Making Strange

I'm from the UK and I never even realised that...

2012-05-03T22:25:00.987+07:00

I'm from the UK and I never even realised that other countries refridgerated eggs!

The pendulum has turned: Sellers are getting screw...

2012-02-28T08:50:35.937+07:00

The pendulum has turned: Sellers are getting screwed now.

I'm an Amazon seller and pride myself on providing fast processing and prompt and courteous customer service. My account has two neutrals (both say "good" - odd, but whatever) and one negative. The negative one mentions seller comments that were not made by me and are not in the message history of my seller account.

Even though an Amazon rep admits this after viewing my message history, Amazon refuses to remove the feedback and the buyer doesn't seem to care.

So far my business is down several thousand dollars from projections since the negative review was posted.

I'm being screwed by Amazon blindly sticking to the exact letter of their policy and not making a common sense exception to an obvious and provable error by the buyer.

Sellers point of view from a seller that cares but...

2012-02-23T07:46:05.848+07:00

Sellers point of view from a seller that cares but is open to the abuses of buyers.

A buyer wants to return a personal item because it was the wrong size. It was used and had the buyers menstrual blood on it before the buyer cleaned it for the return. We told the buyer Amazon does not accept returns for used personal items and we offered to send the other size at a discount. The buyer refused and filed an A-to-Z claim. The claim was denied. In retaliation, the buyer left negative feedback and stated they would remove it only if we gave then a full refund or replacement. Amazon was of no help. Our only recourse was to bring legal action against the buyer. It will cost the buyer 50 times more then the item and a court order will force Amazon to remove the feedback.

Moral - there are bad sellers and there are bad buyers.

But here's the real story. Buyers can easily abuse third party sellers on Amazon by easily getting free items, free exchanges, and refunds through leveraging negative feedback because Amazon has nothing in place to protect it's sellers. Bad sellers would not care about this because they do not care about receiving negative feedback.

If left long enough Amazon will be just a gathering place for bad sellers and bad buyers. As long as Amazon keeps receiving the 15% commission per sale, all is good in the world.

I got a $10 Amazon gift card after I removed some ...

2012-02-08T04:04:22.178+07:00

I got a $10 Amazon gift card after I removed some negative seller feedback; I know I shouldn't have removed the feedback because in reality they were selling counterfeit merch... in other words, cheap knock offs instead of the name brand listed.

I'm still not totally sure though if the claim of 3/5 equals 1/5.

Amazon, seller, product, and shipping company should all be thought of as completely separate entities when making a review.

Having similar problems. Will never do business w...

2012-01-19T04:03:18.523+07:00

Having similar problems. Will never do business with Amazon again.

Always takes weeks to get anything from Amazon anyway, done with the BS.

Hello I'm a journalist looking to interview wo...

2012-01-16T19:31:22.924+07:00

Hello I'm a journalist looking to interview women about meeting the queen. If this is something you might be interested in taking part in please let me know, Laura ljmacbeth@googlemail.com

So I ordered a new phone e from a seller on Amazon...

2012-01-12T07:57:54.351+07:00

So I ordered a new phone e from a seller on Amazon only to get the phone with scratches someones pictures and contacts as well as there text messages still on the phone since I needed the phone right away I just kept it and submitted my feedback of basically just the way I put it I. This comment only to get a rude email from the seller on how I quote " need to make it right and remove my comment" BC he has a family to take care of and is out of work and this is how he takes care of his family and by my comment I hurt his business if the phone had a scratch why didn't u just return it or why don't you just return it!! I am in shock who does that I only gave my honest oppinon and I would try and make things right in a positive manner if I were a business owner not be rude to my customer wow still shocked but my point is I can't find my feedback either its not showing and being new to Amazon I'm not to familiar with the steps to take but my feedback has been removed

Not complicated but so cool!

2012-01-04T23:31:19.105+07:00

Not complicated but so cool!

Wonderful! Now I want to see it life!

2012-01-04T23:25:05.634+07:00

Wonderful! Now I want to see it life!

Brilliant post. Change brings growth. Growth bri...

2011-12-23T21:24:10.685+07:00

Brilliant post. Change brings growth. Growth brings fulfillment.

When dealing directly with Amazon I have no proble...

