Buyer Etiquette

This thread can be moved to a more appropriate spot as needed as i don't think it can go under 'feedback' when nothing had been bought yet.

When a person lists something for sale, it's cool to PM questions making an inquiry.

If it's not posted in the listing as far as better description, price shipped, or shipping costs, it's all good and fair for the seller to answer.

it's all good for a potential buyer to take their time.

what is NOT cool is PMing the seller some inquiries about the item you are looking at, with the listing SHOWING the shipped price to a location, verifying what the item is, egging the seller on, stating more interest, and then say "thanks for the pictures, but how much was it again?", taking an entire month for this entire exchange, only to say "it's 100 on eBay"

if it is SO much cheaper on eBay, buy it off eBay.
if you think the price is too high, negotiate as you show genuine interest.

some sellers may even go out of their way in numerous ways, even holding items for buyers if the interest expressed is high enough...

but yes, while it is entirely up to the potential buyer to spend their money elsewhere as they do please, there is STILL common courtesy, that I am impressed others have shown, that while there is some interest, some either take initiative and let the seller know the deal might not fall through whether due to cost or whatever, OR that it may take a little time for a decision.

no problem.

but don't waste the seller's time by egging them on.


now with that said, i feel that those who have both bought AND sold off of here can vouch that most deals have gone well, and most potential sellers and buyers know of this unspoken common courtesy and etiquette, but i feel there should be a thread specifically to address this.

I think there are guidelines, and of course this issue comes up. But truth is with new people coming in (not blaming them) but things like that seem to get lost in the shuffle.

I've come to expect that some deals won't go through, but for me I'm okay waiting a bit to let a Freak see if they can get an item. Etiquette is a nice idea, but not something too enforceable. I think feedback is still the best tool for alerting others if someone is not safe to deal with.

it's not so much something to enfore, but make aware.
and i thought feedback was only for deals that went sour re: sold but no item received or wrong description, and not re: item not sold

I think people have done neutrals for time wasters... not too common, but its happened.

We need to set some Etiquette guidelines for both sides, sellers and buyers alike.

the KB Toys in the mall by me has closed down and reopened I believe 3 or 4 times.
It became obvious the closings were just a stunt to run "Store Closing" sales .... was almost funny when theyd announce they were closing again ...

What one might call "egging on", may not be the buyers intention. I enjoy asking questions because it also allows the buyer to get to know the seller. After all, some transactions may be for hundreds of dollars. When a seller provides one word answers, that's normally a good indication that the seller may not be the type of person to conduct business with as that's not the type of person who would go out of their way for the buyer if something went wrong. Asking questions is just another form of protecting oneself.
I am new to the forum so I will agree that if this is an issue, then it must be dealt with. But so far, every deal i have seen has been awesome and i doubt Ebay could compare

I think when you PM someone about their sales thread, it should be a common courtesy to post a "PM Sent" type statement in the thread. While the messages themselves should be a private discussion, their should be a public statement of communication made.

If you state interest in someone's sales, you should reply to any PMs within 24 hours or state that it will take longer to reply.

If you decide not to buy an item, send a PM to the seller stating it so something doesn't stay pending when it can be sold.

Don't keep pushing for additional discounts if the seller says he is firm in his price.

buy.sell..........

so its wrong to try and negotiate if you see it cheaper somewhere else ? how do you suggest people to differentiate between someone honestly changing their mind and what you call egging on ? things come up where the deal just cannot close. give the buyer some time and if he is still on the fence then you just keep the item posted . all we need here is , to know how to communicate . its easy to get upset and leave an unwarranted feedback when you desperately need the loot and the deal does not go through for what you may conceive as egging on .

also don'twehave and etiqutte list already located here

https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38860

Bum said:

it's not so much something to enfore, but make aware.
and i thought feedback was only for deals that went sour re: sold but no item received or wrong description, and not re: item not sold

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Feedback is for both a completed transaction and a transaction gone sour.

I am still waiting to receive feedback from a meber from 2 months ago... THAT should be in an etiquette thread!

the thread will just cause arguments and bi tching over transactions that need to be kept in Private PMs ( This is a BAD idea )

As we all know communication is the key or any successful transaction.
We should pm a seller if interested and them pm them from then on, even if we decided not to take it. Same goes for the seller. However these are just guidelines and common courtesy (and more guidelines can also be found in the 'rules' thread), great comunication between members is not guaranteed with all members, so unfortunately it doesnt always work out.

