Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Forum News and Suggestions => Forum Announcements => Topic started by: Buzz on July 02, 2013, 07:22:12 AM
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We are seeking members' views in relation to the amount of public and private selling on the forum at the moment.
Would members prefer to see more of a restriction in selling, for example by asking members to become premium members (for a fee) if they wish to sell items, or are you happy where we are? We are seeking to improve the conversation on the forum, not to be a swap shop or free eBay.
The challenge the admin team have is policing the amount of selling there is as well as (being totally honest) looking out for the sponsors who fund the forum. Without their support there is no forum.
We have a number of members who use the forum as a free eBay, which we as an admin team are not keen on, and we have other members who seek to use the forum for personal gain in other ways.
We have tried to introduce the batmakers shed to promote start up bat makers, with the support of the sponsors.
The admin team remain uncomfortable at the level of selling via the PM system as it increases the risk of a dispute as well as people pm'ing other members offering products and services which they should be a forum sponsor to do in reality.
I hope that all makes sense, please can members (including sponsors) give their views, in a considered way, below...
just to confirm a ban on selling is not on the cards.
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You could limit the amount of item wanted threads/sale threads
EG. 2 fee sale/item wanted threads a month and you have to pay a fee for more?
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If you set a premium member fee, you would have to hide the for sale/wanted sections for non-premium members otherwise you would still be able to PM offers, etc.
I presume the main issue is the selling for profit. People are buying cheap and selling here without fees etc.
Could you set a limit of the number of sale threads/items per month per member? For instance, no more than 3 items per thread and no more than 3 threads open a a time?
Is there way to set a count of unlocked threads in the for sale section?
Can locked threads be hidden once complete?
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Have to admit I do get sick of seeing sale thread after sale thread after sale thread.. I don't mind the buying and selling idea it's just that it seems to take over the forum at times
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I've sold a couple of things on here, but don't see it as a marketplace. Too often I get the impression that some people do think of it that way - and there are definitely some names who I only ever see when attached to a "For Sale" thread, which seems to imply that the "race to 50 posts" remains a genuine issue.
Perhaps the criteria to sell should be changed. Why not make it membership for x months/a year PLUS 50 decent posts in the last 3 months to ensure that people are, whatever they might be doing as regards their selling activities, the people concerned are also being productive members of the wider community.
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How about restricting the number of Items Wanted and Sales posts per member per time period?
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I think there should be a quota per person. So rather than selling one item at a time and at a regular frequency. People build up numerous items and make a sale thread worth while.
I think if you introduce fee's that will be unfair on those who actually sell now and again to clear things out rather than those trying to make a quick buck.
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Agree with maximum number of items per month type arrangement. And having to pay a fee if you go above that.
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I don't see an issue with the amount of selling going on. If you want people to pay a membership that entitles them to be able to sell then fine I'm happy to do that as i did before. Many many people have asked for the premium membership to be re installed yet we've heard nothing.
Yes the forum needs sponsors, but it also needs members as well. As for keeping the forum sponsors happy? Which ones aren't happy? There is probably a handful that actually contribute to the forum, a couple that just sell and a majority you never hear from.
Above all This is a great friendly informative forum, lets try and keep it that way.
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The thing that attracted me to the forum 18months ago was the chance to gain knowledge on cricket. I don't think that this bit has left the forum.
Yes there is a sale section, I have used it 4-5times to sell and purchased a couple of times. But making it a fee paying system would stop the sale section all together as people may as well use ebay. So it would in effect wipe out the sale section. Good or bad thing im not too sure. I think I could sell things at a higher price on ebay, but i'd rather someone get the chance on hear first. If they want it of course.
But all in all it would be what is best for the forum, there is a large community on here, with a select few who make large contributions and for this I will always be on the forum sale section or not.
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Limit each members monthly items for sale?
No more than 3 items per month. no more than 2 items on sale at one time, no more than 1 post in the for sale thread.
If its for more business with the sponsors what about let the sponsors offer alternative products in the for sale threads. It's welcome in other areas of the forum?
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This is a tough one on many different levels so can only speak for myself.
In my time on the forum I have enjoyed the opportunity to discuss/debate issues related to matches (those we play in and Internationals), coaching/training/fitness (as a PE teacher), recovery/injuries (recovering from a lower back injury myself) and equipment (I LOVE bats but also softs/protection etc as an opening batsman) mainly because Cricket has been my preferred social outlet since coming to Prague as well as a love of a game which I've returned to after 25 years or so (was a semi-pro footballer) and which my father loved who is no longer with us but passed onto me.
