Basher42
Well-Known Member
So every time I put something in the classifieds that's "or best offer," I get at least one bonehead (usually more) who takes the lazy approach and ask me "what's your lowest price?" No effort is made to haggle or actually, you know, make an offer. Just straight to "tell me the least amount of money you'll take for it."
Is this the new low-ball? Rather than offend you with a ridiculously low offer, they now try to make you show your entire hand right off the bat? I've been buying and selling online for over two decades, and two things have always been understood:
1) a seller's goal is to get as much money as they can from their item's sale
2) a buyer's goal is to spend as little as they can
Notice those two goals are in opposition to each other. As a seller, why would I want to just tell you what my bottom dollar is? If I wanted that to be public knowledge, don't you think I would just put it in the ad? "Or best offer" means the first offer I find acceptable, so if three people PM at the same time, I'll take the highest. It's not an auction, but it is an attempt to negotiate into a happy middle ground that both parties find agreeable. This whole "what's your lowest" is the lazy way out, and serves to benefit only the buyer. I find when I call people on it, I get crickets because any resistance to getting the cheapest deal possible means they move on hoping to find another easy deal instead.
Just curious if this is something others are experiencing. IMO, if someone wants a good deal, they should be willing to engage with a seller and negotiate some. Am I wrong in thinking this? What sayest LRH?
Is this the new low-ball? Rather than offend you with a ridiculously low offer, they now try to make you show your entire hand right off the bat? I've been buying and selling online for over two decades, and two things have always been understood:
1) a seller's goal is to get as much money as they can from their item's sale
2) a buyer's goal is to spend as little as they can
Notice those two goals are in opposition to each other. As a seller, why would I want to just tell you what my bottom dollar is? If I wanted that to be public knowledge, don't you think I would just put it in the ad? "Or best offer" means the first offer I find acceptable, so if three people PM at the same time, I'll take the highest. It's not an auction, but it is an attempt to negotiate into a happy middle ground that both parties find agreeable. This whole "what's your lowest" is the lazy way out, and serves to benefit only the buyer. I find when I call people on it, I get crickets because any resistance to getting the cheapest deal possible means they move on hoping to find another easy deal instead.
Just curious if this is something others are experiencing. IMO, if someone wants a good deal, they should be willing to engage with a seller and negotiate some. Am I wrong in thinking this? What sayest LRH?