Ebay--What has customer service got to do?
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by: Neha Arora
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If you want to run a full-time business earning 6 figure income on ebay, you should start thinking about customer service in a big way.
As in any business, when a buyer receives quality customer service from you, they will potentially do one of two things - or both. They will give you great feedback, and they may look for more of your auctions in the future. After all, people buy from buyers whom they are familiar with.
If you hope to make a living from eBay, you have to stop thinking of it as just an auction and start running it like a business.
Let's say you have a brick and mortar business, how would you treat your customer when they are in your shop or they enquire about a certain product on the shelf for example? You would be helpful and respectful of course! You would do everything that you could to guarantee that customers return to your business in the future. You would bend over backwards to make sure that their buying experience with you was both satisfactory and enjoyable. So why would you do any less at the close of one of your eBay auctions?
First, act quickly at the close of your auctions. Contact the winner, and congratulate them. Describe the item they have won and how the item will be shipped. This would be a good time to tell them about the different shipping options, the estimated delivery time and cost. Remind them of their winning bid amount, and give them payment options and instructions.
In my experience, most buyers do not mind paying a bit more to have the items delivered fast.
Close your email by thanking them for participating in your auction. You can take this opportunity to tell them of other auctions you are running. Better yet, if you have a website or mailing list, invite them to visit your website. I have often used this method as a lead generation. The prospects you gathered this way are of the highest quality. Why? Because your prospects have already brought something from you. They have placed their trust in you by buying your item. They have given you a chance to sell them a higher price item. It is also easier to build a rapport with them.
Once the payment and shipping details have been taken care of, contact your buyer again. Let them know when the item was shipped - the exact date and time - and when it is expected to arrive on their end. During this contact, let them know that if they have any problems or questions, that they should contact you. If they do contact you in the future, make sure that you answer promptly, and that you do all that you can to make them happy with their purchase - even if it means issuing a refund.
I know it may be a little hard to issue a refund since you have worked so hard to put up the auction and get bidders to bid. However, I personally believe a happy customer is a better person to deal with than an unhappy customer.
Furthermore, you should issue refunds promptly. I had customers who request refunds which I promptly refunded and they ended up buying more items from me over the long run. Why? Well simply, they know my customer service standards and have no qualms about buying products from me since they know I will take care of their needs and questions.
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