The forum is an extension of my social outlet and the means so I'm on here everyday unless I don't have my laptop with me etc.
I've mainly bought on the forum i.e. bats/softs but have traded bats with other members with cash going one way or the other which I also enjoy too.
In terms of forum sponsors I've had a bat repaired by Vulcan but am yet to buy a new one (however did buy my beloved H4L 666, Laver & Wood Special Reserve (I'm about to trade) and used gloves from forumites) or have a custom one made specifically for me as well as softs/protection which has always been an intention e.g. my current Stretton Fox dilemma. I've bought from Uzi Sports directly off the internet on a number of occasions.
So the question is do I use the forum in the way it was intended to be used.
My team mates have bought bats and softs off me here in Prague so am spreading the word of different sponsors when the opportunity arises but most only buy when they need something.
I actually agree there's a lot of sales on here especially at the moment and some of the prices do seem on the higher side hence I feel the PMs to negotiate a lower price/better deal. The descriptions of items and their condition should always be completely accurate and honest so there is no chance of returns/refunds. I'm sure we've all been duped on e-bay before but it shouldn't happen here....
I've also paid paypal charges as have always 'gifted' which is a pain and prefer bank transfer as do still have a UK account but it depends on the seller.
I would be happy to support an upfront fee on those who want to sell on here if it goes to support the forum and doesn't deter sponsors as well as a monthly limit to the number of items. I also like the traded number and would encourage an honest appraisal of the trade/sale which may highlight 'scammers' if they exist on this forum. Shame on them...
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I don't find the selling intrusive. All adds to a lively site.
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I think you will find a lot of the for sale threads are from relatively new members... The long termers don't seem to be here to just sell
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A quota, would be good, and as well as moderating people that take it overboard.
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In my experience there are many other forums out there in the same boat - from motor cars forum to remote controlled car forums. But they don't really see it as an issue and have basically embraced it as the nature of internet forums. Not that you can't break new ground and find a formula that works. But it just does not sound so easy or it would have been done already...
If you make selling accessible to premium members only, you leave the door open for another forum to take your place. And I've seen that happen to another non-cricket forum. So a maximum number of sales per month would be better if something was to be introduced.
At the same time, sponsors need to "put in" to maximise sales from the forum. Simply paying and "turning up" just won't do. There is one bat maker on here who has had a massive surge in interest lately and it's solely because of him being very active on the forum. Same with retailers who have done well on this forum - they have participated, made contributions to quality content and have been rewarded.
Good luck with what you decide. I don't envy the admins here - it's a thankless task. But thank you for your continuing efforts in trying to improve the forum and asking for our feedback! :)
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maybe you could move the for sale section out of the forum and onto its very own page/section/forum (not sure how websites work)
in order to see the for sale section you need to have a separate password/log in to go in there which is provided by admin. This would clean up the main discussion forum as it would just be the discussions and sposnsors and there would be a separate fourm specifically for member to member selling.
You could also put a restriction on members who havent posted 10 times in a month or something like that so people dont get 50 posts then just stop posting and start selling.
its tricky.
How many people actually contribute to discussions on a regualr basis??? 25 or so?
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In my experience there are many other forums out there in the same boat - from motor cars forum to remote controlled car forums. But they don't really see it as an issue and have basically embraced it as the nature of internet forums. Not that you can't break new ground and find a formula that works. But it just does not sound so easy or it would have been done already...
If you make selling accessible to premium members only, you leave the door open for another forum to take your place. And I've seen that happen to another non-cricket forum. So a maximum number of sales per month would be better if something was to be introduced.
At the same time, sponsors need to "put in" to maximise sales from the forum. Simply paying and "turning up" just won't do. There is one bat maker on here who has had a massive surge in interest lately and it's solely because of him being very active on the forum. Same with retailers who have done well on this forum - they have participated, made contributions to quality content and have been rewarded.
Good luck with what you decide. I don't envy the admins here - it's a thankless task. But thank you for your continuing efforts in trying to improve the forum and asking for our feedback! :)
I pretty much echo smokem's sentiments.
