Power Sellers Unite

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

Just shut it down.

New feedback rules drove our seller feedback from 98% to 93% in 3 weeks.

They all but eliminated the feedback removal process for when buyers leave product reviews under seller feedback. If if the item is defective, or simply not as good as they expected, its now the sellers fault if the buyer thinks it is. No appeal.

They've even started hiding the seller help link like ebay!!!

Thank heavens I am diversified!

I feel bad for my customers there though. They're left with nothing but scumbags and con-men.

No wonder amazons numbers tanked. Amazon, its the new, old, new ebay!

GreyJaguar · Joined: 12 Jul 2008 Posts: 316

I closed my Amazon store after a buyer of a xbox 360 console claimed it had arrived damaged. I requested that the gaming console be shipped back and I would be happy to give a full refund. Never received it back and Amazon gave a full refund to the buyer. I contacted Amazon and they just ignored me.

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

Obviously I am being a bit rash, but I've found that with Amazon you have to make an dramatic gesture and/or comments to get things fixed.

From others sellers altering item descriptions and Amazon not caring about it, to ridiculously irregular shipping credits, seeming to intentionally confuse buyers in a myriad of ways regarding feedback/product reviews, and now these new internal feedback filters that make it impossible to overcome their flawed system. This was the final straw in along line of moronic system and procedures flaws and failures that make ebay look stable.

CS

RatherRuss · Joined: 05 Mar 2008 Posts: 135

Sorry to hear about the Amazon debacles. It seems both ebay and amazon do not want less than mega sellers. After all both Donahue and Bozo are in the 1% and not really into trickling down any profits, let alone even allowing break even. Ebay/paypal are sitting on $700 of my money right now due to one or two buyers who did not like the 50 year old vinyl they got, and rather than work out with me, ka boom ruin my biz. Of course this is an old Amazon trick, going back about 6 years. Diversify as Cohiba advises....besides ebay, I have moved into flea marketing and it saves my life when I have only ebay to deal with. Good luck to all the latest victims of ebay/amazon scams and greed.

portocall · Joined: 05 Jun 2009 Posts: 157

Yep - what all of you said.

That's just Amazon and always has been. How in the world they are rated the most trusted site is beyond me. I think most buyers have no idea how they are manipulated by Amazon and steered directly to what Amazon wants them to buy.

Manipulated listings and images (trashed by other sellers) dropped listings, THE ABSOLUTE WORST / GLITCHY MESS OF A SITE that I've ever used - really!!!! Most buyers just don't know the difference. Listings, pictures, changes etc that even the most basic small site instantly uploads takes Amazon hours and sometimes days. They have repeated misspellings in their announcements to sellers. etc etc

Someone once said that the IT department at ebay was made up of high school kids. If that's so, then Amazon's IT seems to be made up of Jr high kids (or the drop-outs) imho

They overcharge the buyer on shipping and then skim off about 1/3 of it and give the seller the rest (it rarely covers shipping)

They block marketplace sellers at certain times (the small toy sellers had their items blocked over Christmas to let the big sellers and Amazon have all the business) And then they nicely announced that toys could once again be listed about two weeks ago.

I sell there (and complain) because that's about the only sales I get right now. I did ok last week - but now I've either been rotated to a different server or I've hit my speed bump / limit (another Amazon feature that they admit to)

And on and on and on it goes.
:)

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

portocall wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")They block marketplace sellers at certain times (the small toy sellers had their items blocked over Christmas to let the big sellers and Amazon have all the business) And then they nicely announced that toys could once again be listed about two weeks ago.

Regarding toys, here's the dumbest thing of all. In November I got a few emails saying becuase I was a 'trusted' seller I could now sell in toys.

Great, but I don't sell toys. Never have. I sell 99-44/100% pure Tobacciana.

Is this the kind of seller they want? Someone who just runs out buys/sells something they know nothing about at the drop of a email. Seems like a plan for failure.

CS

RatherRuss · Joined: 05 Mar 2008 Posts: 135

I think you have hit the nail on the head, Cohiba. They don't care about expertise, just rules and regs....worrying about govt regulations sure takes a back seat to ebay. They do think that we sellers are all replaceable, that our expertise and stock mean nothing as long as they keep the widget sellers selling cheaply. I mean how often now do you find a surprise or something that took expertise to list on ebay now?

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

I also have to add it appears their Customer Service has gone over to India. All of my recent communications were signed with Indian names and the written English was 100% Apu quality

Peniwize The Clown · Joined: 14 Jun 2009 Posts: 84

Man, this is really sad to see considering I was getting ready to open a new Amazon store to help add some revenue to the loss of eBay revenue over the past few months. eBay's DSRs are being used to lynch my accounts.

