Feedback issues have always been a hot topic for eBay buyers and sellers alike.  A buyer wants to see accurate feedback so they are comfortable giving you their money.  A seller wants their good feedback to show a buyer that they are trustworthy.
 
What happens when feedback is manipulated?  Buyers get a false sense of security in their transaction.  Good sellers lose business to a competitor who doesn't really provide the conscientious customer service that you do!  Not so honest sellers have found ways to pad their feedback to make their listings more desirable to buyers.  eBay is trying to squelch this practice.  Below is the announcement from eBay regarding this practice, and here are some points on what "is" and "is not" considered a feedback manipulation violation:

  • It is a violation to include the term “feedback” or any reference to eBay feedback in the listing title. The only exception is when the term “feedback” directly describes the item listed.

  • It is a violation to offer to buy, sell or barter feedback in an email (i.e. Ask Seller a Question or Contact eBay Member) or in the item description.

  • It is a violation to include in the title of a very inexpensive listing a phrase such as “Build Your FB score quickly”

  • It is a violation to send an email to a member offering to pay them for their user name.

  • It is a violation to exchange feedback for the sole purpose of increasing your feedback score to obtain site privileges or enhance your reputation. This most frequently occurs when a person purchases low priced, non-physical items, but may include other types of transactions as well.

  • It is not a violation to exchange feedback on low priced items when genuinely trading that item (e.g. post cards, trading cards).

  • It is not a violation to state that you will leave feedback upon receipt of feedback.

  • It is not a violation to include in the title the term “feedback” when selling a book titled “Reduce Feedback in Amps.”

Policy Change: Feedback Manipulation  
  
October 03, 2005 | 02:02PM PST/PT
 
Hi. I'm Brian Burke, Senior Manager, eBay Marketplace Policy. Today, I'm here to announce that we're replacing our current feedback solicitation policy with a more comprehensive policy that covers the larger issue of "feedback manipulation". The new policy, while continuing to prohibit feedback solicitation, will expand our ability to take action against members for artificially enhancing their reputation on eBay in other ways.

First, let me provide some background. We created the feedback solicitation policy to prevent members from artificially enhancing their reputations on eBay by selling, buying, or trading feedback. (This behavior is also called "feedback padding".) Under this policy we prohibit sellers from soliciting feedback within a listing description or title. For example, including language like "Build your feedback score quickly" in the listing title of a very inexpensive item is prohibited.

As the eBay Community has grown, unfortunately some members have become increasingly sophisticated at building up a false reputation on eBay. Some of their feedback manipulation patterns are not covered by the existing feedback solicitation policy. For example, a member might sell ten items with a Buy It Now price of only $.10 each, and even offer free shipping. After accumulating positive feedback in this way, they might immediately begin selling more expensive items such as plasma televisions. We needed a policy that would address such situations.

Feedback is the foundation of trust on eBay. Manipulating feedback undermines the integrity of the feedback system and decreases overall trust within the eBay marketplace. Our new feedback manipulation policy will enable us to take action against members when we identify a pattern of behavior consistent with feedback manipulation. Violations of this policy may result in a range of actions including listing cancellation, limits on account privileges, account suspension, forfeit of eBay fees on cancelled listings, loss of PowerSeller status, and feedback removal.

To read the complete policy, please visit the feedback manipulation policy page.
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/feedback-manipulation.html?ssPageName=CMDV:AB

You'll also find more information on why we're making this change in our frequently asked questions [http://pages.ebay.com/help/announcement/22.html?ssPageName=CMDV:AB] about the policy. And I hope you can join the Trust and Safety team for an online workshop on feedback manipulation policy, scheduled for October 7th, at 11.00 a.m. PT.
http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?threadID=1000089788&ssPageName=CMDV:AB

The feedback manipulation policy is now in effect on eBay.com and will be in effect on all eBay sites in the next few weeks.

Sincerely,
Brian Burke
Senior Manager, eBay Marketplace Policy