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How about a pay 'if' you sell, so that you pay maybe 10% on items up to £50, 7.5% up to £150, and 5% on anything more! Still cheaper than eBay, and a darn sight friendlier!
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How about a pay 'if' you sell, so that you pay maybe 10% on items up to £50, 7.5% up to £150, and 5% on anything more! Still cheaper than eBay, and a darn sight friendlier!
Problem with that method is. How will you get the seller to pay the money that is owed?
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I did think of that, would be far too much effort on the admins behalf. I'm sure 80% of people would be hinest enough to pay up but the chasing would be pretty horrendous work!
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I did think of that, would be far too much effort on the admins behalf. I'm sure 80% of people would be hinest enough to pay up but the chasing would be pretty horrendous work!
I think a quota system will work. Or you pay a small fee to list an item. So it is then in your interest to maximise that sell as you will have to pay a fee each time.
For the topic to be created the admins will have had to receive their fee or it will be locked down. I know this will discourage sales but could be a viable option?
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FYI - my personal preference is for all for sale items to be pre-vetted by the Admin team who can then take a simple approach of declining people who are breaching the spirit of the forum or the selling rules - it would also limit the admin time needed.
The downside is that for sale items may take a little longer to get posted.
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I quite like the idea of stopping or at least reducing the number of for sale threads on here as I have found over the last few months the forum has become more like an ebay with added benefits, it will also put an end to any Brimble/Shaq episodes. On the flip side we all have far too much kit and the for sale section is a good way of getting rid of that odd bat you bought without the missus knowing (Fattus ;)), so limiting the number of sales allowed per member is one idea or alternatively raise the limit to 200, 250, 500 quality posts before members can sell, this way you would discourage any new members from racing to wahtever the level is now in order to offload kit. As for the "Items Wanted" section I probably wouldn't make any changes here as both forum members and sponsors can engage on this, however, if a member sells something here then that is there 1 sale for the month used up. Alternatively offer it to Forum sponsors for a week to answer any posts and if nothing comes from it then open it up to members.
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I'd like to see the posts raised to 250 or 500. At least it would deter the ones who are just here to flog their gear and seriously contribute to the forum
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So so many ideas none of them right or wrong.
There are a few member who now try and use it as a free ebay for sure.
The admin team do a decent job no doubt I don't like the idea of paying a fee although I can see the logic because some on here try to flog more than sponsors.
Good luck admin team I possibly favour buzz's idea.
Some of the for sale prices on here are laughable though so agree something needs doing the best recent sales are the gone in 60 seconds bats
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Depends on what Arvind is looking for. When the forum got going I saw it as a public interest forum but now there is commercial overtones to the site which can be a little more in your face. We all bought bats basically through opinion and if that opinion was good we all had one. Now it is whoever advertises and who is active and jumps on opportunities!!
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FYI - my personal preference is for all for sale items to be pre-vetted by the Admin team who can then take a simple approach of declining people who are breaching the spirit of the forum or the selling rules - it would also limit the admin time needed.
The downside is that for sale items may take a little longer to get posted.
As long as you admins are happy to do that I think it's a good shout to have that in conjunction with a 250 minimum posts.
You should also make the for sale section rules more concise and clear to try and help stop people being unaware of rules and bombarding you guys with junk sales postings.
1 stickied & locked thread with all the rules in 1 post only.
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Biggest problem Admins have is we have lives to lead. Selling issues whether it be selling fake stickers, disputes, advertising without sponsorship, etc, take up a large proportion of our time on the forum. I think any method that requires more admin interaction, instead of less probably isn't the way to go.
My biggest concerns are trying to understand why somebody needs to sell more than a couple of times a year. Surely if you buy to use the kit then it's more of a one off sale or a season end sale? Occasionally you get something that doesn't fit but some of the constant trading from members concerns me. Noted one guy has opened 13 sale topics since Jan. I'm also concerned about the amount of new or nearly new kit coming onto the forum. You spend £150-200 and then immediately sell it? Again, I can't quite get my head around it.
Some people just like buying kit but sometimes these things need to be reigned in. Ebay is the appropriate marketplace if you want to trade kit.
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As long as you admins are happy to do that I think it's a good shout to have that in conjunction with a 250 minimum posts.
You should also make the for sale section rules more concise and clear to try and help stop people being unaware of rules and bombarding you guys with junk sales postings.
1 stickied & locked thread with all the rules in 1 post only.
