Warning leads to limited access of Classifieds forum

[Robbie Smolinsky]

WHAT ABOUT A FEEDBACK THREAD?

I've seen this done on other forums, and while it can't safeguard against every situation, it offers an in-house (or in-forum) solution to buyers and sellers. Basically it would all be one thread, stuck to the top, which people post continuously to and individuals posts would look something like this:

Seller/Buyer: Joe Schmoe (this is the other person's name)
Feedback: Positive/Negative/Neutral
Item(s) Bought/Sold: Camera, lights, etc
Comments: Joe sent the item lightening quick and everything was just as he described, I would deal with him again in a second!!

I know this wouldn't necessarily help with this particular situation, but it may get people thinking twice about dealing with new sellers who are not on this list (once it is established and has been around for a while) and additionally might make it a bit easier for established forum members to sell to newbies without having a billion questions asked for "security" reasons.

Also, with this setup, I could search threads for "Joe Schmoe" in the Classifieds section and pretty easily see his feedback in one place.

I dunno....maybe it could help??

[K. Forman]

It couldn't hurt. Feedback is the way to weed out questionable sellers on ebay. I'm also very cautious of sellers who have only sold once or twice, because those one or two sales could be bogus.

But, in this case, how many people are going to be selling enough to make it worth while? Most folks are selling their old equipment after updating, or going into another field. Or when their Granddaughter hurts them too bad to use the heavier equipment... Sorry Don, I do hope you're feeling better ;)

In Don's case, he is know pretty well around here. That is because of his posts, and the equipment is likely well cared for. I have bought from other members, based on the fact I know them... even if it is only through these forum posts. I would not bother to question any of the major players. Their posts say volumes about them.

[John Sandel]

I recommend against creating anything as involved as a dedicated feedback thread or forum at this site. The very informality of the "Classifieds" forum is, I think, what limits its scope & its potential encroachment on what I perceive to be our main purpose here: learning. The profit I reap from the dialogue here is not directly about lining my wallet.

Sales which evolve (e.g., to include other items than were advertised, or which fall into dispute &c) beyond the limited scope of the "Classifieds" forum are best left to the realm of private emails or other offsite contact. Hence the informal custom I've seen here of "going once, twice, thrice" before items are sent away to Ebay or some other, more-commercial venue.

It's Chris's call, of course (after, I assume, some confab with his crew of wranglers). But inter-member commerce doesn't seem to me to be the main purpose of this site; there are plenty other places for that.

[Greg Boston]

I had been thinking about making this same suggestion to Chris after seeing a recent influx of new boots posting classified ads. Not that they are bad people, but I just want to get a warm, fuzzy about the forum members I do business with here. No problems so far, but it only takes one bad transaction to ruin it.

Perhaps it should be limited to minimum of 1yr membership and 200 total posts. That might seem harsh to some, but it's just what I was thinking would be my personal 'trustworthy' setpoint. As for feedback, if it could be added to the user profile in some way, I would be for it. I don't want to see the ebay system, it's too much administrative overhead. Trust is paramount to keeping this site what it is.

These are just my thoughts.

-gb-

[Bob Costa]

I don't think a severe limitation is needed. 200 posts??? a Year?? Come on, guys, we have good people that have been around that don't even have 100 posts, and I thank them for not cluttering up the board. If you even made it a minimal requirement that someone have 5 posts and 30 days, it would get rid of the real abusive postings from hit-and-run scammers. Or maybe limit it to one posting every 30 days. Or just leave it as is, I can always tell by the Classifieds that the board is working. :)

[Josh Hibbard]

Heh, yeah I agree 200 is a bit excessive; to put it in context, of the current ten latest for sale postings, two would be allowed. It would stifle the classifieds to the point of uselessness, the way it stands its one of the first forums I check after Wedding and Event videography.

not letting "new boots" post sounds reasonable, but other than that this sounds like airport security post 9/11 way too much inconvenience for the potential of a little added security.

