Admin..................Can I make a Suggestion.................

[Scooby]

I know that I do not post much anymore, but I have been a member since 1998, and I do lurk probably everyday, so here goes.

Is there any chance of making it mandatory to post a price with a item when it is being sold on the classifieds?  I just think that this "best offer" thing is a joke, if you want to have your own little auction then take it to Ebay.  There is a add right now that is a "best offer" stating that they bought it from a aution...............isn't this redundant?

This has been a issue for me for a long time and I have posted this before and some of the other member answers have been to not read the add, or don't buy the item which is fine.  Another forum that I belong to will pull the classified add if it DOES NOT have a price listed.

Iam not in a bad mood, Iam not grumpy, and Iam not trying to stir the pot, all Iam trying to do is clean this up and make it easier for everyone.  Flame on if you like, but I think that it is a good idea.

Scooby
2336

[Black Dog]

I agree with Scooby...  When I list something, I'll sell to the first person that replies to the ad...  Time stamp is the proof, no questions...  I would expect the same from any seller.  Don't look at my offer of $XX and wait to see if someone 'over bids' me.

I believe it states right in the Classifides section that there are no links to eBay, or the like, allowed, so it stands to reason that a 'private' auction should not be allowed either...

Gotcher back Scoob 

Black Dog

[hubcapsc]

No flames from me, but here's a story.

When I got my Valkyrie, it had an OEM CB on it. I didn't want it, and as a newbie I had no idea what it was worth or that they were sought after and rare.
I put it on the classifieds as "make an offer" and was shocked at the flood of responses... I stopped them at $400ish because my head was reeling...
some happy person got a CB for $400ish...

There's other ways for clueless people to try and find out what they've got is good for... such as asking on the board... not all "make me an offer"s
are trying to whip up an auction...

-Mike

[KY,Dave (AKA Misunderstood)]

I have been feeling the same as Scooby for a while. Name a price  !! If you don't know it's worth ask on the board or pm a member you feel comfortable with (I have done this myself to know somethings worth) Don't like those 2 choices, take it to an auction site. Not my decision here, but that's my 2 cents. I've been on other boards that do as Scooby described. YMMV

[9Ball]

I agree...

The seller should set a price that they are willing to accept and post it in the ad.  In the past, I had contacted a seller and when I ask a price they said "make me an offer."  I won't play this game....state what you're looking for and then we can negotiate from there.  This is my pet peeve....

I don't like playing games and now just ignore best offer ads.

YMMV

[Serk]

IMHO, self correcting problem... if someone doesn't post a price, I ignore the ad, and it seems a lot of other people do too, thus the person doesn't sell their widget until they do post a price... 

[MP]

If you do not like the way it is sold, just ignore the ad.  I know, everyone is hoping someone will price it too low, and they can steal it.

Kind of like when people complain about something selling for too much.  Just do not pay that much.  Pretty simple to me.

A while back I sold some things on classifieds.  Put a price on them all.  Reasonable prices, not high.  Thought I would offer it here to my fellow VRCC and VOAI members at a decent price.

Well, several of them were on ebay about 3 days after I shipped them, and sold for more.  So, did I do "right"?  Was I wrong?  Was the buyer wrong?  It is what it is.

MP

[ricoman]

Gotta agree with this one.
Bought a pair of saddlebag brackets not too long after I got my Valk and got into this board.
The seller (long time member from MN quoted me a price (no price in the ad). I delayed a week or two and recontacted him to buy the brackets. I commented that I had lost his email with his price. he gave me a price, I paid him immediately. The next day or so I found the old email and his original price was 20 bucks lower. When I told him I found the original price he quoted and it was 20 bucks lower, he basically said "so what, you got them at a market price", or "tough sh11t".
Shame on me for not looking longer for his original email and shame on him for not keeping his word. His reputation to me was bought for the 20 bucks.
Point is, had a price been in his ad, the situation would have been different and I would not have lost respect for the lying bastard.

[Scott in Ok]

I guess we all have our pet peeves.  Like others, I just ignore the ad.  Its very common for people to not post a price in classifieds, even in print(newspapers etc).  I don't like it but its pretty common.

I will look at the script and see if I can do a little javascript validation on the field to force a price.  But then you run into the issue of multiple items in one ad.  What do I do then?  Force them to put in a total price? Price of one item?  I'm pretty sure the same form is used to post a wanted ad as well....that would force a price there too.  My point being, its not as simple as it looks.  User interface design is a bitch to deal with.  What one person likes, others won't.  I will however see what I can do.

