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Buyers & Sellers Etiquette

36K views 40 replies 13 participants last post by  Cory 
#1 · (Edited)
Forum Classifieds Etiquette
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Do Not Derail/Flame a Sellers Thread

If someone lists something and you have a question about it send the seller a pm. If you don't like what the seller has to offer, move on! Flaming threads in general is against the rules. If you like it great, if you don't take the matter off of the boards and deal with it privately.

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Know what you're buying

Don't ask about buying livestock unless you have researched it. I don't want to prepare my nice big angelfish just to find out you have a two gallon tank. That said, I do not mind you asking me about it, and I will gladly give you an honest answer as to whether I think my item / animal is right for you.

FLIP SIDE

Know what you are selling!
Ensure that you actually have properly identified the creature or plant you wish to sell. If you are unsure what the proper name is, say so in your post. If possible post a photo of the fish for sale, this way the CSI team doesn't need to be called in for identification purposes.

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Don't haggle for the heck of it
Some sellers start their prices high knowing that they will be haggled with. Other sellers start their prices low because they DON'T want to be haggled with. I, personally, fall into the latter category. I'm always open to offers, but don't low ball me just because I started out low. If the asking price seems fair, buy it at asking price.

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If you must haggle, do so before you get to my house
I don't want to tell you in person that, no, I won't accept $20 for the thing I'm trying to sell for $60. And if you really feel you must haggle with me in person, be prepared for the possibility that my price is firm, and bring enough money for asking price. Don't come and say "All I have is $20, can I have it anyway?" Because I know as well as you do that there were twenty banks on the way from your place to mine.

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Don't be disappointed if you lose the item due to haggling

If you offer me $20 less than asking price and I say OK, and a couple days later someone else offers me asking price, I WILL sell it for the higher price. My advice is that if you offer a lower price, go pick the item up right away or put a deposit down on it. Personally, I don't like holding items because oftentimes, the potential buyer doesn't even show up.

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No Holds!
I don't want to hear: "Can you hold it till I get my pay cheque in two weeks"
I don't mind you expressing interest in whatever I have for sale, and even telling me you may want to buy it when you can afford it. Chances are I'm selling it because it needs to go ASAP. But please don't expect me to hold something for someone who can't afford it, because it is entirely possible that by the time you do get paid, you will have more important purchases / bills. If you're really serious about it, offer to put down a deposit.

Alternatively if I do hold it for you, do show up to pick it up. I don't want to hold something for you for a week and then hear 'Oh I picked up rainbow fish from so and so yesterday, I don't have the room for yours too'. You just wasted my time as well as yours, and I probally will not be inclined to sell to you in the future. So don't be outraged when it happens.
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If you're not coming, tell me!
There's nothing more annoying than preparing something to sell and waiting around just for someone to not show up. If you're not coming, that's fine, just send me an e-mail or give me a phone call to tell me.
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If you don't want it, tell me!

If you express serious interest in an item (ie: "When can I come pick it up?" "I'll call you later to set a time." etc), and you change your mind, tell the seller! They might be waiting to hear back from you before selling to someone else, and ignoring their PMs when they ask if you're still interested is just downright rude.
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Don't take free stuff you don't need
Free stuff is great, but just because something is free/cheap, it doesn't mean you need it. If you have no use for something, no room for something, or wouldn't have bought it if it cost $5, then don't take it just because it's free. Or at least, don't make a habit of taking everything that's free. I like to give stuff away because it's often easier than selling it and I think someone will get more enjoyment out of getting something free than I will out of getting $3, but it is irritating to see always the same person jump on anything that is free that they don't even need/want it.

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READ the darn pos
t
Personally, I am always open to offers, trades, questions, whatever. EXCEPT when I post something in the ad to the contrary. When I say "$100 FIRM", it means my price is firm, and I am NOT open to offers. This typically means that I'd rather keep the item than sell it for less than the asking price, so don't lowball me. If I say "Pick-up only", it means I can't deliver it. If you want to offer a $40 delivery fee then by all means do so, but other than that, please come pick it up, or move on. Also, don't ask me questions that are clearly answered in the post. (Note: The subject line of the post is also a part of the post).

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Bring exact change

If my selling price is $65, and all you have is $80, I may not happen to have $15 in change on me. My options then are either to walk to the store to get change, tell you to come back when you have the proper money, or sell it for $60. None of those options are appreciated by me so please bring exact change for what you're buying.

