Placing items on hold

[laceylulu]

Lately I have had a couple of potential buyers asking me to put a listing on hold until they get paid so nobody else purchases the item.  Is there a way I can do that without ending and relisting the item when the seller gets paid?  And if I list my items as buy it now, can the seller purchase without paying immediately for it?

[a_c_green]

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@laceylulu wrote:

Lately I have had a couple of potential buyers asking me to put a listing on hold until they get paid so nobody else purchases the item.  Is there a way I can do that without ending and relisting the item when the seller buyer gets paid?  And if I list my items as buy it now, can the seller buyer purchase without paying immediately for it?

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A buyer can hit the BuyItNow button without having to pay for the item if you do not have the Immediate Payment Required checkbox selected for that item on the listing form. (Look for it near the bottom of the page.)

However, if they can't afford to pay for your item before their next paycheck, I would wonder whether they'd pay for it then, or drag things out even further. I would not be drawn into their financial drama. Just tell them that you'll be happy to ship the item as soon as payment is received, if it's still available, and not address any promises of yanking it off the market until they have some money to buy it. You do not have a Layaway Department.

[titipeo]

Why end and relist. Just leave the item on, once they get paid and decide to buy, the listing will still be there. If someone else has bought it, good for you, bad for them. 

eBay does not have a lay-away feature, and you shouldn't do so since you are not getting compensated for it. 

[slippinjimmy]

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@laceylulu wrote:

Lately I have had a couple of potential buyers asking me to put a listing on hold until they get paid so nobody else purchases the item.  Is there a way I can do that without ending and relisting the item when the seller gets paid?  And if I list my items as buy it now, can the seller purchase without paying immediately for it?

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If you really want to......

Turn on the Out Of Stock option (a global setting)

Edit the quantity listed to zero

When the buyer is ready or you get tired of waiting revise the quantity available back to 1.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/listings/creating-managing-listings/multiquantity-listings-listing...

[laceylulu]

Thanks for your answers.  I told the first person that I couldn't do anything but the second person that asked is a very good customer so I had to help her out.  So I did end the listing and will relist when she is ready for it.  Just wanted to make sure there wasn't a better solution.

[luckythewinner]

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@laceylulu wrote:

Lately I have had a couple of potential buyers asking me to put a listing on hold until they get paid so nobody else purchases the item.  Is there a way I can do that without ending and relisting the item when the seller gets paid?  And if I list my items as buy it now, can the seller purchase without paying immediately for it?

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IMHO this is easy - tell them that if it is still available when they get paid, they can buy it. 

[reallynicestamps]

Tell them if they use a credit card to pay, they can pay you now and pay the card when they can afford it.

If they need any encouragement, tell them this also gives them two layers of Buyer Protection.

But seriously , do you want customers who can't afford to pay for your products?

What if they have an emergency by payday like needing to buy groceries?

You are not a bank.

[albertabrightalberta]

I wouldn't hold anything for any buyer. If they want the item, they should buy it. If they fund the payment with a c.c., they don't have to pay the card company until their billing period and grace period end. There's no reason for them to "get paid" in order to pay for a purchase. 

Tell the buyer you can't "hold" an item but if it's still available when they have the money, they can purchase and pay at that time. Otherwise, you'll leave the listing up and running so it'll be available to anyone who wants to purchase. (Isn't that why you're selling?)

[asset_liquidators]

The percentage of people that ask a seller to "hold" something for them and then never follow through (whether on ebay or anywhere else) is probably close to 95% or higher. The exceptions to that are repeat customers.

[threelittlelambs]

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@laceylulu wrote:

Thanks for your answers.  I told the first person that I couldn't do anything but the second person that asked is a very good customer so I had to help her out.  So I did end the listing and will relist when she is ready for it.  Just wanted to make sure there wasn't a better solution.

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I 'm doing the exact same thing right now and am still waiting to relist for him. I'm ONLY doing this because he is a VERY good customer who has spent over $1,000 with me over the years. I'm happy to do it for a good customer, otherwise no.