Classified Etiquette

[Dfndr90]

I have a question I want to ask in regards to Etiquette in the classifieds section. Recently there was a posting for a Domke Camera bag. I was the first to reply in the posting itself that I would take the bag. Since I was the first and only reply in the posting I went ahead and paid via the requested payment method. Later I find my payment refunded, and a note from the seller stating that I was not the first in line, and he refunded my payment. The seller had not recieved payment from anyone else at this point. Now, what is proper. Is it the first person to send the seller a P.M., or the first person to publically state in the posting that they want the item. It seems shady that someone would send a P.M and not reply to the posting so everyone on the forum could see that the item was already spoken for. Please help me clear this up.


Thanks,

Matt...

 

[back alley]

it's best to state in the ad exactly how you plan to decide, first p.m. or first post in the thread or just 'it's mine nd i'll sell it to whom i choose.'
all have been done here, all are acceptable.

i doubt that anything shady happened here, probably someone sent a p.m. instead of the post.
and just as a small add on, many of us share our home email addresses so that could have happened also.

joe

 

[ChrisPlatt]

You shouldn't have assumed you "won" and sent payment.

Apparently someone else PM'ed seller before you.
Note that not everyone posts a "PM sent" message...

"Excelsior, you fathead!"
-Chris-

 

[kvanderlaag]

I always thought PMs were the courteous way to do things.

Really you should just be posting that you've sent a PM.

 

[StuartR]

I would be very weirded out if someone just paid for an item before I had agreed to sell it to them. You mean that you sent payment even before you talked to the seller? That's not right in my opinion. The seller has the choice of whom to sell to, and of course they should go to the first person out of courtesy, but there has to be some sort of confirmation before payment is sent... Let's say that you are a seller and two people are interested in your item, and both inform you at approximately the same time -- one in the thread and one in an email. The one who sent the email is someone you have done many transactions with and know is reliable. The one who posted in the thread is a new member with only a few posts. It is the right of the seller to choose a known quantity over an unknown. If one of the people just pays without authorization, I would suspect that some sort of scam was going on...I know that is not what your intention is, but many scams are executed by people overpaying and then asking that you send back the excess etc. Anyway, people are not businesses and are not setup in the same way. You should always get an ok before you proceed.

 

[JoeFriday]

the usual practice is to:

1. either send a PM or post in the ad something along the line of "I'll take it if it's available!!" then follow up with the corresponding post or PM so that both are covered

2. absolutely get a confirmation from the seller before proceeding with payment

3. call everybody else nasty names if somebody else gets it instead of you

actually, the third part is optional

but I can relate.. just yesterday I sent a message to a forum member regarding a lens that I offered to buy, but didn't post anything in the ad.. about an hour later, another forum member posted a public comment saying he'd take it.. he ended up getting it.. you win some, you lose some.. rarely is it anything personal, but with the different types of communication, it's best to take a 'wait see' approach and always get a confirmation before assuming it's yours

 

[enochRoot]

where abouts are you in the short north matt? i live in german village, and have lived in the short north (and italian village) several times before. beyond that...i have no answer for you. i always pm the person, but never really post that i have done so.

I have a question I want to ask in regards to Etiquette in the classifieds section. Recently there was a posting for a Domke Camera bag. I was the first to reply in the posting itself that I would take the bag. Since I was the first and only reply in the posting I went ahead and paid via the requested payment method. Later I find my payment refunded, and a note from the seller stating that I was not the first in line, and he refunded my payment. The seller had not recieved payment from anyone else at this point. Now, what is proper. Is it the first person to send the seller a P.M., or the first person to publically state in the posting that they want the item. It seems shady that someone would send a P.M and not reply to the posting so everyone on the forum could see that the item was already spoken for. Please help me clear this up.


Thanks,

Matt...

 

[bmattock]

My father and step-mother lived in Westerville for several years, until my father passed away. I used to fly into Columbus for weekends when I traveled for a living. Columbus is a nice town, and I love the drive down from Columbus to Cincinnati through the Ohio Valley. Very lovely.

 

[MP Guy]

I think the bestthing is for the seller to communicate the status of the pending item. If the seller has time to read a pm about a sale he can post a comment about it.

 

[Burkey]

Since it was my item and I was the seller I probably should comment . Yup, I should have posted that the item had a pending sale. Quite frankly, I just didn't think of it. This bag was my first classifed posting here on RFF. Sorry for the mess.

 

[sf]

In buying items in the classifieds, it seems wise to post a "PM sent, awaiting confirmation to send payment" sort of message.

Yes, I think that people buying an item should have the tact to post some note to others that lets them know the item has been spoken for.

 

[enochRoot]

My father and step-mother lived in Westerville for several years, until my father passed away. I used to fly into Columbus for weekends when I traveled for a living. Columbus is a nice town, and I love the drive down from Columbus to Cincinnati through the Ohio Valley. Very lovely.

small world indeed! i grew up in westerville. where did your father live? and yes...columbus is a pretty decent town. it's funny. there is nothing that i *love* about it, but also nothing i really hate. it took seeing many other cities to realize that it isn't so bad here, and it has grown on me. naturally i have a lot of friends and family, so it helps make it hard to leave! also...my wife's grandparents are in cinci...so we have made that drive many times. if traffic is moving...it is a pleasant drive. especially once you get closer to cincinatti.

