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Posted by toneee on Jul 7, 2009 3:17 PM

Free Shipping By Zone?

From the shipping page
Free shipping:
Sellers may offer free shipping to select or all destinations. For a destination denoted as free shipping, no others fees related to shipping, handling, or packaging may be charged.
Does this mean a seller can ship to only a small part of the country (Zone 1) and still receive all the benefits of Free Shipping ?

Not currently. “Destination” is defined as those available in the eBay Shipping Calculator. For Domestic shipping, that means to the 50 states . In the future, sellers may be able to select by zone but not at the moment. So, in order to offer Free Shipping to domestic buyers, a seller has to provide free shipping to all states .

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Posted by toneee on Jul 7, 2009 3:18 PM

Which FVF Applies When Listing in Two Categories?

If an item is listed in 2 categories with different FVF's which one applies ?

The higher of the two.

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 7, 2009 6:07 PM

Buyer Obligations

you made this statement in response to my question:
"The onus of responsibility, in any marketplace and in any buyer/seller transaction (but even more so in a transaction model where they buyer pays for an item before receiving it), lies with the seller, not the buyer. The buyer has one obligation: to pay for the item. The seller however, is obliged to describe the item in as much detail as possible, be available to answer buyer questions about the item, package and send the buyer the item (on eBay, this usually involves a carrier), help resolve any post sale issues that might arise (item lost or damaged in transit, etc). So no, buyer and seller are not entirely equal with regards to transaction responsibility. "

Is it possible that you have forgotten that the buyer also has to receive and accept the item to complete the transaction? Or do you believe that the buyer has only the obligation to pay for the item? Or do you see any difference?

A buyer has one obligation to the seller and that is to pay for the item, nothing else. Of course the buyer needs to accept the item upon delivery if they want it, (and it is assumed they do) but they are not obliged to do so nor are they obligated to inform the seller that the item arrived.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 7, 2009 6:08 PM

Homeschool Teacher Edition Text Books

Teachers editions are intended for teacher’s use and eBay believes in limiting the resale of those items as we are not equipped to verify if the buyer is a teacher or not.
This was not a response to MY question, but I wanted to clarify it anyway.
The original question was about HOMESCHOOL teacher's editions.
As the majority of homeschool 'teachers' are not actually licensed teachers nor are they required to be, why doesn't eBay exempt HOMESCHOOL TEs from the general TE ban?

You are correct. eBay policy purposely doesn’t draw a distinction between “homeschool” and regular teach editions of text books. The policy states “teacher editions” intentionally to cover all teacher editions, regardless of use (home or actual school).
The reason for the policy remains as stated on the site: “Teachers editions are intended for teacher’s use and eBay believes in limiting the resale of those items as we are not equipped to verify if the buyer is a teacher or not.”

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 7, 2009 6:14 PM

SNAD Appeals Redux

Follow up for SNAD incident report requirement:
Thank you for following up on this issue. It appears to be a growing problem.

As for the new language, does the incident report still need: officer name, badge number, official letterhead etc? Most large departments are refusing to expend any effort for complaints of this kind. It's discouraging to see the increasing number of discussions on this board about that.
Even our local sheriff's office (not a city, so no police dept.) requires crime complaints under a certain dollar amount to be filed online.

Can the SNAD requirement be loosened to include these types of reports as many, many police departments are using this concept to reduce man hours and budgets?

If a seller is unable to obtain an incident report, they can inform PayPal of this during the appeals process (and provide whatever response they were able to obtain from their local police department. Depending on the response from the police department we can review on a case by case basis. As long as the seller has made the effort, we can follow up (with the actual police department if necessary. The point: We are not going to hang up a seller on appeal because of the refusal of their local police department to provide an incident report. If a seller informs us during the appeal process that they are unable to provide the required report because of a lack of cooperation on the part of their local police department, we will work with the seller to resolve the lack of the report (which may include us contacting the local police department on the seller's behalf if neccessary.

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Posted by ted_200 on Jul 7, 2009 7:51 PM

Buyer Obligations

The buyer has one obligation: to pay for the item.

Yes that is true. Once a listing closes, the buyer has one obligation, to pay for the item.

Griff, you've repeated this more than once, and it prompts some questions:
Does the buyer have any obligation to read the listing and the Terms Of Sale before bidding or buying the item?
Does the buyer have any obligation to comply with the seller's Terms Of Sale?

Yes, by bidding on or buying an item, the buyer agrees to the sellers terms of sale (as long as those terms of sale do not violate or contradict eBay policy. But this does not mean the buyer is obligated to the seller to read the listing. (But not doing so could prove problematic to the buyer in a later dispute).

Does the buyer have an obligation to pay in a manner that is not fraudulent and will not potentially result in a chargeback for unauthorized use?

The obligations of both the buyer (the one obligation, to pay) and the seller (who has many obligations) assume no intent of fraud on either parties part. When I state that a buyer has only one obligation, to pay, it means to pay (and to not defraud the seller) However, a buyer does not forfeit their right to recourse later should the transaction go awry.

Does the buyer have an obligation to not claim the item wasn't received when, in fact, it was?
Does the buyer have an obligation to not file claims that the item is not as described, even if the description or photos of the item cover the situation that the claim is asserting?
Does the buyer have any obligation to not intentionally damage or destroy the item in order to prevail in a SNAD claim they plan to file?
If the buyer returns an item, or wins a claim and is instructed to return the item, do they have any obligation to send the exact same item they received, without switching any parts, or the switching entire item, or returning a brick?

All human beings in a civilized society are required to act honestly and to not practice fraud. Again, this is an assumed responsibility for all people at all times whether they are shopping or selling on eBay or conducting business off line or in any endeavor or activity.

If the buyer returns an item, do they have any obligation to send the entire item back, without removing any parts or packaging?
If the buyer returns an item, do they have any obligation to return it in the same condition as they received it?

All of the above rhetorical questions actually have nothing to do with buyer/seller obligations. Every person, regardless of time or place or status as an eBay buyer or seller has the assumed obligation in life to not practice fraud on their fellow men. But if it makes you happier to hear me say it:

All buyers and sellers have a responsible to be honest human beings at all times, including when they are shopping or selling on eBay. (I am not aware of any permissible, excusable exceptions to this responsibility).
If we then assume that this responsibility is required of all persons at all times…
A buyer has only one obligation to a seller at the point of transaction: to pay for the item.

If the item was insured, and damaged in transit, does the buyer have any obligation to cooperate in processing an insurance claim (i.e. present the item and packaging to the postal service)?

No, they do not. One hopes that they might do so but they have not contractual obligation to do so.

These are serious questions, that deserve serious answers! And one more, you may deem rhetorical, if you wish...
If the buyer elects to leave feedback, do they have any obligation to be truthful? Or is any opinion they wish to express, no matter how unwarranted or lacking any basis in reality, acceptable?

Not rhetorical at all! All human beings in a civilized society have a responsibility or obligation to be honest and that includes when they are leaving a public record about another person and we (eBay) certainly hope that buyer human beings do so when they leave feedback for sellers. However, the reality on eBay is this: we do not verify the accuracy or veracity of any statements or claims made in a feedback comment. Two reasons: 1. We are not a party to the actual listing, shipment or delivery of the item nor are we the recipient of the service of the seller (the buyer is) and 2. If we did verify the accuracy of one feedback, we would assume responsibility (and liability) for all left feedback. This would be impossible for us to accomplish. So, as long as the comments do not violate existing policy as stated on the site, the opinion of the buyer as expressed in the left feedback is, on its own, acceptable and not subject to review or scrutiny for accuracy or veracity.

As always, thanks in advance for your consideration.

You are welcome!

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 7, 2009 9:28 PM

New Buyers and Paper Payments


Griff, as a buyer with zero feedback has no history with the site, and as the sellers do not like to take a chance on selling to zero feedback sellers, might I suggest that a seller selling to buyers with less than 10 feedback could ask for paper payments!

Unless you , and ebay, think that these types of buyers are the ones that need the protection from bad sellers.

I will send this suggestion for review but I cannot lie to you, it will have zero chance for consideration. The Accepted Payment policy on eBay is the rule today. There are absolutely no plans to alter it to allow for non electronic payment methods beyond the few categories where they are still allowed.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 7, 2009 9:33 PM

Handling Time Inquiry


Griff,

Have you received any answers about the handling time/international vs. domestic questions I posed last month. You said you have inquired--has anyone replied?

Sorry I forgot to loop back. Thank you for reminding me. From the eBay Resolutions team:

If we have no information from the seller about handling time or seller shipping method (and consequent expected transit time), we will tell the buyer to wait 7 days after payment before filing an INR claim with eBay.

If we do have handling time and shipping method, we will use the sum of handling time, plus expected transit time for the method used by the seller, plus an additional cushion (usually three additional days). So if handling time is 3 days and expected transit time is 7, we’d ask the buyer to wait 13 days after payment. We may adjust the cushion to a longer period in certain instances (such as Media Mail, or cross-border). Note that this system does not specifically enforce that sellers ship within their stated handling time.

Also, as with PayPal seller protection we require proof of delivery in item not received cases.

The bottom line. Unlike with the current system, a trained rep will be on the resolution case from the beginning and will have the latitude to apply judgment when assessing a SNAD or INR case to allow for issues like cross border shipments or disputes about condition, etc.

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Posted by king-collect on Jul 7, 2009 9:35 PM

Opting Out Of Displaying The Number Of Posts Made History

Hi Griff!

I was wondering if eBay would ever consider giving us the option of opting out of listing the number of posts we've contributed on the discussion boards.

Others may see it as a badge of honor, but I don't personally care for the "Posts: 13,185" hanging around my neck like an albatross, reminding me of my misspent youth. Especially when about 90% of the posts have disappeared from the boards entirely.

I would like the option of changing that to the number of posts in the last month / year, or to some indeterminate number like "Over 1,000".

I post mostly on the PowerSeller board, so a posting ID isn't practical, unless I want to develop an alter-ego which also sells $1,000 worth of product every month.

Most of my posts came from helping other people over a period of many years. Quite a few were just being sociable. However, lately, I notice some newbies are very intimidated when someone chimes in who has thousands of posts - like they're being cyber-bullied, or something. Often, a person will start a thread, hear some answers they don't like, and then leave in a huff with a statement like "enjoy your thousands of posts".
Anyway, if I could opt out of showing my lifetime post count in every single message board post, I would appreciate that.

I confess I have never heard this request or complaint before. I will forward it to Garnor for consideration but I have to say, I don’t see much of a chance of the feature being made available.

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Posted by king-collect on Jul 7, 2009 9:44 PM

Requiring eBay Employees to Buy and Sell on eBay


Hi Griff!

I think eBay would be a better site if every single eBay employee, from the CEO on down, was required to buy at least 5 items per month on eBay and sell at least 5 items per month on eBay, and make an overall profit, net of postage and fees.

Sometimes I get the sense that just you and maybe 2 or 3 other people in the entire organization have ever even used the site for any practical purpose.

And that would be a very inaccurate assumption. For one, requiring it is not necessary, as nearly every employee here DOES buy or sell or both on eBay, if not regularly, at least sometime during the year. We do encourage employees to buy and sell (even during work hours if it doesn’t grossly interfere with regular duties and tasks).

In fact, we just completed an internal contest (called eBay Open) in which nearly 3,000 eBay North America employees, as individuals grouped in teams, competed. The goal, to win by racking up the highest amounts of GMV and GMB (sales and purchases) as teams and individuals (And yes, I put in a good showing but was outdone by a teammate who sold a car). The contest ran for three months, everyone from John Donahoe down participated and in the end, the contest generated nearly 3 million dollars of combined GMV and GMB.

You can find the listings of any eBay employee by searching on titles and descriptions using “eBay Employee” as keywords.

Anyway, if you could get the board of directors to sign off on that policy change, I'd appreciate it. THANKS! - Erik

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 7, 2009 10:01 PM

Shipping Maximum Site Pages

Griff,

Is there a help page (without going to the year-old announcement) that shows the table of acceptable shipping charges for the media categories?

(ie. some way to find my way to this page without scrolling back to August 08)
Link

Also, the wording on the excessive shipping policy re: maximums is significantly different than what was announced. It is also significantly different than the policy page immediately following the announcement.

The Policy:

Categories with maximum shipping charges:
In some categories, eBay sets maximum shipping and handling charges. When listing in these categories, the only time when sellers are allowed to charge more than the maximum is when using the shipping calculator to set the actual size and weight of the item, including packing materials. When using the shipping calculator, sellers should make sure the calculated cost isn’t higher than the actual shipping cost or it will be considered excessive shipping.