-Scott

[JimL]

I have to admit that the lack of a posted price used to irk me a bit...however I suppose that is their right to do so.  I have the same philosophy as Serk....if no price is posted I don't respond to the ad.

[Hellcat]

I agree that best price ads are irritating, but they are not unreasonable. It is up to me as a user to spend my time reading the Classifieds or not, and up to me as a user to spend my time negotiating or bidding or not.

Personally I either don't inquire, or I'll send one email with an offer. If the seller tries to bid me up I just ignore him/her. No harm done, and all of a minute of my time lost.

[BF]

Lack of a price doens't get to me as much as people placing ads with items that are in sizes......and don't include the size.  

Why list a jacket, helmet or whatever without putting in the size of the item?  Don't list a motorcycle cover without stating what size bike it covers.  

But I do agree with scooby on this.  Price should be stated plainly along with shipping terms/price and the type of payment accepted.  

[Gear Jammer]

As long as we're at this,,,,,, I place a price on things I sell, both here and ebay.  The price is what I want for the item, not a point from which to haggle.  If you want to haggle price, then go to a flea market.  And as a buyer on VRCC, I've never questioned the price asked, or asked if he'd take less for his item.  Several members from whom I've purchased items can attest to this.   One of the above posters here, purchased a set of Rivco Driving lights from me.  He had mentioned in a post that he was looking for some. I PM'd him and told him I had a set which I would sell for what I had paid, since I had decided to not install them.  He agreed with the price, and never questioned the asking price, or pleaded poverty to get me to lower the price.   Had he done so, he'd probably still be looking for a set of Rivco driving lights.  He was very pleased with the item, I got rid of something I didn't need and recouped my $$, and made a new VRCC friend to boot.   If you don't list a price, then you may not get a buyer for your item.  And if you do list a price, at least I know whether it's in the range I epxect to spend.    Just my .02.

[NiteRiderF6]

I guess I can't buy from Bobby . As the son of a used car salesman I have determined that every seller has a price that they want for an item "asking price" and a price that they would take for an item or "selling price". Half of the fun in the transaction for me is the process of working that number out. I like to see a price listed too, but that number to me is only the starting point. I hate paying full retail for anything, but will if I want it. I would like to see the classifieds on the new format, but know there are probably reasons for now doing so. Ride Safely!

[stormrider]

I like messin with folks who don't put a price and want me to make an offer. I always respond, "so you want me, the buyer, to set the price?" They always waiver and come back with what they want and what they'll take. Had a car dealer do that once when we were actually on the hunt. Told him to get the papers ready, signed by the sales manager and I'd fill in the price. Dummy could've had a sale but asked what I'd pay for it. We drove by later that evening with a vehicle from up the street.

Then once upon a time we had a yard sale. Called it "Make an Offer Yard Sale". The idea was to let the buyer set the price. Thing is, if someone would have offered 1 cent for everything they could have had it all. Most of the stuff was children's clothes given to us so we were willing to pass it on to others. Instead, we took in over $300 in one day and sold an old camper to boot that wasn't part of the sale. It was funny though, cause some ladies were afraid to name a price because they were afraid they would pay more than what we would've taken. I guess they all did. And it saved us the grief of pricing everything. And everybody bought something.

Back to the thread. I do get annoyed though, when they are fishing to find out a value and then want more than what it is worth. Could've save some grief.

[Printer Mike]

Reckon I could get $500 for my OEM CB if I listed it?

[9Ball]

Reckon I could get $500 for my OEM CB if I listed it?

not from me...I paid less than that for a brand new one in 2000...

[alph]

People have forgotten how to haggle.  If you buy a house, or even a new car, do you pay the price they’re looking for?  I hope not!!  Same thing with someone asking for an offer, they’re looking at getting rid of it, they don’t care about a price, they just don’t want to throw it away!  And some people are too scared to offer a low price, so they don’t.  They would rather pay the price on the windshield, then try and pay what its worth.

Next time some one says “make me an offer” tell them a price that even you think is too low!!

Case in point; my first cycle, guy wanted $1200, he asked me to make an offer, I paid $600!  HE EVEN DELIVERED IT!!

When a person asks you to make an offer, make it low!  If you feel you’ll upset that person, then they shouldn’t have asked!