2011-12-21T15:01:04.071+07:00

When dealing directly with Amazon I have no problems. However I've had so many problems with 3rd party sellers, I just won't buy from them any more. Amazon always sides with these Mom & Pop ripoff outfits but fortunately American Express does not.

They do remove negative feedback regularly to protect the 3rd party crooks they broker for. So no, their seller feedback is not even slightly reliable.

If you have trouble with a company that seems to have great feedback, just google that company and I'll bet you find they have a very bad reputation. One company selling on Amazon gave me one excuse and lie after another for two months till I finally had Amex charge it back. They had outstanding feedback on Amazon but when I googled them, no one had anything good to say about that company and my experience was simply SOP for them.

Great blog. We are planning a week long trip to ch...

2011-12-12T11:23:58.805+07:00

Great blog.
We are planning a week long trip to chiang Mai in June or July.can you suggest some b and b in Los town budget 700 baht or. About.
Our meal is malshiv@gmail.com
Thanks

Yes - chip butties are amazing - yes pure carb ama...

2011-11-28T05:42:00.909+07:00

Yes - chip butties are amazing - yes pure carb amazing. But just a little yummy treat. Best with fresh white bread and butter, and nothing else.

I lost trust in Amazon. I had put a negative feed ...

2011-09-18T09:04:42.321+07:00

I lost trust in Amazon. I had put a negative feed back after a week i logged back to see it and it disappears. So DON'T TRUST any feed back in AMAZON. Only good feedback appears on the page, rest all will be removed by them to promote their product.

Also it shouldn't matter if he ordered the wro...

2011-07-20T23:13:30.931+07:00

Also it shouldn't matter if he ordered the wrong item, this is assuming the seller guarantees 100% customer satisfaction as many companies do. The catch normally is you must return the item at your own cost...kind of a sleazy trick retail companies have used for years. especially if you buy something not sold by a big box store. Again this is assuming they offer complete satisfaction.

"I'm surprised no one has mentioned yet t...

2011-06-28T13:17:05.056+07:00

"I'm surprised no one has mentioned yet that you bought the wrong item."

@anonymous - Are you daft? No one mentioned it because I called it out myself. In the first heading in the first section of this post.

Interesting... I'm surprised no one has menti...

2011-05-26T04:19:03.958+07:00

Interesting...

I'm surprised no one has mentioned yet that you bought the wrong item. You bought an item that was labeled for a different size (large size Kindle 2) kindle than you own (9 inch Kindle DX). Of course it won't fit. This portion is not the fault of the seller.

Now the way the seller treated you, was completely wrong. There is no excuse for that. But the item being the wrong size was your error - I can see how that could be a justifiable reason for removing the feedback as you're criticizing the seller for your own mistake.

I've just had an incident a couple of days ago...

2011-04-04T01:22:17.741+07:00

I've just had an incident a couple of days ago where I left a Neutral rating for a seller because on the description page, the seller did not disclose the condition of the CD and gave a rating of 'very good'.

The seller had an overall rating of 98 percent, so I felt confident that the CD would be scratch-free. When the item did arrive, CD had a substantial amount of scratches and the jewel case was in rough condition along with having a sticker on it that when peeled, would leave some ugly glue marks.

None of this was disclosed in the description. So after 3 days of leaving a Neutral rating(I should have gone for Negative mind you), I got an angry email from this seller accusing me of exaggerating and being 'cheap'(the CD was 3.49).

Hold on, was it his business to make personal comments on my spending habits? Also, isn't this fool the one who sold this 'cheap' item? Anyhow, he also left a flaming response under my feedback(be wary of sellers who love to attack negative/neutral comments with a flaming response).

My feedback was composed with an even tone and no insults. So I emailed Amazon and forwarded the harrassing email and requested that this seller not bug me anymore. I also returned the email to the seller pointing out his flaws(i didnt use obscene words but my tone wasn't as even this time). BTW, this order was from Amazon Fullfillment.

This was the first any seller has sent me an insulting email after leaving anything less than a positive review. Overall I only buy items from Amazon directly(or 3rd party sellers that use Amazon Fullfillment) since if their is a problem(which their rarely is) i can just send the item back within 30 days and get a full refund.

From my experience on Amazon(and eBay), I would tend not to trust 3rd party sellers. Yes, most of my experience have been positive..BUT, once you run into that wacko seller, it is a HUGE headache and can consume your time and energy. So I tend to avoid 3rd parties.

No kidding. Blort.

