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Thread: Question airgun selling ethics

  1. #1
    Member DocGadget's Avatar
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    Question airgun selling ethics

    This happened to a friend of mine on the other forum and I wanted to have your opinions about it.
    Gentleman 1 is selling an airgun
    Gentleman 2 wants to buy said airgun (pretty easy to follow up to now huh)

    Buyer contacts seller about the gun, seller informs him it's already sold.
    A little while later the seller contacts the potential buyer offering the gun to him because the original buyer is a no show and states a price for the gun.
    Potential buyer ask if he may get a small price reduction.
    Seller doesn't want to lower the price of his gun so sells it to a third buyer.
    Now the second buyer writes back asking what is happening with the gun.
    The seller informs the buyer he didn't want to lower his price and sold to another gentleman.

    See anything wrong here? Should the seller have contacted buyer number 2 informing him he didn't want to lower his price before selling to buyer number 3?
    Can you guess who I am errr I mean my friend... is in the story?

  2. #2
    Administrator AirGunEric's Avatar
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    I don't know if this is an ethics question, or more a courteousness issue (?) I think the time that elapsed between communications might play a part in this sort of thing.

    If this were a store/professional seller- then a response to the lower-price question should be considered appropriate in order for the potential buyer to judge what they can/want to do- but for a single-item seller it gets a bit 'up in the air'- their motivation is to get the gun/item out the door, preferably at their asking price- so if two emails are received in relatively short sequence (i.e. close together) I can see someone just picking the one that was offering the asking price. Is this 'ethical' ? Not sure. Is it courteous? Maybe not so much.

    If there was alot of time between this lower offer and then the submission from another potential buyer at asking price with no response to the lower-offer-buyer- then I think it becomes more of an "ethics" question as it seems likely the potential seller was just waiting people out to see if any more offers came in without letting you know what was going on- i.e. fishing. "Fishing" is never cool and tends to aggravate everyone in my experiences dealing with these sorts of things.
    I'd say I care- but I'd probably be lying...


  3. #3
    Member Dukemeister's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DocGadget View Post
    Should the seller have contacted buyer number 2 informing him he didn't want to lower his price before selling to buyer number 3?
    Like Eric said ( or maybe just my interpretation), if seller is not a store or dealer then its up to both parties to negotiate in good faith. Neither is obligated to the other - until an agreement is reached at which point it is ethical to complete the deal. So if the seller didn't accept your offer then it is void and if you didn't accept his counter offer it is also void. Communication is a good thing, and I think that's what's missing in this case. I recently made an offer on a rife, seller never responded yay or nay. I would have been best for him to just respond and say "nay".. or make a counter offer, that's the way price negotiation works. I haven't tried it with an on-line dealer but I have done it in stores. An honest offer is just that, if the seller doesn't want to accept it he has the option to decline, make a counter offer, insist on his asking price. It's the way the economy works in many parts of the world and is a valuable skill. Cheer up, there's a better deal waiting 'round the corner.....
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  4. #4
    Member ARSIE's Avatar
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    I learned long ago that if I really want a for sale item. I don't fool around and I pay the asking price. If I throw a lower price at the seller than they are asking, and the item gets sold to someone else. It wasn't really a must have on my part.
    Ya Snoozes, Ya Loses.

  5. #5
    Member daguasta's Avatar
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    ive been on both sides of the issue
    but when i sell:
    1st) i try to go 1st come 1st serve (if offering full price) and inform if they are in line in case of no follow thru on the first person
    2nd) on offers lower than my asking price i go with the highest offer, but i will answer the lower offer with a "i have an offer that higher than yours but if does not go thru i will let you know" type of response

    but my thing is i like having good communication....its the polite thing to do regardless
    Everyone is entitled to an opinion ...but only mine is right!
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  6. #6
    Member Bartman's Avatar
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    I recently had a 'good' experience on the other forum. A gun came up for sale and I PM'd right away with an offer. In the meantime, another buyer made an offer which was higher than mine. The seller contacted me back, with all the details, and said I could have it if I matched the other offer. And, he quoted, as I was the first offer, I could have it even if I matched. That was a gentleman, but I declined the offer, but feel good that I was allowed to be first choice. I will never forget that.

  7. #7
    Member DocGadget's Avatar
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    The thing is he didn't make me a counter offer... or even took the time to reply, he just didn't reply, turned around and sold it to someone else.
    I'm also a believer in good communication.
    Like Arsie said it wasn't a must have otherwise I would have paid the full price.
    Maybe next time

  8. #8
    Member ARSIE's Avatar
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    There would be no point or reason to make or allow you to counter offer when he already had someone willing to pay his original asking price. In fact by doing so he would be doing the person willing to pay the original asking price a disservice. Courtesy says that he should have taken the time and replied to you that the item had been sold for the asking price.

  9. #9
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    Usually when I sell something online, I put the price I want for it. Unless I say OBO or something to that effect, I am usually firm in my price. Most of the time I don't respond to lowballers, and I can understand that your friend's price was probably not good enough for the seller.

    The seller should be able to ask whatever price, and if he find someone that is committed to buying with the price that he is looking for, why bother with a haggler. These are the people that agree to a price and still show up with less than the agreed price.

    It's fairly easy to sell airguns/real guns if you have a reasonable price and sometimes you get so many lowballers it's not worth responding. Besides, if they had money and had an intention to buy, they wouldn't be lowballing.

  10. #10
    Member Dukemeister's Avatar
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    We are all individuals with different tolerance levels for these things. IMO, if you state a price and say "firm" buyer should respect that and not make a lower offer. But if you put, "asking", "OBO" or any other qualifier you are open to offers. What you may think is a lowball may in fact be a reasonable offer, maybe not one you would accept but it may be reasonable. Case in point, on the other Canadian airgun forum, I have seen a few guns go up for sale initially at a price, even firm, then a few days or so later it is reduced, and maybe reduced again; the original price was evidently too high (gun didn't sell). But the final selling price "could" have been offered in the first instance and "would" have been a reasonable offer.... so things like this happen. I have made many deals on *that* forum that were for a lot less than initial asking price, no one forced me to buy or seller to sell....it is pure "marriage to a princess" , ie you offer your honour, she honours your offer, and after that... just on her and off her...
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