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Is Not Responding To An Offer Just Plain Rude?

Think about it in the context of a BUYER using the Audiogon system - 

1 - “Lowballers will be politely ignored.

What constitutes a lowball offer? Is there a percentage of the asking price below which the offer becomes a “lowball”? If so, what is it? 90%? 75%? ….Is it connected to or disconnected from the length of time the ad has been running?

2 - When the only option is “Make an Offer”.

What am I supposed to do here? Am I supposed to offer more than the asking price? Less than the asking price? If less is OK, then refer to point 1 above.

3 - When the only option is “Make an Offer” and the ad says “price is firm”

What the heck am I supposed to do with that one?

If you’re listing an item with the option of “Make an Offer”, wouldn’t it just be courteous to give the benefit of the doubt to the person submitting the offer, assume he or she is a serious buyer and not a tire-kicker, and just reply one way or the other, in a timely fashion? I mean, there’s nothing lost, right? Just say “NO”. Or make a counteroffer….what’s so difficult?

I just sold a nice preamp to a gentleman who made an offer on it, it arrived with the buyer safely and he’s thrilled with it. So now I have wires hanging loose in my system where a preamp used to be, and it’s almost the Holidays. I found a suitable replacement on Audiogon in the $7K range, made an offer within 10% +/- of the asking price, and…drum roll….….nothing. 

I sat around all weekend waiting for the seller to respond, but they didn’t have the decency to just message me and say no. So I was stuck with the “Seller has 48hrs to review your offer” BS, now I’m back to square one and without the means to play my favorite Kenny G Christmas albums. 

One bandaid fix would be for Audiogon to adopt the ebay system and allow sellers to automatically decline offers below a certain amount. Then they wouldn’t even have to interact with us lowballers and their delicate sensibilities wouldn’t get hurt…..heck, I’d even take a photo of me wearing a mask as I press the ’Submit Offer’ button, if this is a Covid thang…

Whinge over…

Merry Christmas :)



128x128rooze

Showing 8 responses by rooze

rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@tablejockey - I was actually kidding about the Kenny G thing...lol
rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@millercarbon  Thanks for that perspective. I tend to buy and sell fairly often so I'm not really that invested at the initial offer stage, and I've dealt with my fair share of whackjobs over the years, both buying and selling. (nothing much surprises me).

Think of it this way and see if it gets you closer to where I'm at - The seller pays money to list an ad. They take the time to post pictures and write a description. The seller is really the one who is "invested" at this point, not the potential buyer. Someone comes along and submits an offer on an ad which is inviting people to submit an offer. To my mind, that's step 1 of a negotiation. I don't mind if the person comes back and tells me to sling my hook. That would be part of the negotiation process, step 2, if you like. At that point (and not before), I decide how badly I want this thing and either continue the negotiation or walk away. That's how it's supposed to work, I think, and not....submit an offer....then....silence. 

In this particular case, had the seller responded and said something like "Look, I really want my asking price". I would have paid it, in full. But paying full price up-front without starting a negotiation when someone is inviting an offer, makes no sense to me. 
rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@genesis777    That’s my beef with the system, exactly. It would work ok if people were responsive, but it doesn’t work so well with the way some people are. Were it the only time this has happened I wouldn’t have made a fuss, but it isn’t. I think some people use the fact that they’re holding us hostage for 48hrs as a ‘virtual middle-finger’.

rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@dchang05 - "I wish there is an automatic reject option to offers that are lower than seller's desired asking price" - that would go some way to fixing the problem. As I've said, a big part of the issue is being in limbo for 48hrs wondering whether the hole in your equipment rack has been filled, or not.

"In this particular case, the seller stated low offers will be politely ignored." - actually that wasn't the case. The ad had the 'Make an Offer' button and there was nothing in the text that said anything about (low) offers being ignored. 
Cheers
Rooze
rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@stereo5 You seem to take a very "black and white" stance to buying/selling online, where some might consider the exchange of goods for cash between two complete strangers to be more of a process.
My point is, as a buyer, we've little idea what's in the mind of the seller unless he or she specifically tells us - "Price is Firm" - "Make me an Offer" etc. So all we can do is pitch in with what we believe to be a subjectively fair offer, assuming there's a 'Make an Offer' invitation.

I can't see the hardship in saying "NO" to a dozen people. It releases them from the obligation of buying from you, and, more importantly, they don't have to sit around for two days waiting on a message from someone who has no intention of conducting business with them.

"Bottom line, if you don’t like the Audiogon rules, buy elsewhere" - No, I don't like Audiogon rules, nor do I like the rules imposed on me as a buyer and seller at Amazon and eBay. That doesn't mean I should pack-up and leave.

rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
@verdantaudio 
Offers are interesting and I guess it comes down to your philosophy. I respond to all offers as quickly as I decide. I have let one sit for a day because I was pondering it. Automated rejects would be nice but then again, I like discussing things. I will usually state what "range" they need to be in for the offer to be considered. I have never sold an item to someone in this scenario but in the same token, it takes a second to respond.  

What is clear though is what each of us define as a "low-ball offer" is wildly different.  If someone comes in with a reasonable offer that is a bit too low I will almost always counter offer. If you are within 10% of asking, I can't see how that is offensive. Worst case, I would counteroffer at asking price and say the price was firm.  

If you are trying to sell something and someone raises there hand and says "I want to buy it", seems like it is probably smart to try and negotiate with them. Basically, if I don't respond to you within 48 hours, I am likely in the hospital. Can't imagine why you wouldn't respond to someone.  
Agreed ^^
rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
I just bought an integrated amp using a straight Buy it Now when there was a Make an Offer option.
It actually felt quite good?!!

rooze's avatar
rooze OP
566 posts
 
I have a simple compromise solution that mostly resolves my issues with the Make-an-Offer system.
If an offer comes in that’s not acceptable to you, for whatever reason, just hit the ‘Decline’ button right away so that the person making the offer can move on.
My biggest issue was submitting an offer then hearing nothing for 48 hrs until the offer expires. That’s the ‘rude’ part, mostly.

If the seller receives an offer and is genuinely thinking about it, let the bidder know - “thanks, I’m thinking about it”, that’s common courtesy at play and not too difficult to implement.

That’s it.
Decline the offer promptly or communicate your position to the bidder promptly.

Easy peasy.
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