Facebook Marketplace Selling - Timewasters

Rukiata on 20/03/2022 - 15:35
Last edited 20/03/2022 - 15:43

Hi guys so I sell quite a lot on second markets and facebook.

Pass few days I have been getting nothing but time wasters and rude people, two people have said car issues and cant make it now. Likely fake but who knows.
one person said yes to deal than 2 hours later finally replies after no show and says do it for $50 less and he will come.
One I tried to sell a tv to and he didn't make it and I stayed up till 10pm waiting for him, next day no show again, he replied saying sorry was drunk.
next someone needs video proof of a console working even though the pictures shown it.

What is going on with the marketplace lately? its legit just been this week I have had nothing but issues with people not showing up, wasting my time and being rude or lying.

How do I deal with it? just say ok and move on?

I have few people just buy things simple give me money and leave, no issues but this week has been bad.

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  • 91rs on 22/03/2022 - 15:31
    +1

    Ebay had almost no issues, firm price, no best offers, post only, no pickup etc.
    Gumtree and others similar was nothing but time wasters, either already very well priced items (washing machine, microwave etc) or trying to give free furniture away that was in good condition, thought it could help people out who had kids etc (bookshelves and such), nothing but problems.

    Ended up saying whoever contacts me and turns up can have it, took 4 weeks after originally holding items for the first people who called who said they were on their way or nearby and ghosted. The same people who called back weeks later asking if I still had it put aside for them and then abused me when I said its gone.
    But mums are busy and its my fault she couldn't make it to collect the stuff I was trying to get rid of …

    The items with a price attached were just as bad, people who would show up and offer half the asking price, I'd decline and they'd never come back after "going to think about it"

    In future if it can't be ebayed it will be destroyed and go out with trash. I am just so done with people.

    • popsiee on 22/03/2022 - 15:44
      +2

      Get the customer to ring you only when they are at the location like a major mall ( or any place with multiple CCTV cameras) with the cash ready for the deal . They already know you are XX mins away from there .
      That should cut out 95% of time wasters and of course for smaller items.

      • 91rs on 22/03/2022 - 17:07

        True, it's the larger stuff like bookshelves, washing machine, dresser drawers etc that caused me the most grief!

    • hazzad on 23/03/2022 - 08:13

      The biggest issue with ebay is sellers can cancel sales I'd they are happy with a price in the end. You think you got a great deal and bang, an hour later sale cancelled.

  • keejoonc on 22/03/2022 - 16:21

    FB is full of idiots. Try selling a phone or something and most will offer far less than what mobile phone stores will offer to buy it at.

  • gromit on 22/03/2022 - 16:38

    That is pretty much business as usual on FB or scamtree. If up until now that has been rare behaviour you have gotten incredibly lucky till now.

  • kaleidoscope on 22/03/2022 - 18:08

    facebook algorithms also really are total bs. Sometimes I’d get few messages from different buyers for single item and then it goes all silent. It tells me that there sure is a market for people but the algorithm is limiting the visibility.

  • j4ck on 22/03/2022 - 18:43
    +1

    OP, I feel your pain on this one. This is something I've dealt with for many, many years.

    Here are a some tips for you to consider:
    - Don't hold items for potential buyers. This often leads to people flaking on you.
    - If you get excessive haggling or an unresponsive buyer, just leave the chat.
    - Agree on the price beforehand. Do not accept any last minute haggling at your door.
    - Only give out your address on the day of sale, after you've locked in a time.
    - Pick up takes preference over postage.
    - Cash only for pick up. Bank deposit or PayID only for postage.
    - And if it seems too good to be true… it probably is!

    Also, I think you'll enjoy this: https://youtube.com/shorts/OLmun1JEIw0

  • tsugnev on 22/03/2022 - 18:50

    You need to have a thick screen and not be so emotionally invested when selling on second hand platforms

  • Nebargains on 22/03/2022 - 19:29
    +2

    Gumtree and Facebook Marketplace are just too painful for me, I'd rather pay the fees and deal with eBay.

