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Best practices when buying from a new seller

 
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cosmicray



Posts: 7286

PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2018 9:22 am    Post subject: Best practices when buying from a new seller Reply with quote

This may be the dumbest question I've ever posted here, but …

How do I approach a new seller with appropriate caution ?

backstory: a seller here has something that interests me. I do not have to buy it, but it is wanted to replace something I owned for many years, and recently went missing. The seller has most (possibly all) products in their 'my eBay' import category. Bottom of the page suggests they last updated about 3 weeks ago. No feedback as yet. The listing in question has a description feels a bit like boilerplate. The imported description does not appear to have been cleaned up yet. The images are certainly not (to my eye) original, but seem to be stock product images. Out the door cost would be about $180.

There are enough lights flashing that I am wary.

Anyone with thoughts ?
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FoxAndFish



Posts: 1585

PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2018 4:56 pm    Post subject: Re: Best practices when buying from a new seller Reply with quote

cosmicray wrote:
How do I approach a new seller with appropriate caution ?

backstory: a seller here has something that interests me. I do not have to buy it, but it is wanted to replace something I owned for many years, and recently went missing.

First thought was: is it possible to locate the missing item, or purchase it elsewhere, so you don't have to spend $180 and possibly be disappointed with a new seller that raises caution flag?

cosmicray wrote:
The seller has most (possibly all) products in their 'my eBay' import category.

Can you track down the seller thru eBay and get a better feel for their selling history?

cosmicray wrote:
Bottom of the page suggests they last updated about 3 weeks ago. No feedback as yet. The listing in question has a description feels a bit like boilerplate. The imported description does not appear to have been cleaned up yet. The images are certainly not (to my eye) original, but seem to be stock product images.

How about asking questions like, for example: I see you're a new seller at eCrater. Is your store open...it doesn't appear to be updated recently? Do you have an original description of the item? Do you have original photos of the item? Etc
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MoonwishesStore
moderator


Posts: 17389

PostPosted: Fri Jul 20, 2018 7:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
cosmicray wrote:
Bottom of the page suggests they last updated about 3 weeks ago. No feedback as yet. The listing in question has a description feels a bit like boilerplate. The imported description does not appear to have been cleaned up yet. The images are certainly not (to my eye) original, but seem to be stock product images.

How about asking questions like, for example: I see you're a new seller at eCrater. Is your store open...it doesn't appear to be updated recently? Do you have an original description of the item? Do you have original photos of the item? Etc


I think that is how I would approach it and since it is the weekend, give them 3 whole days, maybe 4 and if they don't get back to you, forget about it. I'm not sure why some sellers think it is sufficient to dump their ebay stuff and run and then later they howl when ecommercebytes does their survey, that they never sold a thing on ecrater! And so it is apparently easier to to complain about lack of sales than to do anything to get some.

Things got hectic and my son and DIL and the grandbaby to be visited for a week. They didn't stay here, but it was enough to throw my usual routine off and I wasn't getting my usual work done. Now I'm back to doing what I should and things are picking up. With ecrater you can see the effects of your work. At least I do. I've about sold my average amount here already.
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cosmicray



Posts: 7286

PostPosted: Sat Jul 21, 2018 7:53 am    Post subject: Re: Best practices when buying from a new seller Reply with quote

FoxAndFish wrote:
cosmicray wrote:
How do I approach a new seller with appropriate caution ?

backstory: a seller here has something that interests me. I do not have to buy it, but it is wanted to replace something I owned for many years, and recently went missing.

First thought was: is it possible to locate the missing item, or purchase it elsewhere, so you don't have to spend $180 and possibly be disappointed with a new seller that raises caution flag?

You have no idea how many hours have been spent searching. That I am even contemplating replacement is mostly a testament to my need to end the search and get on with my life.

n.b. I found an almost exact replacement for what was lost, but over on the big-E. Price there was $90.
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elpereles



Posts: 3427

PostPosted: Sat Jul 21, 2018 9:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just write a email/message. No answer, I move on.
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Chakracord



Posts: 213

PostPosted: Sun Jul 22, 2018 4:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just posted in the Suggestion section

Last log in vs Last update.