My 2 cents on this
1) Letting Admin govern can cause issues as Admins can also disagree with each other. So avoid these situations
2) Increasing number of posts to say 200 will again lead to the unread section flooded overnight to Unwanted posts/comments
3) Keep a Limit to number of New sales posted per month per person and also charge a fees for the sale (may be once a sale is done) that will go to the forum.
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1) Letting Admin govern can cause issues as Admins can also disagree with each other. So avoid these situations
first rule of being an admin is that you have to agree with the concensus of admins (not just what I think, honest, cough)
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Biggest problem Admins have is we have lives to lead. Selling issues whether it be selling fake stickers, disputes, advertising without sponsorship, etc, take up a large proportion of our time on the forum. I think any method that requires more admin interaction, instead of less probably isn't the way to go. Ps I know that was not aimed at me
My biggest concerns are trying to understand why somebody needs to sell more than a couple of times a year. Surely if you buy to use the kit then it's more of a one off sale or a season end sale? Occasionally you get something that doesn't fit but some of the constant trading from members concerns me. Noted one guy has opened 13 sale topics since Jan. I'm also concerned about the amount of new or nearly new kit coming onto the forum. You spend £150-200 and then immediately sell it? Again, I can't quite get my head around it.
Some people just like buying kit but sometimes these things need to be reigned in. Ebay is the appropriate marketplace if you want to trade kit.
Nick I sell a shed load of kit on here and buy a fair amount too this may come very defensive but it is not intended but I sell on here at vastly discounted prices then I paid for them due to me being what I call a trier of equipment so sell.
I think both contributing to experience with kit and also trading kit is great I enjoy it on here as well as talking equipment but I can say I have never sold for profit and as this is the only forum I use really.
I will be honest I could get shed loads of discounted equipment and flog on here but I only buy kit and sell kit for personal use.
I think the certain power sellers are obvious from a mile away and these people should be watched I think there should be a ratio quota system of allowed sales per month
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Maybe along the lines of what Buzz said but instead of lumbering more on Admins have a couple of sales moderators. Plenty of long standing trustworthy guys on here who would be willing to trial this idea I'm sure
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It not hard to see the power sellers though surely maybe I'm reading into it too much.
Hell one is trying it on currently :D
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I've looked at members views so far and compiled a list:-
1. Up Post Count to 200 - nobody is going to race to that without getting their post count reset
2. 1 Sell Topic per quarter or similar? - 4 a year should be adequate for most people
3. Pre-Approve Sales topics - assuming less topics are active and we can handle the workload as admins, could be run alongside charging a fixed %
4. Want to sell more - pay for premium membership
Any extra monies go into running comps and or subsidising a sponsor offer
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Yeah a combination of the four would work pretty well I think.
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Allow people 1 sale or refurbishment every quarter and if they want more than have to pay a small charge and within the one sale it is one item...
I think that is fair as sponsor pay to sell equipment so 4 sales a year I guess is reasonable even if it going to cost me a bit but fair is fair
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I'm definitely a fan of upping the post count to 200, I think it will make it much easier to pull a fast one! However, leave the board open to view and reply at 50 posts, so people can still buy from it. Pre-approving topics would be a good idea too, although I don't think charging a price up front is the way to go unless you can get a refund if it doesn't sell (which is far too much effort for the admin team)
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Allow people 1 sale or refurbishment every quarter and if they want more than have to pay a small charge and within the one sale it is one item...
I think that is fair as sponsor pay to sell equipment so 4 sales a year I guess is reasonable even if it going to cost me a bit but fair is fair
I disagree with one item per sale, when come winter people fancy changing a bit of kit and selling some older stuff or garb they haven't gotten on with. Perhaps a limit of 4 or 5 items per 1 post?
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Limit sales is fair enough, but how would it be managed in regards swaps?
For instance, if I put a bat up for sale which is bought by PeteHosk, then Buzz puts up an Aldred. Am I entitled to PM him with an offer to swap a different bat I have as I have sold my first? If not, how would this be managed?
I think the sale board is ok. Perhaps is there a way for them not to come up in the "unread posts since last visit" section or in the "recent posts" box. That way people who are looking for kit will have to manually open the sale board periodically to look at them.
Thanks
Joel
(sorry to Buzz and Pete for using you as examples)
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I think you should be allowed one sales topic per quarter. but no limit to how many items are sold in that topic. But continuous bumping shouldn't be allowed.
