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Your friendly neighborhood hydralisk here with another fresh take! Today, our topic is: Do's and Don't when buying things on the internet.
Recently, I've started selling some video games on Amazon and trying to make somewhat of a living off of it. I've been a serious game collector for over 15 years, so I know how to assess the condition of a game easily. The reason I'm making this blog is because I've run into my first snag: A moron buyer who has done virtually everything wrong, and I'm flipping my shit over this. Here's the scoop:
I sold a copy Ultimate Spiderman: Limited Edition to some schlub in Cali. The description said that the game was in Very Good condition, and more specifically, everything was in like new condition except for the outer slip cover, which had some cosmetic damage. Today, I get a negative feedback from this guy saying the game arrived in "poor condition" with no other description or anything. Here, we see his first mistake that makes him a fucking parasite to everyone who's ever tried to run a business over the internet.
Cali Schlub Mistake #1: Not contacting me before he left negative feedback.
As I said before, I've just started selling on Amazon, so I only have three feedback ratings. Due to this guy's bad feedback, I'm now sitting at 67% positive feedback. Fucking wonderful. The proper thing to do would be to contact me FIRST so we could try to solve the situation amicably before he drags my name through the mud. I can think of quite a few reasons why the buyer should've contacted me first. What if the item got thrashed around in the mail? What if I'm a broke-ass college student and this is my only livelihood (that he's now destroyed by giving me a 67% feedback rating)? Things like this are why you should always try to solve the problem nicely before you shit all over a seller and ruin their day.
His feedback also contained another mistake, and we'll look at that now.
Cali Schlub Mistake #2: Not giving more details about HOW the game was less than what he was expecting.
All he said was that the item arrived in "poor condition." Nothing more. Seriously. How am I supposed to try and fix the situation if I don't even know WHY the condition of the game wasn't good enough for the buyer? I sent him a response asking for more details, and asking him to explain how the description of the item wasn't accurate. I'm willing to bet money that all he saw was the "Very Good" and didn't actually read the description, because the game was exactly as described. As I said before, I've been a serious collector for a very long time, so I know how to describe a game's condition fully, and I have a pretty darn good idea of what separates things like "Like New" and "Very Good." I've sold about 50 games on eBay prior to this and never had any issues there, so I'm inclined to believe that the problem is with the buyer this time.
The final mistake that this buyer made is more of a culmination of all of his asshattery, but I'll still mention it to drive the point home.
Cali Schlub Mistake #3: Not giving me, the seller, any avenues to make the situation right.
Even in his feedback, he was vague and didn't really give me anything to go on as far as making the situation acceptable for both me and him. His biggest mistake overall was the fact that he didn't give me any way to make the situation right. He left knee-jerk bad feedback without even contacting me, and didn't even leave constructive feedback. The entirety of his post-sale actions basically adds up to "herp derp im a fuckin moron who doesnt understand the concept of common decency." Here's a few ways the transaction could have gone if this guy used his head:
A: Buyer actually reads the description of the item and decides it's not for him. Nothing happens and everyone is happy!
B: Buyer actually reads the description of the item and decides he's happy with it, buys it, receives item, and bam, everyone is happy!
C: Buyer stupidly doesn't read description, but shows some humility and attempts to work with the seller. Buyer sends message to seller BEFORE leaving vague bad feedback and the situation eventually works out amicably. Everyone is happy!
All of these could have happened, but no. Instead, we have to deal with:
D (for derp): Buyer (probably) didn't read description of item, receives item, is unhappy with item, leaves fucking awful vague feedback without even attempting to contact the seller first, ends up dragging seller's name through the mud, seller has an awful day and ends up living under a bridge because nobody would buy from him because some stupid fuck didn't have the common decency to try and work the situation out before he left the worst feedback ever!
Rage!
So, to recap, what have we learned today, kids? When buying something on the internet, please try and be a decent person so you don't end up fucking the seller over. ALWAYS thoroughly read the description of whatever you're buying, and if it ends up being something different than what you expected, ALWAYS try to work the situation out before you go and potentially ruin the seller's chances to sell to other people. It's really about being a decent person and using your head a bit. Just use common sense and everyone wins.
This is your friendly neighborhood hydralisk signing out. I'll catch all you cool cats on the flip side! Until next time...
Fin~
  
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That's awful. As someone who recently sold his collection of video games on ebay, I can relate to your situation.
