B&S and WTB - How useful are they?

[FidelCashflow]

Originally Posted by ramuman

It's a fools errand to wait for something like these on eBay or B&S. B&S is for opportunistic buys.
Discuss. Also, how useful is WTB?

 

[Tarmac]

I have never used "WTB", in my life, for anything. It puts you in an incredibly bad position for negotiation. Not only that, the chances that someone has something they didn't previously want to sell and is then swayed by your WTB ad to then sell it? near zero

I can tell you as a seller, I never check WTB

 

[DocHolliday]

Yeah, I never check it either. I might post a listing there, if there was something specific I couldn't find, but I wouldn't wait around expecting responses. Best hope is that somebody might see the request and decide to clear space. It's a long shot, but no harm in trying.

I do have several items I haven't gotten around to listing, and if I happened to see a request, I'd probably PM the person.

 

[aj_del]

Though I suggested in your other thread that the shoes you were looking for will pop up in B & S in a few weeks time, now I think I might have spoken in haste. The shoes you were looking for were very particular and the probability of them coming up in your size is quite remote.

Regarding WTB, I once posted wanting to buy a shawl collared cardigan and after 3-4 months I got a PM from a member in the SW&D B &S informing that a similar cardigan had been put up for sale by him. But it was a different size and in the meantime I had also changed my mind.

 

[Don Carlos]

Originally Posted by Tarmac

I have never used "WTB", in my life, for anything. It puts you in an incredibly bad position for negotiation. Not only that, the chances that someone has something they didn't previously want to sell and is then swayed by your WTB ad to then sell it? near zero

I can tell you as a seller, I never check WTB

+10

You're signaling to the world that you really want or need the item you're looking for. That gives sellers a clue to be aggressive with you on pricing. They know you want it, so they can upcharge. Always cultivate the illusion that you don't care one way or the other about items you want to purchase. You don't so much come out and say it, but the right attitude to convey is "Well, this is a nice item, but I don't really need it."

This advice works for women, too, btw. So, like, free bonus tip.

 

[AnGeLiCbOrIs]

I've used it once or twice when looking for an item but without success. I think I've made a sale or two through other's WTB ads.

 

[Mark it 8]

^^^ Yeah, I hate when the women upcharge.

 

[jreigen]

Originally Posted by AnGeLiCbOrIs

I've used it once or twice when looking for an item but without success. I think I've made a sale or two through other's WTB ads.

Same here.

 

[RJE]

I responded a couple of times in WTB, but in one case the WTBer tried the opposite to upcharging - he seemed to think I was desperate to sell and offered a pittance. No deal.

I checked a few days ago, and saw two recent WTBs I might respond to. In one case, I had exactly what he was after - right brand, colour, size, style, and he offered a decent price. As I'm undecided about keeping it, I feel guilty now.

So where are the Men's Ex magazines I WTB

?

 

[randob300]

I put up a WTB ad and had a PM within an hour on a piece I immediately purchased. Grant it, it wasn't a lot of money, but still, I would have never seen the seller's ad without him contacting me. His asking price was fair and about what I wanted to spend, so I wasn't worried about putting myself in a bad position for negotiation. Not everyone on this board is hawking over a few dollars!

 

[RoyalPaJamas]

I had a successful experience with WTB. The respondents didn't offer to sell me the item I was looking for, but they pointed me to a store 1,000 miles away from me that had it in stock. A quick phone call and I got what I was looking for.

 

[WRAdvisor]

B&S gets a lot of traffic and I've had success with both sections of the website. If you post something fairly common in WTB, you'll most likely get a few PM's

 

[alliswell]

Not strictly on topic, but I posted a WTB on Timezone two weeks ago and had the watch I was looking for - at my price - in five days. I think it helps that watches are more standardized and that they're more collectible. My experience with WTB here is pretty good too - two posts, one hit.

 

[GoldenTribe]

I posted a WTB for Iron Army jeans a little while back (since they're OOP now) and never heard a single thing, but I just found a lone pair on eBay and scored them for $11.50 so I guess I can't complain in the end.

 

[FStyles]

I'v responded to a WTB post and sold an item for what I wouldv;'e listedit for anyway.

was pretty successful. But I haven't had any success sourcing stuff I'm looking for.,

On the same token, if a seller was to approach my WTB ad with the exact item I want, he desrves to sell it with aggressive pricing and I'm happily willing to pay.

Its funny to me that there are guys out there who will want soemthing BADLy enought to place an ad, and then play hardball with a seller who has that item for under retail.

note to all you sellers out there: If you find any Lobb Phillip II in dark brown musum, 9EUK. for a goo dstep under retail (doesn't have to be B&S approved price) I'll buy it. Keep the rest as a finder's fee.