Announcement:
Sellers can still use the shipping calculator to charge actual costs at or below the maximums or if their listings are not standard -- e.g., if you're selling an unusual large/ or heavy item, or a bundle-you can also use the shipping calculator to charge actual costs.

Which is it?

Does the item no longer have to be non-standard to exceed the cap using calculated shipping? Can sellers now offer any shipping method they choose as long as it is the correct rate for the item's weight ?

I don’t see a contradiction between the two paragraphs. One provides an overview. One provides more details.

Here’s the rule of thumb: If you have a standard size DVD, CD, book, etc. and you are using Standard Flat Rate shipping, your item is subject to the caps. If however, your item is not standard and would cost significantly more than the caps allow, use the calculator but do so in a way that keeps the final shipping cost reasonable.

However I do clearly see where you are going with these questions so I will get right to the point.

No, we are not going to draw a white line on what is “reasonable” or what constitutes “standard.” However, the intent of the policy should be evident: sellers in the media category should avoid overcharging for standardized media items by using flat rate charges within the caps set for that category. If the item is not standard (in any way), we leave it to the seller to decide which option to use: flat rate or calculated. That way, the policy allows enough space for a seller to use their good judgment when deciding on which shipping option to use for their items. We would only intervene if a seller is not using good judgment, for example, listing most or many of their standardized media items with calculated shipping or providing calculated shipping for non standardized items that was clearly excessive.

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Posted by indiebiz on Jul 8, 2009 7:40 AM

About Me Page Future


Hi Griff,
Is there any truth to the rumor that the (highly customizable) ME pages are being phased to be replaced by the (more restrictive) MyWorld page?

No. About Me pages are not going away (and the link to them on the New Item Page will be returned to the About The Seller section sometime in the next few weeks.)

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More responses on Monday. I am off for the weekend and will check in again on Monday morning. I may, depending on the volume, lock the thread sometime over the weekend.

REMINDER: Reporting potential policy violations on a discussion board is a violation of policy. Said posts are removed by the moderators.

Thanks,

Griff
Jim Griffith
_____________
eBay

Posted by ricnok on Jul 8, 2009 8:06 AM

Account Summary Changes

Griff,
Recently I noticed a change to My Ebay Seller Account Summary page. The old page had a running account balance for each line entry, which made auditing my account simple and easy to accomplish in a very timely manner. I notice that sometime since my last visit to that page to audit my account that the running balance has been removed.

At first I thought maybe I needed to change the zoom or font size and made adjustments, but nothing I have done has restored the balance column. I do not recall any announcement that the page was going to be changed, and I thought that changes were only going to be rolled out twice a year with advance notice.

Getting out a calculator to manually add each line is rather time consuming and annoying, and since there is not even an opening balance displayed, the auditing process has been made quite annoying and difficult. I looked at customizing the page, but there is no option to customize and restore the line balance column. Any idea why the account balance column has been eliminated and why?

Did someone in San Jose really believe that this was a necessary improvement which benefits sellers in any way? If this an error with the new page, any idea when will it be corrected? If it is not an error, can you advocate for restoration of transparency which having the line balance provides?

It was not an error. This is indeed a change that we have implemented to the View Account Status page in an effort to reduce confusion over the two separate balances that used to be displayed. This was a change that brings us more in line with industry standards by only displaying one balance rather than two.

The reason the old feature caused confusion was that the balances were calculated by two different systems. Due to small time and system delays between the two, there were some situations (such as during our bill run) where the running balance and the current balance delivered two different amounts. In the end, it made much more sense for us to move to a one balance display in order to avoid confusion and bring our VAS format more in-line with industry standard.

I have been in contact with the billing team and they’ve informed me that, based on recent seller input, they are considering possible options for providing a (running balance) column for some views in the Seller Account Status pages.

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Posted by westvirginiaborn on Jul 8, 2009 10:02 AM

Printing Multi Labels on eBay?

Hi, Griff

I wanted to find out more about the new ebay shipping center, and found this on the help pages:

You can create shipping labels and packing slips on eBay when you ship by United States Postal Service (USPS) and print one label at a time

It suggests paypal shipping if you need more than one label. Is this the way it has been set up? There is no multi-order shipping or scan forms?

My question. Is this it? Or, is it still being implemented including all the bells and whistles, lol ?

The current status of the eBay label printing feature is that, at this time, it can only print single labels. Sellers printing multi labels can still use other third party solutions (like PayPal’s label printing solution).

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Posted by itbe**** on Jul 8, 2009 12:50 PM

Personal Account Issues: Please Read!


'...Hi Griff - my seller account was suspended last fall after one negative feedback …"

Due to privacy concerns, I cannot discuss or respond to questions regarding a personal account matter (like a suspension) in this forum. Feel free to send them directly to me at griff@ebay.com using your regular email, (not My Messages which is a messaging system intended solely for member-to-member communication, not member-to-employee communication.) Thanks

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Posted by gdavej53 on Jul 8, 2009 1:03 PM

TurboLister Issues


Griff. Does anybody from there ever monitor the boards specifically the turbo lister board? If you take a look there is page after page of nothing but problems with turbo lister. People are unable to use it or there are many frustrating flaws right now that slows you down but problems are not being fixed or addressed. Is Ebay not concerned with people not being able to use it ?
I have been listing and about every other one comes up with an error message when i try to download saying "29 days is not a correct duration time" and will not let me download it so i have to begin again. Now nowhere is there even an option of 29 days and these were being listed for 30 days. Where in the heck did that come from. If you read some of the error messages that people are reporting its just ridiculous. None of this was happening till some of these new changes went into place.

I have forwarded your post to the Seller Tools Team for their attention.

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Posted by eichhorchen on Jul 8, 2009 2:30 PM

Suggestion for Discussion Forum Posts Layout

Just a thought: maybe there is some way to tack your Guidelines, FAQ's, and Links to only the first page of the "Ask Griff" thread so readers don't have to scroll down four screens before they get to the next new question/answer. The guidelines, etc. are now longer than the combined answers.

Alas, no, that is not possible. The default settings for all threads is that the first post will show up on the top of every page of posts within the thread. Since the first post in my threads is rather long (and must unfortunately, remain so), readers will have to scroll by it to read the posts on that page.

Given that many members may not read the post even a first time, or might miss it otherwise, this is not necessarily a bad thing.

Posted by toneee on Jul 8, 2009 5:45 PM

Free Shipping To Seller Indicated Destinations

From the shipping page

Free shipping:

Sellers may offer free shipping to select or all destinations. For a destination denoted as free shipping, no others fees related to shipping, handling, or packaging may be charged.

Does this mean a seller can ship to only a small part of the country (Zone 1) and still receive all the benefits of Free Shipping ?


***********************************
Let me clarify my question

The shipping statement "Sellers may offer free shipping to select or all destinations" is vague in the use of the word "destinations" versus using countries, regions, or some other term to denote an area

A destination can be anywhere I choose it to be - a town, postal zone, state, country, or just next door

So my question remains (and I will reword it to make it clearer)

Is there anything in the rules that prevent a seller from using the vagueness of the statement to their advantage for Best Match placement by only offering a small part of the country (Zone 1 for example ) Free Shipping ?

A “destination” with regards to eBay shipping, is defined as one of the several specific countries or geographical locations indicated on the eBay Shipping Calculator section of the Sell Your Item Form. For the US Shipping section, no destinations are provided. A seller can only offer Free Shipping to all or no domestic locations. (For International locations, there are isn't a Free Shipping option.)

Since the destination options do not include zones within the US, it is not possible to set up Free Shipping to only a particular zone within the USA and stating as much in a listed description would be a violation of policy.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 8, 2009 8:25 PM

Seller Created Coupons

Griff,

Has there been any thought given to allowing eBay sellers to create and offer coupons that work the same way current eBay/Paypal coupons do?

ie. Create a promotional offer, generate a coupon code, market the code, then have the eBay buyer use that code (specific to the seller) during checkout.

Another eBay alternative has a coupon feature that I love as does my website. While they're working on that shopping cart, can they add that functionality as well? It's far easier than dealing with the clunky 'sellers discounts and services' area on the invoice.

Yes, and in fact, there is a team working on the idea at this very moment for a future Seller Release.

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Posted by snappyauctions14 on Jul 9, 2009 6:36 AM

Suggestion for Best Offer Extention

Best offer feature currently allows offers to be made by interested buyers right up to the point of listing end time. In effect, an offer can be received with only a few minutes left in the listing.

Lately, we've been receiving such offers with a few hours or even minutes to go on those items - buyers don't see it until then apparently.

In any event, since the listing and associated open offers expire before we (or sometimes the buyers also) can respond appropriately, so do all open offers. However, the interest in the item (and the sale) certainly does not.

So, we'd like to suggest the following:

Offers typically allow for a 48 hour response. We suggest allowing the offer and the ability to respond to it once remain viable after the listing ends for that period based on when it was made.

-- We recognize this is an apparent 'extension' of the listing but that is not necessarilly part of the suggestion. The ability of the listing to allow for making new offers can expire with the original listing ending - e.g., listing duration paid for. The ability of a continuing negotiation can also expire - allowing for one final response by the seller to either decline or counter - with the ability of the buyer to either then accept the counter or decline it. This process (pending ending status) can continue until the last offer/response (in the case of multiples from different parties) is completed - adhering to the 48 hour rule (from initiation and last response) for each in all cases - a maximum of 96 hours in any case.

--- As such, the listing itself, instead of being 'ended unsold' can be placed in a 'pending ended' status showing continued offer processing based on all those received prior to the end of the listing.

The advantage to this is that the buyers can use the full amount of listing time to consider making their offer - and be assured of a transaction that is protected by eBay policy accordingly. Other interested watchers using this listing to gauge market value will be afforded additional opportunity to learn the eventual sale price. The offer sale will be credited, and eBay will get it's precious fees.

Of course, if this is deemed not a good idea, guess we'll continue to work 'off eBay' after the fact and save the FVFs. In the end it's a choice between making it more convenient (and accountable in a sales realized sense) for the seller - and more safe (conceptually speaking) and convenient for the buyer, vs saving some server space regarding that listing and the one time development of the extra processing code it might take to make it happen. Might even increase the STR. Perhaps some study of the ROI based on realizing the income from the FVFs currently being lost might also be in order.

What do you think? Are we missing something here in the concept?

Not that I can see. In fact, at least to me, anything that allows for an eventual transaction is a good thing. I have forwarded your suggestion for Best Offer enhancement to the appropriate team for their consideration.

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Posted by 1mindbender1 on Jul 9, 2009 10:39 AM

Combining Purchases Into One Invoice Suggestion

could ebay put it where you could check beside our sold items and then select a choice like combine on invoice I believe it would make it easier to combine shipping. i am new and had a hard time i guess i did okay i sent one invoice and changed ship to 0 then the other with combined ship price is that how its done now? THANK YOU

I will forward your suggestion to the appropriate team for their consideration. As for providing shipping discounts to on buyer, you can set this up currently using the tools and procedures described here and here

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 9, 2009 2:49 PM

Follow Up

many questions are asked and you have requested that the information be sent to you for handling!

Very good procedure! Except that the readers of the thread do not have any idea of what the ultimate response to the person was!

Would it not be helpful to provide the final answer to the questions on the board so that all viewers could be apprised as the eBay position?

In cases where the issue was a personal account question or problem, not necessarily. Privacy concerns prevent me from discussing personal account issues publicly. In cases where someone has provided a suggestion or comment, I forward those on. I usually do not hear a response back (but I know they are all read and considered). For other issues, I wait for a response or the necessary information prior to posting the response. Ultimately, this discussion forum thread is not the ideal format for an ongoing Q&A. I am exploring other format options.

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Posted by menagerie1 on Jul 9, 2009 5:41 PM

Unwelcome International Buying and Feedback


Hi Griff,

I appreciate your answering my question on the June thread - about international buyers registering bogus USA addresses simply to skirt the seller's Buyer Requirements settings. I asked this:

The buyers with the falsified addresses want their purchases shipped to their home country; they simply supplied a bogus address with the intention of skirting the seller's blocks.

Does this violate any eBay policies?

(your answer)"Yes, it does. A buyer who provides an invalid US address in order to circumvent a seller’s Buyer Requirements is in violation of eBay policy."

This would appear to make the transaction invalid, especially since ebay policy was not only violated, but the seller's TOS was also violated.

Would it also be correct to make the statement that the bogus-address buyer is unable to form a legally binding contract with regards to the transaction? The reason I ask, is because the Feedback Withdrawal and Removal Policy page states that..

