Some things irritating in the classified

[peterleyenaar]

1 No Picture included in the post, everyone has the means to take a picture of their instrument.

2 No price included in the post, is it a secret ? should we just guess at it ?

3 No reply to email inquiries, a simple sold, or not interested reply, would be courteous.

4 Minor irritant, posting in the wrong category.

5 Unwarranted references to Loyd Loar ,

6 Descriptions the size of a bible, what does it all mean ?

None of the above promote selling of the item for sale, except perhaps an overly large desription

[Mike Sutterfield]

They don't bother me.They just don't capture my interest.... Which is a problem for the seller. On the other hand, some items sell themselves. Some instruments and accessories are desired enough that serious buyers will dive deeper for more info. Weeds out the window shoppers. I myself make impulsive purchases occasionally when my means allow. Pictures and good descriptions sometimes sway me into purchases I might have been able to live without. It's definitely in the sellers interest to put in the effort.

[yankees1]

It always makes me wonder when an ad states that this is the best sounding mandolin the seller has played with wonderful highs and a great lower end. Why do they want to sell it ?

[Mike Bunting]

Why would I expend the time to worry about what someone puts in an ad. I'd be more likely to be irritated by a poster who can't spell Lloyd.

[bobby bill]

1 No Picture included in the post, everyone has the means to take a picture of their instrument.

This is not really true. I do not have a digital camera or cell phone and wouldn't know how to use one if I did.

The only minor annoyance I have found is when I see something I have have been looking for, click on it, and it turns out the ad is looking for the same thing and NOT selling it (which cannot be discerned from the headline).

I wish all life's annoyances were this petty.

[Mandobar]

How about the people who ask for a zillion pics and never buy anything from you. (I've had a few repeat offenders, now I just ignore them). It cuts both ways. If I we're buying a strap or a case, I might not need a picture.

[Canoedad]

275+ words, all in capital letters, set out in 1 paragraph

[GreenMTBoy]

Just saying,
I have had nothing but positive dealings with the classified .
The few things I listed for sale ,sold very quickly .
The few thing I have bought have turned out very positive ,Great deal, nice honest people .

Tom

[bratsche]

Ditto, Tom!

bratsche

[Marvino]

i guess I like the ads to show price also.
I notice that a lot of the time they only have one picture and its the back of the mandolin.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Quote - "Descriptions the size of a bible, what does it all mean ?". = Mandolin brothers is selling it !.
Some of the things the op.posted are irritating in a minor way. What really bugs me are the photos of the instrument showing only the Headstock - is the rest of the instrument missing ?. A decent photo + short description giving age,any defects, the price & contact details, should be the minimum required to entice a buyer. I understand Bobby Bill's point,but a good photo.can be a winner when it comes down to getting the sales pitch over,
Ivan

[Bluetickhound]

Scroll on, buddy...

Don't be scrollin' so slow....

[AlanN]

Why would I expend the time to worry about what someone puts in an ad. I'd be more likely to be irritated by a poster who can't spell Lloyd.

Just got this.

or irritated by a poster who can't spell The.

[Tobin]

This is not really true. I do not have a digital camera or cell phone and wouldn't know how to use one if I did.

That's understandable, but surely you would agree that it would be quite a leap of faith for someone to purchase a used mandolin from a stranger without so much as a photo of it? At the very least, you'd be selling yourself short (in the literal sense) by not investing in a camera. I rather tend to think that the one-time expense of a digital camera would pay for itself in the sale of the mandolin, as compared to the hit you'd have to take by selling it without a photo.

Cameras are cheap. If you have a smart phone, you likely have a perfectly decent camera already. And if you're capable of turning on a computer and logging onto the internet, you're capable of learning how to use a digital camera.

I'm sure I'm not alone in this, but if an ad doesn't have a photo, I assume the seller isn't really that interested in selling it, or there's something wrong with it that he doesn't want a potential buyer to see. So I move on. I may be passing up a perfectly good mandolin in the process, but it's just not worth the hassle or risk to purchase from a seller who won't put a photo in his ad.