  • eptrade on 22/03/2022 - 19:52

    Not sure if Facebook have buyer/seller ratings or reviews but on gumtree I sell only to ppl who have a good rating. Never had any issues where ppl back out after agreeing to buy.

  • DiscoJango on 22/03/2022 - 20:20
    +1

    Assume when selling, they will be late or not show up at all

    Also because of the above, do not change your schedule at all. Just tell them the exact times you are available, if they come in that window, great, if not, no biggie

    Too many times i totally adjusted my weekend plans to be available for someone only for them to no show. Now i just say im available on this day between 5pm-7pm take it or leave it

  • istoleyourid2 on 22/03/2022 - 20:28
    +2

    I always put in marketplace ads something like "first to pick it up with cash owns it, no holds, no exceptions"

    Gotta induce a bit of that fomo, openly tell people someone else is coming at 3pm but if you're here first its yours. Also limits the haggling as they think they will miss out.

    Another good one is when people bring less cash, ask them if they do mobile banking. You do, ok well I'll take all the cash you have, send me the extra $50 through mobile banking and its yours. No, ok I'll sell it to the next person, though you probably wasted $50 on fuel thanks to Vlad.

    • gromit on 22/03/2022 - 20:46
      +4

      someone that brings less cash for me is an immediate "oh well bye". they are trying to screw me, would rather sell for less to someone else than deal with that person and I get the satisfaction of knowing they wasted a trip.

      • ankor on 24/03/2022 - 08:47

        yeah I hate that. I was like, nup - we already negotiated and settled on a price. f_ck off.

    • pufffdragon on 23/03/2022 - 22:00
      +2

      I find sellers who say the first to pick it up thing, to be a bit scummy. I Avoid any seller who says this.

      I went to a place to buy a video camera once and just as I bought it, another guy rocked up wanting the same item. I was 5 mins drive away. This guy drove about 30 mins thinking he was getting it. He was pissed. And rightfully so.

      Just recently, had an agreed sale with a seller. It was going well, price was agreed on, time and location. A handshake was made. I always tell people I will message them before I leave out of courtesy.

      I was about 30 mins into my long drive there and this scum bag sends me a message telling me it's sold. WTF! I've never had this happen before and it happened twice in one week!

      Sellers can be just as bad as the buyers.

  • pogichinoy on 22/03/2022 - 20:47
    +2

    It was only a matter of time before it became shit like Gumtree. But this is just a reflection of the lowest common denominator of society.

    Don't feel dismayed. Keep at it.

  • wtfnodeal on 22/03/2022 - 22:06

    Quite opposite experience here. Agreed time and location but sellers didn’t show up. No communication before and after then as if they had never agreed on anything.

  • Youi2018 on 22/03/2022 - 22:44
    +3

    Has been like this for a long time

    The latest things that have happened to me :

    Selling an item for $50 . Buyer asks if it’s available. I reply it is . She asks for photos and details. Send it all . Then i get : i have to check my budget and get back to you ………

    Second item i was selling : i told them my location after it was already in the ad description. Ohhh sorry i cant come to your area because of the gas prices !

    Oh and if someone asks you to hold something for a couple of days / a week there is a 99% chance they will die in that time and you will never hear from them again LOL

    • cute as duck on 23/03/2022 - 10:11
      +4

      Oh and if someone asks you to hold something for a couple of days / a week there is a 99% chance they will die in that time and you will never hear from them again

      LOL

  • drprox on 23/03/2022 - 07:57
    +2

    I find a combo of things helps:
    - list at sharp prices
    - this leads to lots of enquiry
    - I then sift through before replying generally to ppl who say something like "I live nearby"
    - I only give them my address on the day or when I'm quite clear they're very very keen

  • connorlo on 23/03/2022 - 08:56

    Its just the norm for market place. I generally have on the description "first to pick up gets it", and generally I'll ask buyer how long till they can get it and if reasonable I'll let others know.

  • Brick Tamland on 23/03/2022 - 09:07

    I sell on market place occasionally and very rarely have issues. My tactics are:
    -List items at very sharp prices, most people will turn up immediately if they think they're getting a great bargain
    -Generally accept any offer thats not stupid
    -Make it clear in the first message what suburb I am in so that I know they're local.

