Why Do eBay Members Keep Their Feedback Private? (2024)

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Have you ever noticed and wondered Why Do eBay Members Keep Their Feedback Private?

This can be especially frustrating if you are a seller and have no way of checking the buyer’s history.

Here’s what you usually see when checking a buyer’s profile:

You get an overall ratings summary (a percentage of out 100), comments about transactions, the seller’s profile and an estimate of when the purchase was made.

One of the foundations of any trading system is trust, so why do some members keep their information hidden?

Here are a couple of my theories:

They are hiding negative feedback

Although eBay doesn’t allow a seller to leave a negative review (I know, I know), sellers have gotten around this by giving a positive rating and then using the comments section to “warn” other users about bad behavior.

So one of the first steps a shady buyer will take is hiding comments by making his feedback private.

This issue pretty much answers the question, Why Do eBay Members Keep Their Feedback Private?

They are cloaking suspicious behavior

There are all kinds of scams being perpetuated online and eBay is no exception.

Hiding your eBay feedback is one way of keeping others in the dark when you’re engaged in unsavory activities like shill bidding.

They don’t want word to get around

Let’s say you’ve been scammed twice by a buyer.

If that buyer’s feedback is private, you can’t see the other sellers they are transacting business with.

Not being able to see feedback is preventing you from warning or contacting other potential victims.

One reason I often see for buyer’s hiding their feedback is “I don’t want others to see what I’m buying or what I paid for it.”

However, public feedback profiles don’t display that information anyway, so it’s a moot point.

I can’t really think of a one good reason for someone to hide feedback

Personally, it sets off an alarm bell for me.

When you hide something, it automatically makes you look suspicious.

Nearly everyone else in the eBay community is willing to be forthright, so why not you?

As a seller, I will generally cancel bids from a user with private feedback.

There’s also the option of contacting the user directly and asking why they’ve hidden the information, and if they will make it public long enough for you to view the comments.

What do you think about private listing feedback on eBay?

Here is how to leave feedback on eBay:

You can leave feedback for several items at a time, or do it one by one.

1. Go toOrdersin Seller Hub orSoldin My eBay.
2. Choose the item(s), then selectLeave feedback.
3. SelectPositiveand enter a comment, then selectLeave feedback.

There may be times when you want to reply to feedback a buyer has left for you, or add a comment to feedback you’ve previously left for someone else.

eBay feedback polices are found here.

Feedback Revision – You can’t change feedback eBay you’ve left for a buyer, but you can ask a buyer to reconsider feedback they left for you.

You can view all the feedback you’ve left or received in yourfeedback profile. From there you can also reply to eBay feedback.

Here’s how you can reply to eBay feedback:

1. From yourfeedback profilepage, find the feedback you’d like to reply to.
2. SelectReplyfrom the Action column.
3. Enter your reply, then selectSend.

eBay feedback reply – If you can’t find the feedback you want to reply to, you can use the search bar below the All Received Feedbacktab to searchby the buyer’s username, the item number, or the item title.

Search will only return feedback that was left in the last 12 months.

Remove negative feedback – You can only reply once to a feedback comment, and you can’t edit or retract that reply. You request a feedback revision asking for positive feedback.

Follow up on feedback you left for a buyer – You can’t change feedback you left for a buyer, but you can add extra comments.

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