What the HECK is up with people asking to buy something...and then flaking?

[franz bolo]

THEN this person says they will commit to buy the item, so you take it off the shelf, and they tell you they will pay "On Friday when they get paid..."

And then never came back?

It comes with the territory. Just deal with it and learn from your experiences!

If this is your living then why not use an eCommerce site, eBay, Etsy or another selling avenue? Selling here comes with it's pros and cons but it's definitely not for making a living.

I started to add a message to the profile of all the people I have had good dealings with.

FB

 

[dropshipbob]

My problem is similar,b ut from the other direction.

I mentioned in a thread how I wish I hadn't sold "X" item.

Boardmember contacts me offering to sell me the same item at "Y" price.

I send one PM, no reply.
I send a second PM, no reply.
After almost a week and several PM's, I get "sorry man, things went south here, get back to me next month and we'll work it out."

I wait a month, PM him and STILL no reply.

I can't really complain because I'm not out any money, but sheesh, do you want to sell or not, decide! :lol

 

[czechplastik]

I started to add a message to the profile of all the people I have had good dealings with.

FB

I think that's a good idea, a rep system would help people buy and sell with confidence. Similar to the feedback concept on the bay.

Seller leaves feedback on buyers profile for all to see. Details of sale etc.

 

[Moviefreak]

What is wrong with people having the balls to own up when they decide they don't want to buy something. Some of you are making excuses for people being stupid, there is no excuse for that. If you ask questions about something and tell the person you are going to buy it, have the balls to tell them you decided you don't want it anymore instead of going silent and not responding to emails or pms. It is one thing to forget, but when someone sends you an email, you can at least respond to it.

Exactly. If you decide not to buy something, just PM the seller and back out like an adult. They will, for the most part, understand and you are not leaving them hanging wondering what is going on.

 

[SD Studios]

I do not think that the mods should get involved in sales transactions for a thousand reasons.

Managing a feedback system would also be cumbersome and impractical. Imagine how complex it would be to track data on thousands of members and how many people would dispute their "rating".

Just like infraction points.

I have one, BTW. I wear it like a badge of honor :lol

Grrrrr! I'ms a bad dude! Yo don't wanna mess wit me. I gots an infraction point! I mess you up! :angry

Word.

 

[Perigee]

Just out of curiosity, Steve, how much do the flakers actually cut in to your business? The reason I ask is because all of your stuff seems to be pretty much in demand; having watched your offers go by in the last year, it seems like there are probably five guys in line behind the flaker who would be grateful to take his place in the que.

I can think of three different projects of yours I would have killed to get in on, if I had the bucks on hand; and, if the cash crunch ends soon, I know of at least one that I'll be praying you get flaked on again. ~grin~ I can't imagine you have too many U.T.s, Medikits or Neuralyzers gathering dust.

I could understand the consternation if you were selling something extremely esoteric, with a microscopic market. But I can't imagine you have too much in stock that you can't send out the door in pretty short order if some goon jumps ship.

 

[coletrain66]

I tell you what I would do....Pay me within 1 hour by Paypal or Its open again for sale...1 hour tops! Don't hear from them 1 hour..Their loss.....
I know that when I want something, I ask it is available, where and who do I send the money to........Payment Sent!
I am an Administrator by trade so I have to deal with the deadbeats everyday, you can't do it, they will hold you up........1 Hour Tops!

 

[Racer96]

Heatware.com , it's a website designed for tracking feedback of members on forums.

I don't think it's something that needs to be "added" to a forum, rather, members would need to use it in conjunction with the forum.

Mike

 

[themanwoaname]

i echo etsy. its an artsy, design, new age better ebay that would benefit someone selling prop replicas.

 

[Wes R]

I'm a mod on an action figure thread and we have a bad/good trader list. We've been on a roll with nothing but good traders lately.

 

[sycor]

I tell you what I would do....Pay me within 1 hour by Paypal or Its open again for sale...1 hour tops! Don't hear from them 1 hour..Their loss.....
I know that when I want something, I ask it is available, where and who do I send the money to........Payment Sent!
I am an Administrator by trade so I have to deal with the deadbeats everyday, you can't do it, they will hold you up........1 Hour Tops!

I can only assume this is a joke. If not, then I expect you respond to any PM I send within 1 minute. Otherwise I might miss my 1 hr window after getting your paypal information by living my life. :rolleyes

 

[sycor]

But a little rant on sellers. I was working out a deal with someone last Sunday for an item. Not an expensive item and I was definitely interested. I told the buyer I wanted the item. I didn't ask him to hold it, I just needed his Paypal information. When he sent me his Paypal info it was after 11PM and I had already logged off for the night as I wasn't feeling well and went to bed. Well, I woke up on Monday with a fever and really didn't do much that morning but lay in bed. At a little before 2pm my phone beeped letting me know I had an email. The seller was informing me that since he hadn't gotten payment in the 14.5 hr window that he had sold to someone else. Now, I get wanting to sell something. But really? 12 hrs for payment when half of that time is over night when most people are sleeping? Now in most cases I would have sent payment first thing that morning but again, I woke up with a fever and didn't log onto my computer until after getting that email.

I understand being cautious of holding things for people. I am too when I sell stuff. But I think we all also need to learn a little patience with buyers and sellers and have realistic turn around times from people. If you need payment within a certain amount of time tell your buyer. If you need a $25 item sold RIGHT NOW OMG!!!!111!!!!1!!! Then make that clear. If you agree to buy/sell something without setting a time table I think 24 hrs is reasonable for sending/waiting for payment. But that's just me. I think if we all show a little common courtesy (and sense) deals would go a lot smoother around here.

