eBay

[Biggleswade Blue]

I am not a big eBay user, but have just put a few things up for sale. Why is it that everytime I have used it to sell something (maybe a dozen times over 10 years!), and set it as an auction, I get a message from someone asking for a "buy it now" price. Surely if I wanted that, I'd have put an option on the item. I always decline, but they never bid. What are they up to?

Also item was listed, with the postage method and cost clearly explained. Winning bidder then complained about the postage cost. I only charged exactly what it cost me.

 

[Crow]

Some people are knobs.

 

[tugglesf239]

Some people are knobs.

Is the correct answer.

eBay is full of chancers. Cheeky erks that act like they are doing you a favour.

Most have a distinct lack of manners too.

To the op. Just ignore spam and hold firm.

let the auction take place.
Some you do well on and some you don’t.

You will work out even in the long term

 

[Jacko_G]

I see no harm in asking for a buy it now, could be beneficial to both you the seller and the person asking for the price.

If someone contacts you saying they'll give you £30 for a club (whatever) that is clearly worth £100 then that is annoying.

I won't send anything less than fully insured and tracked (usually Royal Mail) as I've had a couple of things go missing with cheaper couriers.

 

[User20204]

I get put off buying stuff when I see postage is too much, just looks like they are trying to eek out more money from you. The postage on clubs seems to vary so much, some £15 others £6, and yes I know the total price is all that matters but would prefer not to bid on something with high postage regardless of what i goes for.

 

[robinthehood]

I've had people charge me for insured delivery circa 8 or 9 quid only for them squeeze it in a cheapo Hermes for less than 3 quid 😂😂
Many piss takers on eBay

 

[garyinderry]

I get put off buying stuff when I see postage is too much, just looks like they are trying to eek out more money from you. The postage on clubs seems to vary so much, some £15 others £6, and yes I know the total price is all that matters but would prefer not to bid on something with high postage regardless of what i goes for.

15 will be royal mail tracked and 6 will be a Hermes type.

 

[Tashyboy]

It's no different on Facebook market place. You get the same people on there. I do get the point of people asking for a buy it now price. After all some people want £20 for a golf tee and are just taking the urine. Where as some folk are genuine, post genuine prices and then get the same urine extractors saying al give you a ridiculous price.

Ave sold things on market place and had some ridiculous offers. People telling me I won't get that etc etc. And ave got that. Always put them up for a price to go, and if it don't, I will hang on to it. Much prefer market place. Sell locally and put on buyer collects and no comission.

 

[jim8flog]

I get put off buying stuff when I see postage is too much, just looks like they are trying to eek out more money from you. The postage on clubs seems to vary so much, some £15 others £6, and yes I know the total price is all that matters but would prefer not to bid on something with high postage regardless of what i goes for.

The point is some do not trust the cheaper couriers and the only other option is ParcelFarce and that is around £15 allowing for ebay and paypal commission charges on P&P for long items such as golf clubs. If it is a business seller they get business rates forParcel Force which generally makes them around £6-8.

 

[jim8flog]

The one thing you have to watch out by agreeing a BIN price is will the person actually pay for it.

It is known to be a ruse by someone selling the same thing to take yours off ebay when you switch to a single person BIN.

I normally start my listings at the minimum price I want for an item so if I get such a request I tell them to bid and will end the auction early. At least then there is a basis for complaint to ebay if they do not pay. (not that they do anything about it these days).

 

[Deleted member 21258]

I see no harm in asking for a buy it now, could be beneficial to both you the seller and the person asking for the price.

If someone contacts you saying they'll give you £30 for a club (whatever) that is clearly worth £100 then that is annoying.

I won't send anything less than fully insured and tracked (usually Royal Mail) as I've had a couple of things go missing with cheaper couriers.

I have done that a couple of times, paid a price for something that I have wanted to buy, and seller names a price, both seller and buyer are happy/effectively win. Sale gone via ebay, everyone happy. Win win

Have had times when people will ask and them offer like £2 and you just have to move one and say no thanks, that's people for you, most people want a bargain, that's want drives those offers.

