebay doesn’t make any distinction there whether someone is a new or long-time user, there’s no loyalty bonus there.
stromi2000
OP2 weeks agoUnfortunately, I don't see it that way. I moved with my company last year and therefore couldn't deliver all sales right away, and then I immediately refunded the customers for the goods they had purchased. According to eBay, I should have refrained from doing that and waited until the customers canceled the purchase. Furthermore, eBay forwards a DHL link as if the goods had been delivered, even though the goods are still in the postal sorting center! I don't know how many emails I get from customers saying "where is my goods" when it's marked as delivered, but in reality it's sitting in the mailbox with the mail carrier! But I, as the seller, get the bad ratings! eBay seems to be there only for the buyers, the sellers are the a....
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoThat’s why you’re having shipping problems if you send by letter! They only get scanned at the letter center and not again upon delivery. But that’s been known for a long time. Customers don’t know that and then ask where the item is, which in some cases isn’t actually delivered until 2-3 days later.
And if you’re in the middle of moving, why are you offering items on eBay at the same time when you know the time for shipping might not be enough? Unfortunately, that’s your own fault.
stromi2000
OP2 weeks agoI also think you’re not so perfect, but rather an AI-controlled model from Ebay