You ever get one of these e-mails from a potential buyer, and I’m using the term potential quite loosely here:
I’d love to buy X item, but I’m just a poor college student and can’t afford $25. Will you take $5?
In place of poor college student feel free to replace with “but I’m on food stamps,” “but this is for a friend because there’s a picture of their mother inside,” or the most direct “but while I want it I can’t afford it.”
Look my first inclination with any of the above excuses except the last, and maybe the one about the mother’s pic, is that you’re lying to me. But that’s why I generally let these emails sit and answer them a few hours after receipt. I’ve got too much tact to call you a liar. In fact, by the time I reply I want to believe you’re telling me the truth.
Here’s my standard answer: I’m very sorry, but this is my full-time business. I’d be willing to consider an offer closer to my list price, but I really cannot go this low on any item without putting my business in jeopardy.
In reverse order from my being least offended to most, here’s how I feel about these:
Want it, can’t afford –> I’ve got a big list of things I want and can’t afford too, wanna swap?
It’s got a pic my friend’s mother –> Why doesn’t your friend log in and buy it? Maybe they’d actually be willing to pay me what it’s worth?
Poor college student –> Possibly include hints at places to find other sources for their subject online. I’m not advocating doing any research for the non-buyer, just point them to Google or if you know a site offhand let them know. Again, stress that this is your business–if they’re really college students they generally respect this. Finally, you’re in college, let’s use some resourcefulness here!
Food stamps –> This, and other cries of poverty, is actually the most common of these for me. You know, I’m really just dying to answer this by saying that you really should find better uses for your few spare dollars than old collectibles. I mean I’m all about people collecting, that’s very cool, but if buying a trading card from me is going to get your electricity cut off, then maybe you should think twice. I almost don’t want to sell to you, I’m going to kind of feel like a drug dealer if I do. Buy a meal or some clothes! You want to collect, hit a yard sale.
What bugs me most about any excuse involved when asking for a better price, is that you’re making a concerted effort to play on my emotions. True or untrue, you not only believe that your dilemma deserves a discount, but that by telling me about it you’re more likely to get one.
Uh uh. No matter how big a bastard this post might make me sound like, I A) do my best to believe you and B) empathize.
But if you’re going to attempt to play on my emotions to buy a movie card or a magazine back issue and think I’m going to cave in to persistence, you’re wrong. I’m going to wind up wondering why in your situation you need this item so bad, and I’m likely going to jump to some conclusions about you involving not having your priorities in order.
The best way to approach me about a discount or a price lower than I’m willing to go is to simply tell me you feel X item is worth $X. Now I’m never going to take $5 on $20, but if you want to start a dialogue about it you might get me down from $16 to $14.
There are right and wrong ways of doing this too and I’ll tell you the worst one right now. “It’s only worth $5. Look at it, it’s beat up and your price is too high even if it wasn’t.”
Now if you’re going to outright call me out on my prices I’m not going to mince words. Reply: Then why do you want it?
If you talk to me, rather than challenging me, I’ll explain to you why the price is what it is. I might tell just tell you it’s not too high, I might explain that my grading system is one of the strictest you’re going to find, heck, I might even tell you that I know it’s priced high, but that I’ve got too much into it on my end.
In the end, what I’m advocating, is simply holding off reply to those customer emails that really piss you off. If you tell the buyer off, there’s no way they’re buying from you. And I’m not going to say I convert all, or even a lot, of the buyer excuses above into sales, because I don’t, but if I’m nice and I turn 10% of them into sales, then I’m just that much better off.
Just don’t direct any of them to this post!
Excellent post! You are soooo right about not answering the emails right away that really tick you off. Getting into a pissing contest with a potential buyer can never result in anything good happening.
Our policy on eBay now, given the DSR system, is to simply block any and all potential buyers who ask for a better price on the item and/or shipping. It keeps things really simple for us, cuts down on our time for email responses, and definitely helps us to have a much higher DSR rating. Once we began automatically blocking all potential customers who ask for a better deal, we have had a raised standing in search. People who ask for a better deal (on cost of item and/or shipping) will almost always leave lower DSRs, as a general rule, whether they receive the better deal or not. No deal is ever really worth a “5″ to them. So, by saying no to a lower price we are offered, we get more of a discount on our final value fees on eBay (because of our higher DSRs) and we have much more time (since we are not haggling with potential customers) to deal with paying customers.
BTW… Cliff, Your new look is awesome!
Hey Brews,
Thanks for posting. See, where I get into a bit of a quandary is that I do have the “Best Offer” feature enabled on quite a few, though not all, of my eBay items. I do this because I can be flexible on certain items, and coming from a collectibles background I think some level of give and take with buyers is appreciated, if not expected. But here’s the thing, if I don’t have the feature enabled, I’m not open to offers. Also, I have a general rule where I deny all offers under 50% without a word of reply. If you’re over half I’ll usually counter-offer you.
But if you’re offering me $5 on a $20 item and insisting upon it with a story going along with the offer, I’m really not interested.
I’m lucky in that the categories I deal in buyers are generally responsible with their feedback and ratings. At least what I receive is strong.
PS: Thanks! This site is going to be where I talk about e-commerce topics. My new main site, where I talk general collectibles is at VintageMeld.com; the old blog, linked to my movie collectibles site has shifted over the things-and-other-stuff.com/blog, and I might have one more coming yet. Thanks again!
Cliff
My approach is different yet again. Selling new retail I don’t have best offer on 90% of my items, when I am willing to take less I either have a sale or drop prices.
I have only had this happen a few times, it has never resulted in a sale. My off website venue does have an OBO option but I have learned to steer clear of it as a time waster.
It may be a poor attitude but want a better price either buy in bulk or set up your own wholesale account, not that I say that! I generally point out that I offer a killer additional items shipping deal and that eats up all my discountability.
Is it lack of education? Do people do this at WalMart or in their local grocery store?
Henrietta, I used to get this even back before eBay had the Best Offer option — I think it’s just a natural in antiques and collectibles because it’s what people are used to doing in person at trade shows and flea markets. The thing is, face to face, they never got really ridiculous with it because, well, because you were face to face.
Right, I tweeted this earlier, but when I get a $5.05 offer on a higher priced items with $4.95 Priority shipping to be added I always wonder, Hmm, you’re not asking the Post Office for a break to get that to an even $10, are you?
Thanks as always,Cliff