4 replies to this topic

[Soupie]

(1) The general understanding and behavior among collectors here is that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. When engaged in transactions with others there is a general consensus that there is to be no lying or purposeful misleading of others for any reason. Spend time here and you will find that 99.9% of collectors here follow the golden rule by default.

(2) Newcomers: Don't assume that because someone has 3,000 posts, is a mod or a legend, that everything they say is 100% fact. There is a LOT of disagreement here among collectors as to the value of certain toy lines and specific figures within those toy lines. If two members here give you two different values for a toy -- don't assume one or the other is trying to deceive, instead, get a 3rd, 4th, and 5th opinion! (In fact, the best thing to do might be to start a new topic about the value of the toy in question. That way you will get lots of public opinions.)

(3) If you feel slighted in ANY way during or after a transaction, send the other party a private message (PM) letting them know how you feel. 99.9% of the time, you can peacefully resolve any problems in this manner. If this does not work to solve your concern, send a PM to one of the moderators and ask for their help/advice to resolve the issue.

Tip: When sharing your concerns with the other party, do so in a non-accusatory way. Give them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they really DID forget to send all the figures. Maybe they REALLY didn't realize they weren't in mint condition. If you are nice about it, they will be more willing to admit their mistake and more willing to make up for it by giving money back, sending extra toys, or otherwise making amends.

Tip: Do not go public with your complaints without some serious efforts to privately resolve the issue or getting a mod involved. Go public at your own risk.

(4) If you feel strongly that you have been deceived and misled about some aspect of your transaction please contact a moderator and as honestly and accurately as possible, explain to them your concerns. Due to the nature of their position, they may be aware of other incidents and can therefore help you and other members deal appropriately with the situation. If you wish to remain anonymous, be sure to tell the moderators and they will do their best to honor that request.

Tip: Please don't contact a moderator to complain about someone overcharging you 25¢ for shipping. Do your best to work situations out privately on your own. But, don't hesitate to contact a mod if you feel you've been purposefully misled.

(5) Your reputation is EVERYTHING -- both as a seller AND a buyer. If you gain a reputation as a shady seller, at worst you will lose business, people will be more quick to accuse you of wrong-doing even if you make an honest mistake and at worse you could be banned from the community.

As a buyer, if you are quick to complain about every little detail of every transaction, people may simply refrain from doing business with you or not take you seriously when a real problem actually arises. Many members here have a history of great transactions with one another, so when a dispute between two parties does erupt, they will likely form their opinion of you based on their interactions with others. Therefore, it is in YOUR best interest to be as honest as possible when describing situations you are unhappy with.

Example: If I've had 15 great transactions with member A, I will take this into consideration when hearing about a bad transaction they are involved in. Likewise, if I've dealt with member B 15 times and had painful experiences each time, I will take that into consideration when hearing about a bad transaction they are involved in. Just be aware when dealing with others that many times they have a history -- maybe all good, maybe a little bad -- and that other member are often aware of this history.

Tip: Therefore, be as honest as possible as your reputation is EVERYTHING. (Also, leaving HONEST feedback helps everyone, including the next person who may potentially deal with the person next. They may use your feedback to steer them one way or another.)

Tip: Use the "Members Feedback" forum to read over a member's feedback. BUT you can also send PMs to other collectors who have dealt with the person in question to get more private, personal opinions. (However, no member is obligated to answer all your questions. )

(6) Newcomers: Don't assume that because someone appears to be rich or have a large, established collection that they will allow you to have the upper hand in a trade or sale. It's just not a fair assumption to make. Having said that, I think you will find that many -- but not all -- members here LOVE to include freebies and will allow new members to have the upper hand in trades (especially for common toys).

(7) Know your toys! It is each individual collector's responsibility to know the "value" of the toys they HAVE or the toys they WANT. If you are not sure about the value of a toy -- start a thread about it or ask multiple members about it via PMs. Don't make the silly assumption that the person you are trading with is the best person to tell you the value of the toy in question -- because they are most definitely NOT.

(8) Be a defensive collector! Don't assume the worst in people, but don't assume the best either! Be realistic about human nature. For your information, people have been banned from this forum for purposefully misleading others in toy transactions. Unfortunately, it does happen, but we can honestly say it is super rare.

Edited by Soupie, 19 July 2008 - 01:14 PM.

[Soupie]

I just added a little bit about leaving feedback. Please leave HONEST feedback. I know it's sometimes tough, and I am just as guilty as everyone else. If you had some problems with a transaction -- extremely slow shipping, like a 3-4 week delay or something, if the items are in terrible shape and you were told they were mint, etc. -- and the other member doesn't have a good explanation for the "mix-up" and doesn't make amends, please either leave them honest feedback mentioning the problem or at the very least let a moderator know.

The reason being that if you had a horrible transaction with someone or were less than happy with some aspect of a trade, and you leave feedback like so:

Awesome transaction! Highly recommend!

The next person to deal with the member might have the same problem as you... Had you left accurate feedback (1) they may have entered the transaction more prepared and asked better questions and (2) because your feedback is so glowing, they may feel pressured (though they shouldn't) to leave similar feedback. In other words, leaving truly honest feedback helps the community as a whole.

Like I said, if worse comes to worse and you can't bring yourself to confront the person or leave truly honest feedback stating how you feel, let a moderator know. Who knows, maybe the person who dealt with that member before you had a similarly bad experience. If the moderators know about it, they can take "behind the scenes" action to make sure it doesn't happen to yet another LRG member.

Thanks!

Edited by Soupie, 19 July 2008 - 01:34 PM.

