>eBay's new feedback policy: no real feedback – Ars Technica: “Last week, eBay announced the first significant changes to its feedback policy since the site launched over a decade ago. In order to clamp down on the practice of tit-for-tat feedback, eBay will begin preventing sellers from leaving negative feedback on buyers. The change is scheduled to take place in May, and, as you might expect, sellers are not happy.”

Most effective way to have customers leave you feedback is to ask for it. With eBay Blackthorne Pro, you also get SM PRO (Selling Manager Pro) which has a Feedback Reminder feature. In the e-mail, there is customized feedback link so it makes it very easy for buyers to leave you feedback. We leave positive feedback after payment is made. This makes the buyer happy and it reduces e-mails asking for feedback from buyers later. Part of good customer service is anticipating the needs of buyers. Its really no different from a butler in many ways, except with a business angle. In the past, some sellers would only reciprocate positive feedback, but with the feedback change in Feb 2008 by eBay, there is no good reason to withhold feedback from paying customers.