I was hoping Amazon would be a welcome addition.

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

Don't walk away yet. There's still money to be made there just like there is on ebay.

As I said I was being a bit rash. Just like walking away from ebay entirely would be silly, even thinking I would walk away from amazon sales was shortsighted and hotheaded on my part.

ebay hit the wall of being able to fully manage the site, rather than just manage the bad press and legal issues a few years ago. Amazon is hitting the same wall now. Scam/Bad sellers and buyers abound, but their stock holders still expect the same big increase ebay stock holders did 3-5 year ago when the bottom dropped.

Just know up front that what used to be timely effective customer service is slowly degrading to ebay levels, especially for small sellers. Am I disappointed? Yes. But I knew enough, once I cooled down, not to walk away entirely.

Selling on Amazon now for me is less time consuming.

I refuse to fix their listing data. Right now about 100 of my amazon listings have something wrong that's been screwed up or deleted by them or other idiot sellers. If they don't care to fix stuff, why should I?

I don't add new items. Why bother if another scam seller is going to undercut my prices but ship a totally different item?

If a buyer emails me something is wrong/missing/damaged they have to file a claim and go through the Amazon fraud filters. No more no-hassle reship of damaged goods or parts.

If I get neg feedback and the customer didn't email me, sorry, no follow up to try and fix it becuase amazon doesn't care enough now to fix the blatantly false feedback. I used to email folks to try and fix it, no more.

It's much less hassle/stress when you know your going to get screwed either by the scammers/idiots, or Amazons own lack of concern.

But it doesn't mean you give up profit.

quicksrt · Joined: 26 Oct 2009 Posts: 401

cohibastore.com wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")Don't walk away yet. There's still money to be made there just like there is on ebay.

As I said I was being a bit rash. Just like walking away from ebay entirely would be silly, even thinking I would walk away from amazon sales was shortsighted and hotheaded on my part.

(EDIT) Scam/Bad sellers and buyers abound, but their stock holders still expect the same big increase ebay stock holders did 3-5 year ago when the bottom dropped.

(EDIT)

If a buyer emails me something is wrong/missing/damaged they have to file a claim and go through the Amazon fraud filters. No more no-hassle reship of damaged goods or parts.

It's much less hassle/stress when you know your going to get screwed either by the scammers/idiots, or Amazons own lack of concern.

But it doesn't mean you give up profit.

Exactly, I'll hang around and keep my items up at Amazon. But I will undercut their prices by listing elsewhere.

Look at this scamer email that arrived recently below. Buyer got item 2 days after I shipped with tracking and insurance, and still hoped that perhaps I had lost both receipts for the shipping and ins. proof. I just pray he has gone away, and will back off now.

------------- Scamer Begins message -------------

hello,i have not received the item,did you shipped it out?if you shipped could you please let me now tracking number,i want to know where it is now.if you have not shipped please refund,i cannot wait any more time and do not need it now. I have bought it from another seller.It's long time when I paid for it.please reply asap,if i cannot get your answer this week,i will file a claim.sorry.

------------- End message -------------
Here is a copy of the e-mail that you sent to XXXX XXXXXX

Order ID xxxxx $130 item

------------- I Begin my reply message -------------

Sent out with Tracking and Insurance, details below:

TRACKING NUMBER at usps.com is xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

INSURANCE COVERAGE RECEIPT # is xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

you can track this online at usps.com

Thanks again.

--- Original message ---

Interesting that buyers says that he bought it elsewhere now. Yeah right, a $130 item not received, and buyer just went out and bought elsewhere. And to cap it off, I was the only seller who had it, it was a rare CD, no other sellers found online with it in stock at all at this time. What a scumbag dirt bucket. And look at the poor writing quality to boot.

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

i just referred another customer to the a-z claim system this morning after they said their order was missing 20% of the pieces in the package. 1 or 2 sure, exactly 10 out of 50? unlikely.

i tell them straight up ebay style scammers have moved onto ebay. if it passes the amazon fruad filters we'll happily fix it. if not, too bad.

pie4himm · Joined: 21 Mar 2007 Posts: 407

it's just part of the nature of business selling online, if you don't like the way Amazon does things just move on... good luck selling local.. I can't stand the lowballers at the local market, I'd just as soon take a hit or two selling online (which I have not had a buyer problem for 7 years now) and get the higher prices for an item selling on the worldwide web

cohibastore.com · Joined: 14 Sep 2006 Posts: 4908

cohibastore.com wrote (View Post): › docWrite("quote")i just referred another customer to the a-z claim system this morning after they said their order was missing 20% of the pieces in the package. 1 or 2 sure, exactly 10 out of 50? unlikely.

days later and no claim. often wonder how the world doesn't collapse in on itself.