A member is unable to form a legally binding contract at the time the item ended or Feedback was left.

.. is grounds for feedback removal.

The violation in question(in this case, it would be considered unwelcome bidding or buying) does not mean that the buyer was unable to form a legally binding contract. The language is intended to cover, for example, minor children (not buyers who have violated policy).

I note that you wrote "I have sent an inquiry to Brian Burke asking exactly what we would do in said situation.", but you also wrote "Current site policy on feedback does not contain a provision for negative feedback removal for these cases."

That is correct. (And the language you cite from the User Agreement does not fill that gap)

I'm not trying to be picky or belligerent - honestly! The way I see it, it's strictly a matter of interpreting the ebay removal clause by its intention, as well as its definition. Would you please clarify, justify, explain, etc..

See my answer above. Brian is away on vacation. When he returns, he will provide his input . In the meantime, any seller who has utilized the available tools and blocks and winds up with a buyer outside of the US who wins or purchases and item and demands that it be shipped internationally, can and should report that transaction and buyer directly to eBay Trust and Safety.

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Posted by digisbeads on Jul 9, 2009 9:19 PM

Buyer Obligations


You have stated more than once that the buyer's only obligation is to pay.

That is correct.

This does not seem consistent with eBay's policies relative to buyers. Specifically under the policy regarding "Buyer Guidelines"

which indicates that "As a buyer, you must:

...Bid on or buy an item only when you meet the seller’s buyer terms as described in the item listing. (For example, the seller might specify that the buyer must live in a certain country or use a specified payment method.) Only bid or buy with the intention of buying the item, never to disrupt a listing. Violation of these policies is considered unwelcome and malicious buying...."

Yes, this is true. However, it is not a post transaction obligation. One expects that a buyer will, per the terms of the User Agreement, follow eBay rules with regards to activity which includes taking the time to read a seller’s full terms of service and description since, not reading it could result in misunderstandings post transaction. However, as far as the transaction goes. The buyer, which on eBay is defined as the person who has closed out a fixed price listing or is the high winning bidder on an auction format, has one and only one obligation: to pay. Prior to closing out a fixed price listing, or winning an auction, that person is not considered the “buyer of record.”

I find the terms about buying, "...when you meet the seller's buyer terms as described in the listing" rather clear. Assuming the seller's terms do not violate another eBay policy, can you tell me why this policy is not enforced when there is any circumstance that the buyer does not honor the terms of sale?

It is enforced, at least in cases of violations (like the one outlined in the previous post regarding unwelcome bidding or buying). And, if in a post-transaction dispute, a buyer uses as a claim or reason that contradicts a terms of service point in the seller’s description (one that is not a contradiction of eBay policy), eBay will tend to side with the seller.

Examples: Does eBay penalize an international buyer who bids on a listing blocked to international bidders?

Yes. (if the following conditions are met: Seller has blocked buyers registered in countries to which they will not ship and has deliberately not provided an International Shipping option).

These buyers not only violate eBay's own policy, and when the seller enforces the terms, refunds, and does not complete the transaction, the policy breaking buyer is allowed the leave the honest, policy-complying seller a negative feedback.

The example cited from eBay's own policy indicated this practice is to be considered, "unwelcomed and malicious bidding..." Is this policy being enforced and if so, why are they able to leave any feedback when the bidding is considered malicious under eBay's own policy? Would this be considered for a feedback removal? If not, please tell me why?

The policy is enforced. Buyers who somehow circumvent the intent of a seller’s terms of service with regards to ship to locations are not automatically blocked from leaving feedback. However, in cases where said buyer has left feedback, and there are no other factors in play, said feedback would be removed.

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Posted by digisbeads on Jul 9, 2009 9:34 PM

Feedback Accuracy and Veracity


Sorry another question:

You have indicated that eBay does not remove feedback, even when it can be proven to be a lie, misleading, libelous, etc. Can I ask why, when posting such things is a violation of eBay's user agreement?

The user agreement indicates that, "While using eBay sites, services and tools, you will not ...post false, inaccurate, misleading, defamatory, or libelous content (including personal information).

There does seem to be a few buyers out there who use the feedback system as a weapon and it serves no purpose except to hurt sellers. Why is the feedback not removed whenever the posting can be determined to be in violation of the user agreement, because it can be determined to be false, inaccurate, misleading, defamatory, or libelous?

“…you will not post…” does not indicate or require “…we will remove…”, at least not without a court order (more on that in a moment). The language in the guideline proscribes an activity but it does not make a claim on our part that we will investigate, adjudicate and remove or edit a comment based on the comment’s accuracy or veracity. We cannot do so. Here is why:

Since we do not own or possess the merchandise nor do we ship it or receive it, we cannot rule either way with regards to claims made in a comment. Even if eBay acted as an escrow service, we still do not take delivery of the item (the buyer does). As for your statement, “…because it can be determined to be false, inaccurate, misleading, defamatory, or libelous?...” That would require us ruling on evidence and a process for facilitating this evidence. And considering that if we did rule on one individual case, we would be required to do so for every single comment left every day (millions), this would be impossible.

So, the bottom line with regards to possible inaccurate, defaming or libelous comments, we leave it up to the courts to accept, investigate and rule on cases. If a seller believes that the feedback left by a buyer is damaging, they can obtain a court order for its removal and we will indeed then remove it.

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Posted by tallgrasscoins on Jul 10, 2009 7:35 AM

Daily Deals Placement


Griff,

I would really like to know how Daily Deals are selected. I bought some beef jerk from a DD seller and it was a decent experience. I think my wife and I could provide and equal if not better experince in the categories we represent.

Is there an application process for DD? And what are the qualifications for the "Deals"? We have some depth and offer (*cough*) free shipping on tons of SKU's already.

Do we have to be an otherwise known (i.e. outside of eBay) brand? Will I just wake up some day and find eBay magically picked one of our items to promote as a DD?

Our Business Development team locates and works with specific sellers in order to fill the four spots on the Daily Deals promotion boxes. At this time, they do not take solicitations for consideration. However, in the future, the offer to participate could be expanded (perhaps to specific categories, etc).

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Posted by floor_essence on Jul 10, 2009 10:43 AM

Who Leaves Feedback First


A buyer contacted me and wanted me to leave feedback. I did not respond because I was waiting for them to receive the item. He/she then threatened negative feedback for not leaving them positive feedback. Does Ebay allow this?

Yes.

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Posted by inmyparentsbasement on Jul 10, 2009 11:09 AM

eBay Links Policy


Griff,

I'm going to try to make this one stick. What is ebay's curent policy on links to outside websites soliciting sales, newsletters, and contests.

Here is the Links Policy Page which contains the policy statements for all links and for soliciting newsletter subscribers and contests.

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Posted by chopsueysisters on Jul 10, 2009 11:36 AM

Couponing


Griff, this is the 3rd message to try to clarify when I saw you were honing into it being ok because it was an ebay bucks beta and that's it. It's not.

1) The 8% discount was NOT an ebay bucks promo or beta.
2) 8% was available to some ebay members
3) LESS or ZERO to other ebay members

Are you saying there's nothing wrong with that?

Ah. I finally figured it out. You are referring to our ongoing targeted couponing campaign (where eBay will provide coupons to buyers either upon checkout or via direct marketing email.) You are correct. I said (and I maintain) that there is nothing wrong whatsoever in a targeted coupon campaign.

And for the record you wont see customers sending in any customer complaints on this because the point is they were not aware of the difference in % discounts given to others because ebay decided random or intentionally, this ebay member got 8% and that ebay member got less or none.

They may be random, they may be deliberately targeted. And again, I see absolutely nothing wrong with this campaign. Targeted couponing is a standard traditional industry marketing strategy.

---

More tomorrow or Wednesday. The thread remains open. Remember: please read the Guidelines on the top of the thread prior to posting (especially those new to this thread).

Thanks,
Griff
Jim Griffith
_____________
eBay

Hi gang,

I am working on a batch of responses and will post them over the weekend or on Monday. For now, since I am not caught up, I will temporarily lock the thread and reopen it once I am caught up.

Thanks,

Griff
Jim Griffith
____________
eBay

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 14, 2009 1:15 PM

Donations at Checkout

Griff,
Although I haven't seen it, several members have reported seeing a new 'donation request' area during checkout here on ebay.com. I can only assume that this is an expansion of the UK program detailed here:

Link

Here are my questions:

1. Is this a new program?

The program has been in place as an extension of the eBay Giving Works program since Sept 2008 in the US and Nov 2008 in the UK. It does not show up on every checkout (I have not seen it myself in a checkout flow for a few months now).

2. Was there an announcement that I missed?

We have not made an official announcement about the feature. It has been running in test mode since it has began.

3. Will eBay make sure that buyers fully understand that the charities being promoted are selected and promoted by EBAY and not the sellers?

eBay owns the checkout flow and charities promoted there are selected by eBay only. I will bring it up to the team responsible to see if we could do something to make sure no one thinks the sellers promote the charities.

4. Will there be a way to opt-out and/or choose the charity that is shown to our buyers during checkout?

We will provide an opt out feature for buyers who do not wish to view the donation module. For those that opt in, we are also working on a feature to allow those buyers to select one of the thousands of charities that are registered with the program. It should be available in the Q4 2009/Q1 2010 timeframe. There are no plans for a “seller” opt out.

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Posted by menagerie1 on Jul 14, 2009 1:59 PM

Unwelcome or Malicious Buying Policy

Hi Griff,

To digisbeads, above, you answered:

The policy is enforced. Buyers who somehow circumvent the intent of a seller’s terms of service with regards to ship to locations are not automatically blocked from leaving feedback. However, in cases where said buyer has left feedback, and there are no other factors in play, said feedback would be removed.

Say what? You'd previously answered that no grounds exist for feedback removal in such circumstances. But here, you do.

Okay, I'll bite. Which violation statement -exactly- should be used in the report sent to T&S?

That would be the Unwelcome or Malicious Buying Policy

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 14, 2009 8:05 PM

Restocking Fees


Wrong again , Griff?

"At eBay, in a return dispute, we require the seller to refund the entire payment amount and require the buyer to ship the item back to the seller and pay for the return shipping. That way, the costs of shipping are shared equally. We do not allow for restocking fees. We don’t require a buyer submit to an interview as a condition for return. We do require them to state a reason for the return during the dispute process"

"You can also include additional return policy details, such as:

Restocking fee: Mention if you will charge a restocking fee, and if so, what it would be.
Item condition: Clearly state the condition of the returned item that would be acceptable to you, for example, "unopened box" or "opened box with all original materials".
"

That is right there in the policy on Returns

Is there some reason what the policy says one thing and you say another? Why is there a difference in what the policy says, and what you say?

It is the reality of how a return is handled in a SNAD dispute (and a possible inconsistency that we need to address). Yes, per the Help page, sellers may state a restocking fee as a part of their Return policy but for those transactions that are escalated to a SNAD dispute, restocking fees are not applied as a debit against the buyer’s refund (and I would be remiss in leading any seller to believe otherwise). The buyer receives the entire amount of their payment to the seller, not a partial payment, for example, payment minus restocking fees.

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Posted by forhome on Jul 14, 2009 10:04 PM

Hates Packing Peanutes

I just wanted to "ask Griff" if there are any discussions about sellers going "green"? Such as sellers agreeing to eliminate the use of packing peanuts. ( as a buyer I hate them anyway.)

There is no internal discussion around this particular topic (packing peanuts). Sellers are encouraged to promote any and all of their “green” business practices, including an indication of what packing materials they do and do not use.

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Posted by digisbeads on Jul 15, 2009 4:04 AM

eBay Label and Postage Printing Questions.


For first class options under eBay's new label/postage system large envelope is not an option. Can this be changed.

Why do I need to repeatedly put in dimensions before the postage will show on the label. If I don't want the postage to show I need no dimensions and the postage is calculated.

I do not know the answer to these two questions but I have sent your post to the Shipping Team for their consideration.

How to do multiple labels?

The multiple labels feature is not available for eBay label printing. It is however, still available via PayPal Postage Printing.

How can we save information if the weight, size, and class being sent stay the same?

Currently this is not an option. However, I forwarded the entire post to the Shipping Team for their consideration of your suggestions and concerns.

Too many steps in this process.

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Posted by enchantedhen on Jul 15, 2009 6:08 AM

Best Match and “Buried Treasure”


Hi Griff,

eBay is getting a rep for being flooded with cheap Chinese junk. You know it, I know it, we all know it. BUT there are still unique items to be found, be they antiques, unique artisan items, or vintage collectibles.

