Advice on selling

Whistlepeg · Post by **Whistlepeg** » Fri Jul 20, 2001 9:10 pm

I have never bought or sold anything on the internet,(I purchased all my instruments by phoning the maker and sending a money order) but I may soon be wanting to sell a whistle. Some of you do this kind of thing regularly, judging by some of the comments that go back & forth! Can you give me some advice on how this is usually done, to protect the interests of both parties?
Thanks,
Sue

jmssmh · Post by **jmssmh** » Fri Jul 20, 2001 9:38 pm

I have sold a few whistles through postings on the board and what is usually done is the buyer will send me a check and since they have shown trust in me I send the whistle out (usually the same day the check arrives)without waiting for the check to clear. I have not been burned yet and I hope that this has worked out well for the buyers. I have also used PayPal a couple of times which is great for international sales and/or to reduce the tranaction time.

I would be interested in hearing if this has worked out well for the buyers also.

Joe

brewerpaul · Post by **brewerpaul** » Fri Jul 20, 2001 9:39 pm

I've sold several instruments, both classical and trad on eBay, with no problems at all. Ask a fair price, and you'll probably get it. I find that people that have an interest in such specialized instruments are a pretty safe bet.
Btw-- I live in upstate NY, and sold a bass recorder to a woman in Michigan. She is now my fiancee. Been living together nearly 2 years, and have never been happier. Obviously, my experiences with selling online have been rather positive....
Seems that another, simpler option would be to simply advertise your whistle right here. I'd trust the people here!!

FairEmma · Post by **FairEmma** » Sat Jul 21, 2001 9:38 am

It might be worth considering the plan of action if the buyer is not satisfied with the acquisition. Will you take it back? Will you postpone cashing the certified check/money order for a trial period? Or is it a you-buy-it-it's-yours deal? Certainly this should be part of the good-faith nature of the transaction.

I work freelance and have been burned to the tune of thousands of dollars. If I could figure out a way to *guarantee* that could *never* happen, I'd be thrilled. At best, I can only hedge my bets, acknowledge that it happens so rarely, and leave the rest to trust.

good luck with it
FE

livethe question · Post by **livethe question** » Sat Jul 21, 2001 10:22 am

I've bought and sold several items with members of this forum. I've never had any difficulties and all transactions have been positive experiences. The times I've sold items I've tried to send out the item as soon as we've agreed on the transaction. I don't wait for the money to arrive. I don't know whether that is "smart" or not but it feels good to trust people and, after all, the person is trusting that I will send the whistle after they've sent the money. Another type of "wisdom" perhaps that allows me to travel a bit lighter. If we were talking many hundreds or thousands of dollars I suspect I would have a little more "growing" to do.

Chuck_Clark · Post by **Chuck_Clark** » Sat Jul 21, 2001 2:08 pm

I concur. I've bought instruments on eBay, and both bought and sold them through C&F posts. On balance, if selling, I think we should all consider C&F first. There are four reasons:

1) You'd know your whistle is going to someone who'll appreciate it;
2) I've never heard anyone talk about getting burned on a deal among C&F'ers;
3) You'll sell it a lot faster than on eBay, unless for some reason it doesn't sell at all. In that case, there's still eBay.
4) We're all pretty much friends here. Isn't it better to give your friends first chance <ggg>?

StevePower · Post by **StevePower** » Sat Jul 21, 2001 3:39 pm

Without wishing to turn this post into a sales promo (Heaven forfend!!): I just want to say that as a "professional" (someone might question my use of that word) whistle salesperson, I have yet to have a cheque (check) 'bounce' or not arrive from a customer originating from C&F.

when I tell colleagues in business how I operate on the 'net, they go ashen and almost faint at the thought of not waiting for the money before sending the goods.

Like F.E., they too have probably been burned - and I've also not received payment for services rendered in the past. But (and it's a biggy) I've not yet been stung by a C&Fer.

There must be something about the 'family' feel of this community that helps to ensure that we treat each other fairly.

Long may it continue.

Steve Power

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: StevePower on 2001-07-21 17:41 ]</font>

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: StevePower on 2001-07-21 17:42 ]</font>

Whistlepeg · Post by **Whistlepeg** » Sat Jul 21, 2001 4:25 pm

Thanks all for your wisdom & experience. I'm still deciding whether/when to sell, but when I do, I will definitely post the information here first. Cheers!
Sue