How to become a Top
Rated Seller on eBay

There are nearly 164 m active buyers on eBay with quarterly gross merchandise volume amounting to $20.45 bn (Statista)
Amazing isn’t it? So, have you decided to sell on eBay to open your business to a large and active group of customers? Well congratulations! You are now on the right track to increase sales and scale your business to the next level.
But did you know, there are more than 25 m sellers on eBay (Venturebeat). While not all of them directly compete with your businesses, you can be rest assured that getting in there and getting yourself noticed will not be easy. Moreover, probably all your competitors are already there on the platform. How do you then stay ahead of the competition?
Do you know about eBay’s TOP RATED SELLER PROGRAM? Being rated as top Top rated seller on ebay can give you that edge over competition.

eBay’s Top Rated Seller Program (for eBay.com)

Top Rated Seller (TRS) program was created by eBay as a way to promote sellers who meet certain standards/ criteria identified by them. It is eBay’s way of recognizing and rewarding sellers, who consistently deliver outstanding customer service.

Requirements for becoming a Top Rated Seller

• Age requirements
  • Your eBay account must have been active for at least 90 days.
• Sales requirements
  • At least 100 transactions and $1,000 in sales with US buyers over the most recent 12 month period
• Tracking requirements
  • You must upload a valid shipment tracking to My eBay within your promised handling time for at least 90% of transactions with US buyers in last 3 months.
• Transaction defect rate
  • To quality for top rated seller you can only have a maximum defect rate of 0.5% of transactions, with one or more defects over the most recent evaluation period. The defect rate will not affect your status until you have transactions with defects with at least 5 different buyers.
  • A defect rate is defined as the percentage of transactions that have eBay Money Back Guarantee and PayPal Purchase Protection cases closed without seller resolution or Seller-initiated transaction cancellation.
  • Sellers with 400 or more transactions over the past 3 months are evaluated based on the past 3 months and sellers with fewer than 400 transactions are evaluated based on the past 12 months.
  • Also, in order to be a Top Rated Seller, you must have less than 3% of transactions with late shipping.
• Return policy (for Top Rated Plus)
  • To qualify for Top Rated Plus benefits, you need to be a Top Rated seller and your eligible listings need to provide a 14-day (or longer) money-back return policy and provide same- or 1-business-day handling time

For more details refer Becoming a Top Rated Seller and qualifying for Top Rated Plus and Enjoy Top Rated Success.

Benefits of becoming a Top Rated Seller on eBay

By consistently meeting eBay’s performance standards you can qualify to become a top rated seller and your listings can qualify for additional benefits. If your listings offer same- or one-business-day handling plus a 30-day or longer return period with money back option, you get

• Top Rated Plus seal – a visual cue for buyers to show that you satisfy eBay’s high performance standards which directly translates to increased trust and sales.
• Increased visibility – with multiple sellers listed on the platform for the same product, top rated sellers get better visibility which helps in getting more orders
• Reduced fees/ commissions – a 20% discount on final value fees which directly adds to company’s bottom line.

Bottom line, you can greatly benefit by being a top rated seller on eBay provided you manage inventory better, fulfill orders on time while keeping customers informed, and minimizing defects. While this can also be a challenge for businesses selling on eBay alone, for businesses selling across multiple channels (like e-commerce store) achieving a top rated seller can be very difficult.

How eBay, E-commerce, and ERP integration can help?

With sales happening over multiple channels like e-commerce and eBay, both inventory management and order fulfillment can be a challenge. Especially when order fulfillment is carried in a disconnected ERP system.
By integrating these three systems

• The orders are automatically transferred from eBay and e-commerce systems to ERP for fulfillment. This minimizes order aging and enables businesses to expedite order fulfillment.
• The product and inventory information can be centralized and managed from a single system. This improves inventory management and minimizes overselling of products and other inventory related issues.
• The order status and shipment tracking number can be automatically transferred from ERP system to e-commerce and eBay stores. This helps you meet the high order handling performance standards set by eBay for becoming a top rated seller.
• You are preparing your businesses for providing omni-channel experience to your customers. This encourages your customers to directly shop from your e-commerce store, improving margins and brand image.

Related – Stay ahead of the Game with eBay, Magento eCommerce and Microsoft Dynamics GP Integration