I think that if we can see the last time a person logged into their account would also give us a good sense, since some of us don't do a lot of updating, (maybe twice a year or ??? )
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theartsandlettersofmaggiethecat



Posts: 2099

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 2:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Maybe you have $180 to risk but I'd buy scratch off tickets instead. I'd be sure to win a few of them. I'm very leery of people who dump eBay items here and never organize the listings and probably never check back. You don't know if the item has sold on eBay already or not. Don't know if the seller is monitoring the store.
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ArtistsUnion



Posts: 114

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 8:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Chakracord wrote:
Quote:
I think that if we can see the last time a person logged into their account would also give us a good sense, since some of us don't do a lot of updating, (maybe twice a year or ??? )


True... There is this info in Your store" "Last Updated: 9 Mar 2018" .

If I may suggest, until the last log in date is displayed, in order to have more recent date on Your shop's pages, from time to time (or every day), just edit one listing and click on the orange "Update & Edit" button.

This way, with only two clicks, You will have recent update and important info for Your customers of Your last presence on site.
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Chakracord



Posts: 213

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 8:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I understand that I can just "pretend" to update a listing, but

I would prefer to see the log in posted instead.
It's just common to sellers to log in, but if nobody tells all the sellers that they need to do updates or "pretend" updates to update the date they were logged into their account.

I will log into my account and check the billing, orders and such, but not do any updating (pretend or not).
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ArtistsUnion



Posts: 114

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 9:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I would prefer to see the log in posted instead.

We all would prefer this, but the status quo is "Last update", so it's up to You to decide, which info You prefer to present to Your customers.

Your last update was 4 months before, if You think it will give buyers (especially those, who are for the first time on the site) more confidence than more recent date, keep it.

I take into consideration that even very experienced seller, who knows this site well, as a buyer uses this info in His approach:
Quote:
Bottom of the page suggests they last updated about 3 weeks ago. No feedback as yet.


Most sellers prefer their buyers to see at a glance that a store is "live" and not to put them in a position to have any doubts and to make extra effort to contact those sellers, who updated shops weeks or months ago.
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Chakracord



Posts: 213

PostPosted: Wed Aug 01, 2018 10:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have been doing a lot of pinning of eCrater sellers and other selling sites. I do worry that I am helping those that are drop and left their items.

When I notice that last update date, and doing the pinning, I wish it was the last time logged in.

I do have 4 shops here and they don't get Updated each time I log in. I will be updating 2 of the shops in the coming week since I have some new items to list.

What might be nice is when you log in and the TIPS come up that it would be noted to keep your last update date current to "pretend update" or do updates.

There are little things that I am starting to notice even know I have had a shop here for a few years.
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MoonwishesStore
moderator


Posts: 17389

PostPosted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 9:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I always have something to update in my store! No 'pretending' needed! updating your store somehow as often as possible keeps the bots visiting you every time that there is a change, so updating is a good idea. With as many listings as I have, I can always find something that needs fixing. I still occasionally bump into boilerplate from 10 years ago!

Because the majority of my items are sewing patterns that all have a 4 digit identifier, and the companies recycle those numbers ever 6-10 years, and all the major pattern companies do this, Those 4 digit numbers help me to know which things to 'tweak'. Sometimes I only have one item with that number and then other times all the companies have that numbers represented plus assorted sizes as well so I may run into 10+ patterns to tweak. I make sure the price is up to date, make sure there is no boilerplate and a few other items that I do specifically to help draw in buyers. I also have a sentence stating when the pattern was made. With the folks that can't seem to read and are amazed that they get a pattern instead of a garment, I have started adding in the word sewing in front of pattern, thus yet another place on my listing saying it is a sewing pattern!!!!!

Anyhow it counts as an update even though it doesn't really change the listing much. But the bots like new stuff to see so I oblige them. But I have rarely found a listing of my own or others that couldn't use a tweak or two.
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