Because July 4th falls on a weekend this year, many companies and agencies observe the holiday a day early, meaning many businesses will be closed on Friday.
However, the United States Postal Service (USPS) will be operating as normal on the 3rd, but will observe the holiday on the 4th and thus be closed on that day, which means no mail or package delivery on Saturday.
To prevent any confusion about how this impacts shipping performance and requirements, eBay advised sellers how they’ll be handling the holiday this year, and their decision shows plenty of support for the companies that sell on eBay.
eBay Announces How It’s Handling July 4th This Year
While many businesses and agencies are closed on July 3rd to observe Independence Day in the USA, USPS is operating as normal. Because of this, eBay was likely aware that some sellers may be confused and have questions about what this means for shipments going out during this period.
To respond, eBay made a post on its Shipping Announcement Board about how it would be handling the holiday this year. Essentially, eBay said that in an effort to support sellers around the holiday, it will not count July 3rd as a shipping day for seller performance.
All Late Shipment Defects Will Be Removed Automatically
The post also said that for any sellers who have an order with a July 3rd ship-by date, any late shipment defects related to those orders will be automatically removed. It also said that any of these defects will be removed before the July 20th Seller Standards evaluation, and won’t negatively impact your seller performance.
This is important, as the monthly Seller Standards evaluation helps determine your seller level, whether Top Rated, Above Standard, or Below Standard. These evaluations often take into account transaction defects, unresolved cases, and late shipment rates to figure out your level.
As a result, if these defects related to July 3rd ship-by date orders weren’t removed before the 20th, it could lead to sellers being put in lower categories than they actually deserve. This may lead to higher fees, worse search visibility, and potential account restrictions.
Thankfully, these removals will occur automatically, so there’s nothing for sellers to do or worry about if they have orders with a July 3rd ship-by date.
Our Take
eBay Looking Out For Sellers This Holiday Season
As July 4th approaches, it’s nice to see eBay being proactive and making this announcement ahead of time, rather than not announcing it and dealing with the confusion and problems after the fact.
Also, while many companies are quick to side with buyers and/or make things tougher on sellers than they need, eBay has shown a willingness to support its sellers recently.
This trend also goes back well before the holidays, as eBay recently implemented a rule to prevent US buyers from cancelling winning bids, and also revealed a program to hand out $100,000 to live sellers.
While no platform is perfect, it seems eBay is doing what it can to keep sellers happy and supported, which is likely a smart decision after other platforms like TikTok Shop, Amazon, and other digital marketplaces are continuing to grow and steal more market share from eBay.