 

[bmattock]

small world indeed! i grew up in westerville. where did your father live? and yes...columbus is a pretty decent town. it's funny. there is nothing that i *love* about it, but also nothing i really hate. it took seeing many other cities to realize that it isn't so bad here, and it has grown on me. naturally i have a lot of friends and family, so it helps make it hard to leave! also...my wife's grandparents are in cinci...so we have made that drive many times. if traffic is moving...it is a pleasant drive. especially once you get closer to cincinatti.

I don't remember the street exactly, but I had a look at Google maps to refresh my memory. It was a new house in a new subdivision, with a huge transformer and high-tension lines in the back of the house behind some trees. It was near Krogers at someplace called Sunbury, I think. Here are some photos. Miss my pop, he was only 61.

By the way, if you ever drive down that route from Columbus to Cincinnati again, there is a place in (I think) Chillicothe called "Four Reasons." Great place to get a cuppa joe. I mean really nice. Stop in for me if you ever get a chance.

EDIT: It's in Lancaster, OH. My bad.

http://www.fourreasons.com/

Best Regards,

Bill Mattocks

 

[ch1]

small world indeed! i grew up in westerville. where did your father live? and yes...columbus is a pretty decent town. it's funny. there is nothing that i *love* about it, but also nothing i really hate. it took seeing many other cities to realize that it isn't so bad here, and it has grown on me. naturally i have a lot of friends and family, so it helps make it hard to leave! also...my wife's grandparents are in cinci...so we have made that drive many times. if traffic is moving...it is a pleasant drive. especially once you get closer to cincinatti.

My wife travels to Columbus several times a year to meet with some of the people in the division she directs. I keep asking her to get me a Columbus Clippers cap (see my signature for reason why! 😀 ).

She only travels b/w the airport, the office and her hotel. Unfortunately they don't sell them in the airport. 🙁

One of these days.....

 

[Dfndr90]

Thanks for all the responses. Since the seller listed his paypal name in the posting and requested payment via paypal only, I figured that was what I would do. I belong to several other forums and the generally accepted method is the first one to post in the ad is the first to claim the item. I have no hard feelings over this, just trying to get a feel for how you guys operate.

Matt...

 

[Ash]

I had a terrible trouble with someone on another forum. I longboard, and someone was selling a really nice deck very cheap. I was the first to comment saying "i'll take it! emailed and pm'd!". The guy who was selling it is in fact one of the owners of the longboard company in fact.

So there I was, with confirmation of the item being mine, I told him I'd email the cheque first thing the next morning.

In the morning as I was checking for his address I got another email. "Hey I'm really sorry but I've had so much interest about this item that I'm selling it to the highest bidder. Sorry dude."


How bad is that?! But this isn't a rigorous and controlled way of selling, the seller can do what they like with the item and who to sell it to.

I've always commented and pm'd. And you can still lose out!

 

[enochRoot]

I don't remember the street exactly, but I had a look at Google maps to refresh my memory. It was a new house in a new subdivision, with a huge transformer and high-tension lines in the back of the house behind some trees. It was near Krogers at someplace called Sunbury, I think. Here are some photos. Miss my pop, he was only 61.

it was probably sunbury road (if they are, in fact, in westerville). that is VERY close to my parent's house, and i drive past that area when visiting them (i'm downtown). there is a city called sunbury too, but that is farther north. ironically that is where my parents lived just prior to the current place off of sunbury road. unbelieveably small world!

By the way, if you ever drive down that route from Columbus to Cincinnati again, there is a place in (I think) Chillicothe called "Four Reasons." Great place to get a cuppa joe. I mean really nice. Stop in for me if you ever get a chance.

EDIT: It's in Lancaster, OH. My bad.

http://www.fourreasons.com/

i'll definitely check it out next time i'm passing through lancaster. i have to drive through there on my way to hocking hills. i'm passed due for a hike there anyhow!

 

[enochRoot]

My wife travels to Columbus several times a year to meet with some of the people in the division she directs. I keep asking her to get me a Columbus Clippers cap (see my signature for reason why! 😀 ).

She only travels b/w the airport, the office and her hotel. Unfortunately they don't sell them in the airport. 🙁

One of these days.....

i remember way back when darryl strawberry was first in trouble for coke...it was a big deal that we had him playing at cooper stadium. i actually live a stones through from the stadium now, but haven't been there in many, many years. it's right by the cemetery i had posted photos from recently in the w/nw thread.

 

[ch1]

i remember way back when darryl strawberry was first in trouble for coke...it was a big deal that we had him playing at cooper stadium. i actually live a stones through from the stadium now, but haven't been there in many, many years. it's right by the cemetery i had posted photos from recently in the w/nw thread.

Gees...that's too sad.

As Yankee fans we do MLB here in NYC - have a subsciption for about 7 games.

But some of our favorite games are when we are down in Tucson watching the AAA-league Sidewinders ( top farm for the AZ Diamondbacks ).

They play in a beutiful park (it's also the Spring training park for the Diamondbacks and the Chicago White Sox) so I guess we're a bit "spoiled" as to AAA-ball.