Problem is, these are like buried treasure, and very hard to find considering the Best Match algorithm favors powersellers with thousands of "like" items bought in bulk, multiple sales of the same items, and shipped free. OK fine.

My question: Are there any plans to drag these unique gems out into the light of day? Or are they destined to be buried deep in the bowels of best match? Can there somehow be a search built for unique items only? And make it available for the shoppers that want to shop 'oldschool eBay' ?

There HAS to be a way for the treasure hunters and the the iPod shoppers to co-exist in the same eBay!

I am not sure I fully understand the issue here. Based on the information you provided (“treasure” and “iPod”) I assume you mean antiques and electronics (and the bulk of items listed on eBay from Asian sellers are primarily in the electronics category). Since these are separate categories, a person searching for antique treasure in the Antiques category should not be seeing electronic items.

I shop the Antiques categories (through browsing and saved searches) every day and I don’t see the two merchandise categories co-mingled in the results. If you have a specific set of examples where this is occurring for you, feel free to post the details.

I also shop in the electronics category and have been 100% satisfied with my purchases from sellers located outside of the US. In fact, I have found many great deals on the things I normally buy (memory cards, digital camera accessories, etc) so I respectfully disagree with your assessment that these items are “cheap junk.” They may be cheap, but for the items I have purchased to date, I wouldn't consider them "junk."

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

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Posted by deltamaster on Jul 15, 2009 8:57 AM

New View Item Page and Screen Wrapping


Griff,

I have a 15" and a 17" notebook computers.

Whenever I viewed listing pages they would (for the most part) wrap in such a way that they would be fully viewed on even the 15" screen.

Recently I noticed that most of the listing pages now are not wrapping so that I must scroll to the left and right in order to view all of the text in the listing. I find this a problem even on my 17" display. I am using Mozilla Firefox 3.5 browser.

Can you find out what happened to the item view pages that they are now set up that I must scroll left and right to view the entire page?

Except for the fact that the View Item Page is now by default, the New View Item page for all buyers and sellers, I have no information to explain what you are seeing. If you would like to email me the details (including screen shots and the screen resolutions you are using), feel free to do so and I will examine them and if necessary, forward them to a product person for their take.

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Posted by idechavez on Jul 15, 2009 9:33 AM

Shipping To Nigeria


Hi Griff! I am kind of a new Ebay seller & have a question for you because I have been seeing it on some listings regarding no shipping to Nigeria. I currently have a buyer who bought the item but wants me to ship it to Nigeria. He/She has 100% feedback as a buyer & all but I am a little leery. Please reply if you have any information. Thanks much!

If the shipping address provided by PayPal is not a Nigerian address, then definitely don’t ship the item! Although I am sure there are perfectly honest people in Nigeria who shop on eBay, given the reputation of Nigeria as the center of organized internet fraud, all sellers should be extremely leery of shipping an item to Nigeria. If you want to send the details to me in an email (to griff@ebay.com using regular email, Not My Messages), feel free to do so and I will have someone take a closer look.

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Posted by lindaspostcardsandmore on Jul 15, 2009 9:37 AM

Store Format Future


Do you know if ebay.com will be eliminating store format the way they just did in AU? I have been restocking my store but don't want to continue if this is planned for the future here. Fixed price does not work for me and I could never afford anything close to the fees being charged there.
I know you can't leak advance notice if it is in the works, but if it is NOT coming here perhaps you could share that information so I could continue without fear.

There are no plans to eliminate Store Inventory Format for eBay.com

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 15, 2009 11:55 AM

USPS Delivery Confirmation in My eBay


USPS DC/Tracking info not updating on My eBay/Order Details:

I thought this question had been asked before, but after scrolling through (and going cross-eyed) I cannot find an answer. Griff, eBay has broken the USPS "tracking" feature. Delivery confirmation numbers are supposed to be 'surfaced' in My eBay for buyers but that information is not displaying correctly. It USED to be completely accurate. Now, it NEVER shows delivered--at least in the seller's links/view. It just simply stalls. Going directly to USPS and using the track/confirm feature results in completely accurate information.

Take, for example, this one:

Info on eBay has stalled on July 8. The item was delivered July 9. USPS track and confirm shows the correct info. Clearly, telling our buyers that eBay is providing outdated information and asking them to bypass that feature entirely kind of defeats the purpose of having it there. This should be a priority fix, but so far it's still broken.

Thanks for that information. The DC status is provided to eBay via a third party (not directly from USPS) The shipping team is working on changing this arrangement. In the meantime, if you have an item number for an existing transaction of yours on eBay where this has occurred, please forward it to me via email so the Shipping Team can take a closer look (griff@ebay.com using regular email, not My Messages.)

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Posted by stuff4you on Jul 15, 2009 12:31 PM

Shipping “Caps” For Media Questions

Griff,

Thank you for your reply. I must admit I am confused, and I think legitimately so: To eBay a DVD is not a DVD if not listed in the DVD category. Unfortunately, and I think you will agree, to a buyer a DVD IS in fact a DVD no matter what category it is listed in.

That is correct. That is, I agree; an item does not change by dint of which category in which it is listed.

So to a buyer who hears that eBay has mandated $3 shipping for DVDs, this is just confusing - and frankly another reason to be confused with eBay. To a buyer, a DVD is a DVD. And to a buyer, eBay's much ballyhooed $3 shipping is then, in many cases, just inaccurate.

Most buyers are not aware of a shipping cap in Media. They don't apply to buyers. They apply to the item and to the seller of the item. Buyers care about one thing only with regards to prices: the best deals, the lowest shipping costs.

As to reporting these DVDs under the search/manipulation policy. Well, you and I both know that is one of the policies that T&S does not enforce.

Actually, that is not correct. I have reported items for Search and Browse Manipulation and they have been ended.

So, DVD sellers can charge more, and sometimes way more, than the $3 DVD shipping as long as they game the system.

And are not reported, which is not the case. Although sellers who game the system in this manner are usually reported by their competition, not by buyers who again, unless they are also sellers, do not give a single thought to shipping caps.

My question, and there is one, is how can this policy NOT be confusing to a buyer? How is a buyer to know that the DVD they want to buy - with $10 shipping - is not actually a DVD?

First, this has nothing to do with a DVD not being a DVD. The shipping “caps” cover items in the Media category, not individual items. If a seller lists an individual media item – like a DVD - outside of a Media category, the caps do not automatically apply. Since the system doesn’t automatically detect Miscategorized media items, we rely on reports of them in order to take action. Sometimes, reports of listing violations are not processed until after the item ends. However, Trust and Safety does investigate and take action on all reports they receive, even for ended listings, which usually means a warning sent to the seller.

As to your question – “how can this policy NOT be confusing to a buyer?” –It might be confusing to a seller, but I cannot see how the policy is confusing to a buyer at all since a buyer is not subject to the policy (sellers are). A buyer might find a DVD with a higher shipping price if searching on key words across all of eBay (and not just a Media category) but in that search result (where the same miscategorized item is included with matching items correctly listed in a Media category), the Miscategorized DVD will be disadvantaged by Best Match by default and, in a sort by lowest price + shipping. A buyer concerned with shipping costs will opt for the one with the most reasonable costs. If a buyer finds too many “gamed” items, they may simply go to another marketplace where shipping is not as excessive (which is what they were doing in droves prior to the caps).

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Posted by atomicfx on Jul 15, 2009 2:27 PM

Links Policy Question


Hi Griff,

In one of your recent answers, you posted a link to eBay's Links Policy. However, after reading through the policy, I'm afraid it's rather ambiguous as to what we actually can or can't do. Could you please let me know if the following would be OK in my listings?

I would like to have a section in each of my listings which describes my company history and philosophy. Within this section would be multiple links to an off-eBay web page where my potential buyers could enter a sweepstakes and by doing so subscribe to my off-eBay newsletter. The section would end with this text:

"Subscribe to the AtomicFX.com newsletter now and be entered to win this $350 Nintendo Wii!"
Where "entered to win this $350 Nintendo Wii!" is a link to a page on my website which describes the Nintendo Wii in question and contains an "ENTER NOW" link to another page on my website where potential buyers could fill out a form to be entered into the sweepstakes. Under the form would be this disclaimer: "By entering to win, you agree to join the AtomicFX email member list."

Also note that BOTH the Wii description page and sweepstakes entry page on AtomicFX.com would contain multiple links to items available for sale on my website.

Please let me know if this would be breaking the Links listing policy - or any other listing policies - and if you can, please be specific.

I would not recommend putting any of the above in your listings. All of the above would be in violation of eBay Links policy The specifics can be found on the Policy page.

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Posted by 60curtis on Jul 15, 2009 3:44 PM

Obtaining Payment Funds


When you sell a product and your ebay says you have received the money, how do you get that money or in what form of payment do you receive it?

If your buyer paid you via PayPal, you need to log into your PayPal account and locate the payment in your Account Overview page. If the payment has cleared, it will show as a positive balance in your PayPal Account page. To withdraw the funds (in total or in part), click the Withdraw tab on the navigation bar and follow the instructions.



If you have not done so, you may need to add the details for a bank account into which you want the funds transferred. You can withdraw the funds in one of three ways: Into a bank account, directly into cash using a PayPal debit card connected directly to your PayPal account balance (apply for one on PayPal) or you can elect to have PayPal send you the funds in a paper check.

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Posted by mygift2u on Jul 15, 2009 4:04 PM

“New” Attributes and Outside Feeds


Griff

Now that google requires the condition attribute on many items, this is causing a problem for some products. (some items are not being picked up on ebay because they do not have the attribute "new" available. There are SEVERAL threads on several boards including the Powerseller Board on this problem.

For example, Original style Beanie Babies (not the computer interactive 2.0 Beanies) are still being manufactured by TY every month and sent to retailers. They are a NEW product. However in the category Original Beanie Babies, the only condition attribute offered by ebay is "Mint", "near mint", etc. There is no choice for "new". This needs to be changed. The original style NEW beanies are not being picked up by google because of this.

That is only one example. Why doesn't ebay offer a "new" option for EVERY item sold on ebay??? The disclosure is still incumbent on the seller to select the correct choice. However, we are not always given an appropriate choice. Thank you.

The team that works on these types of outside eBay features is aware of the recent changes Google made with regards to field requirements and is working to address it. However, there is no time estimate of when this feed will be adapted to the changes made by the Google. In the meantime, eBay does send all Fixed Price and Store Format listings directly to eBay once a day. There is usually a three day latency period for showing up in Google Product searches and Google does not allow all items to display.

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 15, 2009 5:33 PM

Buyer Feedback Invalid?


CAn you find any buyer with less than 100% feedback?

For a User ID where the buyer is only a buyer and has not sold an item on eBay using that eBay User ID within the last year? The answer for that case is “no.”

Does that tell you something about the validity of feedback on eBay buyers?

No it does not. A seller is not required to leave feedback for their buyers. Most do out a courtesy. Those with problem buyers don’t leave feedback for them. However, to then assume that buyer feedback is somehow invalid would be a mistake.

A buyer’s feedback can show other buyers and sellers if a buyer buys frequently or in frequently on eBay. The comments left can tell other buyers and sellers if the buyer pays quickly (sellers tend to note that fact in the feedback they leave for their buyers). A member can also cross reference back to the feedback the buyer left to see what he or she says about sellers from which they have purchased. All of this is on the record and valid and very helpful.

Most importantly, left feedback from sellers is something for which a buyer on eBay usually takes great pride. For example, I sell on eBay. I also buy on eBay. A lot. I love buying on eBay and I am proud of the feedback sellers have left for me. I don’t ask for it and I wouldn’t dream of demanding it. But I am always happy when they do leave it (and I don’t care if they wait till I leave it first. I don’t even check). My feedback matters to me as a buyer. Are you trying to say that the feedback the fantastic sellers from whom I have bought items is somehow invalid? Or that it is to be devalued because I am a buyer? Surely, you don’t hold your own buyer's feedback in such low regard, do you?

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Posted by chopsueysisters on Jul 15, 2009 8:13 PM

GMV Used For Third Party Research Tools


Griff, when eBay calculates or makes available their data on "Gross Merchandise Volume" on the site is it based on the site they list it on or the country they are registered? I'm asking because some of the 3rd party research services I use (like terapeak) uses ebay data to help me determine what's hot to sell or when its a better time to list

I don't know if its based on
* which ebay site I list on
* My country of registry
* or the currency I use
* something else?

(note I can be registered in the US but list on Ebay Australia instead of Ebay US)

I will assume that you mean the data that eBay sends to third party providers like Terapeak (and not the data that is released on quarterly earnings calls.)

