"Feedback Manipulation" suspensions are getting ridiculous ...

imjustme · #1 09-27-2008

It's been nearly a year since I had one of these, but this morning I woke up with an account suspended for "feedback manipulation".

On this account, I'm usually selling $15 items with free shipping. It had 120+ positive feedback and was 5 months old. All DSR stars above 4.6, which is awesome for international sales, IMO.

So 3 days ago I listed the last items of my stock, all starting at 1 cent ($0.01) with free shipping. These are the same items I've been selling for months. Huge mistake, I know. Today eBay decided to kill my account because one of them sold for $0.85. I even shipped it out to the customer even though it's worth $15. It was my mistake, I should have set a low reserve or something, but anyways.

eBay apparently thought the $0.01 starting price was enough to consider it feedback manipulation.

I wonder why eBay even allows sellers to list items for $0.01 and then kicks them off if they do it?

Quasi_Mojo · #2 09-27-2008

You are going to stiff them on fees, aren't you?

imjustme · #3 09-27-2008

You know what's funny? I paid my eBay fees of $194.00 about 7 hours before I got slapped with the suspension.

**aspkin** · #4 09-27-2008

That's eBay for you. It was just this one item that sold below 15? One item shouldn't be enough for eBay to shut you down for FM.

imjustme · #5 09-27-2008

Yeah, just 1. All my other auctions are always BIN. I listed 8 items starting at $0.01 ...all of them sold between $8 and $12. Just one sold for $0.85 and ...wham! Got the boot.

BooMer · #6 09-28-2008

I think it is something else. How fast did both of you leave feedback for one another? I Think sometimes when the buyer leave feedback right away on a auction that just ended the same day and you reciprocate then it raises a red flag that you may be manipulating feedback.

Just wondering do your buyers leave feedback right away even though you didn't send the item out yet. I have couple buyers that have did this and I wait 3 or 4 days before I leave feedback for them to be on the safe side.

Then you might also want to just bump up your listings to start at .99 cents instead of a penny. On your New Account I mean.

imjustme · #7 09-29-2008

The feedback might have been it. The guy that bought it left me feedback saying "thanks. please leave me feedback too."

I think he just sniped the auction when it was at 85 cents buying it just for feedback. My account left him feedback the same day because my Auctiva account is set to leave feedback automatically in return :(

ambercolour · #8 09-30-2008

maybe the bot redflagged the account for the quick feedback and then a human reviewed it by seeing "thanks. please leave me feedback too". So this may be why it was suspended.

Burst · #9 09-30-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quasi_Mojo

You are going to stiff them on fees, aren't you?

HaHaHa You tell 'em

I think you should as a personal gain and to make yourself feel better :D

#10 09-30-2008

My only long standing ebay account, 4 years old, 200+ feedback, suspended today for feedback manipulation. I was keeping this acc clean but some wiseguys always write "please leave me feedback" or something along those lines. I paid for $300+ worth of items but all the sellers have received 'bid cancelled' emails so I don't even know if I will receive the items. They also took 80 feedback off me for no reason, I did not know they could just steal feedback when you're suspended. At least it's only 30 days and not 12 months like my new accounts all got on the first hit.

Jonas · #11 09-30-2008

I asked ebay a year or so back about auto feedback. They said that don't do it as if a nonpaybidder gives you positive, that it messes things up for you on ebay.

The OP sounded like eBay was being robotic and just busting people for low priced free shipping auctions

imjustme · #12 09-30-2008

I think eBay wrote something a while back that you can't even write anymore "please leave me feedback".

Quasi_Mojo · #13 09-30-2008

imjustme, I've just spent some time searching the Internet and cannot find anything to back up your claim. There is nothing mentioned about this in either of the eBay Feedback links below:

How do I leave Feedback?

Feedback Manipulation

I would think that, if it was a policy, it would at least be mentioned on the Feedback Manipulation page.

That being said, I wonder if it would be best to contact eBay if a buyer leaves this type of feedback and see if it can be removed - so it doesn't look like feedback manipulation.

BooMer · #14 10-02-2008

Quasi Mojo, You didn't look hard enough.

It took me only 2 minutes to find it.

I too remember this information before when I got Suspended for Feedback Manipulation.

Here is the link you were looking for. Make sure you click on the drop down arrow button next to the "Some Sample"

It is a violation to include the term “Feedback” or any reference to eBay feedback in the listing title. The only exception is when the term “Feedback” directly describes the item listed.

It is a violation to offer to buy, sell or barter feedback in an email (i.e. Ask Seller a Question or Contact eBay Member) or in the item description.

It is a violation to include in the title of a very inexpensive listing a phrase such as “Build Your FB score quickly”

BooMer

Quasi_Mojo · #15 10-02-2008

BooMer, I read those examples and none of them applied to the comment that imjustme referred to.
Perhaps you could be more specific, rather than including that whole list.

BooMer · #16 10-02-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by imjustme

I think eBay wrote something a while back that you can't even write anymore "please leave me feedback".

This is the comment I was referring to by imjustme ^^^ Notice he said "I think"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quasi_Mojo

BooMer, I read those examples and none of them applied to the comment that imjustme referred to.
Perhaps you could be more specific, rather than including that whole list.

The example ebay gave that I posted is what he was referring to.

imjustme<~~~ Could you please clarify if this is correct. Thanks

Quasi_Mojo · #17 10-02-2008

Quote:

It is a violation to include the term “Feedback” or any reference to eBay feedback in the listing title. The only exception is when the term “Feedback” directly describes the item listed.

As you can see, that one does not address placing the word "feedback" in the feedback comments - only in listing titles.

Jonas · #18 10-02-2008

A lot of sellers have a story about why you should leave them good feedback or how they don't accept bids from people of low feedback.

trg005 · #19 10-03-2008

On Sept 1 one of my accounts was suspended for 30 days -- reason feedback manipulation. Yesterday eBay sent me an email thanking me for complying and that they lifted my suspension. That was strange too because I never sent them any information or no requests to lift my suspension. But I am not complaining

Quasi_Mojo · #20 10-03-2008

You're still trying to justify yourself, BooMer?

Quote:

It is a violation to offer to buy, sell or barter feedback in an email (i.e. Ask Seller a Question or Contact eBay Member) or in the item description.

Quote:

It is a violation to include in the title of a very inexpensive listing a phrase such as “Build Your FB score quickly”

Once again, they do not address imjustme's specific issue. Please give this up - you're only embarrassing yourself.

imjustme · #21 10-03-2008

May as well wait and see if by chance they reinstate me :D

jbluntz · #22 05-29-2010

Maybe you had too many listings up or your items weren't related, I've got at least 3 .01 auctions going every day that sell for way less than a 1.00 alot of times they sell for .01, I do that on all my accounts and haven't gotten that yet, probably just a random occurence.