  • DarwinBoy on 23/03/2022 - 09:44
    +3

    It goes both ways. As a buyer of marketplace it can drive you insane some times.
    I'm collecting screenshots for a book.

  • figarow on 23/03/2022 - 09:55

    How do I deal with it?

    Stop selling immediately. Not worth the anxiety.

  • DGNR8 on 23/03/2022 - 10:41

    I just block them if they waste your time. Too bad you can't block on Gumtree.

    • Youi2018 on 23/03/2022 - 11:06

      Yes i wish you could black on gumtree too many weirdos and scammers

  • drfuzzy on 23/03/2022 - 10:44
    +2

    There are equally alot of terrible sellers on marketplace. Examples - selling technology like a laptop and providing no details of the model, specifications, year of manufacture and just saying its a Macbook. Selling furniture and not providing make and model or the dimensions or knowing the dimensions when asked - just "grey sofa". Sometimes 6 or 12 month old items are basically being sold for the brand new price when picked up on sale. Don't get me started on listings for overpriced drop shopping items either pretending to be private sellers.

    I would flip the question and ask what's wrong with the sellers?

    • Rukiata on 23/03/2022 - 11:53
      +1

      what about sellers taking pictures of their feet or consoles that are so dirty and cant even clean anything.

  • RoadZilla on 23/03/2022 - 11:58
    +2

    Once I sold the moving boxes for free, many people enquired. This one lady enquired and then went silence. I gave it to the next person who was responsive. Next day, this lady came back saying she wants it . I told her its gone since she didnt confirm to which she responded she has kids and home duty and so didnt respond. She started swearing on me and called me scum. Comon, I was giving away free. I was sad at that incident.

    • SKiZO on 23/03/2022 - 12:07
      +6

      I learnt a long time ago never to give away things for free. Even if you think you are being nice. You will meet all the worst dregs of society.

      I once tried to give away an awesome couch for free as I was in a good mood. This lady rocks up in a fkg Hyundai excel and lo and behold the couch didn't fit. She took the cushions and promised to return with a ute that night. I never heard from her again and I ended up having a couch that I couldnt sit on in my living room for 6 months. Never again.

      Minimum $20 or it goes in the bin.

    • redfox1200 on 24/03/2022 - 09:46

      Should just say ok you can have it come pick it up, and give them a random address

  • SKiZO on 23/03/2022 - 12:01

    It's the same as Tinder.

    If someone isn't making an effort in their messages, ignore them.

    If you think you have a potential sale, give them your number and ask them to text you.

    If they are serious then they'll have no problem contacting you.

    • DiscoJango on 23/03/2022 - 12:43

      yup, never chase the sale, if their serious about actually wanting the item, they will put in the effort in contacting you

  • Bid Sniper on 23/03/2022 - 13:02
    +1

    Ebay, yes there are a fees but time is money.

    Also filtering out timewasters, lowballers, idiots, scammers, is worth the premium.

  • muzzamo on 23/03/2022 - 14:22
    +1

    I'm a huge fan of ebay in an age when it feels like most have moved to gumtree/marketplace.

    The ebay auction format allows you to find out what the market thinks it's worth - and you can look at previous sales to get an idea beforehand. If there is a steady history of people buying the same / similar items, put it up for a $1 starting price and move on.

    I buy lots of stuff from amazon so there is always plenty of boxes and sachets at home, and I have a huge roll of bubble wrap for packing.

    The ebay shipping label print system is a game changer, as is the knowledge that for australia post items that can fit in a red postage box you just need to put them in the postage box rather than lodging them at a post office.

    1) $1 starting auction, 7 days
    2) Stick in an ex-amazon prime satchel or box
    3) Slap on an australia post postage label
    4) Shove it in a red postage box.

    As long as your listing is accurate, your chance of returns and problems are quite low. You do need to manage the risk of scammers for high-scam items such as iphones etc by watching you don't ship to anyone who is a new member or has low (less than 10) feedback. I've sold half a dozen iphones without any issues.

