NO LONGER SELLING DUE TO SIMPLE DELIVERY

[rugbyguy1960]

AS OF 15TH APRIL MY DAYS AS A PRIVATE EBAY SELLER WILL STOP AFTER 19 YEARS.

I AM FED UP OF THE GREED OF EBAY AND I HOPE OTHER EBAY SELLERS DECIDE TO NO LONGER LET THE EBAY CONTROL FREAKS HAVE THIS MUCH CONTROL OVER PRIVATE SELLERS.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

having read it and the statement from EVRI, i can only assume they are suffering from the same type of delusional fantasy about the 'high regard' their customers have of them!

[enduringclothingstudio]

Trying to get hold of anyone at evri is near impossible ,you can't get past the AI bot on the chat and I don't want to use my phone credit trying to ring them ,why can't they have an email so people can write to them .They took away the label printing machine from our local tesco express in Aberystwyth ,the staff there said it was breaking too many times ,so we now have to drive 2.5 miles one way to a postoffice that does do Evri ,we don't have a printer ,but the PO staff just tap in the 6 figure number that is under the QR code and they are able to print out the label ,we just write the 6 figure number on the parcel for the staff to look at .   We have had no issues with any of our Evri parcels getting delivered to our customers since SD was introduced ,but my partner has been waiting for an Evri parcel for well over a week and the seller said it had been stuck in Warwickshire for over a week at an Evri depot .

[gmij1961]

My point was not about advertising in general , its is to do with an Ebay advert that may to deemed to misleading in a specific context of Ebay and simple delivery . A point that you seemed to have  overlooked  or struggle to understand as it is really is quite subtle . 

I can understand this may considered as being pedantic but as this is  Ebay and SD and  wouldn't have any qualms if it meant it could send a few shock waves through Ebay as a result .  

SD as product has too many flaws and its in everyone's best interest if it is either totally reworked or just scrapped.   🙂

[gmij1961]

Quite shocking really , and given the capabilities of AI what happen here should have raised an alarm bell immediately and not take 20 days to discover .  Each digital image will have its own unique fingerprint and if the same picture has been used multiple times then that would be easy to check against and raise an alarm

However even with out such checks there should have been reports within a few days to raise the alarm so there is absolutely no excuse for letting this go for more than a week ? It is Evri's  job to make sure that all their drivers are properly vetted and checked .   This isn't just about a rogue driver !

An assumption is this only effected 89 people the true number could  be far higher  as the driver probably covered a wider area than just the one village.  

One of the disturbing aspects of SD  is how Ebay seem placing an active  bias on the use of Evri .  Evri are sometimes only the cheapest as SD does not offer a properly comprehensive range that takes into account true size and value of the item and subsequently get the best deal for the buyer who actually pays for the postage on top BPF  . It is crazy !

I am buying far less since this nonsense started but the one thing that is noticeable is that every private seller  (SD) parcel  now comes via Evri . 

[meinblack2010]

Likewise.. 

[jonatjonatjonat]

No you made your pedantry quite clear. have a nice evening, just off to feed a Gorilla some Cadbury Dairy Milk to see if he'll play the drums.

[suelel1968]

@nursediesel @tressygirl you are both right. 

The problem for disabled people is that they can pick RM only and pay a rediculous uplift in price, way more than the 30p and still they could have Evri forced on them if ebay wants to. It is a disgraceful, tone deaf, discrinatory and ignorant system which needs addressing. 

[sml192]

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@suelel1968 wrote:

@nursediesel @tressygirl you are both right. 

The problem for disabled people is that they can pick RM only and pay a rediculous uplift in price, way more than the 30p and still they could have Evri forced on them if ebay wants to. It is a disgraceful, tone deaf, discrinatory and ignorant system which needs addressing. 

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But still cheaper/no more expensive than going direct to Royal Mail (except for Letters/Large Letters). 

[gmij1961]

This bit of conversation highlights one of the major issues with Simple Delivery , it is just monumentally confusing and misleading   for both experienced and novice sellers a like . 

I stopped selling as 6 months ago  and as yet to restart and whilst it may be actually be  true SD can be cheaper but there is significant elephant in the room reason why it isn't and its only now the penny has dropped to its true impact in this mess . 

Unless the seller is fully ofay with all the different parcel rates , weight restrictions etc then they are at the mercy of Ebay's "recommended  parcel  size " being an acceptable accurate tool and as it are not are highly likely to have there listing compromised as there is  far too higher likelihood of the buyer being overcharged for postage 

However if the seller is ofay with all the different parcel rates in the 1st place then SD has very little value as Its far easier and simpler  to pick the appropriate postage rate in the traditional "custom" fashion  .

I do hope that some from Ebay is reading this but SD will never work to a proper level of  satisfaction until Ebay ditch the AI code that determines the recommended parcel size and start using in putted proper weight and dimension .  Do that and they would also solve the very issue Large letter etc at the same time 

If Ebay  don't want to ditch this tool then SD can and should  only be offered as option where customers fully understand that may actually be charged a higher rate if recommended parcel rate is mis calculated , the compromise being they won't be surcharged . However the problem still remains it the buyer who is actually being overcharged .

This is by no means the only issue with SD , but it really should have been called out as show stopper before this was ever implemented 

If Ebay are serious about deploying SD globally than this area of SD needs to be reworked immediately  Such a system may work if  all you are doing is selling cloths but it totally  unsuitable for a complex market place like Ebay . 

[stamp_hammer]

If the seller wasn't au fait with the different postage rates before SD, they were even more likely to get the postage costs wrong and have their listing 'compromised'.

