Online Selling Forum Do's and Dont's!

[Ukalali Solo]

I have done several online forum transactions with people from several forums and have never had a bad situation. Never had any issues with getting ripped off, shipping issues, only great sales/buys...

...however, I was just wondering for the sake of all of us. What kind of measures do you take into account when selling your gear. (i.e. trading information, contacting the buyer, general practices)

I'm hopefully going to sell my Single Recto soon to someone on the forum, and while I have no suspicions, I just want to make sure that my back is covered, as well as the buyer.

What do you guys recommend?

Thanks,
Felipe

 

[ToneAddictJon]

Exchanging phone numbers and actually talking with someone is a great first step. Also, making sure you save any and all emails sent back and forth with the terms of the sale and any arrangements made. If the situation seems off or you're uneasy about something (even if there's no reason to be) don't go through with it.
As a seller- make sure you get you're money before you ship.
As a buyer- make sure you have some sort of insurance you're getting your product- this can be as simple as having the sellers address and phone number, and make sure you keep track of every cent you spend and what it was on.
Trades are a little trickier, just make sure you have everything written down about the deal, addresses, and phone numbers.
I trust doing deals on this forum moreso than ebay, but I also personally know a few people in my area on this forum as well.
Just use common sense and be careful.

 

[Ukalali Solo]

I just wanted to double check something about the way paypal works. When I have sold things before, I always made sure I got the money beforehand, then shipped it, and then sent them a copy of the receipt/shipping tracking number.

Can a buyer cancel a payment on paypal after the seller has had paypal send them a check?

 

[ToneAddictJon]

They have to file a dispute, saying for instance "the seller didn't ship the item" etc, then paypal will come to you, then all you have to do if provide proof you shipped the item etc- I take pictures of any item I ship before it's packed, as it's packed, and after it's packed, I also keep all my records and only ship through fedex (you can set up an account with them and have all your shipping records in one place).

 

[jerseydrew]

Here are my "things" that I do when I'm selling something. I only accept USPS Money orders or Paypal. When I accept Paypal, I only ship to a confirmed address. Only deliver to a confirmed address, I repeat, only deliver to a confirmed address. If there's a dispute, and you ship to an unconfirmed address, you will lose the dispute every time! You'll be out your money and the item.

Also, regardless of how payment was made, you must have a "signature required", in order to have proof of delivery. I also take pictures of the "process" of me packing the product.

When I'm buying something, I only pay with Paypal using my AMEX card as payment. Even if I have money in my Paypal account, I will transfer it to my checking account and pay 100% of it by AMEX. I will only use a USPS money order if I know the seller. And when I say "know the seller", it means a fellow that I corresponded with before and has many posts.

When spending $500 or more, I will definitely call the person on the phone if I'm buying something. This way I can get a gut feeling and ask him questions. Sometimes I'll ask him questions that I already know the answer to, just to see if he's honest.

Sometimes, when buying, I will ask for a special picture of the item. When I say "special picture", I usually ask the seller to take a piece of paper and handwrite my name on it. Then I tell him to take the paper and place it on the item for sale. Then I ask for a picture of that. I do this to prove he actually has the item in his possession. If he can't comply with any of the above, I don't do the deal. If he doesn't have "the time" to take the picture, I don't have the time to pay him. It takes about 2 minutes to take a picture and it's no big deal.

 

[rvschulz]

if i am doing EBay ... i only accept Paypal, and only pay through Paypal using my AMEX. I also make sure that I see enough pics of the item and I usually asj the seller a question - generally to determine if it's a scammer. I have had much success.

on this board, needless to say ... everyone has been way beyond great. items have been packaged to the point that they could be delivered via catapult and not get damaged.

communications is the key.

 

[Ukalali Solo]

Where do you guys manage to find boxes that just happen to fit a head? I don't have any of the original boxes to my heads because my DR and SR were both bought used. The couple times I've shipped out guitars and amps, I just had the shipping center package it.

 

[clutch71]

In the two amps (one combo/one head) I've sold I always take them to a place like PAKMail, AIM, The UPS Store etc...and have them package it. This way I know the box and packaging is consistent with the requirements of the contents. That way in the event of a mishap (there's plenty I used to work at UPS years ago, poor handlers, bad loads, belt transition, and equipment that can destroy a box) the shipping company can't deny the claim for "improper packaging" a standard denial. It's worth the 15 bucks and I never pass this cost onto the consumer.

Siggy posted something about shipping the tubes seperately. I agree with that and would do so in the future. Even though I took great care in packaging the tubes seperate, shipping them in the combo/head, both times resulted in a damaged tube.

On a personal note, I make it a habit of not selling on forums. This is where I come for advice and knowledge and have got to know a lot of people on this board. I have had good luck selling two of the four pieces of Mesa equipment I've owned, actually made $200 dollars above what I paid for each item. I'd feel guilty about doing that here. Due to budget restraints the profit I made was necessary for future purchases. Both folks were very very happy with the equipment I sold and I mentioned the forum to both.

Just my .02

 

[ThunderMonkey]

Where do you guys manage to find boxes that just happen to fit a head? I don't have any of the original boxes to my heads because my DR and SR were both bought used. The couple times I've shipped out guitars and amps, I just had the shipping center package it.

So far, everybody has given some awesome pointers, kudos !

If you need a box to fit a head, you can always go to Guitar Center on Monday or Thursday nights (delivery days). If you ask, they're usually really good about hooking you up with pack material too, foam, bubble wrap, thick paper.
No peanuts, damn a peanut packer, I hate 'em with a vengeance :x

my .02

 

[Ukalali Solo]

Thanks, a lot of great info, hope more people than just myself have been reading this .

 

[CoG]

One HUGE thing to note. Buying/selling internationally is not that big a hassle as long as you use Paypal. The thing to make certain of is that the buyer, whoever it is, has some idea of what kind of customs charges he might get hit with. I have sold stuff to people in the UK, Austria, and Latvia(!) with no issues, but the poor bastard in Austria ended up paying almost 35 per cent of the price of the item in customs duties.