    Oh and i forgot to mention - avoid most of the listing fees by posting to gumtree first and clicking the buttom from there, up to twice per month.

    • lordezekiel on 24/03/2022 - 15:56

      1) $1 starting auction, 7 days - This is awful advice for anything but very popular items, if you have something a bit less popular but still worth selling, you will end up getting $1.
      2) Stick in an ex-amazon prime satchel or box - Thumbs up to this!
      3) Slap on an australia post postage label - They even give a (very) small discount vs Australia Post depending on location you are posting to.
      4) Shove it in a red postage box. - I would never do this with anything remotely valuable, the item will not get scanned into the tracking system when picked up, and if you are unlucky, it will never get scanned. Posting it at the post office is the ONLY way to guarantee proof that you have posted an item, which is absolutely essential if the item doesnt get scanned/arrive as if the buyer opens a not received case and the tracking number has no updates, they WILL get all their money refunded and you wont be able to do anything about it.

      • muzzamo on 24/03/2022 - 18:03

        re: #4, it gets scanned at one of the first sorting centers it goes through. I've never had it not scan and have done it dozens (maybe a hundred) times.

        The risk is on you if it goes missing between the red postage box and the sorting center. I think that risk is pretty low so I take it.

        • lordezekiel on 24/03/2022 - 21:36

          Up to you mate, i have sent a lot more items than that and every now and then they dont get scanned anywhere. I will take the risk on low value stuff but if it's several hundred dollars, i'd rather take it to the post office for the assurance.

    • strangeloops66 on 24/03/2022 - 22:57

      I think that Gumtree/ eBay promotion limiting fees to 30 cents thing stopped because eBay no longer owns Gumtree.

  • sauce2k on 23/03/2022 - 20:00
    +4

    I’ve sold a lot of things via marketplace and as per my personal experience it’s always Indians/Pakistani that are time wasters. Lol they ask you if the item is still available and disappears. Always wondering why they would do that lol

    • havabeer on 24/03/2022 - 13:10

      I wanted to say this but, I err'd on the side of caution.

      Often with cars they'll have sold or are selling others so a clearly just looking for a deal to flip.

    • lordezekiel on 24/03/2022 - 21:40

      No one wastes my time as much as old white aussie blokes, they are the worst, they will arrive late, sometimes over an hour, barely ever apologise for it, want to dick around testing everything seventeen times, ask a bunch of questions that they already asked before they came and then proceed to lowball the everloving shite out of my usually pretty reasonable asking price.
      At least the indians i have dealt with will usually throw their absurdly low offers at you straight away so you can easily decide to not waste your time on them.

    • mhz on 25/03/2022 - 13:30

      Nearly everytime I see its an Indian messaging me on marketplace I think "Here we go again"
      I especially love the "I'm a poor international student, can you please give it to me for a much lower price?"

  • Herbse on 23/03/2022 - 20:29
    +5

    Hi, is this still available?

  • TheBird on 23/03/2022 - 22:40
    +3

    lol. I remember putting about 15 monitors up for sale (fairly cheap mind you) late Feb, early March 2020. The first guy who messaged was haggling for a better price. He tried to haggle for so long, that all the monitors were sold (half were already picked up) before he figured out I wasn't going to give him a discount on a $30/60 monitor.

    He insisted on turning up (I was at work, so sure, why not) and tried to continue to haggle. Mate, I can't help you, they're all sold. "ok, ok, I'll pay full price." "Nope, they're all sold". I was like, look, here's a couple of monitors so bad I didn't list them for sale (no stand, big scratches, really tiny 18" screen kinds of thing) if you want to buy them. To be honest, I don't remember if he did buy one. I do remember, he even tried to buy some of the monitors I was personally using.

    People will be people. Set boundaries you're happy with. I found the best results is where you set the boundaries up front in the advert. I had set days and hours for pickup. I mostly sold things slightly under market value, so they usually sold fast and discounting was a rarity. Occasionally you'd get people not turn up. No biggie, delete the listing and relist it and sell it the next day.

