When you’re shopping on Amazon, two powerful tools help guide your purchasing decisions: seller feedback and product reviews. Though they might seem like twins at first glance, they’re more like cousins, related but distinct. If you don’t know the difference yet, don’t worry. Even seasoned Amazon sellers sometimes get the two mixed up.
Think of product reviews as your friend’s opinion about a new gadget, while seller feedback is like a report card for the store that sold it. Both play crucial roles in your shopping experience, but knowing the difference can make you a savvier Amazon shopper. Let’s clear up the confusion and show you exactly how these two features can help you make smarter buying decisions.
Understanding Amazon Seller Feedback
Amazon seller feedback is a metric that measures customer satisfaction of third-party Amazon sellers. Essentially, this is where you comment about your experiences with the seller and not the product you receive.
Just like product ratings, feedback can help you determine whether or not you should buy from a certain seller. Sellers with lots of positive feedback are generally more trustworthy, while sellers with lots of negative feedback may have had lots of issues with customers.
What Makes Up Amazon Seller Feedback?
Amazon seller feedback is made up of elements related to the store’s customer service and shipping. Generally, when providing customer feedback, you’re asked questions like:
- Whether the items arrived on time.
- Whether the items match the description on its listing.
- Your overall experience throughout the purchase.
Just like product reviews, you can leave star ratings and written comments.
What Makes Seller Feedback Different From Reviews?
Seller feedback is different from reviews because it solely focuses on the customer’s experience with the seller. Items arriving on time generally fall under the domain of seller feedback, while items that don’t work properly may fall under the domain of product reviews.
How to Find Seller Feedback
Seller feedback is located in a different place from product reviews. To check for seller feedback, you need to check the third-party seller’s profile. There, you’ll find star ratings and recent reviews for the seller. If you want to dig further into the seller’s track record, you can filter for positive and negative reviews as well.
Step-by-Step Guide to Leaving Seller Feedback
Leaving seller feedback on Amazon is very easy and isn’t much different from leaving product reviews. Here’s a step-by-step guide to do so:
- Sign into your Amazon account.
- Go to the Returns & Orders page.
- Find the item for which you want to leave feedback.
- Click on Leave Seller Feedback.
- Rate and review the seller and click Submit.
It usually takes up to three days after the order is completed for the Leave Seller Feedback button to appear. Generally, you have a 90-day window from your order date to leave feedback.
How Seller Feedback Helps Amazon Stores
Seller feedback helps you see which sellers are reputable and which ones to steer clear of. On the other hand, feedback helps the seller gauge general customer sentiment about their performance.
Sellers generally monitor product reviews and seller feedback. Here are some ways an Amazon seller can benefit from your feedback:
- Good seller feedback increases their likelihood of getting the Amazon Featured Offer (formerly the Buy Box.)
- Seller feedback helps them understand gaps and potential issues regarding how they run their store for future improvement.
- Feedback helps stores “make good” with customers who had negative experiences to maintain their customer service standards.
Lots of negative customer feedback and a high Order Defect Rate are often grounds for account suspensions or bans. That’s why sellers are motivated to consistently provide great customer service.
Best Practices for Leaving Seller Feedback
So, maybe you’ve got a backlog of recent Amazon orders waiting for seller feedback, but you don’t know what to write. Before you start writing, let’s take a look at some of the best things to keep in mind when leaving seller feedback.
Be Honest
Honest seller feedback, even if it’s negative, is the best thing a seller can receive. Sometimes, it’s better to rip the bandage off and hit the seller with hard truths about your bad experience with them rather than sugarcoating things. If you say nothing is wrong with your order, then they might not know there’s a problem with how they run things.
Explain Your Points Thoroughly
Writing “Had a bad experience with this seller” or “Not buying from here again” isn’t enough for a seller to find out what went wrong with your order without having to reach out for clarification.
You’re more likely to catch the seller’s attention by writing feedback that provides context to your issues, like “I ordered product A, but received product B instead” or “The item came in good condition, but two days late,” so the seller understands your grievances.
This also applies to positive feedback. Writing “The seller is fast, responsive, and helped me pick the right product for my needs” is much more likely to help other buyers decide whether or not to buy from the seller.
Stay Rational
Above all, staying reasonable and rational is essential. Even if you’re exceptionally disappointed because a seller dropped the ball, being angry won’t help at all. Explain your issues coherently and rationally so the seller is more likely to reach out and try to smooth things over.
Conclusion
Leaving seller feedback on Amazon is a small but powerful gesture to help both sellers and future buyers. Every time you take a few minutes to share your experience with a seller, you’re helping other people decide whether or not to shop there. It doesn’t matter if your experience was stellar or infuriating; your feedback gives sellers valuable insights on how to enhance their service.
The best feedback is honest, thorough, and rational. No need to yell to get your voice heard. If your feedback is clear and detailed enough, most good sellers will take notice and smooth things over. Plus, if you provide coherent and honest feedback, you’re helping a lot of future shoppers make better purchasing decisions.
