|
Over the years, I have been
amazed at the “blinding” greed and reckless approach
to commerce that some business owners have employed. Lying
to customers, selling inferior merchandise, and not
offering refunds, left a firestorm of irate customers in
their wake. Without fail, all of this “ill will” led
most businesses to bankruptcy, and in some cases, Federal
Prison.
I realize that not everyone
engages in “business criminality” that rises to the
level of fraud and incarceration. Most people try to be
good stewards, and approach their enterprise in an honest
and forthright manner. For those of you who own thriving
business concerns, you already know that in most cases the
customer is always right. You make sure that you
communicate effectively, refund monies if the buyer is
truly unhappy, and try to meet the needs of the people who
buy your goods or services.
However, there are more
than a handful of Ebay sellers that are of the mind that
customer service and effective communication is not
something that they need not participate in. Take the case
of a woman named Barbara, (Nickname: BobAnn) who recently
posted her disappointment on the Ryze Business Network:
Quote:
Barbara Cerda wrote:
Greetings Everyone,
“When will sellers on
Ebay understand that customer service is key? And when
will Ebay sellers learn using customer friendly
approaches can only make their business grow?” Again
today I've bought from a less than friendly seller.
Thought I was placing a
bid and instead bought the item at the buy now price. Of
course the seller refused to allow the retraction, nor
was I allowed to place a bid. I always pay for my
winning bids immediately upon email confirmation.
And did so in this case.
But it would have been customer friendlier for this
seller to accept my retraction to be replaced with a
bid. He would have gotten repeat business from me and my
friends. His "Buy Now" price is 30% over the
retail price for this item. Lesson learned by me again -
that there are way too many sellers on Ebay out to grab
a buck and the hell with fair practice.
Lesson learned yet
again."
BobAnn
End quote…
The operative phrase here
is “repeat business from me and my friends”. There is
no better endorsement of your product or service than word
of mouth advertising. Lack of flexibility on the part of
the seller, not only cost them one customer, but also
destroyed the possibility for future business. Good news
travels fast, but bad news travels faster!
As an auction seller, (Ebay
auction ID: LevelBest77) I would have accommodated her
request right away. And while I have never had anyone use
“Buy It Now” by accident, I have had several people
over the years ask me to retract bids. The number of
people who have made that request can be counted on one
hand! Some, did not even understand the process, (bid
retracting) and I was more than willing to guide them
through it.
People make honest
mistakes, and you should never “abuse” a buyer for
doing so. If you plan to get into Ebay auction selling for
the long haul, always practice good will toward your
customers. Unless someone is totally unreasonable, and you
have done everything in your power to accommodate their
request, never deny people the ability to change their
mind, return an item, or retract a bid! Developing good
will also requires that you anticipate customer needs…..
For instance, I had a few
overseas customers bid on a wireless router. This
particular item needed to be powered with a Universal
Adapter, since voltage requirements in France and
Australia are obviously different from those here in the
United States.
I made this abundantly
clear to both bidders before they sent me any payment. The
purchase of such an adapter, not to mention the shipping
price, would have doubled the US retail cost. I told them
that they could probably get the product cheaper at their
local electronics stores. Without hesitation, I let them
out of their obligation to pay for the item. I then
contacted the next highest bidder and offered that person
the chance to make the purchase.
Both bidders thanked me for
my honesty. They had forgotten about the electrical
differences. I could have ignored that little detail, and
sold them the item anyway. I just had to put myself in
their situation. Think of how frustrated they would have
been if I did not reveal that information. Buyer’s
remorse would have set in quickly, once they realized that
they could have purchased the same item for a lot less in
their native countries.
While the benefits of these
actions may not have an immediate effect, you can be sure
that should I ever have another “item of interest!”
these two gentlemen would not hesitate to purchase from
me. They can count on me to accommodate their needs,
instead of catering to my wants. Creating this type of
good will instills trust, and the knowledge that you have
the customers best interest in mind.
“Me thinketh thou doth
protest too much!
Do you accentuate the
positive? Or, do you run on negativity? Negative Ebay
feedback is a tool that everyone should use with
restraint, or not at all. As a rule, I never leave
negative feedback. Unless someone has blatantly lied about
your product, or attacked you personally without merit,
then I would not leave any feedback in the “minus”
side of the isle!
“Flame” wars are not
pretty. I have seen a lot of unnecessary back and forth
“banter” that could have been avoided, if they (the
seller) just resisted the urge to make their “two
cents” known. Sometimes it gives customers the
impression that you are more concerned about arguing, then
conducting your business.
I have also witnessed
seller feedback that has included some pretty foul
language. Engaging in this type of verbal sparring is not
much of a confidence builder either. It is more telling of
what you are, then about revealing the sins of your
customers. Don’t go out of your way to register a
negative response if you can help it. Heed the sage advice
that our Mother’s use to tell us: “If you can’t say
anything nice, don’t say anything at all!”
“What we have here is a
failure to communicate!”
Communication with your
customers should not amount to the sound one hand
clapping! Bottom line, if someone e-mails you with a
question--answer it! Here is an example of the type of
feedback I obtained by doing just that……
“He was very Helpful and
cooperative in answering questions.” Follow-up: Will
DEFINITELY use his services anytime he has items of
interest! Great Seller!
The gentlemen who left this
positive review, wanted to know about some of the
particulars of a “Mickey Mouse” clock I had up for
auction. His wife is a collector of all things Disney, and
thought it would be a nice surprise for her birthday. The
clock, to say the least, was in sad shape. It was
incapable of keeping time, and the only part of it in
working order was the second hand. I thought for sure that
he would be disappointed with the item despite full
disclosure of all of it’s imperfections.
To my surprise, not only
did I receive positive feedback, but he also told me that
his wife absolutely loved it! In this instance, one
man’s junk, truly, is another man’s treasure! I never
thought this item was worthy of any praise! The time it
took to answer his questions—all of five minutes!
I know that some of you
will say that I am not being realistic. You just can’t
answer e-mails all day; “I have a business to run!,”
you might proclaim. If you plan on making a living on
Ebay, then you better think about hiring someone to help
you answer your daily inquires if it is just too
overwhelming. If you specialize in a particular product,
set up a Frequently Asked Questions page to any
Auto-Responder.
If you use Ebay on an
infrequent basis, and have less than thirty listings a
month, then you really don't have any excuse not to
provide great customer service and e-mail communication.
You shouldn’t be inundated with questions regarding that
many items, unless the product you are selling is
technical in nature.
If you ignore your
customers, they will go away. Good customer service should
be woven into the fabric of every good business. I cannot
overemphasis the importance of this issue. I continue to
be perplexed by the fact that it is last on the list of
business priorities for some Ebay sellers!
Will good customer service
and communication alone make you rich on Ebay? That would
be a resounding "no”. You will have to understand
your market, and provide products that the Ebay community
will bid on consistently. There will be “bidders &
buyers” out there that will make mistakes and commit
some auction sins! Forgive all Ebay sins and you will be
rewarded with happy, repeat customers!
|
About
The Author
Robert
C. Potter is the author of “The Ultimate
Guide To Products For Resale.”Over 300
Wholesale & Surplus Supply Sources,
For Ebay Auction Sellers, E-Commerce
Websites, Flea Market Vendors, and Retail
Store Owners! You can find his ebook here:
http://www.productsforresale.com
This article can be reprinted by
contacting the author..
potywop@aol.com |
|
|