I sold some GBA games and plainly stated that I would ship them in Priority Mail Small Flat Rate boxes. The boxes are nice because they protect the fragile cardboard game box. I offered shipping in the US for $5.95 (what it costs for this exact box) and $12.95 to Canada (again, my exact cost for a Small Flat Rate box, which MUST be shipped priority).
I had some guy in Canada buy a game, and then blackmail me with threats of negative feedback if I didn't "use a box lying around your house" and ship it First Class instead of Priority Mail because "[he] just want[s] to pay what's fair for shipping." All this despite the fact the EXACT shipping cost was clearly stated on the auction and despite the fact he could very easily verify that it was exactly what I was paying to ship it to him.
The upside of the story is that in my limited experience people like this are just a few bad eggs in the bunch. The overwhelming majority of people I've dealt with have been completely reasonable and understood that "very good" doesn't mean perfect, have read and agreed with the shipping costs, and have left positive feedback to indicate that they were pleased with their purchase.
Hopefully amazon has some venue through which you can debate the negative feedback. Unfortunately ebay heavily, heavily favors buyers.
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Are you really a hydralisk? What happens when you pass 1000 posts. o.o
This is nothing new. See it all the time on eBay and with the new policies. Yeah, not a great time to be a seller. You cannot get disgruntled at the buyers either because the ball is in their home court, but I'm always very nice when I'm buying something so if I mistake does happen the seller is ready to help me.
There will always be a ton of doubebag buyers man. I'm sorry if you set-up shop. It isn't only buyer beware, but you have to be prepared yourself as the seller.
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On July 07 2012 06:05 StarStruck wrote:
Are you really a hydralisk? What happens when you pass 1000 posts. o.o
He morphs into a Lurker, obviously.
Still wondering what happens when he hits 2k, though.
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i say we burn douches house down. who's with me?
on a more serious note, yeah, that sucks big time. hate it when people just make knee-jerk decisions because they felt like that in that moment....hope you'll improve your rating soon 
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I would have probably done the same thing as this buyer. It might have been "very good" condition by eBay standards, but to my experience, not on Amazon.
Don't expect buyers to reason with your over the review. If feedback is worth more to you than the price of the actual item - mark it down and downgrade the condition one notch below what's true.
When you have only a couple of reviews to your name, safe is better than sorry - as is reflected in the rage oozing from this blog.
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You wrote a wall of text and said the same things 5 times. But yes, amazon and ebay are a buyers paradise these days. Too much buyer protection and not enough for sellers.
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What can I do to help your rating?
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Can I see games that you're selling? :O
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United States24483 Posts
You have to enter into pretty much any experience with the assumption that many people are incredibly stupid or do incredibly stupid things, often. If not, you will be repeatedly disappointed! How sad is that...
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On July 07 2012 06:05 StarStruck wrote:
Are you really a hydralisk? What happens when you pass 1000 posts. o.o
This is nothing new. See it all the time on eBay and with the new policies. Yeah, not a great time to be a seller. You cannot get disgruntled at the buyers either because the ball is in their home court, but I'm always very nice when I'm buying something so if I mistake does happen the seller is ready to help me.
There will always be a ton of doubebag buyers man. I'm sorry if you set-up shop. It isn't only buyer beware, but you have to be prepared yourself as the seller.
It's really sad that sites like eBay and Amazon are so slanted towards buyers these days. I've decided that if I can't get this resolved correctly (and honestly, I don't expect to), I'm just going to make a new account and relist my things. I'd rather have a new seller account than have to deal with possibly losing sales because of a bad feedback rating.
On July 07 2012 07:50 Thrill wrote:
I would have probably done the same thing as this buyer. It might have been "very good" condition by eBay standards, but to my experience, not on Amazon.
Don't expect buyers to reason with your over the review. If feedback is worth more to you than the price of the actual item - mark it down and downgrade the condition one notch below what's true.
When you have only a couple of reviews to your name, safe is better than sorry - as is reflected in the rage oozing from this blog.
As to your claim that my item wasn't in "Very Good" condition, let's take a look at the actual Amazon listing guidelines:
"Used - Very Good: A well-cared-for item that has seen limited use but remains in great condition. The item is complete, unmarked, and undamaged, but may show some limited signs of wear. Item works perfectly."
