Changes on eBay ...means Headaches for Sellers

With all the changes eBay has made; I want to review some of the problems they have caused.

For one; this is the worst time to make such changes. With the economy dragging; the small business owner is not the only one feeling the impact. Power Sellers on eBay generating over 100k in sales a month and falling behind fast.

Listing Errors - The listings are not in the order submitted or ending first. Listings are scattered and not appearing from time to time. Their search bar does not always display what is available from all sellers. Some sellers have reported Ghost Sales. They only know of a sale taking place once the buyer submitted payment. Therefore, check your invoice carefully. eBay will invoice you for sale that you did not know took place or had a chance to contact buyer for payment, yet alone. submit for a Final Value fee credit. This leaves you vulnerable to erroneous billing. Try to fight with eBay billing department.....Sure.... then soon enough..you will find they Shut Your Account. NARU~!

21 day Payment Hold - eBay has also set limitations on new sellers and some existing sellers (how this is determined is still news to me) eBay will not release your funds for 21 days! They call it the 21 day Rule. Of course its clever. You CANNOT sell on ebay if you do not accept PayPal. No Exceptions. You MUST accept Paypal. Any sale paid using Paypal they will Freeze the funds for 21 days. You can obtain the funds earlier if 1) Buyer leaves you positive feedback or 2) Provide evidence of delivery (about 3 days after).

Shipping - There is a catch on the Proof of Delivery. Recently, a seller informed us Paypal refused to release the money; even though they have a signed delivery slip from the buyer. Paypal refused due to the Seller NOT shipping with FedEx or UPS. Now, this is ridiculous... Nowhere in the Terms of Payment did Paypal disclose Sellers can only use UPS or FedEx.

eBay and Paypal win again. They hold your money, earn interest and you take a huge risk by shipping without payment. Paypal does not offer you any protection.

Google Checkout - By now, most of you have heard of Google Checkout... Some sellers have tried to use Google Checkout as an alternative payment method, however, eBay took down their listings for Payment Violations. I emailed Google myself and asked if sellers could use Google Checkout to obtain payment from items sold on eBay; Google responded Yes.

Merchant Account - Having your own merchant account is critical for ecommerce. You as a Seller have a lot more protection. A Buyer cannot simply ignore your Terms & Conditions. Now, eBay will not allow you to use your Merchant Account with out their approval. Be ready to provide them with your Merchant information and allow about a week for a response. This can go either way..