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If you are bringing children / dogs, others please tell me

Some people will not mind you bringing your babies, teenagers, hyper dogs, softball team, etc, with you to their homes. But please let them know beforehand. My house is not baby or dog friendly, and while it just takes a moment to make it so (ie putting away the scisors, locking cats in another room, etc), I'd rather not have to scramble when you get here. That being said if your child starts smacking my $500 fish tank with his toy truck, I'm not going to find it cute and have no qualms about letting you and your child know. I find it extremely uncomfortable to reprimand other people's children so please if you do not have a handle on your children please leave them at home.

For safety reasons, I prefer to just deal with one person at a time for pick up's. We are virtually strangers so please don't be offended if I don't feel comfortable walking you & your friends through my house to give you a tour of my fish tanks.

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Transportation / Delivery
Don't ask or expect that the seller is going to use $10 in gas to deliver a $20 item. If I say No Deliveries, I mean no deliveries. If you really want the item bad enough you will arrange your own pickup and determine if the transportation costs to you are worth it.

Do Not Disturb
Last but not least, like you I am a hobbyist NOT a store. It is not okay to call my home at all hours of the morning noon and night for fish advice, marital advice or because I have something you want & you don't want to wait until the morning. Just because you see me awake & online at 1am in the morning does not mean everyone else in my family is awake. Emails are much more appreciated then phone calls.

Show Up On Time
And finally, again you are coming to my home, not a store. If we agree to meet at 6pm and you show up at 9pm don't be surprised when I'm not home or don't answer the door.

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Feedback
If you have a gripe with someone on the forums about a transaction, you are welcome to leave negative/buyer beware feedback if applicable. Angry threads/postings are not going to help the situation, just add more fuel to the fire. The forum staff are not responsible for any deals that go sour buy, sell & trade at your own risk.

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Do Not Hand Out or Post Others Personal Contact Information Publically
While I really appreciate you forwarding other people to me for livestock, supplies etc, its a little disturbing to see my name, phone number and street address posted publically or handed out to others. While I don't mind you handing out my user name for a private message info, I do mind very much my address & telephone number being handed out, please leave that decision to me.

Additionally its not a good idea to post your own phone number, address etc. publically.
 
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#38 ·
Hey, can we have this thread cleaned up, the original post edited to be more generic (replacing I with the seller the buyer etc. not that I have a problem with it as posted but some folks might be confused I guess) and then have this thread stickied, bolded and make it flash brightly when people open the forum.

I agree with all of what is in the first post of the thread and I think people ought to be better informed on it. Being a regular seller Im getting really tired of my prices being treated as some starting point for negotiation as if Im asking an unreasonable amount. Any of the fish I sell would be more expensive and of lower quality in a fish store and you'd have to pay taxes. Why do people feel that despite that they need to make offers.

A lot of times when someone is here, if they're pleasant enough and the price comes out to say 33.50 I'll knock off the 3.50 to save the person the trouble of fishing for change but seriously it's insulting when I say fish are $5 a piece and then get people asking if they can have 5 for $20. Besides being a low-class thing to do it makes you look incredibly parsimonious when you're trying to kick someone in the shins for all of $5. Besides, at the point where Im giving away free fish I may as well just sell them all to a fish store at once because I'd get the same amount in the end. Yes I prefer to see the fish go to a hobbyist than a store but my time is more valuable than that. Especially considering that 90% of the people who visit spend at least an hour here looking at my tanks and asking questions. That time alone is worth the $5 the buyer is wanting to knock off. Much easier for me to grab the big nets, swoop up all the fish, toss them in a bucket and haul them off to the store where they'll take them, pay me and send me on my way.
 
#39 ·
Hey, can we have this thread cleaned up, the original post edited to be more generic (replacing I with the seller the buyer etc. not that I have a problem with it as posted but some folks might be confused I guess) and then have this thread stickied, bolded and make it flash brightly when people open the forum.
Yes please!!

Much easier for me to grab the big nets, swoop up all the fish, toss them in a bucket and haul them off to the store where they'll take them, pay me and send me on my way.
I myself have started to do this because I can't be bothered anymore with being stood-up, haggled with, and just plain having my time wasted. It's a shame that it's difficult to deal with new people - 90% of the time now I just deal exclusively with people I've already dealt with and had good experiences with. Otherwise it's just too much trouble these days, and not worth my time - especially since I'm just trying to cover my costs, and not like I'm making huge profits or anything.

IME, everyone could use a refresher on etiquette once in a while :)
 
#40 ·
yup I agree.. If anyone has the time and the tools they can have at it. Otherwise It will have to wait till I get back from work tomorrow. Sorry for the wait there :(
 
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