[Universal Ruler Supreme]

COMMUNICATION: Alright guys, Communication is KEY...KEY to a great transaction. I can't emphasize that enough! If you have opened a Transaction with a member to Trade or Purchase something, it is up to both individual parties to Communicate as soon as you can. If possible Continue discussing the Transaction the Same Day, or at the least within a few days.

You will likely find, whether your new or old, that many members around here are patient! If you have trouble getting online or staying in contact with a member, make it apparent right off that there may be issues with communication. Maybe your out of town, having computer problems, only have access to public computers such as a library or school, and possibly your a Lazy Sod like me! In any case let the other party know that there may be a lag in communication times, as 9 times out of 10, if the other party is expecting an answer to a question, waiting a Week Or MORE in some cases may lead that individual to feel you have little to no interest in completing the transaction, and in essence are wasting their time.

ANSWER THE QUESTION!!!! If a member asks you a question, even if it is a small one, try your best to answer that question to the best of your ability. It could be about the Cost, Condition, Shipping, Insurance, Tracking, Location, Interest in more items, etc... Answer them if the question is Applicable to the Transaction at hand. Failure to do so could lead to a feeling of dis-interest in furthering the transaction.

Example:

Party A: Okay everything sounds good, I'll get the shipping quote for you!
Party B: Cool! Can't Wait!
Party A: Okay, the shipping will be about $__.__ Dollars. Does that sound Okay to you? Let me know!
1,2,3,4,5,6...7.....8.......9.....10 DAYS!!!
FAILURE___Party B has allowed a Week or more to go by without responding to the question. Party A is able to look at Party B's Member Info on the board to see when the last time he visited the board was, and sees Party B has been on very recently yet still has failed to reply. Party A may think Party B is no longer interested and may move on to another interested Party.

So what happened? A communication Error occurred. Party B received the message, but failed to respond to the simple question appropriately, thus lost the Transaction. Party A could take further action to ask again to be sure, but depending on the person's patience level and circumstances (perhaps they needed the money, or were moving and needed to move the Item quickly, etc..) they may not have the time for another possible week or more of waiting.

HOWEVER!! Another step Party A could have done, and probably should have done, was to let Party B know that he was moving on and ending the transaction.

Patience is also an important part of Communication. If a member is not responding to your messages as soon as you would like, you have the right to end the transaction at your discretion. However, a good Reputation relies on both Patience, as well as Communication skills. Your not going to do much trading or selling if you only give a person a Day to respond or get back to you.

So you say, "What's the worst that can happen?"! It's just a Toy Forum!

Well, a simple failure in communication could lead to many outcomes. Usually nothing. But on occasion the worst could happen. Monies could accidentally exchange hands without the other persons knowledge, an item could be shipped early out of good faith, The wrong Items could exchange hands, The items received may not be in the condition believed by the other party!!! All potentially bad outcomes. Most of which could lead to hard feelings, a waste of money, time, and a bad mark on a reputation!!! All potential Negative Feedback marks on your record for the board! This could hinder your selling power or trading potential for other members. And none of us want that! The utmost shame would be getting whacked by Jkaris' Ban Hammer! Some of us have seen this too often already...and the thing about the Ban Hammer is it isn't prejudice, and always hungers for more!


Again, these aren't so much rules as guidelines or suggestions. It would be great if everyone could read this, and try to take it to heart to use in our future transactions. I myself have to I know. Although I think I try 99% of the time, there is the occasional 1% that slips by and messes stuff up.


*** I think I made my point clear enough, but if anyone can add something please do! And yes, I'm posting this because it happened to me. Nothing personal to anyone involved. Mistakes happen, and hopefully the situation can be resolved without any issue. I just think I for one have learned my lesson regarding communication, so you guys can expect more out of me that's for sure. Be prepared for multiple P.M.s and Replies every other day to those of you with slower reply times. I've just had enough with communication errors with transactions around here. It always ends poorly, and sucks for all involved. Not only materially or financially, but emotionally....YES Emotionally! Sure it's a board, and we may be partly imaginary on the internet, but us Universal Ruler Supremes still have feelings.

[jkaris]

Board Auctions

One of the great things about having so many fellow collectors here is that you can sell your items here in the Got Toys section for free, without having to pay any listing fees. As we are not eBay, there are a few rules that must be adhered to.

1. All custom rules MUST be listed in the very first post, such as start time and end time, as well as any special rules for sniping/extension, reserves, shipping costs, etc.

2. You MUST upload a picture of the item. Not a link to a photobucket or flikr photo. Upload it to the board.

3. All bids MUST be posted to the thread. This is to keep everyone honest. We have had issues before when a seller used PMs to take bids and also lied to the buyers telling them that the high bid was higher than it was, to get them to bid more. If you absolutely HAVE to have private bids, another option is to have a mod referee and be copied on the bid PM's.

That's about it.

[jkaris]

Selling on the Board

One of the great things about having so many fellow collectors here is that you can sell your items here in the Got Toys section for free, without having to pay any listing fees. As we are not eBay, there are a few rules that must be adhered to.

1. If you want to sell something here, you need to post a list of exactly what you are selling and pictures if possible. It can be posted once in the Got Toys section.

2. You must also post your initial prices for those items. You are free to work out details and discounts via PM, but your inital prices must be visible to everyone.

3. Do not bump your topic more than once every three days.
 
4. You can post a mention of it in a related thread in a related section of the board, however you cannot create a whole 2nd topic to point to the sales topic.

Here's a thread with a few examples for reference.
http://www.littlerub...howtopic=164643