When potential buyers tell you how much your stuff is worth...

[sin-n-dex]

Have a coin, listed for 79.99. I can't get anymore, and I'm patient. I've sold three or four of these at this price (maybe $5-10 if I send out an offer).

I get a message twice this week from someone wanting a discount to get it at $50, and another potential buyer tells me it's worth $50.

So tell me something sunshine, if you can buy it for $50, why are you bothering me? Go buy it somewhere else for $50. Oh, that's right, everyone selling them has them for $79.99 or more (up to $120). There are none to buy for $50, you're just trying to get a discount on something you know you aren't going to be able to find later on.

I had a dealer connection to someone who could get these where they were minted 30 years ago. The connection has no more, I bought the rest of my stock from the dealer. At present I have 5 left. In two or three weeks someone will pay my price, I'll wait a week or two, and list another one. If I did list it for $50, it would sell in 5 minutes.

C.

[fashunu4eeuh]

A strong example of a seller who stands firm, knowing what’s what.

[luckythewinner]

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@sin-n-dex wrote:

Have a coin, listed for 79.99. I can't get anymore, and I'm patient. I've sold three or four of these at this price (maybe $5-10 if I send out an offer).

I get a message twice this week from someone wanting a discount to get it at $50, and another potential buyer tells me it's worth $50.

So tell me something sunshine, if you can buy it for $50, why are you bothering me? Go buy it somewhere else for $50. Oh, that's right, everyone selling them has them for $79.99 or more (up to $120). There are none to buy for $50, you're just trying to get a discount on something you know you aren't going to be able to find later on.

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Are you suggesting that buyers on eBay are using the same haggling tactics that buyers have been using around the world for a thousand years? 😉

[doc-holmes]

"Sunshine" lol

[sin-n-dex]

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@fashunu4eeuh wrote:

A strong example of a seller who stands firm, knowing what’s what.

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I'm not usually very firm... depends how much I marked it up, how common it is, if I can get more later (if it's a hot item), and how long it's been sitting around the shop taking up space.

I've got a lot of tokens (not listed yet) that I'm pretty firm on the price because I know they're uncommon. The shop bought a very big collection, we're lucky to have a few of each type. I marked a lot of them up a bit so I could have a little wiggle room for sending offers.

I had one rare token that I sold to someone in the local coin club. I was afraid I hadn't sold it for enough money (like the shop owner wouldn't be happy with the sale, I even offered to give up some of my commission so he would be happy with what it sold for). The coin club guy goes and posts it on his newsgroup and everyone started ooohing and ahhing about how much they wanted one too and have been looking for years. At this point I really thought I messed up on the price. Out of envy, some of the guys told him he'd been ripped off and paid too much. I told the shop owner and said "if they think he paid too much, I sold it for the right price."

C.

[divwido]

Tell them their wrong, thanks anyhow and move on.  At least, i hope, they weren't rude about it.  That does seem to be an eBay thing-offer less while insulting what you are selling.

I wonder why I never accept those offers?  After all, they were only trying to be helpful...

[sin-n-dex]

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@luckythewinner wrote:

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Are you suggesting that buyers on eBay are using the same haggling tactics that buyers have been using around the world for a thousand years? 😉

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I'm used to some haggling on here... it comes in different forms. Often they tell me they're interested in x items and can I give them a deal. (Most frequently they're asking for a break on postage, so I tout my shipping promo).

I just can't for the life of me imagine contacting a seller to tell them what they're stuff is worth so I can save a few dollars. If I don't like the price, I don't buy it. If it's something I need, then I live with paying what it costs. In my store, no one NEEDS what it is I'm selling... so guilt doesn't work here.

My strategy is just to outright buy stuff... I know people use the make offer to screen their buyers... if I want it, I just buy it. I'm already blocked by lots of sellers because they don't want to ship to Canada.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@divwido wrote:

Tell them their wrong, thanks anyhow and move on.  At least, i hope, they weren't rude about it.  That does seem to be an eBay thing-offer less while insulting what you are selling.

I wonder why I never accept those offers?  After all, they were only trying to be helpful...

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nah, not rude. It just doesn't make sense to me why someone would want me to decrease my price by $30 if the item is so readily available for that price somewhere else.

C.

[luckythewinner]

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@sin-n-dex wrote:
I just can't for the life of me imagine contacting a seller to tell them what they're stuff is worth so I can save a few dollars. If I don't like the price, I don't buy it.

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The world would be a boring place if all 160+ million buyers on eBay thought alike, felt alike, and acted alike. 

The fact that people are different is what makes life interesting. 

[onefootflipper]

I sell gaming related collectible cards. There are literally databases that track their sale prices on a daily basis, just like a stock or commodity. I don't even have offers turned on, it doesn't stop people from offering 30 cents on the dollar and sometimes insisting that I will never get half my price. All while I am pricing exactly according the the value databases.

I usually offer to buy $1000 worth of the card at that price if they can find the deal for me and offer them a 10 percent finder's fee. So far no one has ever claimed the finder's fee.

[duncanvr]

Sorry but $79.99 is my price if you can get it at $50 elsewhere buy it from another seller. I'm not lowering mine. Its probably the same person with two different accounts trying to get a discount so they can resell it higher. Leave your price where it is and sit and wait for the buyer prepared to pay it.

[anneecakes]

I usually kill 'em with kindness... (usually quiets them). I say something like "$50 is nothing to sneeze at, but I'm just not motivated enough to part with it at that price. These sell nicely for me at $80, but I wish you well on your hunt for discounted ones."

[acrystalshop]

99% of the time I just ignore those types of messages.

Some people take it very personal when you don't accept their $10 offer on a $500 item. They think belittling or being passive aggressive will make you budge on price but in reality it probably has never worked. I just block them and move on. They do this with every seller or business they come into contact with. It's sad the performance some will put on to save a tiny amount on a non-essential items. 

[annadryl]

I wouldn't even answer those, they don't deserve my time. If I did want to bother I might say Well when I feel like donating to someone it's usually to someone like UGM or the Red Cross. Or Ukraine.

[chapeau-noir]

I've periodically had someone start listing everything that is wrong with an item (most of it incorrect or supposition) and then end "Will you sell it to me for considerably less?" I'm always polite but I felt like complimenting them on all the work they did angling for a discount and expressing my gentle sorrow that they had wasted their time.  It was a regular little list (almost new item).

But some people tend to haggle that way - I don't take it personally - I have no idea how successful it is in general - it must work enough for them to keep doing it even if it doesn't with me, and I actually generally don't mind haggling.