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I think you should be allowed one sales topic per quarter. but no limit to how many items are sold in that topic. But continuous bumping shouldn't be allowed.
And bumping would include a sales topic having new items added to it. In addition, sales topics could be locked after a set period of time if they remain open longer than say, three weeks?
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And bumping would include a sales topic having new items added to it. In addition, sales topics could be locked after a set period of time if they remain open longer than say, three weeks?
I think a deadline for sales open is the way forward.
So if you have the following
1 sale per quarter.
No bumps allowed
Deleted after 3 weeks
If they wish to raise the awareness of the post perhaps then they can pay a fee via paypal to CBF kitty? this will result in a stickied topic. So a premium sale
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It not hard to see the power sellers though surely maybe I'm reading into it too much.
Hell one is trying it on currently :D
Saw that too Dave.
One member has opened up 17 since Jan, beating the 13 Nick counted! The 'bumping' is incredibly annoying, especially when they are usually a couple of hours apart
I am for those 4 points personally, especially the 200 post count. I know the mods do a great job, but it's like a cheap ebay these days. Half the gear up for sale is toilet as well! Not the same standard it was, although you do get some belters!
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I wouldn't tinker too much. Individuals selling on here has been a big part of this forums success, and CSF's success beforehand. CSF lost it's following when they tried to introduce fees.
Perhaps a "donation" option for sellers, when they post a topic. Of which the money goes straight to the active admin team.
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You could charge a set fee on each sale
EG. 5 dollars per sale of gloves?
Would be hard to implement though
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I have never sold anything on this forum but looks like swap/sale area is already on a good path. Can't see the section without logging in and also if you have made quality 50 posts. Majority I see - are buying and selling to just try different things. This forum makes the whole thing easier for such people. Maybe increase the amount of posts needed to 200 before u can trade.
Not to mention sale section brings a lot of equipment pics, usage details etc as well which contributes to the general forum knowledge. We are all adults and understand the risks of buying unseen stuff from unknown people. If paid through paypal as a normal payment there is v low risk anyways. Looking at the past record - 1 or 2 disputes for so many trades is not bad either.
People who want to sell like crazy will only be encouraged if a fee is applied. It becomes more of a right to sell if a fee has been paid. I hope I am making sense.
Forum Sponsors shouldn't be too fussed....2nd hand buyers or heavy bargains market is comp different to their target segment. Those buyers would have never bought new stuff anyways. It's not a "lost" sale etc.
Can we make the current setup a bit more tougher-
a) more startup posts to qualify
b) some sort of reminder or warning to someone selling too much new stuff etc. this is because its diff on a case to case basis.
Someone selling a lot of their old kit e.g. Try new kit out types are comp different to someone selling for the sake of selling....
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Btw a record number of people currently viewing this topic!
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Charging a fee for selling will only make the forum worse.
Whatever fee you charge will just be added on to top of the wanted price for the goods. So In effect the "buyer" will be paying the fee. Which means they are no longer getting bargains.
Driving away people that merely want to sell, will only mean the loyal members of the forum get less bargains and equipment to choose from.
The sellers will happily go tug tree, or eBay on a insertion free weekend. Which will probably then end up linked on this site anyway.
Not everyone that comes to sell is a bad unwanted person. Some come here to get rid of equipment, but then get into the content/banter/conversations and stay for good.
If they cant sell, you risk losing potential great members,
Plus, and this is the biggie, the for sale section is quiet on this forum. Of the forums attend this is the least active for sale section.
Compare it to the one I run(car forum so not a rival) this is majorlydead.
We have the marketplace divided int 7sectioms so you can find what you want easily.
Yet if you put an add on at 7.30 before work, when you get home at 5.30 your ad will be on page 3 atleast.
Do we charge? Nope. You just need 250 posts before you sell. And when you've had to make 250 meaningful posts, you are part of the community, and tend not to leave.
Forum sponsors could be more active, theres plenty of threads in there sections they haven't commented on, and plenty of questions in there, they haven't answered.
Granted not every question on a forum leads to a sale, but why risk ignoring the one that might?
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what about a system where the more stuff you sell the more fees you pay to CBF.
for example
under 5 items in the year - £nothing
between 6 and 10 items - £5 fee for each item
between 11 and 20 items - £10 fee for each item
and so on...
