Has anyone else had problems with "Hoard_*_bits" on eBay?

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**Maniac_nmt**

Luide wrote:
Red Comet wrote:I haven't used them, but that policy seems childish. I can understand that they don't want negative feedback, but at the cost of losing a potential returning customer? That's ridiculous imo.

Not really. First, those giving negative feedback are rarely returning customers. Second, even if they were to come back, are they worth the effort?
That policy is very good way for Ebay business to 1) make sure their negative feedback stays low 2) concentrate their efforts on "better" customers.

In my previous work we had a client who were generally PITA. Always wanting discounts, not planning their systems properly so when they were configured there always were surprises, always wanting projets done short timetable. Margins from their projects were low to non-existent and stress levels from having to deal with them high.
Now, we were strapped for manpower at that time, so in retrospect, we'd have been far better off by not having them as clients at all.

Tl;dr:
Losing poor client can be a good thing for business. Especially if the resources of the business is already stretched thin.

This is business 101. Do you take the $10 million dollar contract that you will spend $900k to complete, or do you take the $1 million dollar contract you will spend $100k to complete? It is common for businesses to refuse service to customers. No shirt/no shoes/no service as an example, or bathrooms for paying customers only.

Choosing not to do business with someone who can cost you more business or is generally to much of a pain to deal with (i.e. increases effort which reduces profit) is neither childish or inappropriate, it's simply necessary to survive.

Now, I'm not saying the OP was that much of a pain, but enforcing a lock on customers isn't horrid, and what they've done is make it easy for themselves so that they don't have to make a judgment call each time.

For the record, I've used them and been perfectly satisfied with them.

**kronk**

I've bought from them numerous times without many issues. They sent me the wrong bit once. I emailed them and told them what I ordered and what I received, and they sent me a replacement immediately.

**Scott_K**

I don't believe I did anything wrong. In fact, I believe I was polite and professional about it. Certainly no reason for her to be a c you n t and block me. As Clively stated - she doesn't have a corner on the market, so I'll gladly take my business elsewhere.

**Jimsolo**

clively wrote:
I'm confused about the OP here.

He had a bad experience with a small shop. Why would you then return to that shop when you have clearly identified others that you've successfully done business with? It's not like HoB has a corner on the market for bits sales.

I appreciate any and all warnings about dealings with certain providers; however I think the OP is a bit disingenuous with claims of trying to place a second order from a group that he clearly didn't have a good experience with.

He didn't have a bad experience though, he had a neutral one. Most of my consumer experiences are neutral. I pay my money, get my crap, and get along my way. The original poster was probably (given the company) satisfied with the price, but not the shipping time (which wound up being half again as long as they said it would be). Seems pretty neutral to me. When it comes time to buy more bits, they're still the cheapest, so he goes back to them. Unfortunately, their childish business practices have placed a higher value on a positive ebay feedback score than on return business.

Ever since discovering this information about them, I'm seriously debating whether or not to give them anymore of my business. This is not what professional adults do. It is what spoiled children do.

**Maniac_nmt**

Jimsolo wrote:
clively wrote:
I'm confused about the OP here.

He had a bad experience with a small shop. Why would you then return to that shop when you have clearly identified others that you've successfully done business with? It's not like HoB has a corner on the market for bits sales.

I appreciate any and all warnings about dealings with certain providers; however I think the OP is a bit disingenuous with claims of trying to place a second order from a group that he clearly didn't have a good experience with.

He didn't have a bad experience though, he had a neutral one. Most of my consumer experiences are neutral. I pay my money, get my crap, and get along my way. The original poster was probably (given the company) satisfied with the price, but not the shipping time (which wound up being half again as long as they said it would be). Seems pretty neutral to me. When it comes time to buy more bits, they're still the cheapest, so he goes back to them. Unfortunately, their childish business practices have placed a higher value on a positive ebay feedback score than on return business.

Ever since discovering this information about them, I'm seriously debating whether or not to give them anymore of my business. This is not what professional adults do. It is what spoiled children do.

Except that for Ebay, positive feedback is business. People will refuse to buy from folks with lower ratings (even from people with 98% good feedback). So, not doing business with people who hurt that rep may mean a lost customer, but it also means you don't loose others.

**hurtmypony**

Maniac_nmt wrote:

Except that for Ebay, positive feedback is business. People will refuse to buy from folks with lower ratings (even from people with 98% good feedback). So, not doing business with people who hurt that rep may mean a lost customer, but it also means you don't loose others.

Perhaps a shopkeeper that experiences miscommunication/disconnects frequently enough with his client base to require sustained protection from those same clients has a larger issue elsewhere.

Disavowing oneself from the rare "difficult" customer is one thing.

When self preservation demands a detailed, established policy or procedure for extricating oneself from what should instead be a source of potential income seems a little on the dysfunctional side, and not necessarily the most efficient or profitable path to success. Or so it seems to my eyes.

**Jaceevoke**

hurtmypony wrote:
Maniac_nmt wrote:

Except that for Ebay, positive feedback is business. People will refuse to buy from folks with lower ratings (even from people with 98% good feedback). So, not doing business with people who hurt that rep may mean a lost customer, but it also means you don't loose others.

Perhaps a shopkeeper that experiences miscommunication/disconnects frequently enough with his client base to require sustained protection from those same clients has a larger issue elsewhere.

Disavowing oneself from the rare "difficult" customer is one thing.

When self preservation demands a detailed, established policy or procedure for extricating oneself from what should instead be a source of potential income seems a little on the dysfunctional side, and not necessarily the most efficient or profitable path to success. Or so it seems to my eyes.

As someone who runs an ebay business, my main source of income, this type of policy is completely understandable. With the amount of power that buyers have, there are very few options left available. Like Maniac_nmt wrote positive feedback is business, not only do buyer tend to only buy from the very highly ranked, but ranking in the ebay sellers affects where your item will show up whether it will be near the top or not on best match which is what a lot of people use to find items. I have the same policy, of course I don't list it because that just seems like kicking a beehive which is what has happened here. That being said I'm not defending HOB since it seems they are doing a lot of things wrong.

**paulson games**

Had one very small order get lost in the mail, yet had dozens of good orders and would have stayed a customer. Would have even been willing to eat that small order, but their complete lack of response was not cool and I got banned from their auctions for leaving a neutral. Never once complained, I just asked how we could resolve the situation so I was hardly a unhappy or angry bidder, but they decide to ignore people even when they are being perfectly reasonable.

Their loss as I'd rather deal with people who don't treat their repeat customers like crud. GW parts from Blackdagger or Windowbox are all the same plastic crack, without the attitude.

**greg0985**

Yeah, I've dealt a lot with them, always have had great service. Only thing I could say is once I ordered the Chimera lions head, and got one half of the reptile head by mistake. Contacted them and the sent out a brand new head, didn't even want the old one back.

Now they are the only bitz dealer ill use.

**Rune Stonegrinder**

Yes, a few years ago I got an item from him and a piece was missing, it so happens it was the important weapon bit I wanted for a kitbash Vampire model. He refused to believe me that it was missing, so I had to file a complaint with the resolution center. He finally replaced it and banned me from ever buying from him again. whatever....When you deal in bitz eventually you'll lose track of an important piece here and there. Hell I lose important pieces here and there and I don't deal in Bitz. He should have understod that. I even offered to send him the original lot so he could attempt to make money from it, however he just gave me a rude response.