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4,124 posts in this topic

4 minutes ago, Wall-Crawler said:

Yeah just if the say "item was damaged" or something along those lines...Yeah may call tomorrow. 

you havent shipped it yet because they havent paid.  pretty sure ebay will back you on this and be sure to block the millennial.

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1 hour ago, Wall-Crawler said:

Opened Unpaid Item case. Guy paid in less than 10 hours.  Will see what's next LOL.

A bit late to the party. 

This may not sound very customer-friendly, but when it comes to payment terms, I try to have as little communication with the buyer as possible. 

Here’s how I’ve come to see it:  I clearly state in my listing that payment is expected with 7 days. When the listing closes, they get an auto-e-mail from eBay saying they won and need to pay. If they don’t pay within 24 hours, I send an invoice. 3 days after the listing ends, eBay sends another auto-e-mail reminding them to pay. 

That’s 3 e-mails within 3 days telling them to pay. I think for a buyer who’s responsible, that’s enough. 

In my experience, any communication beyond that to try an nudge them to pay just invites a testy or whining response and escalates the chances of some retaliatory behavior. 

I just sit and wait and at the end of 7 days file the NPB, then wait the mandatory 4 days and close the case. (So in reality, buyers actually have 11 days to pay me)

If at some point - especially after opening the NPB case - I get the ‘hey, I’m good for it, can I pay on x day?’ I send them 1 polite, brief e-mail reiterating my stated payment terms, explain the NPB is simply to recoupe fees (so it’s nothing personal) and if they pay within that total 11 days it’s all good. If they wanted extended payment terms that should have been discussed before purchasing.

Then I just ignore everything else. 

Because really, for all the fuss they put up, I think they all know that a NPB strike has zero consequence for a buyer.  And they were going to be a problem anyway, otherwise they would have paid in the first 3 days.

In the end they either pay or they don’t 

Yeah, I’ve come close to getting a retaliatory neg.  And while I used to take pride in my 100% feedback score, think I reached a point where I don’t care enough about it to let some deadbeat tool take me for a ride. 

I figure unless my feedback score turns into a red neg bloodbath, 1 neg here or there won’t hurt my sales that much.

I just don’t have the time or energy to constantly talk a rabid chimp off a ledge. 

Edited by Number 6
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11 hours ago, skypinkblu said:

Is there a thread on this? IF so, I apologize...sounds like a program I don't want to be involved with, but since they are mentioning comics, might not have a choice.

https://www.ebay.com/s/itemauthentication/buyer#faqs

From a cursory glance, it looks like they’re trying to push out the average-joe collector who’s just trying to sell if of his collection.

In other words..me. 

Funny, because I’m sure seller’s like MyComicShop and Metropolis will qualify as “authentic” sellers, they already have an on-line presence. 

I’m sure eBay drives some business to they’re site but I certainly don’t think they need eBay as a selling venue the way your average collector does. 

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On 10/23/2018 at 4:55 PM, the blob said:

Rermember all the 99 cent auctions with $1 extra per item shipping? (Neatstuff!)  Buy 15 crappy books, get an invoice for $18 or $19 shipping + $14.85 for the books.

I remember, those were great. Everything started at .01 cent with $1.50 Shipping and handling per book.. For $1.51 per book I filled in tons of gaps!

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1 hour ago, Number 6 said:

A bit late to the party. 

This may not sound very customer-friendly, but when it comes to payment terms, I try to have as little communication with the buyer as possible. 

Here’s how I’ve come to see it:  I clearly state in my listing that payment is expected with 7 days. When the listing closes, they get an auto-e-mail from eBay saying they won and need to pay. If they don’t pay within 24 hours, I send an invoice. 3 days after the listing ends, eBay sends another auto-e-mail reminding them to pay. 

That’s 3 e-mails within 3 days telling them to pay. I think for a buyer who’s responsible, that’s enough. 

In my experience, any communication beyond that to try an nudge them to pay just invites a testy or whining response and escalates the chances of some retaliatory behavior. 

I just sit and wait and at the end of 7 days file the NPB, then wait the mandatory 4 days and close the case. (So in reality, buyers actually have 11 days to pay me)

If at some point - especially after opening the NPB case - I get the ‘hey, I’m good for it, can I pay on x day?’ I send them 1 polite, brief e-mail reiterating my stated payment terms, explain the NPB is simply to recoupe fees (so it’s nothing personal) and if they pay within that total 11 days it’s all good. If they wanted extended payment terms that should have been discussed before purchasing.

Then I just ignore everything else. 

