Quote:
| If someone gets the headfi moderators to render an answer on their group buy policies, I'll gladly re-order. Right now, I don't have time to lobby with them.... |
It is less "lobbying" than it is having a true group buy with
set amounts and
set terms that once layed out can not be modified without again asking the moderating staff.
The reason this came to where it is now was the
permanant sales based web page disguised as a group buy which is not even close to either the letter of the term nor the spirit of the actual event.When we removed the offending posts or threads our enterprising group then went to adding the links in their signatures.when we eliminated that it became link in the signature to a page that from which you could then get to the storefront page
Eveytime the mods put up one barrier to breaking the
known rules another workaround attempted instead of just following the rules as they are and always have been written.
Group means that.A group pooling resources to get a better price than a single purchaser could get by buying the "one of" or small amounts.As with a business it is the volume discounts on parts combined with large scale production that allows consumer end product prices to be reasonable and knowing this,knowing a project could be
very expensive if every part had to be gathered at the "one of retail price" but far less painful in the pocket to build if the parts were more reasonable the group buy was born and the idea a damn fine one.
This was
NEVER meant as a means for a select few individuals to set up permamnt stores with shopping carts,credit crds and pay pal options,then sell
infinite amounts of product that go solely and directly through them.No matter if the design plans,design schematics,parts lists and step by step build are free for the taking or not if there is a continuous product available it is NOT a group buy !
This
is not and
never was close to the intent or spirit of the service.And service it is provided solely by the good graces of Head-fi/Jude.No advertising ? No exposure ?
No customers,no product,no glory.On your own you would be screwed and sales weak.
So if you have an idea to get a
set amount of anything (and the mods know the savings come at incremental steps so a big buy better than a small one for all invlved other than the reshipper.We really are not as dumb as some think we are
) outline the plan and bounce it to the mods for consideration.we try to be fair and if the proposal a fair one then it should be painless for all involved.
Head-Fi is not and never was anti-commerce or anti-group buy but Head-Fi
must have control over how business is conducted here being the conduit through which it flows.What passed before was in no way shape or form anything resembling a group buy when we all know the "one time" offerings became permanant offerings thus better suited mall-fi for a very nominal cost.Really.the mall must be the lowest cost game in town when the potential customer base is considered. (Head-Fi is a monster folks ! HUGE !!!!!
)
Already getting free advertising in the DIY forum by opening your own threads on your own product but not willing to spend a very meager sum to actually support the engine that allows you that exposure is not cool and is the reason those who had an idea to do a straight and honest group anything also had to suffer while this gets sorted out and locked down.
The moderators did not and DO NOT want to end the legitimate group buy in the DIY forum which is the true origin of this concept anyway (not here but DIY parts in general) but there must be at some point a control and a means to track what is going on.
Get a set plan with set amount (or at least incremental increases as per the source),toss it to the mods then stick to it.If for some reason that plan needs to be modified for legitimate reasons just ask folks !
Really is that simple
BTW-the "locked down" part is the most difficult.Closing loopholes you
know some will try to find rather than simply following the rules while not punishing or restricting the honest attempt is a balanceing act having no easy answers.
Total control and the innocent suffer.Ease up and we are back to square one.The
wild west "do what you want" and that was not working nor is it workable.
Doing the best we can folks but the flipside is it takes two to make a contract and that contract only works if both sides play straight and go into this with good intentions and not looking at the fine print in the attempt to find shortcuts that only benefit one side.