I also think the 200 posts mark should be implemeted. It would encourage people to generate good quality chatter instead of a quick 20 posts to get them to the holy grail. Then by the time they can sell thay have committed to the forum for longer than a week.
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FYI - my personal preference is for all for sale items to be pre-vetted by the Admin team who can then take a simple approach of declining people who are breaching the spirit of the forum or the selling rules - it would also limit the admin time needed.
The downside is that for sale items may take a little longer to get posted.
I do like this idea, this would stop posts that state the picture will be added when I get home etc. Would also stop the admins having the find all new posts.
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Lots of discussion here and some very good points. My 2 cents...
we constantly hear that this not ebay and dont want it turning into ebay. Introducing fees is turning it into ebay, and tiered fee structure would be a nightmare to track.
I agree with 4 - 6 sales thread per year.
List as many items as you want but must be all done in one post, can't keep adding stuff to sell.
Have the donation option like Tom suggested that is going only to admins to do whatever they want with it (eat, drink, smoke, contests. Its their reward for putting in time)
Original poster must only be allowed to answer questions in their own for sale thread once its active. No posts with bump etc.
Lock'em up after 3 weeks if not all sold
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I'll also add, I'm not a fan of charging for access to sell as there are a number of reasons why this becomes problematic. I won't go into them in great detail.
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I reckon you should be able to view the for sale topics and buy gear after the current 50 posts, but selling and asking for items should be left until you reach 200-250 posts.
As said previously, no more than 4-6 sales threads a year, and no adding to it/bumping. Thread should be locked after a couple of weeks if stuff is unsold.
I like the idea of a voluntary donation from your sales that goes to the admins. They do a butt load of work and don't really get anything from it other than our everlasting gratitude.
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What I see here is a bit of vicious circle! The forum sponsors pay to advertise here and this keeps the forum going. This does in turn, by the very nature of advertising, mean that the forum is bombarded by adverts and threads dedicated to the forum sponsors selling their goods. It doesn't seem quite right then to suggest that it's purely the For Sale thread that is contributing to the forum becoming nothing more than a bring and buy sale! If you really want to make this forum more about cricket and less about buying and selling then you need to change the whole model not just a certain area of it.
What you do and how is another question. I haven't bought or sold much stuff on here but I do find it a very useful resource and I wouldn't want to see it go but some stronger restrictions wouldn't go amiss, if only to protect forum members from some of the shady characters this forum has attracted in the past. Whatever is decided it needs to be easy to administer. It needs to be very simple to understand and it needs to leave no one in any doubt about what is acceptable and what isn't. No grey areas please! :D
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Evening guys,
Just thought I would add my views as I am a big user of the for sale section in both buying and selling.
Firstly the for sale section does throw up some great bargains. I agree a lot with pro cricket in his earlier statement. I have starred a few sale sections in the recent months purely because of this forum. The forum has shown me items and brands I would have struggled to locate outside of this forum. I am also a self confessed bat nerd and find the forum a great place to offer great deals on items I bought out of interest or need to sell an item to fund a new interest. I try not to bump to much and can understand how and why this would annoying to te forum.
In terms of what to do I do not think charging is the way foward, that will just become like ebay and cause more trouble. I do think raising the posts is the only real option open to the admin team and think around the 250 mark is an ideal number this will make it impossible for people to race to that number.
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I reckon you should be able to view the for sale topics and buy gear after the current 50 posts, but selling and asking for items should be left until you reach 200-250 posts.
This sounds like a good idea to me , as I don't think we have anything wrong with people buying too much (well , maybe some of you :-[) , and to make 200-250 posts on the forum , you've gotta be pretty dedicated and interested in the subject (1 more post for my 250 ;)).
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I haven't been here much long but will throw in my 2 cents anyway since I had admins thinking I was one of the "race to 50 candidates" and got my count reset. In my defence I wasn't even aware of a for sale section and when it magically appeared I just added my bat [which was already on ebay at that time] here as well.
I am yet to sell anything successfully here but have already indulged in few purchases. New members are good thing and who is going to buy your stuff if you don't allow new members to view for sale section. 50 is a good enough threshold in my opinion. Also allowing people to buy but not sell is exploitation in my eyes and a tad bit unfair.
