NO TIME WASTERS!!

[Nathan S]

It's a thing. All the old rules of buying & selling are dying rapidly, and being replaced with adversarial, ego-driven posturing. I've a number of good mates that I met through buying and selling stuff over the years - I can't imagine how this is possible under the new system.

"No time wasters" is one of the (usually) less offensive ways this posturing it manifests itself.

At its best, it means "I'm short on time. I will talk sensibly with people who are interested, but I don't want the run around from dreamers who will offer 20% of my reasonable asking price".

At it's worst, it means "I'm more interested in showing everyone how damn awesome I am, and how much of a mad f$&king gangster I am. My ego has blinded me to the fact that I've overpriced the hell out of my shitbox, and I'll be an arrogant turd to anyone who doesn't stupidly offer me double my already inflated asking price. I'm that kind of arsehole".

To be fair, it's usually closer to the first than the second, but you have been warned.

[Hoony]

This is the reverse where the seller was a time waster

i went to buy a speedway bike back in late 80's and not knowing anything about speedway other than i wanted to do it i drove to other side of town about 1 hr away to look at what turned out to be a 2 valve jawa. i took cash and my trailer and a mate and i & he knew absolutely nothing at all about speedway bikes engines or the sport. any way the bike was in suburbia it was about 5pm in summer and very mild weather and daylight saving.

it looked in good condition and i was prepared to buy, so i said "can you start it" this bloke said "i won't start it unless you buy it" !
i repeated "can you start it so i can hear the engine to make my decision" he repeated "i won't start it unless you buy it" and this went back and forward for 5 mins with me getting really pissed at him, i said "look i have cash, you saw my trailer on the car, i am here to buy if its good" he refused to start it and i refused to buy it without hearing it, i gave him a serve called him an idiot and took off. my mate and i could not believe this forkstick.

i ended up buying a 4 Valve MkIV Weslake  some weeks later, which ended up being a much better bike than the ageing 2V jawa at the time.

[Tony Two Times]

80/20 rule!

I guess a lot of us...........ahem.......more mature gentleman are stuck in the 20.

Good for us. But more work for the seller.

Case in point.......

Just signed up for a salary sacrifice car for the missus. Lease dude struggled to understand why I wanted to know the total amount financed and the interest rate. Apparently they normally just include the repayment figures and "people just sign it".

They also apparently just sign up for the wheel and tire insurance, Premium Gold Protection Pack (whatever that is), Roadside Assistance Pack and all the other stuff that I assume the salesman gets commission on.

Saved $3000 on the price of the car buy making him strip it all out. He wasn't happy. But I am :-)

[80-85 husky]

was perusing some electrical goodies in "Hardly Normal" the other day and see this guy with rent something or other on his shirt all over some punters looking at a computer for 850 bucks..just a std lappy. I then see the notice about renting has in fine print - Full price 1890 bucks (or thereabouts ) Far out Brussels...what a mark up over two years too I rekon...unreal!!! no wonder he was on turbo mode for a sale

[crash n bern]

People don't know how to buy any more. Not privately anyway. The need a salesman to tell them it's a good deal and push them to sign.

Selling VMX bikes isn't too bad because most of the people buying have been wheeling and dealing for years. Try selling something modern and you'll be surprised at the amount of people who will stuff you around. They are so used to expecting customer service that they expect it from private sellers.

I had to sell a late model car for a mate who had gone OS. I was traumatised by the experience.

One buyer, who had made me take it to his mechanic and ran me around for a week, pulled out of the deal because he couldn't find the engine number. He wouldn't believe me because the number I showed him was on a barcoded sticker. Even though it matched the rego. He said he rang a wreckers and they told him it was up the front on top of the motor. He wouldn't believe me when I told him that the number he was pointing to was the casting number for the water pump.

 Or the bloke that emails me, explaining that he's in another state, hence why he's not calling. Wants to haggle a deal before he comes up as he doesn't want to waste his time. As the rego's due that week and he won't need it or a RWC, I cut him a deal figuring he'll come up on the weekend and get it.
Ha, he tells me he has no money but if the bikes still for sale when he does he'll keep it in mind.

Or the amount of texts and emails that I answer and get no reply on.

So I understand why people say texts and emails won't be answered. But most of all 'No time wasters'.

If an add says 'no time wasters' good chance it might be a straight up seller who's happy to deal with a straight up buyer.

[Mike52]

Guy up here in sunny QLD puts an add up for a bunch of bikes on FB.
I'm interested in one and am keen so I message him on FB and just to make sure ring the number he has provided.
No answer on either approaches , damm.
Looking at FB today and the guy has changed the advert.
Then I get a message from him clarifying the model year of the one I want , this is the reply I've been waiting for a couple of days.
I message him back and say that when I sent that message the price was [ this much ] and asked if this was still the case.
No reply even though he is still on line [ you can tell ]
Now I'm waiting again.
Will give this one a miss , funny thing is that I think I know him from way back and he wasn't a wanker back then.
Maybe he just grew into it.
Time waster.