[Jim Garber]

How about the people who ask for a zillion pics and never buy anything from you. (I've had a few repeat offenders, now I just ignore them). It cuts both ways. If I we're buying a strap or a case, I might not need a picture.

I always post my photos on a link so that anyone can look at photos. That way I do not have to individually answer window shoppers with multiple emails.

[Mandobar]

You are lucky, Jim, because regardless of pics I still get the shoppers who want to see even more, perhaps a video or an mp3…..have mercy

[Denny Gies]

If it makes you feel better, get it off your chest. Or, take two aspirin and call me in the morning.

[bobby bill]

That's understandable, but surely you would agree that it would be quite a leap of faith for someone to purchase a used mandolin from a stranger without so much as a photo of it?

I absolutely agree. I'm not much interested in ads without a few pictures (although not irritated by the lack thereof).

I was just challenging the assumption that everyone has digital camera's, cell phones or smart phones. I don't even have a computer at home. I just have one dumb phone (i.e., land line) which I don't answer because it is most assuredly a telemarketer.

[shawnbrock]

Yep, I'm all to familiar with the repeat offenders who ask for a zillion pics... What got me when I sold my Northfield was when I set up a Photobucket account thinking I would bypass the need for emailing 10 pics to everyone and his brother, and many people couldn't understand how to copy and paste a link to view the pictures. The thing that got me worse on that transaction was a guy who said to hold it for him and he wanted it, and then never sent payment. Thus, I had to repost, and deal with more of the same.

I agree also with the fact that you should put a price in the add. As for writing long descriptions I plead guilty. I try to answer the questions before they are asked. In truth it don't help any...

I never post an add without putting up a video. With a video the mandolin will sell it's self if it is a good mandolin.

[Astro]

How dare anyone actually want to see and hear an instrument before deciding whether or not they may want to buy it. Why, they must think we live in an age where you could just push a button on your phone and send an image across the airwaves right into someone elses home in a matter of seconds.

And the nerve of these people, demanding to know the price of an instrument before deciding whether they are interested.

Where do all these ridiculous people come from ?

[Petrus]

How dare anyone actually want to see and hear an instrument before deciding whether or not they may want to buy it. Why, they must think we live in an age where you could just push a button on your phone and send an image across the airwaves right into someone elses home in a matter of seconds.

Very sci-fi. Next thing you know we'll have flying cars and colonies on the moon.

[Nick Gellie]

Well I don't mind cafe folks wanting to know everything about a mandolin for sale. I think that it is a good idea to give them sound clips. I have provided everything they need and then you hear little after that. Lots of promises but no take ups.

That is what one has to put up with any mandolin for sale on the cafe classifieds.

[Mandobar]

try dealing with someone who after you supply the pictures, videos, etc. takes delivery, leaves it in their office over the weekend, (hey, I go home early on Fridays), because they did not want to wait for UPS, then keeps it three days (hey, I did not get my 48 hour approval period) and then asks for an additional discount (broached like this, "now how much do you really want for this mandolin?")……….and when you say, "please send it back", you get it back with the action is so low it buzzes and they've had someone change the strings and do a "set up." you get it back shipped ground, but even before then the guy is bugging you for his money. That's where I'm coming from.

I'd say for every person who answers an ad, there are at least two time wasters. I don't mind spending the time, but really, don't ask someone to go above and beyond when you have no real interest in buying something.

[Nick Gellie]

Mandobar, That is stretching the seller-buyer relationship a bit far. Maybe you should write down what exactly is entailed in a 48-h test period so that he or she knows that it is to come back exactly the way it was sent.

[Mandobar]

I believe that the buyer knew what the seller-buyer relationship entailed (he is an attorney). So, while people should and do know better, it does not curtail their bad behavior.