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INTRODUCTION

Buyers and sellers leave feedback comments once a transaction is complete. It is a way for members of the community to build solid reputations and also an effective way for eBayers to warn others about potential problems. If you are new to eBay, please take the time to familiarize yourself with the Feedback Forum. At the bottom of this guide, you will find helpful links. It is your responsibility to leave feedback if you buy or sell on eBay and there are a few rules of etiquette when leaving feedback. Here are some helpful tips to becoming a responsible feedbacker and an integral part of building the eBay Community.

DOs FOR LEAVING FEEDBACK WHEN BUYING

1. DO leave a positive for a seller in a timely manner if you are satisfied with a transaction. It is your opportunity to say 'THANKS' for a job well done and sellers do appreciate the proverbial pat on the back.

2. DO leave a feedback for your seller even if they haven't left a feedback for you yet. If you are satisfied with the transaction and there were no problems then you have no reason to withhold it and nothing to lose. Some sellers will reciprocate with a positive feedback for you, and some won't, but you get the satisfaction of knowing that you are an appreciative person with manners :)

3. DO contact a seller if there is a problem. The Feedback Forum is not intended to be a bulletin board for communication. Use email to communicate. Also, you can go to Advanced Search>Find Contact Information (in the left hand column of links) and enter the transaction number and eBay User ID to obtain the seller's phone number. Use this resource and give them a call, that is what it is there for, especially if emails are not getting the desired result. If there is one element of emails that I cannot stand, it is the lack of inflection, and therefore interpretation, to a correspondence. You may find that the harsh, abrupt or terse emails you had received came from a sweet little old lady with arthritis who had a hard time writing emails! Direct communication is always a good way to resolve issues.

4. DO leave a negative if you feel it is appropriate and have otherwise attempted to get resolution to your issues. There are bad sellers out there, I won't lie. There are also good sellers with bad days. Either way, when a negative is deserved, don't be afraid to give it.

5. DO take a deep breath and think with your head and not your emotions before leaving a negative. Some people can be SO FRUSTRATING, but don't say something you will regret. If you are going to get nasty, make sure you are going to mean it in a week, because you can't ask eBay to remove it, though a mutual feedback withdrawal is an option, which brings me to number 6.


7. DO use the "follow-up" feature in the Feedback Forum to add any closing comments or to clarify a feedback after the fact.

DON’Ts FOR LEAVING FEEDBACK WHEN BUYING

1. DON'T use the Feedback Forum as a means to communicate, ask questions, or complain to the seller, which is what email is for. Use the Feedback Forum to honestly rate the seller's performance for other eBay members to use as a reference.

2. DON’T leave a negative for a seller before giving them a chance to resolve an issue.

3. DON'T leave a negative with cuss words or otherwise X rated material. Your negative will be removed completely and you will have no recourse.

3. DON'T leave a positive before you receive and item, this will hinder your chances for resolution through eBay or Paypal in the event that you never receive your win.

4. DON'T be an irresponsible feedbacker and shirk your feedbacking responsibilities.

5. DON'T leave a neutral without contacting a seller first. Most eBayers consider a neutral to be a negative. Regardless, it is a non-positive feedback. Even if the transaction is cancelled, if the seller was courteous and reasonable, then they should get a positive. Neutrals are simply a less harsh form of a negative to most sellers.

HELPFUL LINKS

Ebay's Feedback FAQs