[Greg Boston]

Thanks for the feedback John and Josh. John, you are right about having good people here that don't come close to the numbers I suggested. We were ALL new boots at one time. Yeah, on second though, I think we should leave it as is. No restrictions. Let the buyer beware. If a problem arises, you can almost bet it won't be one of the forum regulars because they are going to want to still be welcome here.

That's why I never suggested limits to Chris in the first place. But, after someone else brought it up in this thread, I just was reflecting on some of my gut reactions to some of the classified postings I have seen lately.

Let's all get back to buying and selling and let this thread die.

-gb-

[Marco Leavitt]

I think any kind of an eBay type rating system would be a big pain in the butt to implement. You already know if somebody shows up with 13 posts and wants to sell a DVX100 with a Chrosziel matte box for $2,500 and doesn't even know how to spell it, there's something fishy going on. I say it leave it like it is.

[John Sandel]

I'm with Greg & Marco.

[Roze Ann]

Just as any FYI... almost everyone on this site is terrific! I found wonderful info and much help during the original search process and when I had to sell due to our move and my dad being very ill.

However I purchased a Firestore from someone on this forum that was less than the 'excellent' FS as advertised. It had been 'customized' in an undesirable way. I had to buy another battery to make it work and buy parts that were broken to make it complete. Sadly this person thought he was in the right and acted like I was crazy. I gave up, sold the thing and chucked it up to "the tuition of life".

Some people could use a good lesson in honor. My 2 cents... overall though you are safe with folks from this forum with higher numbers of posts. Also look at the content and their tone. That will give you some guidance. Good luck & God Bless! Roze

[Rod Finch]

when I bought this cam, I knew nothen of how it works I asked him about the focus he told me there was a macro button that you can turn on and off ... and in my reserch I find there is no macro button, and then I try to find out where and when he bought it only to read the warrnty that says 90 days from the org buy.... he never said that it could not be used but was selling it as a bonus if it breaks you can get it fixed
I still don't know where he bought it, or when.
thats when he stoped replying to my e-mails
and what made me feel so stupid I went out of my way to get him the cash for it


I will never buy used again

[Scott Lancaster]

yeah, I usually don't buy used off the internet... just makes me nervous... unless I "know" the person from being a regular on a site. However, that said, I have had great succes selling MY used stuff on this and other sites... have not had any problems from buyers... I probably just jinxed myself. I like the openness of these classifieds and would hate to see restrictions, but I understand that something might be necessary... It would absolutley be horrible to pay $1,200 for a camera and it's broken... unless it was a DVCPRO Varicam or something... then suddenly $1,200 doesn't sound so bad :)

[Hugh DiMauro]

I have sold a few items on here to various DV Infoers and they seemed satisfied. Gosh, I hope if I ever had a disatisfied buyer he/she would tell me immediately. I would rather eat the cost of my stuff then lose the respect of my DV Info peers. How about posting references if you have them?

[Sam Forbes]

I would have to disagree with setting any limits. The fellow being acused here was registered a long time ago. Even having a high number of posts doesnt really mean anything. Just need to be very cautious. ALWAYS speak on the phone first. One conversation can tell you alot. Alot of common sense and caution can go along way.

[Dan Mumford]

I had a young man on EBay try to beat me out of $1,700.00. When I sent him the phone number and address of his father, Sheriff, and District Attorney, he not only refunded my money, he sent an extra $250.00 for my inconvenience. I was lucky in that I have some experience as a process server and was able to track him down.

Most aren't that lucky. And some, if they do find the person, find out it would cost too much to try to recover it. Since then, any transaction of say over $200.00, I use escrow.com. They will hold the money until you receive the item and inspect it. If you need to return it, you tell them it is not acceptable, and they will return your money when the seller gets his item back. You can use the UPS tracking number as proof of where the item is. It costs a little but you can split the cost between you and it is better to lose a few dollars than a few thousand.

Dan