Subscribers to Terapeak currently can search on 8 separate country options as displayed here:

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 15, 2009 9:31 PM

Feedback Adoption: Up or Down YoY (Year over Year)

I and many other sellers have noticed a steep decrease in the number of buyers leaving feedback for purchases since the May 08 changes. Many, many buyers are simply not leaving feedback for any of their sellers.

Has eBay noticed this as well? Are there any plans to tweak the current SNP calculations to factor in the fact that the feedback received number is no longer an accurate sample of a seller's buyer satisfaction?

Our data does not support this supposition. We have not noticed a steep decrease in buyer to seller Feedback. About 7 out of 10 buyers leave FB for a seller which is the same as last year. (the rate is very slightly down from last year to just under 70% vs.from just over 70% but it is up for the first half of this year). So although your individual mileage may vary, the rate change for the entire site is statistically insignificant. By the way, during the same time the percentage of buyers leaving DSRs has actually increased.

We are comfortable with the current algorithm used to calculate SNP - the combination of Feedback and claims is a very good measurement of seller performance, but we continue to evaluate how we measure seller performance with an eye to improvement.

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Posted by ted_200 on Jul 15, 2009 11:34 PM

DSRs and Search Ranking Status


Hi Griff,

I'm back with a question about an oldie but a goodie... DSRs.

I listed some stuff for the first time since May last week. Before listing, I had ZERO DSRs (and ZERO feedback) in the last 30 days. My search standing was "raised" (I assume because of my high 12 month DSRs).

I now have received two feedbacks. So, I cannot possibly have more than two sets of DSRs in the 30 day average. My understanding was if you had less than 3 sets of DSRs in the 30 day average, your search standing was based on your 12 month DSR average. I was just on my Seller Dashboard and see my search standing is "standard". My lowest 12 month DSR average is 4.85.

Why is my search standing not "raised"? What am I missing?

I asked one of our good friends in Trust and Safety for some insight and here is what he told me:

“..Hi Griff...I've done some research on this and found that when a seller temporarily stops selling on the site their search standing defaults to the last calculated level. Since this seller had a raised search standing several months ago, this setting remained in place until just recently. Once this seller began selling on eBay again this removed the default 'raised' search standing and automatically replaced it with the 'Standard' search setting. This design is put into place so that a seller's current search standing only reflects their most recent activity on the site…”

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Posted by ted_200 on Jul 16, 2009 12:04 AM

Site Issues

On the technical issues I asked about a couple of weeks ago... I'm not inclined to do a ton of screen shots and write a lengthy email to you explaining it all.

Then alas, I am unable to assist. General, non specific information does not provide the details they need to investigate your observed issues, attempt to duplicate them if necessary and if warranted, work towards a solution. They simply cannot do so without detailed information.

I tried Live Help (chat) and they had no idea why my templates (manage templates) constantly change colors and fonts or what it means, they blamed my browser for not being able to change my return policy in SYI (a "sometimes" issue, even though I always use the same browser), and said they'd transfer me to someone else about why my photos disappear from my templates in less than a week - which got me disconnected.

I sent an email (on another acct. I run) via the "contact us" system, and got the standard "Your issue is important to us... we'll contact you in 48 to 72 hrs" canned response. That was over a week ago, and no one ever responded. All of these issues still exist.

Since then, things have gotten even worse. Photos in many ACTIVE LISTINGS have turned into little red x's. In some multi-photo listings, all but the first photo are little grey x's in the new item page and do not work. If I switch to the old item page, the thumbnails are all visible but only the first photo will not open (the others open as little red x's). If I delete them, and re-load them, they work - that's just fine for listings with no bids (actually it isn't, because I've lost views before I discover the problem, but at least I can fix it). But if it has bids, I cannot delete 8 or 9 photos to replace them - and I can only re-load 3 or 4 before getting to the 12 limit. Obviously, this is an issue for me! Twelve free photos for collectibles is pretty useless if only one of them can be seen.

Something is haywire on the myeBay page. I sort by ending soonest in the Buying - Watched Items, but the listings are all mixed up and not in chronological order. One account has a 29 days left item at the top, above a 9 hours left item. I see the same issue on this account, too. This won't help sellers get bids from buyers, and things are slow enough already! Is the Best Match algorithm sorting these, or what?

I realize this is a little short on questions, so... Why doesn't anyone at Live Chat know what is going on? Why doesn't "Contact Us" ever respond? Why are we doing stuff like re-vamping the announcement board when the basic site functions do not work?

You assume your particular site issues are widespread and this are known by Live Chat reps. This is not usually the case and it is also the reason that we depend on detailed information and screen shots when reporting these issues. They are crucial in helping you and us determine if there is a site issue, a user-side issue or something else.

One issue you mention above regarding the Watched Items List, was a widespread, known issue and has since been corrected. The other issues – photos, templates, etc. - would require more detailed information.

PayPal Issue

A "pass it along" for the PayPal folks... it is a time-waster having to open the Details for every payment to extract the PayPal fee for the transaction. Can we put that back on the My Account summary? Or, put it in the Order Details on eBay?

I will forward your request to the folks at PayPal.

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Posted by celtictwo on Jul 16, 2009 4:25 AM

Relisting and MarkDown Manager Issue


Griff;
There is hardly a day that goes by without me getting more discouraged than the day before. And this is an example why.

I decided to put some items on sale. I packed out 40 books and checked if they were active listings or in my Unsold listings. 11 of this were in my Unsold listings so I tried to re-list them. The first 3 went just fine. On the fourth re-list I was diverted to a page asking for authentication because eBay did not recognize the computer I was using. It's the same computer I was using 10 seconds ago! I authenticated using the email option and started listing again. On book 10 eBay apparently forgot who I was because they didn't recognize me again. Repeat authentication process.

I finally get the 11 books re-listed and start using Markdown Manager to put the items on a 40% discounted sale. After I finished, I noticed Markdown Manager was only showing 39 listings scheduled. When I tried to view the listings to find the missing one, only 29 showed up even though 39 were showing as scheduled. No matter what I did I could not view all 39 listings to find the missing listing. I decided to wait the 3 hours for the scheduled listings to become active, figuring 39 was better than nothing. When the sale started only 29 went on sale. I received an automated email stating that the 11 books I re-listed 4 hours prior were ending before the sale was starting.

This morning I wanted to check the sale items to see if there were any watchers. I logged in using my buying account ID and found that there is no indication they are on sale. The price was reduced to the sale price, but there is no logo or graphic indicating that this item has been put on sale at a 40% discount. If eBay truly wants sellers to make sales, why can't they fix Markdown Manager to work as advertised?

Sorry to hear this. If the issue is continuing, please feel free to email the details directly to me at griff@ebay.com using your regular email (not My Messages) and I will forward them to a product engineer for closer investigation.

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Posted by blj1008 on Jul 16, 2009 6:34 AM

Item Damaged and Returned


Hi Griff

I want to ask another question based on a story I read on the discussion boards.

A seller sold an electronic device to someone in Europe. This buyer, after using it, contacted the seller and complained that the unit fried after plugging it in to a 220V power source, which is standard in Europe.

Now this buyer is trying to hold the seller liable because he did not inform the buyer that this device runs on 110V, even though the buyer would have had to use a special adapter to plug it in, which should have told him something right there.

All this buyer has to do is file a SNAD, return the item and PayPal will refund his money, even though he received the item EXACTLY as described and HIS negligence caused the damage, and the seller will end up with a worthless item, and a loss of money on the original shipping.

Sure, the seller can appeal the SNAD, but that guarantees nothing because PayPal almost always sides with the buyer. The buyer can even turn around and lie stating that the item never worked to begin with and it's his word against the seller's.

How is it fair that a seller can potentially lose hundreds of dollars over someone else's negligence, and eBay and PayPal seem to do very little to protect a seller from something like this?

What your retelling of this sad story left out is whether or not the seller made it very clear in their description that the item was intended for 110V power only. It also did not convey the value of the item. Without knowing all the details, I can say this much: If the seller did state clearly in the item description that the item was 110V only and the buyer claims it was damaged upon use in their country, there is a chance that PayPal would find, eventually, for the seller. As I have said before, everything depends on how detailed the seller’s description was and the reason provided by the buyer.

However, if a seller knows the item can only be used on one voltage and the buyer is located in a country that uses another voltage, I would think the seller would make certain the buyer understood he or she would need a plug adapter and step up or down transformer (current converter) in order to run the device. I might, as the seller, have also limited the purchase to only those buyers located within the US. And assuming that since the plug was different, that the item could not be used at 220v is a mistake. For example, nearly all laptop power adapters are rated for 110 – 220v useage without the need of a voltage converter. For those, the user in another country only needs a plug adapter.

This is why it is imperative for sellers to provide as much information and as much detail about the item and its use as possible. However, as you have described this case, it would be rewarded to the buyer, not the seller.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 16, 2009 8:06 AM

Buyer Ratings and Seller Performance Status


Buyer satisfaction rating clarification:

Griff,

Maybe you could clarify something I've wondered about for some time.

The seller dashboard states that Buyer Satisfaction rating is determined by unique negative or neutral feedback, 1 or 2s on any DSR, and INR/SNAD compaints.

What the impact be of a single buyer who left 1s in all 4 categories, a negative, AND filed a SNAD? Would that buyer count as 1 strike, 3 strikes, or 6?

Also, we were told on the ebayinkblog that when neutrals were removed from the feedback percentage, they were also going to be removed from the Seller NonPerformance calculation. The seller dashboard seems to indicate otherwise.

Are the SNP criteria different from the Buyer Satisfaction rating? I understood the point of the dashboard (and the BSR) was to give eBay sellers the same information that eBay had in terms of Seller Performance.



Which is it?

I asked Brian Burke, the eBay Director of Reputation and Policy, for some insight and here is what he sent me:

Q: What the impact be of a single buyer who left 1s in all 4 categories, a negative, AND filed a SNAD? Would that buyer count as 1 strike, 3 strikes, or 6?

A: Currently, we de-dupe (discount the duplicate) scores so the buyer can only impact the seller once per transaction. So in the case above, it would count as 1 “strike”, not 3 or 6.

Q: Also, we were told on the ebayinkblog that when neutrals were removed from the feedback percentage, they were also going to be removed from the Seller NonPerformance calculation. The seller dashboard seems to indicate otherwise.

A: I am not sure where that information came from. We never said that we would remove them (at least I didn’t) from the SNP calculation. Neutral has always been used in the SNP (Seller Non Performance) calculation (it’s weighted less than a negative) and was used as part of the SNP calculation even prior to our changes to the FB system in May 2008.

I understand the poster’s perspective, but neutrals provide valuable data for us to measure seller performance - we will continue to use it in the calculation. From a buyer’s perspective a neutral is not a positive so this information, as on factor in the total calculation, definitely helps identify the lowest performers. It is also important to note that neutrals do not harm a seller’s status for PS discounts or promotion.

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Posted by lurch-deeann on Jul 16, 2009 1:30 PM

Where to List a Comic Book?


Griff - thanks for the link to the Search & Browse Manipulation Policy. I am a bit confused how the example given by the OP would fall under this policy, but importantly, it has brought up a very interesting point.

First off, according to the "policy": Selecting a similar category that doesn't match the item—for example, listing a superhero comic book in a toy category—isn't allowed. (It should be listed in the Books category.)


Um, is eBay aware that comics have their own section:

Collectibles/Comics

However, according to the policy, they also shouldn't be listed in this category, but rather in Books?

That is not correct. Comic books should be listed in one of the available Collectible > Comic subcategories, not the Books category (where there is no sub category for “comics.”)

Should one start reporting the 156,000+ listings in Collectibles/Comics, or would eBay perfer to bulk move them to Books/?? all on the backend? Of course, this last bit is sarcastic, but when eBay can't get things right in their policies, yet expect people to follow them to the letter (even when they are vague and wide open to interpretation), it just makes me shake my head.

I don’t see the policy inconsistency. Comics have their own category under Collectibles (and are not subject to shipping cost caps). There is no category for “comics” under books.

Furthermore, given this specific example, I guess there's a lot of Search and Browse Manipulation going on. Comics which were food or mail-in premiums often end up in a premium category (and really should). Collectibles/Disneyana has a comics subcat under both Vintage and Contemporary. But I guess they should just be under "Books" which doesn't have any kind of comics subcat.

