If you’re a small business owner who sells effectively on eBay, having your eBay seller account suspended is probably one of your worst nightmares.
Being suspended from eBay, one of the major online marketplaces, can be disastrous for your business. Luckily there’s something that you can do about it.
eBay Suspends Seller Accounts For A Variety Of Reasons
A seller’s account may be suspended for a variety of reasons. Here are a few instances of common performance metrics issues:
- Orders are being shipped late (including via dropshipping)
- Upload or confirmation of a tracking number that is late
- A high rate of transaction errors
- Failure to resolve cases brought to the Resolution Center by buyers
Let’s take a look at each one separately.
1. Orders Are Being Shipped Late
The issue of late shipping is a major one. After all, most eBay buyers look for the anticipated shipping time for the items they want to buy. As a result, the consumer has already established their delivery expectations before making an order.
If a product’s description claims that it will be delivered in three days, it should be delivered in three days. But it goes a step beyond. In reality, if the vendor takes more than a day to send the goods – that is, for it to leave their premises – that is an issue. Late dispatch makes purchasers apprehensive, and if anything else comes after that falls short of their expectations, they’ll be eager to complain or give negative comments.
Shipping the goods out should take no more than two hours once the consumer has made their purchase.
Using the Auto Ordering feature allows you to forget about this problem; so when an item is sold the software takes care of processing the order directly on the suppplier’s page.
2. Upload Or Confirmation Of A Tracking Number That Is Late
Customers who shop online are always curious about the status of their orders. Or, at the very least, they want to know that they can find out the status at any moment and in a timely manner. As a result, it’s critical to share tracking numbers as soon as possible.
The tracking number is validated by eBay and shared with the buyer, which is crucial. One of two red flags appears when tracking information is not submitted promptly. Either a problem with the seller’s workflow or a failure to ship using a trackable service. Both are inappropriate and jeopardise the buyer’s trust. It can be difficult to persuade eBay otherwise.
3. A High Rate Of Transaction Errors
Violation of the defect rate measure is the next step on the road to suspension. Sellers must respond to buyer communications and grievances swiftly and professionally.
To begin, it is necessary to avoid perceptual errors. It’s usually better to undersell your product if you can. If it’s used or “seller reconditioned” draw attention to any flaws. Don’t make promises about quality that you can’t keep. It simply isn’t worth it.
Describe yourself adequately in your templates, store page, Facebook page, and website. Explain to the buyer your commitment. Demonstrate that you are a reliable and considerate seller. Build enough trust with your customer that they will come to you if they have a problem.
4. Cases That Have Not Been Resolved In The Resolution Center
You must confront your clients’ problems head-on. We’ll say it once more. No matter how irrational or demanding your consumers are, you must work with them.
You should also keep this in mind when creating listings and listing templates. Don’t overcrowd your listings with small text that can be used against you if a buyer complains. Customers demand a similar experience no matter who they buy from on eBay, and they’re less inclined to read or consider your own terms of service.
Consider how few negatives are required to derail hundreds of positives. Even if it means fewer sales, design your listings to assist avoid future difficulties.
How to Recover an eBay Account That Has Been Suspended
While hearing that your eBay seller account has been suspended can be frightening, there are actions you can do to get it back. The possibility of it being reinstated is mostly determined on the type of violation. Don’t lie if it was an honest mistake. Explain the situation as clearly as possible, and be realistic about your plans for resolving the issue in the future.
Your prospects of getting your seller’s account reinstated are substantially lower if your suspension is based on plainly unlawful behavior, such as using a false name, selling counterfeit goods, or failing to complete orders.
In any event, try to find out what’s causing the suspension. While setting up a secret account and continuing to sell may seem enticing, it offers nothing to address the problems with your company strategy.
Wait Out A Brief Pause
If you’ve been suspended for a short period of time (varying from a few days to 2-3 weeks), the best thing you can do is wait it out. Don’t immediately go back into business as usual after your seller account is reinstated; take the time to think out how to improve your company processes.
If you keep getting brief suspensions without changing your company practises, you’ll be facing an indefinite suspension soon.
Indefinite suspensions can be challenged, but you should wait at least a year and have a solid plan in place before doing so.
Clarify Errors
If you believe eBay made a mistake in suspending your account, contact eBay right once to clarify the circumstances. Suspensions on eBay are typically based on your full account history rather than one-time events.
Even if you can prove that your suspension was based on false information, it’s worth revisiting eBay’s seller policies to see if you can better align your business with them.
Make Use Of Customer Support
Maintain your composure and professionalism, even if you’re upset. Suspensions are used by eBay to keep its marketplace safe from unscrupulous participants. On the phone, being hurried or upset will not help your cause. Get your dedicated customer support involved if you’re at the Enterprise or Anchor level.
If you’re unsure about why you were suspended, keep your suspension email handy and contact customer service for an explanation or more information.
To get reinstated, you must first disclose the facts; do not embellish or portray yourself as a victim. Describe what occurred and what went wrong. This may be difficult or humiliating, but it is critical that you acknowledge the issue.
The next step is to describe how you fixed the issue in this specific case. How did you resolve the issue if it was a consumer complaint?
Conclusion
In short, your best bet for getting an eBay suspended account reinstated is to either wait it out or make a persuasive case to customer support about how you will improve your business processes and customer service. (Then go ahead and do it!).
If you are reading this and your eBay account has never been banned, make sure you do not do any of those points so that it doesn’t happen to you. And for that, automate your store with the best dropshipping software; with the best features.