Surely SD is a good thing for novice sellers.

[gmij1961]

Not really because the AI weight guessing app is so inaccurate and  Ebay really need to carry warning to that effect than using SD might effect the effectiveness of sale

I was speaking to someone who is genuine novice seller and has only ever used SD and  both items he sold ebay A1 has got wrong , one meant he had to pay more postage himself to complete the sale  the other had to be cancelled as although the item was collection only due to size Ebay AI decided it could be posted . 

SD would be monumentally more accurate if Ebay just specified RM small parcels rate as default and let the buyer change it.

From an Ebay perspective apart from Ebay's overall incompetence , the AI tool is  the single element  that is doing the most damage to the reputation of SD  and that won't change until they do something pretty drastic 

[dantwocats]

The SD postage AI still getting it wrong as found when revising an older listing its postage was at a medium rate , SD recommended for small parcel  but its a large letter?  and still expecting for us to manually check each listing for errors they have made which i do not have the time or the will to do  still a #mess, if you are starting a new it may work but is postage being changed on new listing ?? once listed 

[gmij1961]

The fundamental problem with the "AI" tool is can never achieve an acceptable accuracy unless the user is allowed at some stage to either enter the dimensions or go through a process that would help the A1 tool make a more educated guess. If that can not  be rectified it simply will never  ever work properly

The monumental problem Ebay have created is putting this A1 tool at the centre of every SD listing, so it really is not simple or easy to work around it .

Its no wonder their are so many problems with hackers etc when this is a level of stupidity that is rife in the IT industry .   This should never have been implemented in a similar way to likes of Horizon.  Horizon is an example of the catastrophic damage that can be created by these levels of incompetence and the total denial to admit or recognise critical issues .  Ebay are very much in denial mode 

I am really glad I chose to stop selling as this really is a monumental mess 

[c_of_e84]

I tried greedbays AI listing tool and what it created for my listing broke greedbay rules, made false product claims and would of got me kicked of greedbay if I had accepted it.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

I would rather pay a bit more than have EVRI down to deliver (as they never do!)  Fine if you live in town (except that they too are always complaining about non/long delayed deliveries on our local moan site.  As i frequently explain on here our local courier does not 'do' off main road deliveries....  You cannot get anywhere complaining because all they say is that the courier uses their own car and can choose where to drive it.  Funny though that not one other tradesman /delivery person refuses to use our farm road.

[kath3735_wxmjn]

it was a much simpler process just taking the damn parcel into the post office and they weighed, measured and charged you the correct rate.  If by any chance i had underestimated i sucked it up, if overestimated i refunded.  Simples......   So now i do not sell at all and rarely visit to buy. 

[akemp1]

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@kath3735_wxmjn wrote:

it was a much simpler process just taking the damn parcel into the post office and they weighed, measured and charged you the correct rate.  If by any chance i had underestimated i sucked it up, if overestimated i refunded.  Simples......   So now i do not sell at all and rarely visit to buy. 

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It's simpler but buying postage in branch is crazy expensive.

I was charged £4.05 (eek!) for small parcel Tracked 48 this week for an item I was sending a friend.

Even 2nd class small parcel would have been £3.90.

I honestly struggle to understand how people don't know the packed weight and dimensions of their item when listing it. I didn't even realise it was a problem that needed solving with AI. Do people really not have access to a tape measure and kitchen + bathroom scales?

[fantailsforme]

When I heard that the country of Qatar was investing a trillion dollars in American AI, I thought that if its anything like eBays AI they shouldn't bother and save their money.

[punzel9072]

"I honestly struggle to understand how people don't know the packed weight and dimensions of their item when listing it. I didn't even realise it was a problem that needed solving with AI. Do people really not have access to a tape measure and kitchen + bathroom scales?"

When we list an item, it is not packaged up ready to send - that only takes place when it is sold, and only then do we find an appropriate box or other packaging to send it. I have a lot of second-hand cardboard boxes and wrappers in my garage ready to be re-used, but only when I have to pack something up do I find the best size one that I have. I may have a box that fits a number of items, but it will only get used for the first one that sells, any subsequent may have to go in a less appropriate sized box.

So yes we DO have a tape measure, and we use it when there is something to measure. As for bathroom scales, not much use when you're weighing something light as it probably won't give an accurate reading on anything under 1kg.

[akemp1]

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@punzel9072 wrote:

When we list an item, it is not packaged up ready to send - that only takes place when it is sold, and only then do we find an appropriate box or other packaging to send it. I have a lot of second-hand cardboard boxes and wrappers in my garage ready to be re-used, but only when I have to pack something up do I find the best size one that I have. I may have a box that fits a number of items, but it will only get used for the first one that sells, any subsequent may have to go in a less appropriate sized box.

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I couldn't live like that, it would be too stressful to find the right sized packaging when an item sells, at a usually inconvenient time when I am in a rush to get the kids to school, or get to work, etc. I find it much easier to loosely pack things as when listing them and so when something sells then it just needs sealing and a label adding. As a bonus it means that the item is well protected and it takes less space storing the item and packaging separately.

Still even if you don't pre-pack an item surely you know what the box and total weight it will end up being? And if you don't have a box that's the right size then wouldn't you rather cut it a bigger one down to size than pay a higher postage rate?

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As for bathroom scales, not much use when you're weighing something light as it probably won't give an accurate reading on anything under 1kg.

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That's why I suggested kitchen + bathroom scales. Kitchen scales for the lightweight stuff and bathroom scales for the heavy stuff. Couldn't live without them - surely most people have them in their homes?