No, that is not correct. Comics have their own subcategory under Collectibles. Any item that can safely be identified as a “comic book” can be listed in that category and be in complete compliance with policy

At the same time, I guess I was recently guilty of it by listing a vintage golf instruction LP, featuring vintage golf celebs and with great vintage golf graphics, under Sports/Golf/Vintage/Other

Yes, technically you were in violation. The item should have been listed under the Music > Records category. although it also might have fit in the Collectibles > Radio, Phonograph, TV, Phone > Other category as well.

Given this blatantly incorrect reference in the *policy* and the fact that there is no one single category that comics must be placed (despite what the policy indicates), I am quite curious how Trust & Safety evaluates these claims. Can you explain how they evaluate this, when even the policy - which should be the guiding force - is completely wrong with this key reference/example?

There is an entire set of subcategories for Comics. Perhaps you missed it?

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Posted by ozzie3 on Jul 16, 2009 8:12 PM

eBay Resolutions


Griff, the user agreement says this:

"While we may help facilitate the resolution of disputes through various programs, we have no control over and do not guarantee the quality, safety or legality of items advertised, the truth or accuracy of users’ content or listings, the ability of sellers to sell items, the ability of buyers to pay for items, or that a buyer or seller will actually complete a transaction or return an item."

"facilitate" means to "To make easy or easier", does it not?

Yes it does.
fa•cil•i•tate \fə-ˈsi-lə-ˌtāt\
transitive verb
to make easier : help bring about: example: to facilitate growth


Is that the same thing as directing a settlement or resolution, as that appears to be the direction that ebay has taken in their resolution information.

No it is not. “Facilitating” does not equal “directing” as “directing” assumes a predetermined destination.

It appears to me as though the user agreement is written as it used to be, wherein eBay brought the parties into a resolution center so they could try to settle it between the parties. What it looks like now is that eBay wants to make the decision without much input from seller.

Am I wrong?
ozzie3
always correct,never wrong, but humble in my greatness

You will be relieved to learn that you are absolutely, completely and totally wrong. The new Resolutions process actually improves the dispute process by allowing for seller input, right at the beginning of the dispute and does not automatically determine an outcome without it. A real live human being will hear both sides of the case, and request more information as needed, to facilitate as in “help bring about,” a fair resolution.

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Posted by vsmith53 on Jul 16, 2009 8:17 PM

Not Receiving End Of Listing (auction) Email Notification


Hello Griff,

Has eBay stopped sending email notification to sellers when a listing ends? I have not received these notifications for quite some time.

I called eBay customer service on 7/14 and the rep originally told me that HE also was not getting notified when HIS listings closed. He did some checking around and then sent me this email:

Dear XXXXX,

Thank you for calling eBay in regard to not receiving the email notification when an item does not sell.

I have filled a Tech Ticket to get this researched for you and there will be a fix if it is something on our end. It does seem like the emails are going out so I would also check with your Email/Internet Service Provider.

What you could try is to switch your email address right before an item ends and see if it will arrive. If it does then it would be something with your Email Provider preventing you from receiving the emails.

I understand your frustration regarding this matter and apologize for the inconvenience it caused you.

Sincerely,
XXXXXXXX

I wrote the Customer Service rep back and stated that I did not think it would be a problem with my email/ISP as I am receiving all of the rest of my correspondence from eBay (to the best of my knowledge). This is the only email that is not arriving.

I have no idea what the rep means when he says "switch your email address right before an item ends". That makes no sense to me!

Do you know if eBay stopped sending these emails to sellers?

Thank you kindly!

We haven’t stopped sending them as a deliberate policy change. If your notification preferences are set to receive them and you are not doing so, then it is unintentional.

I believe the rep meant, change your email address on file to another address and see if the email arrives at the new address (you can change your email address at any time on eBay). For example, if you don’t have a secondary or additional email account, you can create a free account (at Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, etc) and try using it. If the email does arrive at the changed email address then you know it is something at the provider for your first email.

I would also suggest going to My eBay > Account > Notification Preferences > Seller > Selling Activity > Item Sold and changing it to “none.” Then click Save. Repeat the steps and turn it back “on” to “real time.” This resetting might fix it.

In the meantime, I will forward your post to someone for a closer look.

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Posted by vsmith53 on Jul 16, 2009 8:31 PM

Viewing Buyer Email from eBay


Hello Griff,

As a seller, I use Endicia for my postage needs, and I have been uploading my delivery confirmation numbers in My eBay. I spoke with a Customer Service rep who verified that an email was being sent to each buyer with their respective delivery confirmation number.

Since we get (or we are supposed to get) copies of other correspondence that eBay sends to our buyers on our behalf, is it possible for the sellers to get a copy of this email as well? I would like to see what it is that eBay is sending to my customers.

Currently, that isn’t possible however, it is an excellent suggestion. Sellers should be able to see what their buyers are receiving. I have forwarded it to the product team for consideration.

Thank you for all that you do.

You’re welcome.

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Posted by gro-gardners on Jul 16, 2009 10:53 PM

Minimum Monthly Seller Payment


What is the minimum monthly payment on my ebay fees? Thanks

Seller invoices are due in full the month they are issued.

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Posted by dammiteb on Jul 16, 2009 11:28 PM

Protecting Against Buyer Fraud


Griff, we are considering listing a huge collection of authentic movie posters, many of them quite rare and/or desirable. We've been around the block a long time, with relatively few problems from buyers - but we are hesitant with this situation in regards to buyer fraud and chargebacks. Our items are and always will be EXACTLY as described, but we know with PayPal anything is returnable. Beyond the usual - Priority Mail, insurance, DC - what can we do to avoid getting a rolled-up newspaper as a return? IF we decide to auction these, many will auction in the hundreds of dollars each.

Thanks,
the urban archaeologist / dammiteb

The incidence of buyer fraud on returns or of any type, is extremely small. However, it can and yes, it does happen. People are basically good but there will always be that small subset of people who have chosen a different path.

If a buyer is determined to commit fraud, there is no way you or I can know it beforehand. But we can guard against them. The first step in reducing the likelihood of buyer fraud is to be as complete as possible in describing the items. In the case of movie posters, condition is crucial. For each one, show every single possible condition item (rips, tears, creases, stains, etc) and highlight them with closeup photos. That way, if a buyer claims a SNAD based on a condition item that you have already clearly called out in the description, you stand a better than even chance of prevailing (upon appeal with the current PayPal process and initially with the new eBay Resolution process).

If however, you do accept a return and receive back something other than the item (including nothing), you will have redress. The current process with PayPal provides an appeal option (as will eBay Resolutions). With an appeal with PayPal, you may be asked to provide either a signed affidavit or an police incident report. Once received by PayPal, the appeal will be processed and you will be refunded (and the buyer may be sanctioned or worse).

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Posted by krafty-kitty on Jul 17, 2009 7:12 AM

Buyer Refunded Without First Sending Back The Item


I have a question that I cannot find an answer to and need some guidance as to where to find an answer. What do I do about a buyer (left negative feedback, said she sent emails, which she did not thru the auction item but instead thru private email with different address, then when I contacted thru the auction explained what I found to be wrong with emails, then I gave a refund on the toy which she said was a "serious knitting tool" and any person can see it is a toy, then send me a message that she is not sending the item back and that she is "going to teach me and others a lesson, threatens me with "ebay fraud" that I sold something not working ) The sends message thru ebay auction that she will not respond to any message that I send to her, now I do not care about the neg feedback as this person is scaring the daylights out of me, she Is "going to teach me a lesson", says a toy is not a toy, refusing to return item of which I send shipping cost also to her, Yes, I have "reported" to ebay but not getting any guidance in this or at least an update. So what does ebay do about buyers that refuse to send an item back even after receiving a refund? I am beginning to think this person is a scammer . I can send a copy of the message that she sent to me thru the auction # and I have do so to the ebay. You can go and read the message that she sent, it is in my message folder on ebay auctions, she threatens me with the fraud, frankly she is scaring the daylights our of me. I also do not like a person to use what I call profane language that she posted on my feedback. A person has the right to leave neg feedback but not what is considered profane language. This ebay does not state as to WHAT is profane language but I consider the word she said to be so. I teach 2nd grade and if the children use that word then they are sent to the office. So help me or somebody help me. I do feel that she should send back the item if she is not happy especially since I gave her a refund. What to do? Thank, R

Sorry to hear of this. First rule of ecommerce: don’t send a refund until you have the item back in your possession. eBay does not require a seller to issue a refund prior to receiving the return. In this case, since you have already sent the refund, the chances of getting the refund or the item back are virtually nil (unless the buyer has a fit of conscience which doesn’t appear likely based on what you have told us so far). That doesn’t mean that a seller cannot decide to issue a refund without a return (for some small value items, this is not uncommon) but the rule of thumb is, no refund till the buyer sends the item back.

At this point, I would recommend ceasing all responses to her correspondence and, if you choose to not deal with her again, putting her ID on your Blocked Buyer List.

I also checked the feedback comment. The word "crap" though not a polite term, does not qualify the feedback for removal as a violation of the Feedback Abuse Policy (The word is not considered profane, obscene, racist, vulgar or adult).

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Posted by 4girlscostmoneyhoney on Jul 17, 2009 8:17 AM

Custom Listing Description Templates


Griff,

Is Ebay really considering doing away with custom templates? (ie, from Seller Sourcebook) This would be a detriment to people who sell certain items that need many pictures! We already can barely afford all the fee's much less having to purchase additional pictures. TIA!

There are no plans to eliminate seller’s ability to customize their descriptions with HTML or pre-designed templates.

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Posted by instantvideogames on Jul 17, 2009 9:38 AM

Recent Fashion Deals Promotion


Hello Griff,

Can you explain what is going on with the inaugural Fashion Deals, Flash Sale seller? The member, who I guess we are not supposed to name, has zero items listed on eBay, yet their store page is an ad for the sales currently taking place on their website, with links to the sale. This seems to be a one way black hole sucking people off of eBay.

I suppose if their store is a Pay-Per-Click arrangement, that would be a good thing, because the added revenue may help postpone the next listing fee reduction.

I guess my concise question is, are they getting what they paid for or are they abusing the eBay venue while no one is looking?

The recent two-day promotion called “Fashion Deals” was a one-time test. The test was conducted through a third party eBay seller and was for special brand name merchandise from one luxury brand name owner. As a part of the test, we did allow links to the brand name holder’s web site. The test may be repeated in the future. We may change the links policy in the future based on this and any future test results. However, the links policy is for now, still in force.

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Posted by snappyauctions14 on Jul 17, 2009 9:40 AM

DSR Suggestions


We've another hopefully constructive suggestion - this time for DSR assessments timeframes:

Many small volume sellers note the much higher potential for penalty and sanction based on the fact that one bad DSR apple in a relatively empty barrel can spoil all the others much sooner - and with less cause - than it would for a larger volume seller.

So, instead of a 30-day DSR assessment (based on rollover etc) - why not base it on the past X number of assessments received no matter what timeframe?

Lets use the past 50 received for example. For a large volume seller this can happen (be recorded) within a day or two - for a smaller volume seller it might take months. But the net effect is the same. Take your snapshot of the last XX number group - then it doesn't matter if that happens at midnight or noon on a 2nd or 4th Tuesday or whever eBay's camera batteries seem to be charged to seek the lowest possible score per timeframe upon which to lower the boom.

After all, If one dissapoints 5 out of 50 buyers (whatever equates to the 4.1 standard - validity notwithstanding which is a whole 'nother argument), should it matter WHEN that happened - or IF it did? We contend it's the latter. eBay should too.

This would go a significant way toward re-levelling things and provide a much better assesment of "trends" - something eBay keeps touting they prefer to rely on over specific occurance. Your thoughts if you care to offer them?

BTW - this might work well for FB % too - in case that value measurement still holds any meaning or has a future here.

As always, thank you sincerely for your time and due consideration.

Thank you for your suggestions. I will forward them to Brian Burke’s team for consideration.

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Posted by eclectic_seller_too on Jul 17, 2009 2:21 PM

Picture Pak Fees Incurred


Dear Griff,

4 times in the last few days, I've been charged a Picture Pack fee, when I haven't opted for Picture Pack.

It seems to happen when I relist an item, and/or change the category.

I've searched the listing for a way to opt out, but I've been unable to find that option.

Although I appreciate that eBay is crediting my account with the Picture Pack fees, it's a bit inconvenient to have to keep sending emails to eBay to get the credit.

I would like to know why it keeps happening, and if there is something I can do to prevent it from happening in the future.

Thank you.

As with all private account matters like this, please send the details to me directly at griff@ebay.com using your regular email, not My Messages. Include your seller user id, the listing tool used (SYI, TurboLister, third party, etc) and the item numbers for the listings where this has occurred.

