A guide to Ebay feedback by fundraisingtins.

Feedback on Ebay is one of the most important factors when buying and selling. As a buyer it is important to check that you are buying from a reputable seller and as a seller it is imperative that you preserve your positive feedback score at all costs.

When buying from a seller check their feedback percentage . This is made up of positive, neutral, and negative feedback. the negative feedback is what you need to be looking for and anyone with a feedback score of 97% and below I would be very wary of buying from. Has the seller got an unreasonably high number of negative feedbacks? Read the comments other people have made and if you are at all unsure then click away to the next seller. There are plenty more honest sellers that are willing to sell you high quality products and deliver on their promises.

Look at the products the seller has sold by clicking on the auction item number on their feedback page. Dishonest sellers could be making their feedback up very quickly from buying and selling penny items and on the surface look honest, only to rip people off once they have a good score. Contact the seller using the ask the seller link and see if you get a reply, if you dont then don`t bid.

Use PAYPAL for all your payments and always fund it from a credit card to give yourself the most protection. Never use Western Union as it is a method frequently used by fraudsters and Ebay doesn`t recommend it.

As a seller NEVER leave feedback first. Having a good feedback score will make or break your Ebay business so you must protect it at all costs. If you hold off leaving feedback till the buyer is happy and has left it for you then you are less likely to get negative feedback. The buyer will contact you with a problem in most cases rather than risk getting a negative feedback themselves. You can use a program such as Selling Manager Pro that will automate feedback delivery for you and also send out feedback reminders to your customers making your feedback score more likely to increase quickly.

If you do have a issue with a customer it is always better to resolve it even if it lands you out of pocket. A negative feedback will always cost you more in the long run and will stay on your account for all to see forever.

Dont be drawn into arguements with customers . If you do receive offensive negative feedback you can apply to get it removed by Ebay as they don`t allow it. There are also mediators who can contact the other party for you and for a small fee hopefully strike a deal to get the negative feedback removed for both of you. If this still doesn`t work then the only other thing you can do is to reply to the negative feedback to give your side of the story so others can see it on your feedback page. Always keep feedback factual and don`t get personal.

While you need to be wary of negative feedback please remember that there are some people out there that set out to blemish a good reputation, or are simply non paying bidders retaliating for a negative feedback rightly given to them by a seller.

A user gets +1 for each positive, -1 for each negative and 0 for each neutral. A star icon i.d is awarded once there are 10 or more comments. Different colours signify the level of the users feedback:

Yellow star = 10 - 99

Turquoise star = 100 - 499

Purple star = 500 - 999

Red star = 1000 - 9999

shooting star = 10 000 or higher

In closing the ebay feedback system is the main tool in finding out a buyer or sellers reputation. It can be open to abuse but fraudsters are few and far between and spending a few minutes checking out the seller and reading the listing carefully will help safeguard against common pitfalls.

Ebooks from a PENNY!