Product Condition
When you’re selling an item on Amazon and you need to rate its condition, always go down a level. For example, if you have an item that you think is in very good condition, play it on the safe side and list it as good condition. This rating system, while a good one, is not foolproof and is a bit subjective, so your customer’s expectation of ‘very good’ can vary wildly from your own. Bumping each item down a level ensures that your pickier customers will be happy with their purchase, and those who have standards more similar to your own will be especially pleased with the condition of the item and will review accordingly.
As part of grading each item a level down, if you are currently selling items in ‘acceptable’ condition, you may want to reconsider your position on that. That is not to say don’t rate items as acceptable — rather, if you consider an item to be in ‘acceptable’ condition, don’t sell it at all. If you rate an item as acceptable and a customer thinks it is not worthy of the label, you could end up with negative feedback.
Remove Negative Feedback When Possible
Amazon has very strict feedback regulations, which often work in your favor as a seller. Customers are not allowed to leave seller feedback that is related to reviewing the product sold or complaining about the price. If you get feedback that fits one of these criteria or seems unfair to you in any other way, open a ticket with Seller Support.
The main thing to keep in mind when communicating with Seller Support is to keep it short and concise. These Amazon employees read hundreds of tickets per day, and the faster you can get your point across, the more likely they are to read your whole ticket and get to the bottom of the matter. If your request is denied, don’t be afraid to file another one — you’re likely to get a different Amazon employee who may consider your request differently from the first.
Communicate
If you receive a legitimate negative feedback from a customer, the best thing you can do is communicate with them. Send an email with a genuine apology, and propose a way to rectify the situation, whether that’s replacing the item or perhaps sending them a small Amazon gift card. In a later email you can ask them to consider changing their negative feedback. Be sure to not mention the gift card in this email, as exchanging gift cards for positive reviews is against Amazon’s policies! Include in the email instructions on how to remove the feedback, and most customers will do so.