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Posted by di25535 on Jul 17, 2009 2:32 PM

Selling Manager Suggestions


Griff - couple questions/suggestions for sales management - specifically selling manager.

Although a bit clunkly, it is an effective order management tool - at least at my volume levels.

BUT (there's always a but)

1. Why not put the links/ access to the blocked bidder list and unpaid item disputes or cases on the waiting for payment page?? Currently they're on the active listing page, which loads very slowly - and I have yet to file an UID on an active listing...

2. Could we have a place for special cases? From time to time I have a return, or other issue with a paid & shipped item that requires some sort of followup. I Like to put notes on the item regarding what's going on - what I've promised, etc. The paid & shipped page loads very slowly, and requires extra steps to locate the item ( I use the item description, since the buyer may or may not write from the same email address used to buy). Currently, the only way to make these items easy to find is to mark them as not paid, or not shipped, when in fact they are both. It would be a boon to be able to follow up on these issues without having to hunt through dozens of listings & emails regarding the item.

3. The SM feedback leaving tool mostly malfunctions. Last night I left feedback for about 20 sales. None were left as of this morning. I tried again, and it appears that about 19 were left. Now I get to spend more time looking for the one that should have been left and didn.t This is an ongoing thing - hard to report, since I don't record which items I checked to leave feedback before I click the button.

Thank you for your suggestions. I will forward them to the My eBay team for consideration. As for the Left Feedback issue, please send me the details (including item numbers) where this has occurred. (If you have screen shots, that would be a boon). Send them to griff@ebay.com using your regular email application, not My Messages. Thanks.

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Posted by deltamaster on Jul 17, 2009 3:18 PM

New View Item Page Suggestions


Griff,

I recently won an item under the "New" listing views.

In the old days I could open the listing and at the top it would have a space that said something like

"Congratulations Deltamaster you won this widget" then next to that there was a nice big radio button that said something like "Pay Now". I could click on that button and pay for the item immediately at auction end without leaving the auction listing.

This was convenient as I would watch the widget count down and refresh the page until time ran out and when I won I would pay the seller within a minute of the auction closing!

Sellers LOVE it when buyers PAY FAST! as it should be for ALL transactions... Pay ASAP not 7 days later (and after UID is filed).

SO my recent purchase I did this and the auction timed out and I was gleefully the winner. I tried to pay but NO PAY NOW BUTTON... What the HEY?!?

I had to jump through hoops for about 10 minutes until I finally figured out I had to go back to my ebay summary page and find the won items and then find the pay thing and such.

TONS of page views and clicking from one page to another and finally I paid!

PLEASE... CAN YOU TELL the INDIVIDUAL that decided to remove the "Pay" button from the listing page to PUT IT BACK???!!!???

I cannot command (tell) them to do so. However, I have forwarded your suggestion to the New View Item Page team for their consideration.

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That catches us up. The thread is once again open for new posts.

Prior to posting, make sure you have read this first!

Thanks,

Griff
Jim Griffith
____________
eBay

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Posted by indiebiz on Jul 22, 2009 4:18 PM

Title Optimizer ≠ Best Match Tool

Followup: Title Optimizer Status? Posted by indiebiz on Jul 11, 2009 7:12 PM

>>>What is the status of the bayestimator (title optimizer) tool at eBay Research Labs Link ? Any ETA on when it will be accessible again?
>>>I just checked and the optimizer tool is still up and accessible at the following (Link).

Thanks for checking Griff, it did go back up a few days after I posted the question. No way to un-post the question. So: Is the this the same tool that is being referenced here Link in the AuctionBytes blog as the "Best Match Tool" which will be available at the same time Seller Responsibilities policies in September?

I would like to know more about this tool, if you can point me to any relevant articles or nnouncements.
Thanks

The Title Optimizer tool is definitely not the Best Match tool that has been mentioned in various places around the web. Stay tuned to next week’s announcements for more.

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Posted by austiners on Jul 22, 2009 5:30 PM

Cannot Enter Tracking Numbers


Griff --

eBay now encourages sellers to enter a tracking number in the sales records, both as a service to the buyer and as part of the resolution process. However, a some recent change (or accidental mistake) makes it impossible to enter the tracking number in Selling Manager. See these forum threads:

Can something be done to get this problem fixed? eBay wants the tracking number to be entered, but has taken away the means to do so!

the team is aware of this bug and is working on it as we speak. In the meantime, you should still be able to access the tracking number entry page from the Sold Item page in Selling Manager.

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Posted by marsull_inla on Jul 22, 2009 5:33 PM

Next Week’s Announcements (Monday)


Concerning the news about required insurance and exact shipping with "resonable" handling costs that is supposed to be announced in Sept.

...

We will answer questions about any of the upcoming tools, features or policies for Seller Release II when and after we post the official announcements on Monday. The announcements will contain accurate information on a variety of tools, features and policy topics directly related to selling on eBay. Discussions and Q&A around the next seller updates will begin once the official announcements have been posted (on the eBay Announcement Board). Thanks.

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Posted by sammyjewels on Jul 22, 2009 6:07 PM

Feedback Responses


Griff...question regarding feedback.
Buyer leaves negative feedback for seller
Seller responds to the negative on his/her profile
Buyer comes back with another derogatory (speling) and vicious remark
Seller cannot defent this remark - we only get to respond ONCE

That is correct.

Ok, so our do-no-wrong buyers have a right to leave negative feedback. But that second response...wouldn't that be considered malicious feedback?

No.

Or does the buyer always have the last word...ltrue or untrue. ??????

A seller has one chance for a response to a comment left for them by a buyer and the buyer can respond to that seller response. However, who has the last word is not as important as what each person says in the space allotted. A single calm, rational, professional seller response to a buyer negative says much more about that seller’s character than anything the buyer might say.

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Posted by jd9912 on Jul 22, 2009 7:01 PM

Malicious and Unwelcome Buying Question


Hi Griff....hope you are well and thanks for this thread....I do find it helpfull (sometimes). My upcoming "problem" and question (just being preemptive!)

I had a buyer back in June get a little "testy" and left me a "false positive" on a transaction. I added him to my blocked bidder list. He has now came in under another user ID and has bidded (and won) several other items under his other ID (before I figured out who he was and blocked that one too). I can see that I am getting set up to get slammed on FB and/or DSR's when he pays and I refund his PP payment ---- (I will definitely not sell the stuff to him)! I consider this to be malicious buying activity.

So....my question(s):

Does eBay consider this to be malicious buying activity?

Yes. The Unwelcome and Malicious Buying Policy states (underline emphasis mine):

Buying with the intent to disrupt a listing
Examples:

• Buyer places a bid that greatly exceeds the value of the item in order to prevent a sale.
  
• Buyer bids on multiple items listed by a seller without intent to complete the sale.
  
• Buyer attempts to purchase an item after having been placed on a seller's blocked bidder or buyer list.

If he pays (and I refund) and he leaves me negative FB will eBay remove the negative FB's and possibly suspend him for "malicious buying activity".

Yes. But, you should report the activity the moment it happens! and not wait till he pays. If a previously blocked bidder circumvents your block, report it using this page:

Link

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 22, 2009 8:21 PM

Next Week’s Announcements (Monday)


Griff, there are some reports circling about a new insurance eBay policy that will remove the insurance field and force sellers to include any required insurance in their shipping charges or in the item price.

What about media sellers who have shipping caps? Are we supposed to, yet again, absorb another increase? Or should we all just switch to calculated shipping so that we can add the costs of insurance to the handling area?

We will answer questions about any of the upcoming tools, features or policies for Seller Release II when and after we post the official announcements on Monday. The announcements will contain accurate information on a variety of tools, features and policy topics directly related to selling on eBay. Discussions and Q&A around the next seller updates will begin once the official announcements have been posted (on the eBay Announcement Board). Thanks.

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Posted by celtictwo on Jul 22, 2009 11:51 PM

Discrepancy In eCheck Clearing Time Estimate


Griff;
Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear in my question of July 14th regarding the PayPal e-mails. Here’s just the bare facts.

1. Canadian buyer pays via eCheck and while doing so PayPal states an estimated clearing time of approximately 14 days.

2. I log into my PayPal account and the transaction says it is pending with an estimated clearing time of 14 days.

3. Both the buyer and myself receive e-mails from PayPal that the estimated clearing time of the eCheck is 8 days!

Both the buyer and myself know and understand what estimated means and accept that. The problem is not in the estimated date. The problem is that PayPal is sending emails that contradict the correct estimated clearing time in a negative way. In other words it appears they are sending the same e-mails for domestic and International buyers. In this particular case, the buyer is a repeat customer with some eBay experience and no harm was done. But if this was a newbie it could very well cause problems.

That is much clearer, thanks. I forwarded this post to the appropriate person(s) at PayPal for their attention.

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Posted by indiebiz on Jul 23, 2009 5:57 AM

Unanswered Question Flag


Hi Griff,
In MyEbay: How do I get the big loud "UNANSWERED QUESTION" red flag off my store items when the questions have been answered?

With store items on auto relist, the product can be sitting there for several months and the flag remains with the original listing, even though the questions have expired and are gone from my message box. I did answer the questions (always do), maybe using messages, maybe using email.

Is there any way that I can delete those flags when the question is taken care of?

I am not sure but I will forward your post to the appropriate teams for their attention.

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Posted by djbkg on Jul 23, 2009 7:01 AM

Tracking Information Not Updating


Hi Griff,

I just checked a tracking # on a purchase I made.Clicked the link on my Items won page on My Ebay.It said there were no records of shipment.I took that # directly to the Fex-Ex site and it displayed every bit of progress the package has made.Now I know why my bidders email me and ask if I shipped their package when I know I did and there is a tracking #.Is there some problem with the system,if so can tracking #s be removed until it is fixed.All it does is make the seller look bad in the situation when they have done nothing wrong.

Up until now, this tool has not supported FedEx tracking numbers (a seller can enter them, but they are not updated by FedEx). However, there will be some news to announce on this topic in the coming week(s) so stay tuned.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 23, 2009 7:40 AM

Handling Time

Thank you for forwarding Rich's comments. I have to say I'm disappointed, though. Clearly, if Domestic Handling Time was so pervasively throughout the help pages, listing forms etc etc it was NOT "always" meant to be domestic and international.

eBay just woke up one day and decided that it would mean that and didn't realize that the messaging all over the massive site would say otherwise.

I honestly think this deserves more than an "oops" response, but that's just me.

I'd also like to reiterate that we need a distinct field for International Handling Time. Although it has since been removed from the eBay International Selling Help pages, there USED to be information clearly presented that even eBay acknowledged that international packages take longer to deal with than domestic ones and buyers should allow for that.

From here on, we will be providing only one “handling time” indication for all transactions (no separate handling time indications for “domestic” and “international”).

Also, the DOMESTIC handling time is STILL appearing on the help page that pops up from the SYI form.

The places where the phase, “domestic handling time” currently appears on the site will be changed in the near future to just “handling time.”

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Posted by di25535 on Jul 23, 2009 9:51 AM

USPS Rates


As you know, many eBay Powersellers have been able to take advantage of discounted UPS shipping rates; the discounts vary with volume and other factors, but they make UPS a competitor rate-wise now that USPS Parcel Post has priced itself out of the market.

The Post Office is losing huge amount of money due to reduced volume. Yet there is a potentially huge market if they'll compete with UPS for business.

The argument that there are millions of individual eBay sellers doesn't hold that much water - UPS offered those discounts, to the thousands or millions of individual sellers conditioned on the labels being printed through Paypal.

WHy doesn't eBay attempt to negotiate a similar deal with USPS?

Why do you assume that we haven’t made said attempt? And let’s say hypothetically, that if we have made said attempts or better still, were in the middle of said attempts at negotiations, do you think I would be free to talk about them here?

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Posted by chopsueysisters on Jul 23, 2009 12:47 PM

Restated Question


Hey Griff, you didn't answer my question and I replied last night on this thread to tell you that and to go back and read it. I'm asking you again to read my question and answer it.

My apologies, the nature of the question was not exactly clear (and I confess, it still isn’t totally clear). Let’s see if this does it: GMV for individual country sites is based on sales listed on that site (and not where the seller might reside, or on which eBay site she might be registered, or which currency she is using, ). If a seller goes to ebay.it and clicks “Vendi” and lists their item using that SYI form, and it sells, the GMV generated is attributed to ebay.it.

