| jeffweico | 01-09-2011 10:47 PM |
Amazon is much tougher than eBay in this regard.
Amazon wants 20% of your buyers to leave you positive feedback.
The problem is, Amazon buyers don't realize how important feedback is to sellers. Most of them don't want to be bothered with it. Unless something goes wrong. Then, just TRY and keep them away from that keyboard!
There is no easy answer to this. But what I do is enclose a thank-you note with each order giving my toll-free number and direct email address in case there are any problems. I also put in there if they are happy with their purchase, to please remember to leave feedback.
This does increase feedback a little bit. It also gives the buyers a way to contact me WITHOUT going through Amazon if there is a problem. Technically, this is a violation of their rules, but it is not severe. The only time I got caught, I emailed Seller Performance explaining I did not know this and was very sorry and that I would never enclose anything other than their packing slip with my orders. This satisfied them.
Be sure to word the notes differently for each account, and use different paper sizes, fonts, etc. on each letter. For some, I use a regular size sheet of paper. Others are half-sheets or quarter sheets. I use Arial, Helvetica, comic sans-serif, times new-roman, Bookman old style, etc for the fonts. The paper is always white. The fonts are blue, red, orange, green, purple, black, etc. Just change it up so that if an Amazon rep was looking at two of your notes side by side, they would not think they came from the same person. Also, if you get caught, don't enclose any more letters for orders on that account. The first time they will most likely forgive you. The second time, they may suspend you or even block your account. The good news is that Amazon will never know unless a customer complains and most customers will never complain.
In November and December, I probably did over 1,000 orders from Amazon, and enclosed notes on 99% of them. I had about 30 complaints overall. None were about the notes. 10 people ignored my email address and 800 number and complained through Amazon, the way their system is designed. Another 18 emailed me directly. And only TWO called. Never be afraid to enclose a phone number. Most people are reassured by this, but will never call. They would rather go through email.
Here is another customer service tip. I use it everywhere. If a customer calls or emails a complaint, or even complains though Amazon, I always apologize and offer a full refund INCLUDING shipping charges both ways, or a replacement. I let the customer choose which. Nine out of ten choose the replacement. Why? Because my response reassures them that I am an honest seller and that I will stand behind what I sell.
When sending replacements, I always include a small gift with it. I try to send something relevant to the item ordered, but it never has a high value, nor is it heavy. I pay less than 50 cents for a book, and maybe a dollar for a DVD. These are always closeouts, not the newer stuff. My local dollar store LOVES ME! And so do my customers.
I sometimes even get repeat business and other referrals from these. One person even emailed me when she ordered again. She said I was not the cheapest price for the item ordered, but that she knew I was trustworthy and that it really put her mind at ease to be dealing with someone she could trust.
In closing, let me just advise you to STOP thinking in the short term when it comes to feedback and customer service and have a plan to deal with any problems. What works for me may not work for you, but you should be able to come up with a plan that WILL work for you. Just treat people the way YOU would like to be treated if YOU were the buyer with a problem. | 
