4 ms·

Craigslist is basically unusable in my area if you're selling something. 90%+ of the people who respond to you will express interest, chat about the item, set u

by SL61 4y ago

Craigslist is basically unusable in my area if you're selling something. 90%+ of the people who respond to you will express interest, chat about the item, set up a time to meet, and then no-show and ghost you. I don't know what they're getting out of it. It's not worth the time for me to go through 5-6 of those people for everything I want to sell. Maybe Facebook, etc., have this problem too, but I gave up on selling things locally. These days I just try to pass things on to friends and family.

SQueeeeeL 4y ago
I'm not trying to justify or validate this behavior, but in my own experience you basically want the ability to buy the item, but may change your mind. So you string a buyer along while you make up your mind. (personally, I've found myself doing this and then having to stop because the seller isn't some big mega corp, but just some random other working class friend)
spookthesunset 4y ago
Dunno why the downvotes when this is something I experience too.
- pavon 4y ago
  Yeah. All of my posts have some flake that is stringing me on but can't set a time to meet. Nearly a quarter of scheduled meets end in no shows. One was after I drove 30 miles to meet someone halfway. I won't meet more than 5 minutes out of my way after that - you want the item you can come get it.
  - bombcar 4y ago
    I got two kids bikes for the price of one and he dropped that one by half because I was the only one to say I was coming and actually show up.
  - jrnichols 4y ago
    my last craigslist experiences were similar, they either flaked or they showed up with less cash and said "how about a discount" even after the price was said to be firm. I've said "nope" and walked away from cash sales that try that nonsense. and the whole experience soured me on Craigslist for quite a while. also, around here there are a ton of small businesses that basically flood the listings with whatever they can. it's not even a person selling the stuff, it's a storefront.
mixmastamyk 4y ago
Make a time for the first ~ten responders to meet. First one to show with cash wins.
jdwithit 4y ago
We recently moved cross country and my wife tried to sell a lot of our stuff on Facebook marketplace so we didn't have to ship it. She dealt with an INSANE amount of bullshit. A lot of it was exactly as you said, they express interest and set up a specific time to come buy the item. Then just... don't, and we never hear from them again. Like 5-10 of these for the same piece of furniture or whatever. Then there were the obvious scams (I don't understand how they work, but they were clearly not legit buyers). Where someone's first message is a demand for your Venmo or Zelle account name, and when you respond with anything but what they asked for they just disappear. And finally there's the perverts who see a woman posting online and use it as an avenue to sexually harass her. Aggressive demands for address and phone number right off the bat, unsolicited nude photos, it's extremely gross. So, yeah, I would say the experience of posting on Facebook Marketplace is as bad or worse than anything else. Especially if you're a woman.
RedComet 4y ago
Yep. Seller: $5500 firm, no trades 10 people/day: Will you take a '83 suzuki 3 wheeler (stolen, doesn't run) and $97.24????

by SL61 4y ago

SQueeeeeL 4y ago

I'm not trying to justify or validate this behavior, but in my own experience you basically want the ability to buy the item, but may change your mind. So you string a buyer along while you make up your mind. (personally, I've found myself doing this and then having to stop because the seller isn't some big mega corp, but just some random other working class friend)

spookthesunset 4y ago

Dunno why the downvotes when this is something I experience too.

pavon 4y ago
Yeah. All of my posts have some flake that is stringing me on but can't set a time to meet. Nearly a quarter of scheduled meets end in no shows. One was after I drove 30 miles to meet someone halfway. I won't meet more than 5 minutes out of my way after that - you want the item you can come get it.
- bombcar 4y ago
  I got two kids bikes for the price of one and he dropped that one by half because I was the only one to say I was coming and actually show up.
- jrnichols 4y ago
  my last craigslist experiences were similar, they either flaked or they showed up with less cash and said "how about a discount" even after the price was said to be firm. I've said "nope" and walked away from cash sales that try that nonsense. and the whole experience soured me on Craigslist for quite a while. also, around here there are a ton of small businesses that basically flood the listings with whatever they can. it's not even a person selling the stuff, it's a storefront.

mixmastamyk 4y ago

Make a time for the first ~ten responders to meet. First one to show with cash wins.

jdwithit 4y ago

We recently moved cross country and my wife tried to sell a lot of our stuff on Facebook marketplace so we didn't have to ship it. She dealt with an INSANE amount of bullshit. A lot of it was exactly as you said, they express interest and set up a specific time to come buy the item. Then just... don't, and we never hear from them again. Like 5-10 of these for the same piece of furniture or whatever. Then there were the obvious scams (I don't understand how they work, but they were clearly not legit buyers). Where someone's first message is a demand for your Venmo or Zelle account name, and when you respond with anything but what they asked for they just disappear. And finally there's the perverts who see a woman posting online and use it as an avenue to sexually harass her. Aggressive demands for address and phone number right off the bat, unsolicited nude photos, it's extremely gross. So, yeah, I would say the experience of posting on Facebook Marketplace is as bad or worse than anything else. Especially if you're a woman.

RedComet 4y ago

Yep. Seller: $5500 firm, no trades 10 people/day: Will you take a '83 suzuki 3 wheeler (stolen, doesn't run) and $97.24????