Thread crapping?

May 21, 2008 at 3:27 PM Post #16 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by progo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
One's ethics should be left intact. If a seller wants to 'scum' and ask overprice then he should be allowed to do so. No buyer is forced to buy anything. Like a buyer can set a WTB of any sort (they can ask too low price), should sellers be allowed to do similarly and ask too high price.


Exactly!
smily_headphones1.gif
 
May 21, 2008 at 4:28 PM Post #17 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by krmathis /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Quote:

Originally Posted by progo /img/forum/go_quote.gif
One's ethics should be left intact. If a seller wants to 'scum' and ask overprice then he should be allowed to do so. No buyer is forced to buy anything. Like a buyer can set a WTB of any sort (they can ask too low price), should sellers be allowed to do similarly and ask too high price.


Exactly!
smily_headphones1.gif




As I understand the discussion, no one is maintaining that sellers ought to be forced to ask a reasonable price. The issue on the table is whether 3rd parties should post their opinions on the price asked by the seller. Currently that practice is discouraged by the thread crapping rule and consquently by the threat of moderator intervention as well.

For me, the OP's question boils down to a "greater good" issue. This is not about formulating forum policy to favor the seller or the (potential) buyer but rather what is best for the head-fi community overall. I am struggling with this question and I would welcome others' thoughts.
 
May 21, 2008 at 5:10 PM Post #18 of 60
What about the reputation of Head Fi? If people start getting ripped off, just because they are new here, what will happen to this place? Fights will be happening in threads as people hash out their unhappiness over a rip off and this place will start to get ugly. We can't all just sit back and let that happen, can we?

I think it is okay to PM somebody to let them know a price isn't reasonable, but it should not be a thread posting. I don't like the idea of sitting back and watching a newbie get taken advantage of anymore then turning my back on any other injustice. The "tough luck, buyer beware" attitude is cruel and predatory. How about "seller beware, were watching out for each other here".
 
May 21, 2008 at 5:42 PM Post #19 of 60
There have been several occasions when a well-meaning member will take it upon themselves to price-police, and because they weren't aware of all the details or circumstances ... or simply were confused ... they were wrong. Meanwhile, the first people to look at the ad, who often tend to be the ones seriously looking and most likely to buy, are turned off and move on .... and the seller gets screwed. An after-the-fact apology from the well-meaning thread crapper doesn't cut it at that point.

Prices fluctuate for practically every single item there is ... especially on an international level. If someone in Europe purchased something in Europe, they shouldn't be forced/goaded into selling it below the cheapest price available in the world. It's very possible that to someone who lives locally and can view, test, and pick the item up themselves, saving shipping and perhaps even taxes and customs charges, a price that may seem high to someone else, may still be, if not a bargain, still worth it to them.

IMO, price-policing is just as much a thread crap, as butting into someone's For Sale thread and trashing the item someone's trying to sell. Posting "You can find that item cheaper elsewhere" is pretty much as bad as posting "This item sucks, item B sounds much better."

If you feel the need to protect consumers from what you perceive as a high price, then go stand in front of any Starbucks cash register and tell everyone ordering that they can buy coffee cheaper elsewhere, but please don't price-police other people's For Sale threads. Unless they ask, let people decide for themselves what an item is worth to them. There are reasons for the old saying "Mind your own business."
 
May 21, 2008 at 7:01 PM Post #21 of 60
Hi, I'm new here, but someone told me this would be a good place to sell some old headphones. My dad recently passed away and my mom asked me to help her sell some of his stuff. I'm selling one set of Grado HP1000 headphones that look brand new .... like he never even used them. In fact, they are still in the original box and my mom doesn't remember ever actually seeing him use them. Even though they seem to work fine and there isn't a mark on them, they're metal and appear to be very old .... like the kind radio operators used in WW2. $50 or best offer.


Now be honest. With a show of hands, how many "champions of justice" would come to this poor newbie's rescue and let them know what the Grados were really worth? Or would you be frantically sending an "I'll take 'em" PM as fast as you could type?

And while you were praying you were the first to respond and anxiously awaiting a reply to your offer, how happy would you be to see some price-policer post:

You do realize that those headphones often sell for over $1,000.00, don't you?

While the above may be an extreme example, if you've EVER snapped up an item you knew was being sold at an obvious bargain low price without first telling the seller they were "cheating" themselves, IMO, it's hypocritcal to price police in ANY situation.
 
May 21, 2008 at 7:13 PM Post #22 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by mbriant /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Prices fluctuate for practically every single item there is ... especially on an international level. If someone in Europe purchased something in Europe, they shouldn't be forced/goaded into selling it below the cheapest price available in the world. It's very possible that to someone who lives locally and can view, test, and pick the item up themselves, saving shipping and perhaps even taxes and customs charges, a price that may seem high to someone else, may still be, if not a bargain, still worth it to them.


QFT. Just hilighted what I thought has been often overlooked.
 
May 21, 2008 at 9:31 PM Post #23 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by mbriant /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Hi, I'm new here, but someone told me this would be a good place to sell some old headphones. My dad recently passed away and my mom asked me to help her sell some of his stuff. I'm selling one set of Grado HP1000 headphones that look brand new .... like he never even used them. In fact, they are still in the original box and my mom doesn't remember ever actually seeing him use them. Even though they seem to work fine and there isn't a mark on them, they're metal and appear to be very old .... like the kind radio operators used in WW2. $50 or best offer.


Now be honest. With a show of hands, how many "champions of justice" would come to this poor newbie's rescue and let them know what the Grados were really worth? Or would you be frantically sending an "I'll take 'em" PM as fast as you could type?