Because really, for all the fuss they put up, I think they all know that a NPB strike has zero consequence for a buyer.  And they were going to be a problem anyway, otherwise they would have paid in the first 3 days.

In the end they either pay or they don’t 

Yeah, I’ve come close to getting a retaliatory neg.  And while I used to take pride in my 100% feedback score, think I reached a point where I don’t care enough about it to let some deadbeat tool take me for a ride. 

I figure unless my feedback score turns into a red neg bloodbath, 1 neg here or there won’t hurt my sales that much.

I just don’t have the time or energy to constantly talk a rabid chimp off a ledge. 

This is almost exactly my policy. If you never talk to them directly and file an unpaid item claim, it makes it look like eBay is the bad guy hassling them. After all eBay already sent automatically generated e-mails and invoices. 

If the buyer contacts me up front and asks to wait, I will do that for him even though it affects my rating by not shipping immediately. Some of them are nice enough to pay and then ask to hold off on shipping to combine with the current auction. I'd rather have repeat business than a perfect seller rating. Some guys want to pay for this auction after your next auction so they can bundle lots of books together. That gets confusing and tedious but those cheap-Os are few and far between. I know there are board members who like to bundle multiple auctions, but I'm talking about not paying for a week and a half and then asking for an extension because they are bidding on your $0.99 books now. Now that I mainly have BIN sales, I get less of these types. 

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10 hours ago, jsilverjanet said:

Buyer reversed transaction after he received item, claims unauthorized use

https://www.ebay.com/usr/chchios.zrllffg5r

What does "unauthorized use" mean?

And does it have anything to do with eBay labeling some dealers as "authorized" for collectables?

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Had an interesting thing happen on eBay this week.  Thought it was worth sharing to get folks' opinions and maybe elicit ideas to help others (or me) avoid this pitfall in the future.  I like reading these types of posts; maybe you'll be entertained.

 

I try to avoid selling any kind of oddball raw book (detached centerfold, popped staples) to avoid the hassles of possible returns from people who didn't read the description.  If I do, I make sure to post a detailed description and photos so it's clear what is being offered.  I listed a raw copy of Popular Teen-Agers #10 at a starting bid of 9.99 that had two extra staples in odd positions, and was happy to accept whatever the market wanted to pay, even if it was less than what I had in it.

The auction was won by Ken Dyber of Cloud 9 Comics, for $416.34.  I received an eBay message today that he wanted to return it.  Here is the listing details, pics, and the messages I exchanged with the buyer.  I'll say up front that I know the best course of action generally is to just accept a return (and that's probably what will end up happening).

Listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/253912197421?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1559.l2649

Desc

Popular Teen Agers 10 (Star 1953) FN+ *** L.B. COLE COVER *** spanking panel

Grade notes: Book has two extra staples; one set that was driven into the book before the cover was in place.  Due to the wear around the cover staples I believe this to be production-related.  Book sold as-is.

Message that came with the return (Return reason = Doesn't match description or photos)

"Hi there, thanks for sending the book with such great packaging. Very solid copy. I looked at the extra set of staples, and see that their gloss & size doesn t match the other size of staples, which tells me there were added after manufacturing, and thus making this book a restored copy. I m not confident this is an unrestored copy, so I d like to return it, which bums me out as I love this cover & the page quality is great, and this would be my first return in about 2 years. Hope you understand. Sorry."

My response

"I actually don’t understand. I said the book had 4 staples, i described them in detail, included photos, and said the book was sold as-is. The book is exactly as I described."

Buyer's response to my response:

"I'm sorry that you didn't understand what I was trying to convey. I was under the impression that this comic's extra staples were from manufacturing, which happens from time to time, and, if that was the case, they comic would be unrestored. I was ok with this, which is why I bought it, as you said in the listing "Due to the wear around the cover staples I believe this to be production-related". The staples size and sheen on the exterior of the cover do not seem consistent with the interior ones, and therefore I feel these were added by someone else after manufacturing, which, if true, would make this book restored. We may disagree about when the staples were added to the book, but I thought I was buying an unrestored book, and I believe I have a restored one, thus, this is why I'd like to return it. I'm sorry for an inconvenience, as I said, I almost never return something, and I have been on the other end of returns, as they do happen from time to time. Thanks for your help with this."