2011-02-14T00:15:12.044+07:00

No kidding. Blort.

Amen sister.

2011-02-13T21:03:22.461+07:00

Amen sister.

Thank you so much - both for the sweet words and f...

2011-02-09T10:22:38.086+07:00

Thank you so much - both for the sweet words and for your advice. I've checked out your blog and it sounds like we share some of the same passions - can't wait to read more.

We did make our decision and from what you wrote, it sounds like we made the right one. We actually arrived in Chiang Mai last night and so far, so good. We've booked into a nice little boutique hotel and you're so right - the people here so far have been lovely and friendly. Although we've only just arrived, it does remind me a bit of a more cosmopolitan version of Luang Prabang in Northern Laos, which I absolutely loved.

The elephants and tigers are definitely on my list of things to do. It's so nice to wake up in a lovely new city.

I don't know if you've already made a deci...

2011-02-09T03:31:18.140+07:00

I don't know if you've already made a decision, but I've had the joy of visiting both of these lovely places in the past year and I'm torn even offering advice!

I am an avid follower of your blog and absolutely adore the abandon with which you and Dan left a conventional lifestyle behind and embrace life! I'm trying to figure out if this is something I can realize in my own life. Thanks for the inspiration.

But gushing aside, really, these are my observations of both places. Koh Samui (I visited on the way to Koh Tao) is breathtakingly beautiful. I went mid-July after sweating my life away in the Hat Yai region for a few weeks, and there was no greater relief in the world. The beaches are serene and gorgeous (and snorkeling! ah!) but very European-tourist oriented. Especially in contrast to the not-touristy-at-all inner southern region, it didn't feel like Thailand.

I visited Chiang Mai a few weeks ago and it's definitely my favorite place in Southeast Asia. The northern people exude a very different hospitable/polite personality and the culture feels (to me) more authentic. You can actually step into every day life and possibly a brief respite from the "you buy from me?" English tourist crap peddlers. Though Chiang Mai is home to one of the greatest night markets in the SE Asia...

Also in Chiang Mai, I went to an Elephant camp were I got to feed and ride the elephants and watch them do tricks (like paint!), raft down a river and even take a slightly less comfortable, though authentic, ox cart ride. If you end up in Chiang Mai, I'd totally recommend this! Also, the convenience and availability of $5/hr Thai massages,and the beauty of Doi Suthep are pretty good reasons to visit.

I can't wait to see where you guys end up and I hope you have a great experience in Thailand!

Thanks for this enlightening post. It definitely g...

2011-01-16T14:34:17.340+07:00

Thanks for this enlightening post. It definitely gives me some food for thought.

As a buyer on Amazon, you definitely make me wary of whether Amazon is honest and whether the third party Sellers on Amazon are honest.

I am a Seller on Amazon and I can only speak for myself. I am honest and I have not had any negative reviews; if I got any, I would try to improve my service and not call Amazon to complain. That is ridiculous! Amazon does help me sell items, but I don't expect them to fix my problems and I feel I am responsible for my sales and the results.

So far I have only 4 ratings, because even though I've been selling items, SO MANY people don't leave any feedback or rate. It's frankly annoying, and one thing as a Seller that I wish customers would do more, is take a second of their time to leave feedback *as soon as* they receive their item, so they don't forget.

It would help so much. I don't expect thousands of reviews, and I don't claim that this "supports my family" or some b.s, but a little feedback and rates so my shop can survive against bigger, older shops and those irritating "item for $0.01" people would be great.

Thanks for the kind words. Laos was beautiful and ...

2011-01-04T20:09:41.462+07:00

Thanks for the kind words. Laos was beautiful and so very easy to photograph. I would go back in a second. I'm currently in Hanoi and it's a bit of a shock to the system after the loveliness of Luang Prabang.

As for the lens, just the bog standard one that came with my Nikon D60 but I do use a create curve on occasion. If you want it, feel free to send me an email and I'd be happy to share (requires Photoshop). amy.thibodeauATgmail.com

Laos is beautiful, isn't it? I was fortunate ...

2011-01-03T11:42:19.588+07:00

Laos is beautiful, isn't it? I was fortunate enough to be able to visit Vientiane for a few days a couple of years ago and I recognize some of the buildings and temples that are in your pictures! What camera are you using? Your pictures are absolutely stunning and really make me want to go back and spend more time there!