And while you were praying you were the first to respond and anxiously awaiting a reply to your offer, how happy would you be to see some price-policer post:

You do realize that those headphones often sell for over $1,000.00, don't you?

While the above may be an extreme example, if you've EVER snapped up an item you knew was being sold at an obvious bargain low price without first telling the seller they were "cheating" themselves, IMO, it's hypocritcal to price police in ANY situation.



I'm not against the rule or anything and I can see what you're trying to do. You are providing sellers security and protection from public embarrassment by only allowing PMs for any disagreement on prices. However, where is the protection for buyers? How would you protect first time buyers who have no idea what an item costs from getting screwed over? Thread crapping can be rude to the seller but many uneducated buyers might benefit from it. And if the seller fixes his/her price accordingly based on information given there won't be any thread crapping anymore and everyone will be happy unless the seller was intentionally trying to screw somebody over. The only reason I don't do it is because it's against the rule and for the most part it's not my business but sometimes I see some deals that are just wrong.
 
May 21, 2008 at 9:44 PM Post #24 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by analogbox /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I'm not against the rule or anything and I can see what you're trying to do. You are providing sellers security and protection from public embarrassment by only allowing PMs for any disagreement on prices. However, where is the protection for buyers? How would you protect first time buyers who have no idea what an item costs from getting screwed over? Thread crapping can be rude to the seller but many uneducated buyers might benefit from it. And if the seller fixes his/her price accordingly based on information given there won't be any thread crapping anymore and everyone will be happy unless the seller was intentionally trying to screw somebody over. The only reason I don't do it is because it's against the rule and for the most part it's not my business but sometimes I see some deals that are just wrong.


^good man good man, probably eats Ramen

Well can we set up a stock-exchangeish system? We'll have a locked thread, that will show the average price of said items. And it would change and fluctuate according to the prices of the items being sold.

For example, used mini3 could go for 90-110 for an average price. Like it would provide a number, and say "a good price would be give or take $10"

Something of that sort? I'm not a programmer, so I'm wondering exactly how hard it would be to write a program like that? Maybe just kind of run it in a excel that constantly changes over to a graph or just gives a number. So after each transaction the seller or buyer could go in, give their amount for the item sold. Then it would be added to the number bank then averaged?

And if there are outstanding circumstances, such as "from UK" or, "bran new not opened!" then the seller could/should include it within the advertisement to see why the pricing is so different.

This way, sellers would know what to set the prices at, buyers would know what is a fair price. Well fair price until you calculate in certain variables, such as area, exchange rate, shipping and what not.

Just a thought.
 
May 21, 2008 at 10:00 PM Post #25 of 60
Quote:

However, where is the protection for buyers? How would you protect first time buyers who have no idea what an item costs from getting screwed over?


Who say's we're supposed to protect buyers, sellers, or anyone? The For Sale forums are a free service. If someone is unwilling to spend a little time researching an item they intend to buy, why should it be anyone else's responsibility? Who protects buyers from paying too much on ebay? Who protects buyers from classified ads in the newspaper? Who protects buyers in Craigslist? Who protects buyers in kijiji or at flea markets or or the grocery store or at any of the thousands of places people can buy things?
 
May 21, 2008 at 10:07 PM Post #26 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by funniecow /img/forum/go_quote.gif
^good man good man, probably eats Ramen

Well can we set up a stock-exchangeish system? We'll have a locked thread, that will show the average price of said items. And it would change and fluctuate according to the prices of the items being sold.

For example, used mini3 could go for 90-110 for an average price. Like it would provide a number, and say "a good price would be give or take $10"

Something of that sort? I'm not a programmer, so I'm wondering exactly how hard it would be to write a program like that? Maybe just kind of run it in a excel that constantly changes over to a graph or just gives a number. So after each transaction the seller or buyer could go in, give their amount for the item sold. Then it would be added to the number bank then averaged?

And if there are outstanding circumstances, such as "from UK" or, "bran new not opened!" then the seller could/should include it within the advertisement to see why the pricing is so different.

This way, sellers would know what to set the prices at, buyers would know what is a fair price. Well fair price until you calculate in certain variables, such as area, exchange rate, shipping and what not.

Just a thought.



I don't think the market needs more interfering like that.
 
May 21, 2008 at 10:24 PM Post #27 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by mbriant /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Who say's we're supposed to protect buyers, sellers, or anyone? The For Sale forums are a free service. If anyone's unwilling to spend a little time researching an item they intend to buy, then why should it be anyone else's responsibility? Who protects buyers from paying too much on ebay? Who protects buyers from classified ads in the newspaper? Who protects buyers in Craigslist? Who protects buyers in kijiji or any of the thousands of places people can buy things?


Just playing devils advocate here.

Then what's the point of not allowing comments about prices? It can't be out of integrity of the forum because it's clearly relative to the subject at hand.
 
May 22, 2008 at 3:38 AM Post #29 of 60
Quote:

Originally Posted by malldian /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Probably because it keeps buyers and sellers here?

How many would be here if anyone could say "THIS SUCKS BUY MINE (LINK)!!!!!!!1"



I didn't really imagine that per say, but I imagined people dropping in the thread saying something like "hey man, don't know if you noticed or if was a typo but you priced these 100$ over the current market, so maybe drop the price if you want to sell them?"

.................I always thought of this place and even the FS as a community and a sharing exp place, so ripping people off and watching it happen is also a build up of exp?
 
May 22, 2008 at 4:30 AM Post #30 of 60
It's rude to comment in a FS post other than to inquire about the item. A seller should be able ask any selling price they wish without comment from the peanut gallery. If someone's asking price offends you simply don't do business with them.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top