Buy/Sell/Trade Forum

I recently received a Trade Proposal asking for 2 1974 Hank Aaron cards for 6 early 80s cards.  The value of the offered cards was 10% of the 2 Aaron cards.  I declined the offer and explained to the other member that most of us here did not worry too much about equal value in trades but still looked for a fair trade.  I told him that his offer was too far off for me to ask and that he had nothing in his trade list that I could counter with.  The reply I got was "It was worth a try."

Really? This member has been on the site for all of 3 months. I hope this is not the kind of members we are beginning to attract. With the recent heightened awareness of scammers on the site, it is worth all of us to continue to be vigilant for these less than honest members.

Yes I know that anyone can make an offer no matter how unreasonable it may be as I always have the option to decline the offer.  But I would hope that as true collectors, we respect each other and don't propose offers that are insulting to the other's intelligence.  I will not identify the member who proposed the offeras he did nothing wrong other than insult my intelligence as a collector but should I see his ID come up in future offers, I will most likely decline.

I haven't received a trade proposal that was as unbalanced as sandyrusty's, but I have recieved some that have walked the line. I will usually agree to a trade offer even if I feel it is a little unbalanced in the other traders favor because I choose to believe that all trades are from true collectors and are made with honest intentions.

My personal philosophy in proposing trades is to try and weight the trade in favor the other trader. For example, if I someone has 10 cards on their trade list that I want, I might offer 15 cards in return. I try to match years/value as much as possible and then offer a little extra. If I want a vintage card and I don't have a vintage card to offer in return, I might offer a modern card(s) with 5x the "book value". Bottom line, like Godfathers, I try to make an offer you can't refuse.

I have stuck with this site for as long as I have because (1) It is a great database with awesome features (2) more importantly; this a great community of collectors/traders. Hopefully we can maintain this great community with honest and open discussions about proper trade etiquette and hold members accountable for bad trading practices.

"It's was worth a try"

This is the philosophy a lot of people employ whenever there is room for negotiation. Best offer - go as low as you can go, and see where you wind up. It's a technique that is taught in courses. How "nice" it is could be debated.

There is trying to score a bargain, and there is trying to take advantage of someone. They are different. One involves respect, the other doesn't. I'm all for bargains - show respect.

It was woth a try to offer the lowest possible offer to someone on COMC. If they accept, great. I have found that even the lowest possible offer isn't where I want to the price to be - I don't make the offer. The price is good - I make the purchase. (Same goes for anywhere else negotiation can occur.) I think the big key here is respect.

If I wanted to make a trade I knew was lopsided, I would include a message stating something like "What else can I offer to even this out?" Respect.

if I get an offer like that, I will post in public here so others may be aware

mark

Ever since I started collecting cards again, I have found this site to be invaluable.  So much so that if this site ever went away, I might even stop collecting as much.  It's a shame to see the site being targeted by scammers or new members who are for a lack of a better term, weirdos.  There was one guy Vrooomed had a lenthy "discussion" with who was not only uploading a checklist with just one card, but they did it in error.  Instead of saying woops my bad, they proceeded to argue and use non-conversational vocabulary to try and sound like they were better and more sophisticated than everyone else.  This member hasn't logged on the site in a while, but they used to also have some anti feminine social rant making fun of diversity and inclusion on their profile page.

Anyways, I gladly pay the $5 per month to have this site ad free, and I wouldn't mind it one bit if they made that $5 a requirement to even have a profile on the site.  Might weed out some of the nonsense.  

As someone fairly new to the site and after a 25 year hiatus to the scene, can I say that 99% of the trades i have propsed and/or participated in i have found the participants to be very willing to negotiate and counter.  As someone who will be green in establishing values of cards I am willing to part with to cardws i would like to have, i dont feel that most of the people are trying to rip someone off.  If im, under or feel i am unsure, i have no problem asking the other person to state what they seem is fair.  

That being said, My first trade I attempted was a PWE (but i didnt know what PWE meant until after).  I took the pkg to the ups store and got a price in shipping.  I relayed that price and the person lost it on me.  I am more knowledgeable on how to ship more cost effective now.  I feel if we all look to help out people with the same diligence I have recieved from most of the people on this site.  Trades and counters will not only go smoother, but be expected.  

All in all my experience on this site has been truly positive and enjoyable.  Look forward to many more trades and counters.  

I may be guilty of a situation similar to some described above. I proposed a trade for someone that had the 1993 Topps Jeter RC on their tradelist, and offered up a handful of cards for them. For me, it was a "let's see what happens." If I have something on my tradelist, I'm going to trade it; it means that I have no use for it, so please do me a favor and take it off my hands. However, I know not everyone is like that. In proposing this transaction, I did plainly state in the message that I understood if they were looking for more for the Jeter, but that I was offering everything I had that matched their wantlist, and I would understand if they wanted to decline the offer (they did). I felt that there was no ill-will intended or taken by either party, but I can certainly understand the frustration. 

Regarding members who join and immediately start making changes and arguing...nothing drive me more crazy. I love that we are a community of users and that we can all contribute. However, trying to walk in and completely change everything your way will do nothing except upset the people who spend so much time making this site what it is.

One last thing; I'm not opposed to the $5, but I would rather see an annual fee of somewhere around $20 or so. In all fairness, I don't know what the costs of running a website like this are, so perhaps that's too low and unrealistic. I'm really not sure. Just my two cents into the discussion. I hope my story about my trade offer up there doesn't discourage anyone from trying to trade with me!

Jason

Jason wrote: "...I did plainly state in the message that I understood if they were looking for more for the Jeter, but that I was offering everything I had that matched their wantlist, and I would understand if they wanted to decline the offer..."

And right there is the difference. You showed respect by ASKING. No problem there.

Agreed.  In my trade proposal, there was no message.  It is only when I declined that the individual said "It was worth a try." This tells me he knew the absurdity of the trade proposal yet sought to sucker someone in.

And yes, I am also sandyrusty.  The trade was offered to me under this ID.

I like to try and keep it 1:1 ratio most times, but also am more likey to trade in your favor, and will msg someone about making trades for more valuable cards instead of insulting them with a lousy "just to throw it out there" offer...