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Posted by buyalot! on Jul 23, 2009 1:10 PM

Shipping Caps Question


A seller has a book to sell. It would easily ship for less than the $4 via Media Mail (it's too heavy for first class). Seller does not wish to ship it via Media Mail because of the DSR issues on shipping time (a real problem for many booksellers on the site). Seller opts for Priority mail using the calculator charging exact postage. The item is a standard size; it is the shipping method that would cause the item to exceed the cap.
To me, this scenario is a clear attempt to circumvent the caps and is a violation of the excessive shipping policy.

If the item is standard size, the seller is indeed risking a violation of the Shipping Policy

Griff, what would you recommend the hypothetical seller above do in order to solve his DSR problem, without losing money on shipping?

I cannot guarantee any strategy will “solve” the seller’s “DSR problem.” However, I would suggest the following:

The policy states that the first shipping option must be in compliance with the caps. With this in mind, I would offer the first option as Standard Flat Rate at or below the cap for that category (say $4).

Then provide a second shipping option using calculated postage and the lowest cost service. (You could also add a third for Priority if that works). I would indicate to potential buyers that the first shipping option is the least expensive and least speedy option. "The lowest rate may take up to x days to arrive! If you need the book right away, choose the speedier option number two." I would then indicate that second option, while slightly more in cost, will get the item to the buyer faster than option 1. "Need it quick? Opt for the faster Parcel Post (or First Class or whatever is appropriate) shipping option."

Will it work 100% of the time? Probably not. But it will provide buyers a choice and choices often make a buyer happier, especially if the choices also inform the buyer.

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Posted by mygift2u on Jul 23, 2009 1:28 PM

“New” Item Attributes on eBay


Sorry, I guess I did not phrase my question very well as the reply did not really answer what I was asking. So I will try again.

I am not talking about ONLY about the feeds although that certainly is a problem. I am talking more specifically about a category that should have a choice of "NEW" in addition to "Used" or "Mint", etc. There are currently 2 categories of Beanies: Original Syle and Computer Interactive 2.0 style. The manufacturer, TY, is still making NEW Beanies in each style. The "new" attribute choice needs to be added to the "Beanie Babie Original style" category when creating a listing. The "Beanie Babie 2.0 style" category DOES have the "new" attribute. Both of those categories need to have a NEW attribute choice. So Google is picking up the 2.0 styles but NOT the Original styles. And both are new and still made by the manufacturer.

It is a problem because evidently whoever picked the attributes for that category does not understand the product. The attribute choices need to be updated. Could you just please forward this post to the proper person so they could review it? THEN, hopefully by the time the category gets corrected, the feeds might get corrected and everyone will be happy. Organic search is not even picking up this category because of the problem and that is as important as a correct feed being sent (which they are not). Even if the feeds start getting sent correctly, the product won't be sent because of the missing "new" attribute. So if you could forward this post I would appreciate it. Thank you.

I will forward your request for the inclusion of a “new” item condition option in more categories to the appropriate persons. Thanks.

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Posted by ilowiter on Jul 23, 2009 1:48 PM

Personal Account Issue


Hi Griff,

Some advice would be welcome. I won't bore you with the whole saga, …

Per the guidelines for this thread, please send all requests for assistance with a personal account issue directly to me at griff@ebay.com using your regular email application, not My Messages. Thanks…

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Posted by lurch-deeann on Jul 23, 2009 1:49 PM

Policy Example Correction Needed


Griff - you need to carefully re-read my last post here. I quoted the policy you linked to. I'll quote it again here:

"Selecting a similar category that doesn't match the item—for example, listing a superhero comic book in a toy category—isn't allowed. (It should be listed in the Books category.) "

The parenthetical bit there IS in the policy you linked to - it is not *my* addition. The policy states comics should be in the Books category. That's what I'm talking about. It's wrong.

Sorry I missed that. The example we use in that segment is so glaringly wrong that I thought it was quoted from another source (not the Help pages)! But there it is and yes it is absolutely wrong. I will send it in for correction immediately. Thanks!

My question does remain - how does T&S determine the outcome of miscategorized items in claims of browse and search manipulation, when even the example in the policy is wrong? But is it adjudicated only based on the physical nature of the item?

For instance, if Pep pins are listed in
Collectibles/Advertising/Merchandise & Memorabilia/Premiums, Prizes & Charms
instead of
Toys & Hobbies/Fast Food, Cereal Premiums (Pep was a cereal)
or actually... according to the response to the Golf LP example, I guess they could only go under this:
Collectibles/Pinbacks, Bobbles, Lunchboxes/Pinbacks

as it seems that the physical nature of the item is the primary factor. In this case, it is physically a pinback, but were premiums, I would guess, in eBay's eyes, it would have to go under pinbacks? Correct?

No. (This is why we allow for listing an item in two categories.) The pin could be considered a prize or charm, a cereal premium or a pinback (I suppose) and thus would be absolutely acceptable in any of the three categories (for one listing, pick two).

And why are audiobooks under Books, when they're either on CD (or for older ones) on cassette. If the physical nature of the item is the primary factor, it seems like audiobooks should be under the Music/CDs/Records category (there is a sub for spoken word there).

I do not know. I will ask but it would seem to me, and this is only my opinion, that an audiobook could be considered “spoken word” and would fit into that category and be in compliance.

And really - one last time here - the eBay policy states that comics go under Books.

The policy text is not correct (there is an entire range of categories, including contemporary comics, under Collectibles. They can (and should) be listed there. Obviously, the 130,867 comic books listed in the Collectibles > Comic Books category are not Miscategorized. I have forwarded this in for correction.

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Posted by saynomorejoe on Jul 23, 2009 3:01 PM

Tax Liability Question


As tax collector say that shipping charges are not an expense to the seller if the seller does not indicate that the shipping charges are not part of the sale, does your policy of requiring the goods to be shipped to the buyer eliminate a tax deduction for the seller.

"the seller contracts to deliver tangible personal property to some designated place ... the transportation charges are rendered to the seller ... and the selling price of the tangible personal property so transported must include the amount of the transportation charges. In this event such charges are not deductible by the seller in computing his tax liability under the Law. On the other hand, if the seller contracts to sell tangible personal property f.o.b. origin, the title to the property passing at such point to the buyer and the buyer pays the transportation charges, then the transportation services are rendered to the buyer and are not a part of the selling price of the vendor. Therefore, such transportation charges should not be included by the vendor in computing his tax liability under the Law. These principles will apply irrespective of whether such charges are separately billed by the seller from the tangible personal property sold. "

Does you policy on shipment make the seller pay more taxes.

I am not authorized or qualified to parse, interpret or offer opinions on the quoted paragraph, especially as stated, without context, and as it relates to your or any seller's activity on eBay. However, you can and should contact your tax attorney or accountant and ask them that question and for any advice as to how it pertains to your business.

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 23, 2009 3:24 PM

Related Items Tab


Griff, while researching something this morning, I was disturbed to discover something with the new item page:

On ENDED listings:
a seller who had opted in for cross promotions had ZERO of their items showing to a potential buyer who may have stumbled upon it. Not at the bottom of the listing, not at the top, not on the related items tab.

There were about 15 identical, competing items showing at the top that matched the keywords, but no other items from the seller whose listing had ended.

On ACTIVE listings,

Sadly, again, no items by that seller were showing on the related items and services tab (despite having 80 or so active items). Instead, directly competing listings were shown for the exact same item! Multiples. Without another item from that seller appearing anywhere in the mix.

Now, I understand the rationale for showing similar items on an ended listing (someone looking at an ended item may still be searching for it)--but it undercuts multiple item purchases when NO other items from that seller are also shown. What if the buyer who purchased the item (causing it to end) wanted to purchase more items to save on shipping?[ Presumably, they wouldn't need more than one Strawberry Shortcake lunchbox]

The ONLY link to the seller's other items was the small link under his profile.

I never did get a response about bringing back cross promotion connections, but I would also like to see if you can explain the benefit to the seller whose listing had ended of showing ONLY more of the same item rather than THEIR other items?

I would be happy to! The Related Items section is both a buyer and seller benefit. Related items benefits the buyer by serving up other items on eBay related to the item she is either viewing or won (in Ended listings) or is considering (Live listings).That is why it is called “related items” and not “seller’s other items.” Think of it it as a first step towards a more robust merchandising feature on eBay. However, there are benefits for the participating seller as well. If the seller has a related item, and the seller has opted in to cross promotions, those items will appear there and more importantly, the seller’s other items will also appear in every other eBay listing related to the item.

In addition, sellers can promote their own items within their descriptions (that is not going to change) using text links or special third party tools like the scrolling marquee that is very popular with many sellers (I love that tool.)

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Posted by honeville1 on Jul 23, 2009 3:36 PM

Multi Variation Thumbs Up


Griff..

Please pass on a GREAT BIG "WELL DONE!" to those who brought the multi-variation feature to ebay! In fact... tell the powers that be that them folks need a raise! I give this 6 out of 5 stars! So unbecoming of what we have come to call "yabe"... This is NOT a square wheeled feature but a giant GRAND SLAM for ebay!

Very well thought out! Easy to use! A giant leap forward for buyers and sellers too! WELL DONE, FOLKS, WELL DONE!!!!

APPLAUSE, APPLAUSE, APPLAUSE!!!!

On behalf of the team who actually did all of the hard work (which by the way, continues as we expand multi-variation to more categories), I will say, you are welcome!

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Posted by buriedbybooks on Jul 23, 2009 3:45 PM

Indicating Who Is Selling Related Items


cross promo part 2:
*Correction, there were 12 competing items.*

It's bad enough that we have sponsored ads slapped on everything, Griff, but eBay keeps changing what our buyers are seeing without telling us and without making sure that buyers are aware of what eBay is doing.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about (cropped so I don't break the board too badly)



Notice the complete absence of any message to the buyer that these are competing listings and NOT from the seller on whose listings these are shown?

What happens when a buyer becomes upset that what they THOUGHT were multiple purchases from the same seller turns out to be from 2 different sellers? It isn't going to be pretty. I think it is abominable, personally, but clearly the direction eBay wants to go. But can you PLEASE request that a disclaimer or message of some sort clearly define those items as potentially belonging to other sellers the way the sponsored ads are marked?

I will of course, forward your request to the appropriate persons for their consideration. I cannot promise it will result in the adoption of your suggestion but I will forward it nonetheless.

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Posted by hewty on Jul 23, 2009 4:27 PM

All Four Flat Rate Priority Boxes Now Available In eBay Label Printing


Will they EVER list all 4 USPS Priority flat rate boxes , as of now and since I started useing it it only list's the Medium FR box..

The PayPal Print Postage tool will include all the available Flat Rate Boxes in the future. However, the eBay Print Postage tool does include all four Flat Rate Priority boxes. Here’s how:

Go to My eBay > Account > Site Preferences > Selling Preferences > Shipping Preferences and check the box for “Pay for shipping and print US Postal Service Labels on eBay.” Then click Apply. The next time you elect to print postage for an item in Selling or Selling Manager, you will be directed through the eBay flow (as opposed to the PayPal flow). You can toggle back and forth between the two by checking and unchecking this box.

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Posted by douglas2008864 on Jul 23, 2009 8:42 PM

Email from Potential Buyers


Hello . I have afew questions. There have been some people e-mailing me direct. Not though ebay, One wants to know if i will except a certified check and wants my name and address and want to know if car is at my residents. They other say he is out of country working in europe and wants my paypal address. I feel these emails are trouble. Am i suppose to give that kind of info out?

For the first example, I wouldn’t give out specific information but if you are selling a vehicle on eBay Motors, you can accept a certified check (don’t provide the vehicle or title until said check clears completely). However, I wouldn’t give my residential address if requested to do so. I would instead ask why the potential buyer needs that information and if it is to calculate shipping, I would give him my city or zip code (nothing more). (and if I did sell the vehicle for pick up to someone that made me a bit suspicious, I would meet the buyer on neutral ground, for example, a well lit, public space.)

As for the request for my PayPal user id, a buyer only needs that information for sending you payment (they cannot access your PayPal account with only the User ID email address. However, pre sale, the buyer doesn’t need your PayPal address so if you choose, you can ask the potential buyer why he is asking for it.

My rule of thumb. Stay on guard, but don’t suspect every single inquiry as a possible attempt of fraud. Give out only the information necessary to making the purchase and nothing more.

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That catches us up. I am going to lock the thread for the weekend. Given that next week is Announcement Week, I expect there will be a lot of questions posted and I want to take a breather over the weekend and start on Monday with a clean slate, ready for your questions related to Seller Release II.

Thanks and have a great weekend!

Regards,
Griff
Jim Griffith
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eBay