[Nathan S]

As a buyer or seller, if there's been more than a couple of messages back and forward without TALKING on the phone, then you've probably got a time waster.

I always give my number straight up. The non-time wasters will give theirs back 99% of the time. The others aren't necessarily time wasters, but it's not a good start.

[FourstrokeForever]

And then there's the forum member who says he wants to buy what I've got and organises a day to come and get it.

So mugens here takes the day off work waiting for ol mate to arrive. By lunch time I hadn't heard from him So I call to find out how far away he is. Said he had to go somewhere else first and then to me.

Well, dickhead never showed nor even bothered to call to say he's not coming.

Now that is a time waster.....And a waste of oxygen in my book!

 

[skypig]

As a buyer or seller, if there's been more than a couple of messages back and forward without TALKING on the phone, then you've probably got a time waster.

I always give my number straight up. The non-time wasters will give theirs back 99% of the time. The others aren't necessarily time wasters, but it's not a good start.

I'd agree. If you can't talk on the phone, the "caution" light illuminates.

There are some bargains around in "modern toys" if you are one of the shrinking group who saves up for purchases, or even arranges for reasonably priced finance.
So many people seem to walk in to a dealer, and ride/drive away. When they realize that the purchase does not in fact make them a legend or chick magnet (as assured by the salesman) and reality/wife kick in, they try and off load it on Gumtree or Bike/Carsales. That's when they find the buyers that are willing to sort out their own finance and buy privately are a relatively small group. A buyers market.

[VMX247]

Guy up here in sunny QLD puts an add up for a bunch of bikes on FB.
I'm interested in one and am keen so I message him on FB
No answer on either approaches , damm.
I message him back and say that when I sent that message the price was [ this much ] and asked if this was still the case.
No reply even though he is still on line [ you can tell ]

Facebook has 2 different message systems.
your friends and others.
the seller may not be aware of this system.
Cheers

[Nathan S]

Guy up here in sunny QLD puts an add up for a bunch of bikes on FB.
I'm interested in one and am keen so I message him on FB
No answer on either approaches , damm.
I message him back and say that when I sent that message the price was [ this much ] and asked if this was still the case.
No reply even though he is still on line [ you can tell ]

Facebook has 2 different message systems.
your friends and others.
the seller may not be aware of this system.
Cheers

Always say "Inboxed you" or similar.
If they say they can't see it, tell them to try to send you a message. Like always, this will be too hard for some people, but they're usually the people that will make your life incredibly difficult anyhow.

[djr]

Guy up here in sunny QLD puts an add up for a bunch of bikes on FB.
I'm interested in one and am keen so I message him on FB
No answer on either approaches , damm.
I message him back and say that when I sent that message the price was [ this much ] and asked if this was still the case.
No reply even though he is still on line [ you can tell ]

Facebook has 2 different message systems.
your friends and others.
the seller may not be aware of this system.
Cheers

Always say "Inboxed you" or similar.
If they say they can't see it, tell them to try to send you a message. Like always, this will be too hard for some people, but they're usually the people that will make your life incredibly difficult anyhow.

I have never had any luck with any buying/selling deals that involve Facebook, the average Facebook user cannot reply to any messages because he has far more important things to do - like posting a photo of his dinner , that sort of thing

[Nathan S]

I don't think the dinner photo people are the selling dirt bike types.
FB is a broad church - it welcomes all the different types of forkwits.

[Mike52]

Guy up here in sunny QLD puts an add up for a bunch of bikes on FB.
I'm interested in one and am keen so I message him on FB
No answer on either approaches , damm.
I message him back and say that when I sent that message the price was [ this much ] and asked if this was still the case.
No reply even though he is still on line [ you can tell ]

Facebook has 2 different message systems.
your friends and others.
the seller may not be aware of this system.
Cheers

The phone worked fine but nobody answered .
This was 5mins after the add was placed.

[Mick D]

Its easy to get pissed and hard to stay calm sometimes, a real virtue indeed  
Particularly in a world full of grubs, dickheads, thieves and time wasters

Trying to buy something out of Canada ATM,
Exy,,,, a couple of weeks and  seller still won't reply to postage quote requests??
Although he advertises "Will ship International, Please ask for quote"
It will only be worthwhile with Canada post rates if he agrees surface mail, Even offered a mere $29C below asking, to invite communication?
DH is still no show??,,,,

Calm blue ocean, Calm blue ocean, Calm blue ocean, Calm blue ocean, Calm blue ocean, 

Arrh doesn't matter, no hurry for that one I guess although it is a Groovy as far as Groovy goes.