low ball offers

[dins9187]

Does anyone else been getting very low ball offers lately?  Just recieved 5 offers from the same buyer - some for .99 when I offer free shipping.  As you know shipping on a 4 oz. item would cost 2.66  why would I accept an offer that is going to cost me money?  I wasn't upset and responded with a counter offer and then explained about shipping costs.  This buyer is not a newbie with over 400 stars.  Then I thought maybe if all the offers were close it what I wanted and could ship them together I could think about something better.  Just never had a buyer make such low offers all at once.  I did counter with offers but would have given her a better price if her offers were not so silly.  Thinking maybe buyer had nothing to do last night.  Hope the rest of you didn't get low balled.  

[1940fc]

I agree with ya..sorry your getting numpties to deal with. 

Guess the only way around it is when you list with Make Offer..there`s a place you add your lowest price acceptable & it auto declines anything lower. (if you`re listing with Ebay SYI form)  That should save the ridiculous lowballs

[bstbakerbunny]

I always chuckle at the extreme low ball offers put in within minutes of the auction listing going live. I sold some My Little Ponies. BIN $100.00 Within a couple of minutes one  buyer put in offers on 3 of them for $5.99 each AND requested free shipping. Sold all of them in abut 20 minutes for my listed price.

And just sold a Maltese Cross by Benedict NY with a BIN/BO of $89.00. Offers ranged from $1.99 to $79.50.

[huffstutler]

Well, as a buyer and not a seller, I do make the so-called "low ball" offers but not the ridiculous ones you are talking about.  I will usually try for 50% of the asking price and less if I know if I will be buying multiple items for combined shipping.  I am conscious about shipping charges which is why I steer away from people charging $7-10 for shipping on a single piece within the USA.

I will also negotiate with people who post photos of items with date stamps and see they have been listed for years... like 2015, 2017, etc... hoping they will just cut their loss with other items sold for one that has sat on the shelf for years.

[whering660]

I quit selling here in December, so I no longer get low ball offers. Thankfully!

Toward the end of my selling here, I was getting bids and then the bidder would contact me to tell me that they were excited to be the potential winner and they hoped that I would consider giving them free shipping. Do what? That's pretty darned bold. I never tried to make bank on shipping and I always just charged what it would take to ship since I was fortunate enough to get my shipping supplies free. Geez!!! Some people. 

Diane

[scifidaughter64]

I love the ones that think you don't know what you have. Sold an Adlo Capullo by Charles Revon bracelet one time. It had a screw missing so I started it out at $60 with a BIN of $100. Someone tried to convince me that I should sell it to them for $40 since it was missing the screw. The reason it was so cheap was it was missing the screw. Sold it while I was trying to think of a polite answer to "you are an idiot".

[rubiano98]

As a buyer I do make offers on things that I'd like to buy. However, I don't want to insult the seller. I calculate 20% of the asking price and make an offer no lower than that, usually somewhat above.

If I got those ridiculous lowball offers y'all are talking about I would just say "no" or "decline" on the Ebay form that gives the offer and the option of accepting or declining. Frankly, I wouldn't want to deal with super-chintzy  people, or want my stuff to go to them.

I suspect some of those outrageously low offers are people hoping to get something so cheap that they can resell it and make a nice profit.

[kpamber]

rubiano98, do you mean that you offer 20% of the asking price, or 80% of the asking price? 

I wouldn't dream of offering anything less than 70%, and I'd feel badly for doing that, unless the seller had the price hopelessly inflated!  That would leave room for negotiation to 80 or 90% of the asking price.

I'd consider an offer of 20% to be lowball, and insulting!

[huffstutler]

rubiano98  -  I agree about people's intentions but, that is also part of the thrill of the hunt.  If everyone had high amounts on everything, then nothing would be sold and eBay would go out of business.   

I spend hours online doing various keyword searches trying to find the bargain  Why pay $24 for a piece when someone else has it for $10 or Best Offer on the same thing?  And many times, start bidding at  99¢ and if they give vague descriptions of the item or do not have it identified then, most likely, will sell for that or just a little more.  And some people are delusional if they think they will get book price for pieces that sell cheap all day long with common items.   