In my listing, I said that the item was complete (which it was), but it had some slip cover wear. According to Amazon's guidelines themselves, my item listing was completely correct. Open and shut case, really.
Now, as to your comment that you probably would've done the same thing... I don't understand why you act like this buyer's actions were correct (or even acceptable). As many have expressed in this thread, buyers like this are hated by people who sell on sites like Amazon and eBay. Like I said in my opening post, here's a perfect example of why behavior like this is unacceptable: What if the item was in fine condition when it was sent, but it got thrashed around by the postal service? They've been known to mess things up, so this is completely possible. If this was the case, how is fair to the seller to give them thoughtless, spur of the moment bad feedback? The answer is that it's complely not fair to the seller, and this is only one example of why what this buyer did is really a dick move. Like I said before, it really comes down to using your head and being decent to your fellow man. Honestly, what this buyer did was very unintelligent and childish, and IMO, if you can't make at least somewhat rational and mature decisions, you shouldn't be buying or selling items on the internet. I believe I can speak for the vast majority of the selling community when I say that if you would react like this buyer did, we would much prefer it if you didn't buy anything online.
Also, to those wondering what I'm selling, here's the current list. I'm not sure about prices because like I said, I'll probably be making a new account and relisting these.
Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse for the Xbox, complete in like new condition.
Quest: Brian's Journey for the GBC, cart and manual. Both in good condition.
Dokapon: Monster Hunter for the GBA, cart only. Good condition.
Beyblade G-Revolution for the GBA, complete in like new condition.
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Wireless Bundle for the Ps2. GHIII is complete and the guitar is in good condition.
GBA SP Pearl Blue unit, like new condition and complete with original box and all original manuals.
Galactic Wrestling featuring Ultimate Muscle, complete in good condition.
Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, box and disc in good condition.
Dragon Ball Z: The Legacy of Goku 1 + 2 (the combo cart), complete in like new condition.
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3, complete in like new condition.
Then I have these games which I'm planning to sell soon. I just need to test them all to make sure they all still work. Most of these are cart only, but they're all in good cosmetic condition.
Bomberman 64
Zelda: A Link to the Past
Super Mario World
Megaman X (SNES)
Donkey Kong Country 1 + 2
Super Mario All Stars
Super Mario Kart
King of Dragons
Beauty and the Beast (SNES, and comes with manual)
Secret of Evermore (complete and in really good condition)
Zelda: Wind Waker (rare Kmart exclusive edition. Comes without manual but I can put my manual from my personal copy of WW in it. The manuals are the same)
Zelda: Master Quest, complete in very good condition.
Then some games I plan to play and then sell:
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (disc and box in great condition)
Ar Tonelica Qoga: The Knell of Ar Ciel (fuckstupid name but complete in like new condition)
Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland (complete in like new condition)
And finally, some games I have for sale on eBay.
Phantasy Star Online 1 & 2 for the Gamecube, complete and in really good condition. Asking $50 (currently BIN on eBay)
Dragon Ball: Origins for the DS, complete and in really good condition. Asking $20 (BIN on eBay)
Whew. Apologies for another really long post.
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So... what can I do to help your rating?
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On July 07 2012 15:32 Azera wrote:
So... what can I do to help your rating?
Well, feedback on Amazon is given when I sell something, so if you see something you're interested in, I'll link you and you can buy it if you like. You don't have to do that, though. I really appreciate the gesture. I'm sure everything will work out fine in the end.
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On July 07 2012 15:41 iamahydralisk wrote:Well, feedback on Amazon is given when I sell something, so if you see something you're interested in, I'll link you and you can buy it if you like. You don't have to do that, though. I really appreciate the gesture. I'm sure everything will work out fine in the end.
Good luck
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so, the buyer hasn't responded to any of my resolving emails, and is generally being a child about the whole situation... and I can't do a damn thing about it because it actually says right in the amazon guidelines that they will only remove buyer feedback if it A. includes profanity, or B. includes personal info about the seller. that's fucking sickening... it basically means a buyer can lie as much as they want and fuck sellers over without any proof whatsoever, and amazon won't do anything. it amazes me how bad amazon is for sellers. they take $1 + 15% for every sale, and they allow buyers to ruin sellers' reputations without any proof whatsoever. I'm just going to take my business back to eBay from now on. been selling there for years and never had a single issue.
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EPT