So, if there is a huge problem on either side and NO money has been exchanged, you can still leave feedback in this thread:
https://sideshowcollectors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31116

There will always be a couple of people who encounter problems as there are so many transactions that do take place on the Forum, but I think all the successful transactions far outweigh the unsuccessful ones.
Just my thoughts anyway.
x

I dont think this "egging on" is a problem. As a seller I think some interest is always better then no interest. I will be more then happy to answr all and any questions. However , unless some specific agreement has been reached, as a Seller I dont believe that no item is reserved or put on hold for anyone until they actually send payment . If more then one party is showing interest on my item, i will entertain both unitl one is ready to comit, at this point I take into account who was first to to show intial interest, and if that is not the same person who is ready to commit at this moment, then I give a warning saying, "XXXX is ready to buy now, but you have first bid, so I need know if you want now or no".... Its alot of work but it comes with being a seller, I think

Balsquat said:

What one might call "egging on", may not be the buyers intention. I enjoy asking questions because it also allows the buyer to get to know the seller. After all, some transactions may be for hundreds of dollars. When a seller provides one word answers, that's normally a good indication that the seller may not be the type of person to conduct business with as that's not the type of person who would go out of their way for the buyer if something went wrong. Asking questions is just another form of protecting oneself.
I am new to the forum so I will agree that if this is an issue, then it must be dealt with. But so far, every deal i have seen has been awesome and i doubt Ebay could compare

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one word responses and the like, yeah, i see your point, but what if the seller doesn'tt do one-liners, answers in detail, provides input and does some reasearch for you too...and has good feedback from the feedback forum...

it's not asking questions but when you start implying interest, knowing a listed price, maybe it's too high, but not bargaining. instead, you say, well it's cheaper on ebay, so thanks anyway...after all that time.

the situation was, let's say i tried selling an item back 2 years ago at $115 shipped. it didn't sell. no worries. two years later, i try selling it at $150 shipped. maybe it's because i need more money now. that's my thing as the seller.

a buyer comes along. sees i am selling it for $150. asks questions to verify what the item is, what condition it's in, any missing items or visible marks on the item, says concern is related to other posts in other forums/sites, and when those are answered, then asks the seller again, "how much?"
and when the seller says $150 shipped, says, "no thanks, it's cheaper on ebay" without either offering a best offer, or asking why it was a price in 2007 versus 2009... you as the seller feel you wasted your time. now, 1-3 PM exchanges, no worries. but when it's several exchanges over the course of a month... that and the ebay comment did not sit too well.

Yeah I can understand your frustration with that kind of situation but ultimately I think it is up to the seller to provide information on the item that is being sold.

Some poeple like yourself, go over and above which is appreciated by most but even so, if a person can find the same item cheaper elsewhere after speking with you, then they may (obviously i'm not talking about everyone) go with that cheaper option.

Unfortunately money is scarce atm, for you as the seller and the buyer so they want the best deal.

While its totally frustrating when something like this happens, I can understand that, it is also just part of selling unfortunately.
I'm a big believer in manners and communication, so it annoys me too if people don't reply etc, there is no excuse for a lack of common courtesy but you can't really blame a buyer going for the cheapest option.

Some poeple don't even reply after making an arrangement so at least you have had that and can advertise again.
I'm sorry this happened mate, its just the downside of selling imo.
x

asking about a product and then trying to get the lowest price is not anything about etiquette, thats just business. I have had low ball offers, ebay price references and all that BS. It comes down to this is a FREE sale forum...live with it.

Now this I DO NOT tolerate...some users break these TRUE etiquette rules
Selling products out from under someone who already promised payment and just needs some time to get the money up. If arrangements are made for payment and they aren't met, thats a different story but to sell from under someone just because you are impatient.....that's bad.....especially if it's an expensive and hard to find statue/figure etc.

Highjacking a thread with a lower price on an item that another party showed interest in...that's bad. Doing the same via PM...also bad.

I am sure there are more...but these piss me off the most...I have some members that I boycott...buy and sell...

vader70450 said:

asking about a product and then trying to get the lowest price is not anything about etiquette, thats just business.

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exactly. it IS business, but they did not try to negotiate.

long story short, the 'buyer' even admitted that it was a bad thing with the eBay comment and not being upfront with the intent re: pricing.

it's all good. just saying, it's under guidelines, from the posts listing links, but gets neglected.

D. Martin said:

I think when you PM someone about their sales thread, it should be a common courtesy to post a "PM Sent" type statement in the thread. While the messages themselves should be a private discussion, their should be a public statement of communication made.

If you state interest in someone's sales, you should reply to any PMs within 24 hours or state that it will take longer to reply.

If you decide not to buy an item, send a PM to the seller stating it so something doesn't stay pending when it can be sold.

Don't keep pushing for additional discounts if the seller says he is firm in his price.

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Agreed but, if your negotiating a price with a seller, makes sense that you dont want to over advertise that sale whilst your negotiating, by bumping the thread ?

I know I wouldnt necassarily