Taking time researching what an item sold for... looking at trending prices... knowing how long it has been "renewed"... and, seeking those vague descriptions, often pays off for buyers on a budget.

[scifidaughter64]

Yes, it can be great for the budget Huffstutler. But making me an offer of $3 on an item I have listed for $20 is an insult. Especially if you do it within 1 hour of the initial listing. And yes I have had that happen.

While some people seem to pull a price out of thin air (or their butt in some cases), most have checked the previous selling prices and priced accordingly. I have had people try to convince me they found the item somewhere else much cheaper. However they can't tell me where this somewhere else is. If they found it cheaper somewhere else, buy it there don't expect me to match it. I am not Walmart.

[rubiano98]

I was actually talking about items with fair prices being lowballed-offered to the point of utter ridiculousness. I have a suspicion that people offering those are looking for things to resell for a profit. Not all of them, but some.

As for finding what I'm looking for at the best price, when I do my Ebay searches I always start with the filter of 'lowest-to-highest' prices. 

[pixzee]

I think it's a little unprofessional to call an offer "insulting" or to be "insulted" by any offer. If you are insulted by an offer, perhaps this isn't the business for you, or you are in it for accolades other than profit. (there's a lot of snooty antique sellers out there, just sayin').

An item is only worth what someone is willing to pay. Period. That is the Golden Rule of value. The seller doesn't determine the value, the value is only set when someone is willing to purchase the item at a certain moment in time, at a specific venue (like ebay) from a specific seller, under specific terms.

If a seller prices her widget at $100, and I offer $1 (I never would but for sake of argument) at that moment it's value is $1. She can refuse and if 2 minutes later a buyer offers $50, the value increases to $50 at that moment. If the seller feels insulted by the $50 offer (even though she paid $10 for it) and sits on it for 3 years relisting at BIN every month (as some do) without ever getting another offer, that does not increase the value, it only prolongs some sort of agonizing vanity.

Most sellers have basically one of 2 marketing strategies.

1. The flipper. The flippers goal is to make a buck. If she buys it for $10 and sells it for $20, she's made $10, and then she does it all over again. If it doesn't flip in a responsible time, she lowers the price hoping to get her initial $10 back so she can refresh her inventory and make a better $10 investment. Some flippers on eBay start an auction at the price they paid for the item.

2. The expert dealer. The expert develops a clientele by offering better service by way of being an expert in the field of antiques she sells, she constantly researches  current market values, offers superb shh, etc. She nurtures return customers. She looks to get top dollar for her items and is willing to go the extra mile to get it. She will relist to get the price she believes is out there, but even this buyer has a breaking point, after a year or so, say, when she will drop her price to recoup her investment and like the flipper, she is ever conscious of refreshing her inventory to make a better investment.

[bernadette49]

if they get really annoying you can tell them you will put them on the waiting list of when you are giving your stuff away for free.

[huffstutler]

Yes, I suspect some people will try and "price match" but as you said if they can buy it cheaper somewhere else, do so.  Unless they were hinting that your price is higher than the majority and see if you would lower it accordingly?

Not even I would offer $3 for a $20 item unless I see something major wrong not caught by the seller and not in the description.  I do find sellers who have sold many jewelry items and even names them correctly but will sell them for $5.99 with BIN or, as a starting bid for some sets... even ones that on average sell for triple or more.  Some sellers are not trying to retire off costume jewelry sales by price gouging but price it in line with what they paid with a little profit.   I have seen items I deal with one dealer sell for $13 and the person who bought it will try selling it for $75.  I have also seen things wrong with an item the seller hasn't, several times, and they have either removed the item and/or lowered the price.  None of these pieces is one of a kind but thousands of them produced and so, if you are willing to wait, eventually someone will list what you want at a price more in tune with your wallet.  Me, as I said, am not a seller but a collector hence my bargain shopping.

[huffstutler]

pixzee... Excellent Post!   Everything you said is spot on and applies to all consumer goods.