Feedback is a great way to let other ebayers know if the seller/buyer is reliable, honest etc.

As a buyer I check that the seller has a good positive feedback response and I personally would not buy from a seller with less than a 90% positive feeback rate. However you cant please all the people all the time as the saying goes, so if you really like an item it may be worth checking why the negative feedback was left. I have had negative feeback left from a buyer because the t-shirt that I posted was removed from the packing after it had been posted. Now this is my fault because??Also if a seller has gone from getting feedback for selling the a few clothes now and then and has suddenly started listing £1,000 s of pounds worth of bags,clothes then alarm bells should ring and you should be cecking that they seller has not had their account hacked. If your not happy dont bid.

As a seller I will always leave negative feedback for a buyer who has not made contact within 7 days of close of auction . This may seem harsh but so is the fact that I have to pay ebay  fees even if the buyer ignores me.Many sellers dont leave feeback until after the buyer does, this can be for two reasons. Firstly the seller will not leave feeback if the buyer doesnt (and how old are we), and secondly sellers who know they are selling a load of old tat will wait to see if they are going to be let negative feedback and if they are they will also leave negative feeback for the buyer (even if they have done nothing wrong). So careful when leaving negative feedback you may just get a "tit for tat" seller/buyer and end up with negative feedback .

My guide to good feedback

Communication is the key to good feedback keep your buyer/seller informed of what is happening, even if there is a delay in posting dont ignore your buyer/seller, people are more tolerant if you dont mess them around and be honest.If a buyer contacts me and tells me theya re having problems with their paypal account and "can I wait a week for payment " then yes I dont mind, but if that week turns into 2 weeks and no further contact is made then I am not going to wait any longer and will leave neg. feedback, and relist the item.

Before leaving negative feedback contact your seller/buyer and give them a couple of days to respond, it may just be a breakdown in communication that can be resolved easily.

Dont sell anything you wouldn t want to get yourself ! If is rubbish , put it in the bin, if you think its stained,ripped,chipped etc. how may other people are really going to want it !