[Buster]

My 2 cents worth, If you want to sell it in the VRCC cassifieds put a price on it(I think this should be required) if you don't know what its worth find out beforehand. If you want to auction it put it on e-Bay.
I asked about an item in the classifieds awhile back that was listed 'Best Offer", I was told the best so far was $175.00, the next day the seller had it listed on e-Bay with a starting bid of $100.00.
I think you should be a member to buy or sell in the VRCC classifieds. I think we should give a fellow member a better price than a non-member.
Also there should not be ad's in the classifieds, such as 'Buyers Wanted'.
Again just my 2 cents worth

[scoot]

Ok, I am sorry if I offened anybody in this group When I said I won these parts in another auction it was for several different parts. I used what I wanted out of the lot. I just wanted to pass along the peices that I have no intentions of using.
 I am not running a auction here. I am not looking to get top dolllar for these parts. I was just hoping to pass these onto someone who could use them.  If you look in ad it says "make me an offer".
 Most any other time I run an ad I get 10 responses of people trying to low ball the price anyhow. Somebody will buy these, and they will get a good deal. I'm by no means going to get rich on selling these parts. They are not part of my retirement plan. I just wanted to get rid of them.
 Lesson learned here is if I want to sell parts here to list a price, I will do that.

[Gear Jammer]

I guess I can't buy from Bobby .

Well Doug,,, I guess I'm not a very good salesman.       I understand what you're saying, and I have to admit I have nothing against looking for a good deal.        I too have offered less for an item if I think the asking price is way too high.    And if someone post a price, but adds "negotiable", then offer away !      But when I've listed something for sale, I've always put the price at and sometimes below what I paid.  Rarely do I try to "make money" on a deal.  I've got a lot of parts in my storage cabinets that are worth more to me than they are to others I think, so I've not listed them for sale.      I suppose that's why I usually list items on ebay with a reserve price if I'm firm, and with no reserve if I'm willing to allow the market to set the price.  The value I place is not always the same as what it's worth.       But I've even given away parts to other VRCCr's for nothing more than a promise of a cheeseburger !      Guess that's why I'm not selling used cars.  Besides, I don't have a pair of white tassle loafers    

[NiteRiderF6]

Make money? I have never made money on any part for a motorcycle. I was mostly pickin' on ya Bobby. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you here, but I have been up on the roof all afternoon replacing some skylights. It was nice here today, only 78 degrees, so I decided to make the most of it.

Getting back to the origanal subject though, if somebody doesn't want to haggle they won't sell me much, like I said, unless I want it bad. I'm mostly in it for the sport! I have made a some money selling complete motorcycles, but never on parts. I'm usually just happy to get them out of my garage and get some of my money out of stuff that I've replaced or decided not to use. I'm notorious for buying high and selling low on Valkyrie parts though. Heck, I've even been known to give some things away just to help somebody out that's in a bind.

It seems like when I want it, if I'm realllllll lucky, one guy has one and is really proud of it. On the other hand, when I want to sell something the market is flooded with them and I can only get pennies on the dollar and then they want me to pay for the shipping. Go Figure! Oh well, I have what I have, my bike is pretty much like I want it and I'm not too worried about getting rid of the pieces and parts anyway.

Ride Safely!

I guess I can't buy from Bobby .

Well Doug,,, I guess I'm not a very good salesman.       I understand what you're saying, and I have to admit I have nothing against looking for a good deal.        I too have offered less for an item if I think the asking price is way too high.    And if someone post a price, but adds "negotiable", then offer away !      But when I've listed something for sale, I've always put the price at and sometimes below what I paid.  Rarely do I try to "make money" on a deal.  I've got a lot of parts in my storage cabinets that are worth more to me than they are to others I think, so I've not listed them for sale.      I suppose that's why I usually list items on ebay with a reserve price if I'm firm, and with no reserve if I'm willing to allow the market to set the price.  The value I place is not always the same as what it's worth.       But I've even given away parts to other VRCCr's for nothing more than a promise of a cheeseburger !      Guess that's why I'm not selling used cars.  Besides, I don't have a pair of white tassle loafers    

[Gear Jammer]

And here I thought I was unique in buying for more than it's worth, and then selling it for less than I paid !   Good to hear from you again Doug.  Hope to see you and Stacy soon.  Guess we've hijacked this thread for sure.