In my eyes any offer is a serious offer provided they have the money to pay, so I don't get annoyed by lowball offers or people asking for a price, just say no I want more.

 

[Orikoru]

Crow nailed it. You must have got unlucky with those particular buyers. The worst I get is people trying to send me a low-ball 'offer' to circumnavigate the bidding process, but you can negotiate them up on that anyway so it's not all bad - I just sold a hat via that method actually.

Complaining about the postage is daft, if the postage is too high that it spoils the value I just won't buy that item. Simple really. Pointless still trying to buy it and then ask for less postage, I don't think ebay lets it be altered anyway.

I normally use what ebay suggests for postage on my sale items, but add 50p or so just in case it's wrong - because it has been in the past and I've lost out a couple of quid. Also need to factor in if I need to buy a postal envelope/jiffy bag etc.

 

[Colonel Bogey]

I try the buy it now thing sometimes. If it is something I fancy at the time and can't be bothered with the bidding malarky. Offer what I wish to pay job done. I've never EVER got anything by doing this, once the item went for LESS than I offered, that made me smile, but it's saved me having to check e bay all the time.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

If something has a BIN price on the advert, I may go for it. If it’s just an auction, I can’t be bothered trying to chase something.
I don’t like selling on FBMp or ebay. Last time I was selling a load of grips, some person offered me 50p a grip for 30 grips. When I declined he said he would take them “when I “couldn’t sell them” I politely told him I would not be selling anything to him, and would rather give them away than sell them to him. The grips were retailing at £6 a grip, I was asking £2 a grip.

 

[Coffey]

It is the exact same on Gumtree where I do most of my selling.

You get people being chancers who want something for nothing.

I had a guy who once offered me £50 for a club which was going for £120+ on Ebay, I had asked £100 and would have accepted £80/90 but offering £50 is just taking the piss.

I have also been offered trades such as gaming chairs...

Once a guy was trying to bargain me down because of the colour of the shaft, it wasn't to his taste. He wouldn't budge over £5 so I settled and accepted the lower price because I wanted rid of it. He then turns up in a C63 AMG Merc....

I keep every single text message I get so that I know who has text me before for other items and I just ignore them completely if they have annoyed me before.

Golf is a funny business generally, it is one of the only shops you can go into and bargain with the sellers. I don't go into Next and offer £20 for a £30 T shirt.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

On postage charges it is worth noting that Hermes are not necessarily that cheap if the item is being sent fully insured.

They are my preferred carriers but I can assure you that sending a £250-£300 set of irons will cost the sender around £15.

 

[GreiginFife]

Exact thing just happened to me, not golf items but posted a Graphics Card for sale, auction only, set a reasonable start price and immediately I get "would you take £150 for it now?".
Clearly, as I set the auction for 7 days, I am not desperate for a sale.
Secondly, these cards average auction selling prices of £200 - £230 so clearly trying it on hoping I was a noob.

As above, some people are just knobs. Knobs and chancers.

 

[GreiginFife]

On postage charges it is worth noting that Hermes are not necessarily that cheap if the item is being sent fully insured.

They are my preferred carriers but I can assure you that sending a £250-£300 set of irons will cost the sender around £15.

Yeah, but with Parcel Farce, the same item would be £20+ to send. Based on a £250 value and 4kg weight for a set of irons.

 

[Jacko_G]

Yeah, but with Parcel Farce, the same item would be £20+ to send. Based on a £250 value and 4kg weight for a set of irons.

And peace of mind. Having lost £190 to an "inferior" courier it's RM, or similar "higher end" courier I use, if people don't want to pay that for peace of mind then tough 💩

 

[Orikoru]

I try the buy it now thing sometimes. If it is something I fancy at the time and can't be bothered with the bidding malarky. Offer what I wish to pay job done. I've never EVER got anything by doing this, once the item went for LESS than I offered, that made me smile, but it's saved me having to check e bay all the time.

Early this year when I wanted a G25 4 wood, there was one up for £100 which was a little steep to me. I sent him an offer of £70, bit of a low-ball thinking he'd negotiate me up a bit or worst he could do is just decline, but to my surprise he accepted it outright! So it does work sometimes, can be worth testing the water.