Buying and Selling on eBay: Tips, Tricks, Problems & Questions

[drlivingston]

@drlivingston Another positive case in favor of your "Zero theory" Dr?

Spoiler: Buyer username

View attachment 912693

It would appear to be the case.

 

[Tyrone MacStiophain]

Can anyone point me to an up-to-date list of countries for which the USPS does't provide 1st Class International tracking?
This site (https://support.shippingeasy.com/hc/en-us/articles/115001748523) says a handful of countries had E-Delcon service suspended back in 2014, but this site (https://pe.usps.com/text/imm/immc2_022.htm) says some of those countries DO have tracking. I'd be inclined to believe the USPS list, but I recently tried to ship a 1st Class package to Russia, and found that tracking was not available, so that list is wrong.

It'd be great to have solid info on this.

 

[txwoodworker]

anyone else having trouble w/ international shipping today? I tried to send one out to the UK this AM, no love - address is all good, nothing wonky. Figured it was a ebay glitch that would work itself out, but just tried again without success.

 

[drlivingston]

Can anyone point me to an up-to-date list of countries for which the USPS does't provide 1st Class International tracking?
This site (https://support.shippingeasy.com/hc/en-us/articles/115001748523) says a handful of countries had E-Delcon service suspended back in 2014, but this site (https://pe.usps.com/text/imm/immc2_022.htm) says some of those countries DO have tracking. I'd be inclined to believe the USPS list, but I recently tried to ship a 1st Class package to Russia, and found that tracking was not available, so that list is wrong.

It'd be great to have solid info on this.

https://pe.usps.com/text/imm/immc2_022.htm
However, there are several questionable countries on that list, i.e. Greece, Russia, Mexico, etc. etc.

 

[Tyrone MacStiophain]

https://pe.usps.com/text/imm/immc2_022.htm
However, there are several questionable countries on that list, i.e. Greece, Russian, Mexico, etc. etc.

Definitely questionable! I tried to ship to Russia last week, and the eBay shipping webpage said delivery confirmation is not allowed for the Russian Federation, so I had to cancel the order.
Even without a government shut down, the USPS can't keep their docs up to date!

 

[SpooPoker]

Definitely questionable! I tried to ship to Russia last week, and the eBay shipping webpage said delivery confirmation is not allowed for the Russian Federation, so I had to cancel the order.
Even without a government shut down, the USPS can't keep their docs up to date!

Its totally available, just not through eBay - I ship 10 packages to Russia a week with USPS Express via paypal direct. Signature confirmation and everything you need for protection, just a bit more expensive without the ebay discount.

 

[Tyrone MacStiophain]

Its totally available, just not through eBay - I ship 10 packages to Russia a week with USPS Express via paypal direct. Signature confirmation and everything you need for protection, just a bit more expensive without the ebay discount.

Nice! Can you do it with 1st Class Int'l also?

 

[SpooPoker]

Nice! Can you do it with 1st Class Int'l also?

Never tried.

But save this :

www.paypal.com/shiplabel/create

 

[txwoodworker]

So this is what's up, if any of you have been trying to ship first class international since Sunday:
https://www.ecommercebytes.com/C/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2018/1/1516642190.html
Still not working for me. Can't go direct through PayPal either. Went direct through USPS Click/Ship.

 

[eddiegreen]

newly registered buyer buys a trenchcoat, then asks for feedback as soon as he's paid, then asks if i've sent it already the next day.
Now he says he's got the coat but its got gold glittery marks all over it and sends me a pic of a really old, battered looking trench(same model).
I feel sure he is trying to scam me and is showing a different coat in his pics but quality of pics is very low.
Do i now have to get him to return and see what gets sent to me? or is there any other way around this?

 

[ORLThrifter]

So, I'm pretty new to ebay, not much history, but 100% positive so far. As a new seller, do you elder statesmen have any advice as to a disclaimer of sorts? I want people to be attracted to my sweet items, and want to say the, "hey, it's cool, I'm new!" kinda thing. But also don't want to open myself up to scams. I've sold through other avenues and just wondering if it's goofy to over-explain my newness in a bid for more trust. I'm not gonna be slinging 50+ items a week, maybe 20+ in a month. Maybe I'm over thinking it. Thanks.

 

[MJMcRibb]

So, I'm pretty new to ebay, not much history, but 100% positive so far. As a new seller, do you elder statesmen have any advice as to a disclaimer of sorts? I want people to be attracted to my sweet items, and want to say the, "hey, it's cool, I'm new!" kinda thing. But also don't want to open myself up to scams. I've sold through other avenues and just wondering if it's goofy to over-explain my newness in a bid for more trust. I'm not gonna be slinging 50+ items a week, maybe 20+ in a month. Maybe I'm over thinking it. Thanks.

You're probably overthinking it. As a buyer, I'd have little concern over buying an uber expensive item from a new seller, but eBay Buyer Protections mitigate those concerns. Outside of negative feedback, I don't pay too much attention the amount of overall feedback.

 

[dadjeans]

Alright, so I just got a SNAD return request for a smoky odor on a jacket. I'm pretty sure this is someone with fit issues trying to avoid int'l return shipping considering the item was pretty much NWOT with no odor. I've heard you guys say never to reject a return request. I also know that odor is not a valid reason for a SNAD. Also, I offer 14-day returns and we're well within that window.

So what's the next step? Do I just leave it open and call ebay right away and ask them to close it in my favour? Should I message the buyer to let him know that he can return it if he changes "Doesn't work or defective" to "Changed Mind" or something else and pays for return shipping himself. Or should I be nice and offer a partial refund for dry cleaning costs (this is a $225 sale and I'm not keen on eating ~$40 in return shipping, so $20 for dry cleaning is as generous as I'm getting today)?

Any help is appreciated!

 

[chpartisan]

So, I'm pretty new to ebay, not much history, but 100% positive so far. As a new seller, do you elder statesmen have any advice as to a disclaimer of sorts? I want people to be attracted to my sweet items, and want to say the, "hey, it's cool, I'm new!" kinda thing. But also don't want to open myself up to scams. I've sold through other avenues and just wondering if it's goofy to over-explain my newness in a bid for more trust. I'm not gonna be slinging 50+ items a week, maybe 20+ in a month. Maybe I'm over thinking it. Thanks.

I was in your shoes a few months back. I just let the product description, images and price do the selling. My listings have the return policy, payment method (PayPal) and shipping (fixed rate in my case). Everything ships with tracking.

As a new seller, you likely have to deal with payment holds for a while.
http://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/payments-and-fees/funds-availability.html

 

[chpartisan]

Alright, so I just got a SNAD return request for a smoky odor on a jacket. I'm pretty sure this is someone with fit issues trying to avoid int'l return shipping considering the item was pretty much NWOT with no odor. I've heard you guys say never to reject a return request. I also know that odor is not a valid reason for a SNAD. Also, I offer 14-day returns and we're well within that window.

So what's the next step? Do I just leave it open and call ebay right away and ask them to close it in my favour? Should I message the buyer to let him know that he can return it if he changes "Doesn't work or defective" to "Changed Mind" or something else and pays for return shipping himself. Or should I be nice and offer a partial refund for dry cleaning costs (this is a $225 sale and I'm not keen on eating ~$40 in return shipping, so $20 for dry cleaning is as generous as I'm getting today)?

Any help is appreciated!

I believe I read something here about odor not being covered by buyer protection