The Best Way To Reach eBay Top Rated Seller Requirements

What is a top rated seller on eBay?

We Have all seen the “eBay top-rated seller” badge appear next to an account we’re buying off of on the platform. But what does the symbol actually mean? Essentially, a top-rated seller is someone who gets a lot more sales than your average user and runs eBay like any other top-quality business. Below are the guidelines one must follow to become a top-rated seller, as listed by eBay’s Seller Center.

-100 or more transactions and $1,000 in sales during the last 12 months with US buyers.

-A late shipment rate less than or equal to 3%, and five or fewer late shipments.

-Cases closed without seller resolution less than or equal to 0.3%, and two or fewer cases.

-Tracking uploaded within your stated handling time, and carrier validation for 95% of transactions to US buyers.

-A defect rate less than or equal to 0.5%, with three or fewer defects from unique buyers.

What are the benefits of being a top-rated eBay seller?

Top-rated sellers not only benefit from additional seller protection but also reduced fees. High fees are perhaps the biggest downside with eBay compared to less established marketplaces like Depop and Vinted, making the top-rated seller program very attractive. Sellers in the program receive a 10% discount on final value fees, which can potentially allow them to undercut their competition and thus increase eBay sales.

On top of this, sellers of course receive the illustrious top-rated seller badge next to their listings which can help to build trust with potential customers. Sellers with this badge will also rank above others when buyers are searching for an item, meaning your item will get a lot more traction.

How to reach eBay top rated seller requirements quickly

One way to quickly attain the coveted Top Rated Plus badge is by not only buying and selling highly profitable items but also ‘bricks’. Most people focus solely on profit as soon as they start out but you shouldn’t be afraid to buy an item that you know you will only break even on as long as it’s a quick seller on eBay. Not only does this help you build experience when starting off, but more importantly you are gaining feedback from customers and adding to your total amount of items sold. Hitting $1,000 in sales over 12 months may seem easy and it can be if you know what you’re doing but it is the 100 individual sales that is the hard part. This amount of volume is also why it is important to maintain an efficient inventory management system in order to provide a smooth buying experience for the buyer and save yourself a few headaches! This is certainly one of the many different areas where Juiced can help out.

The Juiced.io app allows you to automatically import all your sales, orders, and more into one central hub, meaning you can spend less time worrying about inventory management and more time focusing on customer service.

Offering excellent customer service straight from the off is another way to fast-track yourself to becoming a top-rated seller. Make sure you do not take any shortcuts when it comes to customer needs, even at the beginning of your eBay journey where you may not be fully experienced. As an example, you should be sure to provide free refunds and returns. While returns and refunds may seem counterproductive, offering hassle-free return policies increases buyer confidence and trust.

The reality is you should have very few, if any return requests once you know what you’re selling so this is more of an optics thing rather than anything else. This is important because eBay actually rewards Top Rated Sellers who provide generous return policies by giving them more exposure in search results.

Final summary

Becoming a top-rated seller on eBay takes time and a passion for customer service but it is well worth the effort. Not only do you save on fees but you also become instantly more trustworthy to potential buyers thanks to having the badge displayed on your profile. This in turn leads to more sales allowing you to further grow your budding business.