Doing Right by our Buyers

I feel that we in the eBay world don't do enough to highlight the good things that are happening every day in the marketplace between buyers and sellers.  Yes, we need to stay focused on preventing the bad experiences, and we have to do everything in our power to reduce the likelihood they will occur.  But I came across a story last week that reminded me why the vast majority of the transaction problems that are reported on eBay are worked out amicably between the buyer and seller without requiring involvement from eBay or PayPal.

Larry Phillips is an extremely experienced eBay stamps seller.  A month or two ago he received a multi-item purchase from a relatively new eBay buyer and he shipped the items out right away.  However, the buyer jumped the gun when the item didn't arrive in a couple days, and he filed PayPal disputes against Larry, firing off accusations of fraud.

Now this isn't a situation that comes as a surprise to any experienced eBay seller.  This happens quite frequently, as buyers often don't have any idea what a reasonable time is to wait for an item to arrive.  In fact, the number one type of buyer-reported problem we deal with on the site is Item Not Received, and the number one resolution we see to that problem is that the item eventually arrives and the buyer closes the dispute amicably.

As it turns out, that's what happened in this case.  The items eventually arrived, and the buyer was embarrassed that he jumped the gun.  In fact, he told Larry that he felt he had "egg on his face" and that he was "ashamed for causing any grief."

Now I have seen countless situations where the buyer reports a transaction problem and takes an aggressive tone.  As a result, the seller responds with a similarly confrontational approach, which generates ill will.  Then when the item eventually arrives, which should resolve the issue, the problem continues because of the tone taken between Buyer and Seller.  Such a clash can result in negative feedback and a sour taste in the mouth of everyone involved, even though the original issue was completely resolved.

Seller's masterful reply
Larry's response paved the way for the reconciliation in this case.  I think his email to the buyer (who, remember, had accused Larry of fraud unnecessarily) was masterful in its reserved tone in the face of buyer accusations.  Larry wrote:

"I am a reputable seller, and always try to treat my customers in the manner I want to be treated. Just please keep in mind that while I strive to give world class customer service every time, sometimes I get overwhelmed with orders, and being human, I sometimes make a mistake. But if you call that to my attention, I will always fix it immediately."

The beauty of Larry's language in his response is that it doesn't just fall back on "the customer is always right" platitudes. It emphasizes Larry's commitment to live up to his obligations as a seller, but it doesn't back away from the buyer's obligations as well. PayPal also played a key role in working this matter out. 

When the buyer emailed Larry to say that it was unclear how to close the dispute amicably, Larry suggested that a rep call the buyer to walk them through the process, which a rep then did.  That cleared the final hurdle, and then everyone could walk away from the process satisfied.

Research has shown that buyers who encounter problems and have them resolved to their satisfaction are more loyal than buyers who encounter no problem at all.  I think (and I suspect Larry agrees) that if we all stay committed to delivering these kind of smooth problem resolutions we can deliver a transaction experience that is not only equal to the direct shopping sites, but better.