eBay: new year with new feedback

February 20 the new feedback system of eBay comes into force. In accordance to the new policy the buyer is the only one who may rate the sellers giving them the negative star rating. Sellers, from now on, would loose this privilege and, therefore, would be no longer able to warn other sellers about the fraudulent buyer who doesn't pay for the winning bids. About 16% of total auction deals are ended as non-paid by the winning bidder. The only two tools that sellers used to have in their hands were the immediate payment during the checkout of the items with fixed price (about 40% of all auction business of eBay worldwide) and the ability to rate the buyers with the negative stars.

Rating of both sellers and buyers was integrated as a part of all eBay auction system from its establishment in 1995, via developing the e-market based on the bilateral trust of sellers and buyers. The eBay officials honestly believe that the new changes in the feedback system would allow them to fight with the stagnant number of buyers, who once received the negative rating from the seller are usually leaving the auction. EBay seems to be the winning party in any case: with old or new feedback system it charges its fees and commissions any way. But let us remind you the latest changes of the listing fees have already brought the disappointment of the great number of sellers and swept them out from the auction site.  And the new changes make it even worse. "Most of the sellers are having a gut wrench about the feedback changes. It's very abrupt change to something that has always been sacrosanct in the eBay world" declared one of the Best sellers.

We believe that in this case new unfavorable changes of feedback system would drive the sellers off the site faster than ever before. It's not clear how the experimental idea in the "sacred field of rating" would influence on  the evaluation of the net revenues to be gained in the Q1 2008 and the shares' rating on the stock market.

Natalia, reporter of Ecommerce Journal