And as my personal disclaimer. I know I've been a bad buyer in the past. Asking for more time with money and once or twice I've had to back out at the end due to money problems. It wasn't intentional and I felt really bad about it and I explained the situation to the seller. And there have been an occasion or two when I honestly just forgot about the deal because it was a project that wasn't ready right away or because it just slipped my mind when payment was requested. I've never intentionally disappeared on a deal or bailed on it though. But stuff happens sometimes unfortunately.

 

[lingarn]

My problem is similar,b ut from the other direction.

I mentioned in a thread how I wish I hadn't sold "X" item.

Boardmember contacts me offering to sell me the same item at "Y" price.

I send one PM, no reply.
I send a second PM, no reply.
After almost a week and several PM's, I get "sorry man, things went south here, get back to me next month and we'll work it out."

I wait a month, PM him and STILL no reply.

I can't really complain because I'm not out any money, but sheesh, do you want to sell or not, decide! :lol

That happened to me once too. It strung along for months before I gave up.

It sort of makes you glad that you didn't give them the money after all, don't you think?

 

[AJK001]

For what I've read in this thread, Steve isn't complaining about people having to back out of deals or complaining about people that ask for more info or pictures. He is complaining about the people who tell you that they are going to buy it and ask for your Paypal info and then vanish from the face of the earth.

It is one thing to tell a seller that you have had some problems and can't buy the item, he may be pissed, but he isn't going to kill you, it is another thing altogether to never respond to emails or pm's. That would tick me off too. Be a man about it and let the buyer know you have changed your mind. Is that too much to ask for.

It works both ways too, if you are a buyer and change your mind about selling something, be a man about it and contact the person who is waiting to hear from you and tell them so.

 

[rkpetersen]

I own some of your work, so I only have asked for your paypal address:lol

Hmm, I've got it memorized. lol

 

[rkpetersen]

What is wrong with people having the balls to own up when they decide they don't want to buy something. Some of you are making excuses for people being stupid, there is no excuse for that. If you ask questions about something and tell the person you are going to buy it, have the balls to tell them you decided you don't want it anymore instead of going silent and not responding to emails or pms. It is one thing to forget, but when someone sends you an email, you can at least respond to it.

I agree completely, but how about the reverse? A seller is enthusiastic about communicating with you before the commission, and even for the first few weeks after they've taken your money, but then when it gets to be a month, or two months, or three months later than when they said it would be completed, suddenly there's nothing but silence. Maybe certain propmakers should have the balls to admit when they're not going to come through on their promises, and offer a refund without having to be asked about it. A novel idea, I know.

I can live with commissioned replicas being delivered late, really late, even really really late, as long as there's still good communication.

 

[czechplastik]

Would another possibility, to add some transparency, be that all dealings be conducted on thread, up to the point where both parties agree sale. Then it can be taken to PM's for address exchange and payment details.

This is how it works on another forum I use. Then if someone backs out without a legit reason they only damage their own reputation.

Just a thought. People might be more cautious about how they conduct their business if in a more public medium.

 

[Grey]

You can't change human nature, to some of us it matters to have a good reputation for paying promtly and ontime, and for others they simply don't care. There's nothing nefarious about it, they just don't make the mental connection that their 'flakiness' might actaully bother someone.

You build up a list of people you trust to get your payment to you on time, and you build up a **** list. I like to think that people recognize someone who steps up and takes care of business, it's my philosophy that when someone is depending on you, you bust your ass to take care of it. I have similar feelings twords people who start intrest threads and then seemingly have everything go wrong. If I have people counting on me to deliver and I don't have access to a working computer, then I drive up to the public library and sign into my email long enough to let people know.

All most people really want is a little respect and a sign that you actaully care about their transaction.

 

[tommin]

What the HECK is up with people asking to buy something...and then flaking?

I'm sure it is protection to some degree.

 

[Harbinger]

I'm one of the buyers for the "new" neuralyzer run that SD Studios is producing.

I've looked for one of these things for a couple of years, and constantly been rebuffed by the astronomical prices when one came up for sale. Steve announced the run but I hadn't been on the board for a month or so and originally missed the boat on ordering. I sent Steve an email asking if he had any pics of what I'd be missing, and lamented my lateness. It turns out that someone had already flaked on him, and he would have one available. Whoever you are, ya flake, God bless you. (This time.) The only problem was my shortness of cash for the down payment and I had to ask Steve to wait a week or so until payday. He graciously did so, and now I can imagine he had thought, "Here we go again..." I made that payment as promised.

Over the course of a couple months I was able to pay myself up through the 4th payment. During that time I had a heart attack and my main sewer line required repairs, so I had a major cash shortage. I'd told a friend I was getting the neuralyzer and, when he found out how much it was and how much money I owed for everything else, he tried to become my conscience. "Are you still going to buy the prop?" I'd committed, I'd sent some money in, but knew it would be totally unfair to ask Steve for a refund. I told my friend yes, that I'd decided to hold off.

But I kept sending my money to Steve.

Now I have one payment left, and am looking forward to getting my new toy (uh, tool. I mean tool.) It was tough as this was a large purchase for me, and with all the uncertainty in the job market as well as the personal crap I've gone through, I had many doubts that I was doing the right thing by persevering. But I did it. That should show anyone that it's possible to follow through on a commitment if you're determined. Or a complete fool. (It flashes and pays a sound. Okay. For HOW MUCH???? I love my bud, but some addictions are just hard to explain.)

Thanks, Steve, for working with me in the beginning so I could get in on the run.