My response to that:

"The frequency with which you have or haven't returned books in the past isn't relevant. Do you acknowledge you are XX of XX Comics with many years of experience in the comic dealing business? Do you acknowledge that the description says "book is sold as-is"? This is kind of a weird book, with four staples in non-standard positions. I gave only my opinion of when the staples were added. I did not present it as fact. I gave plenty of description and photographic examples for potential buyers to make their own determination. Do you acknowledge that? If any potential buyers had any doubt, they don't bid. Furthermore, a book with a cover added after production (if indeed this is the case), is not restored, but has a married cover, which is "qualified". Can you acknowledge that you were mistaken about calling this book restored? I'm sorry, but I cannot accept a return on this. Best I can do is to offer a partial refund."

 

After that, I called him on the phone and reiterated what was in my messages. He fell back on eBay's policy that essentially a buyer can return a book for whatever reason they want.

Lay it on me!

Edited by Heronext
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58 minutes ago, Heronext said:

Had an interesting thing happen on eBay this week.  Thought it was worth sharing to get folks' opinions and maybe elicit ideas to help others (or me) avoid this pitfall in the future.  I like reading these types of posts; maybe you'll be entertained.

 

I try to avoid selling any kind of oddball raw book (detached centerfold, popped staples) to avoid the hassles of possible returns from people who didn't read the description.  If I do, I make sure to post a detailed description and photos so it's clear what is being offered.  I listed a raw copy of Popular Teen-Agers #10 at a starting bid of 9.99 that had two extra staples in odd positions, and was happy to accept whatever the market wanted to pay, even if it was less than what I had in it.

The auction was won by Ken Dyber of Cloud 9 Comics, for $416.34.  I received an eBay message today that he wanted to return it.  Here is the listing details, pics, and the messages I exchanged with the buyer.  I'll say up front that I know the best course of action generally is to just accept a return (and that's probably what will end up happening).

Listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/253912197421?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1559.l2649

Desc

Popular Teen Agers 10 (Star 1953) FN+ *** L.B. COLE COVER *** spanking panel

Grade notes: Book has two extra staples; one set that was driven into the book before the cover was in place.  Due to the wear around the cover staples I believe this to be production-related.  Book sold as-is.

Message that came with the return (Return reason = Doesn't match description or photos)

"Hi there, thanks for sending the book with such great packaging. Very solid copy. I looked at the extra set of staples, and see that their gloss & size doesn t match the other size of staples, which tells me there were added after manufacturing, and thus making this book a restored copy. I m not confident this is an unrestored copy, so I d like to return it, which bums me out as I love this cover & the page quality is great, and this would be my first return in about 2 years. Hope you understand. Sorry."

My response

"I actually don’t understand. I said the book had 4 staples, i described them in detail, included photos, and said the book was sold as-is. The book is exactly as I described."

Buyer's response to my response:

"I'm sorry that you didn't understand what I was trying to convey. I was under the impression that this comic's extra staples were from manufacturing, which happens from time to time, and, if that was the case, they comic would be unrestored. I was ok with this, which is why I bought it, as you said in the listing "Due to the wear around the cover staples I believe this to be production-related". The staples size and sheen on the exterior of the cover do not seem consistent with the interior ones, and therefore I feel these were added by someone else after manufacturing, which, if true, would make this book restored. We may disagree about when the staples were added to the book, but I thought I was buying an unrestored book, and I believe I have a restored one, thus, this is why I'd like to return it. I'm sorry for an inconvenience, as I said, I almost never return something, and I have been on the other end of returns, as they do happen from time to time. Thanks for your help with this."

My response to that:

"The frequency with which you have or haven't returned books in the past isn't relevant. Do you acknowledge you are XX of XX Comics with many years of experience in the comic dealing business? Do you acknowledge that the description says "book is sold as-is"? This is kind of a weird book, with four staples in non-standard positions. I gave only my opinion of when the staples were added. I did not present it as fact. I gave plenty of description and photographic examples for potential buyers to make their own determination. Do you acknowledge that? If any potential buyers had any doubt, they don't bid. Furthermore, a book with a cover added after production (if indeed this is the case), is not restored, but has a married cover, which is "qualified". Can you acknowledge that you were mistaken about calling this book restored? I'm sorry, but I cannot accept a return on this. Best I can do is to offer a partial refund."

 

After that, I called him on the phone and reiterated what was in my messages. He fell back on eBay's policy that essentially a buyer can return a book for whatever reason they want.

Lay it on me!

Yeah, it sucks, but just take the return.  Not worth losing sleep over it and you aren't going to convince him.

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12 minutes ago, Gaard said:

"... and see that their gloss & size doesn t match the other size of staples "

Is he right?

I don’t know, because I don’t have the book here.  Next time I will just make it clearer that I don’t know what is going on with the book.

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