  • immortalbjr on 24/03/2022 - 00:12
    +2

    Selling online is about ignoring 95% of customers and just waiting for the right buyer, after long enough you can tell just from their first message if they're serious or just bored.

    1. When im selling anything I list the price is not negotiable that eliminates prob alot of the time wasters, some still try but then they get rule number 2..

    2. Just ignore anyone that asks a stupid question that is answered in the ad or by a quick google search and wait for a actual real buyer. Serious buyers wont ask these dumb questions, they will call and want to just want to come look or outright buy it when they talk to you without trying to haggle you down. The price isnt a deal breaker for a serious buyer, they'll buy it whether you take a amount off it or not. So just tell them no

    Ive sold several pieces of equipment 30-40-50k+ items on marketplace, but you have to just outright ignore 95% of the enquiries. After awhile you can tell the serious buyers from the bored twits by their first message.

  • MikeKulls on 24/03/2022 - 08:42
    +1

    I've found if you write "no di@# heads or time wasters" it gets a lot better. Somehow the di@# heads know they are di@# heads

  • havabeer on 24/03/2022 - 13:07

    I've found selling on FBM pretty frustrating to the point where the easiest way to do is to exercise some harsh judgement.
    Profiles, the pics and seller profiles along with their first message often tell me enough to judge if its even worth responding.

    Is it available? Yes funkknuckle, the Ad is up. But usually I do exactly what they did and click the canned response, predictably that usually as far as those ones go.
    Are they just looking to lowball and then flip? Can often tell this if they are selling lots or the thing you are selling.
    Just seem dodgy.

  • Kooratz on 24/03/2022 - 13:23
    +1

    My use stuff goes to hard rubbish bin every year, no haggling no hassle.. 😂

  • Punda on 24/03/2022 - 14:45
    +2

    I’ve put things for free before and people still ask me 10 questions. How picky can you be for free?

    • lordezekiel on 24/03/2022 - 21:45

      Yeah i have learnt my lesson with trying to offer free stuff also, like it's bloody free! No i will not hold it for you till 4 days from now, just come pick the damn thing up!

    • ihbh on 25/03/2022 - 09:49

      Hope you put dimensions of furniture and appropriate details in your description, because I'd ask.

      How picky can you be for free?

      People's time is not free.

      • Punda on 31/03/2022 - 18:53

        You’re literally getting something for nothing. Google the dimensions or come look for yourself.

        • ihbh on 31/03/2022 - 20:47

          Take a step back and think about how silly that sounds. Who's going to travel 15-30 mins to check if it's the right size. Google doesn't always have the dimensions for older things. Unless it's portable, it needs to fit in their car.

  • JayM on 24/03/2022 - 15:28

    Had someone haggle the price down by $20 which was fine then they proceeded to pay $20 less than the agreed on price and started to haggle again to get the price down that extra $20. Told him i'm not handing over the item until he pays the agreed on price. He did in the end.

  • Raj09 on 24/03/2022 - 17:20

    Maybe it's your experience. Out of 10 buyers I had 1 who was a no show.

    Put the conditions upfront. No negotiations. You check the goods on the day and accept as is. And always look for a buyer. The goods are for sale until you get money from the buyer. Don't rely on their words. And don't wait till 10pm to have someone see the goods. They are likely not to come

    • lordezekiel on 24/03/2022 - 21:44

      All i can say is you are gettting real lucky to have that sort of success rate. I'm in the gold coast and would say it's pretty much the exact reverse, like 1 successful sale for every 10 idiots you have to deal with.

      • Raj09 on 25/03/2022 - 01:26

        Oh you might be right. I'm in Melbourne and most ppl have been serious. Then yes I would say do not tolerate time wasters and idiots

  • Tiredman on 24/03/2022 - 20:52

    Hate those bastards. Was selling something bulky, had a few agreeing to the purchase, gave them my phone number and home address and started ghosting me. WTF.