So you can charge a nominal advertising fee irrespective of whether the item sells or not. Or just close the for sale section as I find it very tempting and the purchases are becoming increasing difficult to hide from Mrs. :-)
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i dont see a problem with it?
this for sale section is tiny compared with what im used to...
i mainly use car forums and there are sections for every bit of car the cars them self etc...
all thats asked is you have 250 posts and have your username in every photo
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Why are new members not allowed to view the buy/sell forum ?
The buy/sell forum is one of the things that compelled me to register, otherwise I was content being a guest. It'll probably take me 5 years to reach 300 posts, by that time, my cricket career will be virtually over and the buy/sell forum will be useless to me.
I probably won't even buy or sell any product, but it makes for interesting reading, seeing what others are buying or selling.
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Why are new members not allowed to view the buy/sell forum ?
The buy/sell forum is one of the things that compelled me to register, otherwise I was content being a guest. It'll probably take me 5 years to reach 300 posts, by that time, my cricket career will be virtually over and the buy/sell forum will be useless to me.
I probably won't even buy or sell any product, but it makes for interesting reading, seeing what others are buying or selling.
Mate, I think you have answered your own question here.
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It's all about trying to promote more cricket talk on the forum and though it is nice to be able to sell/swap our gear, that should only be an added bonus and not the vocal point.
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new members are restricted so the admin team havens chance to see who the member is and to attempt to reduce instances of theft/fraud.
these have happened about once a year which is too much.
separately what do.members think about none cricket/sport stuff for sale?
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separately what do.members think about none cricket/sport stuff for sale?
The odd item here and there isn't a problem, it's if we get the sale section looking like a jumble sale of everything people don't want I'd start to get annoyed, and I'm pretty confident others would share that opinion.
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The odd item here and there isn't a problem, it's if we get the sale section looking like a jumble sale of everything people don't want I'd start to get annoyed, and I'm pretty confident others would share that opinion.
I agree with Cam. I don't mind seeing the odd item but as long as people don't abuse it and go on a clean out selling spree!
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Mate, I think you have answered your own question here.
I'm not sure how that is the case - I would like to have the option to buy from my fellow forum members without having to clutter the board trying to up my post count.
I have already purchased a bat from one of the forum sponsors and just like the buy/sell forum, I never came to this site looking to buy a bat, but ended up getting one anyway.
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new members are restricted so the admin team havens chance to see who the member is and to attempt to reduce instances of theft/fraud.
these have happened about once a year which is too much.
separately what do.members think about none cricket/sport stuff for sale?
How about reviewing access on a case by case basis ? Once a forum member builds rapport, let them in.
A fraudster could get to 300 posts in a very short period of time (one week), whereas the legit posters would have to wait months if not years to get access.
The post count strategy would essentially be crowding out all the straight laced folks while doing very little to curb fraudsters, IMO.
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I joined the forum few weeks back, have read various topics and do spend a lot of time reading current topics. I (as anybody else) would be interested in buying/selling/swapping stuff on the forum occasionally. My suggestion (just my point, after all admins have to decide) would be as a newcomer admins may block me from selling stuff here, but it would be great if I can be allowed to buy stuff which may be available. In buying I do have to transfer money before I get my product shipped so chances of fraud aren't there. It would be great if I can see if there are any good deals available on the forum which I can utilize. (just for info I am not a big buyer/seller, and there maybe many others who would be like me)
In any case I am happy with guidelines laid by forum admins.
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All fine in theory but the problem with that is that the scammers have been buyers as well as sellers.
Nothing wrong with good constructive feedback though
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new members are restricted so the admin team havens chance to see who the member is and to attempt to reduce instances of theft/fraud.
these have happened about once a year which is too much.
separately what do.members think about none cricket/sport stuff for sale?
Don't see much problem with it. I will rather let a forum have a bargain than gumtree. I think I have seen odd non cricket stuff for sale already. Same common sense rules applies.
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I'm not sure how that is the case - I would like to have the option to buy from my fellow forum members without having to clutter the board trying to up my post count.
I have already purchased a bat from one of the forum sponsors and just like the buy/sell forum, I never came to this site looking to buy a bat, but ended up getting one anyway.
Don't you see it. It is saving you money. There is so much nice stuff for sale and at such bargain prices you will not be able to resist so be grateful that you can't access for sale section yet. If you clutter the board you will have the count reset so don't waste time doing that. Start some interesting thread even if it is non cricket and spend some time here. You will up your count genuinely in no time.