jimmy462 Offline Upload & Sell: On
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cocosphere wrote:
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I personally fail to see how the "gear flippers" are making a ton of money here unless they are scammers, who we can all agree need to be eliminated as much as is possible. We all have to pay yearly to buy and sell & the seller is always going to pay the shipping and the Paypal fees in some form or another for every transaction. I have lost money on every single lens I have posted for sale here.
>snip<
Hi cocosphere,
I appreciate the insights from your personal experiences, and I appreciate your time and efforts for sharing those here. I'll reserve my comments to the snippet above.
I'm always mindful that folks coming to internet boards arrive with their own unique level of experience, ability, character and motivations. As fellow forum posters we are all tasked with being able to discern, to the best of our abilities, the who's and why's of other folks' postings. Are they noobs or old-hacks? Are they genuine or are they hucksters? Are they forthcoming or are they deceptive? And on and on it goes, dialoging back-and-forth, everyone trying to figure the other person out, everyone looking to find their comfort level, each of us trying our best. And none of us are perfect, and online dialoging is a game of give-and-take, and push-and-pull, and patience-and-"well, packing it in".
Feedback is a two-way street, and more...my opinions, another's opinions, and lots of other folks' opinions. Okay, maybe it's more like a freeway. With some luck, and a fair dose of communication and critique, feedback can be a useful tool to help improve a forum's environment for all users.
On the B&S board, where real money and real gear are involved, both buyers and sellers have legitimate concerns about the practices, behaviors, integrity, and motivations of each other. Having a feedback mechanism for such a board is, to me, vital...folks from either buyer or seller perspective need to be heard. We may or may not like what the other side has to say but clearing the air, sorting through difficulties and settling deals-gone-awry all need forum space. I'll argue that it makes for a healthier and more vibrant forum experience all around...I consider it "consumer advocacy" for both sides.
As for my own perspectives, I come here to put voice to my buyer's experiences...I shop for my best prices and deals when I'm in the market for a specific item, and I am quite literally perplexed when I see asking prices for used gear that are greater than what can be found through certified dealer rebates or incentives...ergo, my above comments. That the concept of "losing money on used consumer gear" is anathema to some sellers, well, I "get" that...they just shouldn't be surprised when I look at them with that same queer look I'd give them if they were trying to sell me their slightly used car for more than what a new one would cost me down the street at the dealer's.
Folks come here to advise how to be smart sellers, and some folks come here to advise how to be smart shoppers.
Anyhoo, thanks again for sharing your experiences, they gave me some things to be more considerate towards. That more folks shared your sensibilities the B&S board would be that much improved! Well, IMHO.
Jimmy G
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