  • DiscoJango on 24/03/2022 - 21:47
    +2

    This is legit word for word an exchange i had yesterday:

    fb person: is this available?

    me: yes

    fb person: ill pass thanks

    me: wtf why did you even message me lol

    and another good one:

    fp person: is this available

    me: yes

    fb person: thank you

    me: thank you

    never heard from them after that lol.

    another one, i was selling an old whipper snipper for $10, indian guy messages saying his friend will pick up after work. An older guy with really bad english rocks up later to collect it, i go to hand it to him and he was basically going to walk off, i said hang on wheres the $10. He looks confused and makes a ph call, he then asks to see if it works, no problems, let me go get an extension cable (its one of those crappy corded whipper snippers). When i came back a minute later he had just left lol.

    Gotta love fb market place :D

    • lordezekiel on 26/03/2022 - 13:43

      I experienced the same as that second example, when they responded with thank you i just started laughing out loud like a crazy person for like 10 seconds, it was just such an absurd response lol

      • DiscoJango on 26/03/2022 - 18:26

        yeh im trying to logically figure out why they ask the question, and after a few days, ive still got nothing

        maybe they just like the conversation…

  • Brianqpr on 24/03/2022 - 22:29
    +1

    Genuine buyers stand out and are always very keen and probably concerned someone might beat them to it.

    The time wasters and scammers are plentiful and annoying. All you can do is ignore them.

  • ChatCPT on 24/03/2022 - 23:40
    +2

    Hi Rukiata, is this still available?

  • maximum on 25/03/2022 - 06:23
    +4

    I believe some of my items may harbour an ancient curse as when I sell them people who offer to buy are hit by bizzare and persistent problems. Children being hospitalised, cars breaking down, then bikes breaking down, illness even deaths. I think in the interest of public safety I should be banned from selling in marketplace (but I still prefer it over people at garage sales)

    • Heaps for Cheaps on 25/03/2022 - 16:25
      -1

      "I believe some of my items may harbour an ancient curse as when I sell them people who offer to buy are hit by bizzare and persistent problems. Children being hospitalised, cars breaking down, then bikes breaking down, illness even deaths."
      That would be an absolutely awesome premise for a youtube video.

  • [Deactivated] on 25/03/2022 - 06:46
    +1

    Unless it's a large item, I don't really bother with facebook or gumtree. The ~15% commission is well worth not having to deal with timewasters and repetitive questions. The last 2 times I had to sell something on facebook I just kept telling people it sold if they didn't have any ratings on their profile after getting a wave of tyre pushers and rude people. The first person with reviews picked the items up on the same day, the last one within an hour.

    It's unfortunate for genuine buyers, but unless facebook finds a better way to vet timewasters and no-shows there isn't much else to rely on.
    I know some buyers secretly accept multiple offers, give it to the first person that shows up and tell everyone else it sold even if they've travelled to the location, which is kinda shitty(had a few friends experience this).

  • dbun1 on 25/03/2022 - 10:01
    +1

    I just don't reply to any stupid or unreasonable requests, however it is tiring to deal with.

    The number of people who will message "I'm interested, I live in xyz suburb, how far to abc suburb?"…….WTF, I'm not Google Maps.
    Or, "I'm interested, I live in xyz suburb, when could you deliver?"

    Generally I've had good luck with the genuine buyers who simply say, "I'll take it. I can be there at xxx time." A handful of times they've postponed but showed up as per the rescheduled time.

  • godofpizza on 25/03/2022 - 10:26
    +1

    i think most tire kickers click on 'is it still available' as it's the easiest way for the buyer to bookmark the item as the mobile app ( use anyway) doesn't allow you to save items.

    • had someone ask for my best price on an item i had listed for $15
    • someone kept messging me on an collectable i had for sale that i should have priced it at RRP ( from 2013 mine you).
    • resellers low balling me on a number of items , (in order to re-seller later) they heap of items for sale and over priced.
    • DiscoJango on 25/03/2022 - 20:50

      ive got the iphone app and fb on chrome on my desktop, both let you save an item

  • CRS34 on 28/03/2022 - 14:04

    Make sure they confirm their attendance prior to the meeting, if not, forget about the buyer. Make them work around your schedule to minimise disruption to your time.
    Time wasters are a given on marketplace.. those who are 100% keen on buying wont screw around with you.

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