Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

I have been thinking over the last few days about the constant moans about PF regarding sales adverts etc etc and mainly how some traders are a little peed off with pf .

well is it not possible to have a set gold members fee for everyone ( if they choose to contribute ) and then a small charge for every ( for sale ) advert , A little like ebay , then the traders can pay a big one of fee and the " normal " user pays as they go so to speek .
This way i feel will help cut down on the bedroom traders as it will be easier for mods / admin to spot them , also help generate more income for the site , get real traders back , and make if fair for those who only sell the odd item compared with them who seem to have a constant never ending supply of old stuff they dont use , lol,

I know this would need some serious thought , but in general what do people think ??

I would love to again be a PF trader but until the bedroom trader issue is once and for all sorted i wont , this way i feel will help resolve some old and long going issues

Paul

RWD_cossie_wil

iTrader: (9)

I hear this "Bedroom Trader" phrase bandied round all the time, I often read through for sales/wants etc, and personally I don't see anyone who is taking the piss? . Who would you say are bedroom traders? At least name names!!

I do think that @£400 the trade fees are too expensive ( but it is not my business really, so thats up to IB) and are off-putting for a lot of traders, but unfortunatly that is there perogative. Personally I would like to see more traders, but the limited market means no-one really is going to pay that amount for potentially small gains. I would have thought it would have made more sense to have 6 traders all paying £200, rarther than 2 traders paying £400, but there you go..

Don't agree with the small fees for adverts either, gold membership allows the sale of parts and cars, always has done and for me was the sole reason to upgrade, so pointless paying more for each ad, I only sell a few bits now and then, so do a lot of other people, and it would remove the convenience of just being able to stick a quick ad up, especially for stuff thats cheap.

Chip

iTrader: (3)

Personally if I had to pay to list anything that was for sale as well as paying the gold member fee I simply wouldnt bother to be a gold member anymore, as free adverts are the only meaningful perk of doing so IMHO

Would be a load of admin hassle too, as there would have to be major software changes to the board to take payment each time someone starts a thread in the for sale section, I also think it would massively increase the number of peopel doing the old "not a for sale post" trick in general which would also be more hassle.

I cant see the point in all that aggro and admin expense just to shut up literally a handful at most of whinging ex traders like yourself TBH

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

Wil

I agree , but i thought the gold membership was a contribution and COULD give you X amount of free adverts a year for people like yourself who dont sell much , but those who take the piss can ( after there freeadverts ) pay either a block amout for x amount of additional adverts or choose the pay as you go option

this would then show who uses the site and how much they use it

Chip

iTrader: (3)

That sounds fairer, but still a pain in the arse to implement, at the end of the day this site is a forum, and sales are just an "also on here" to most people rather than the main focus for using the site like it is to you.

Saying that, im sure as a business IB will be keep to open up any additional revenue stream that they can, so maybe they will listen.

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

Whoes whinging , at least i am trying somthing productive , maybee a no go but at least i tried

I have just listed a few things on ebay and thought how simple the pay as you go system is ,

sorry if my post isnt of the quality you expect chip , but then again im just a whinging ex trader

and for the record , the main focus of this site isnt just sales for me , if you actually look how many posts i made when i was a trader that were actually " for sale " posts compared with general chat i think you may be shocked

mechanic28

iTrader: (5)

out of interest who does own this site?

Chip

iTrader: (3)

You're as entitled to your opinion as anyone else mate, ex trader or not, and whinging about bedroom traders the whole time or not.
I think the thing you miss is just what an awesome resource most of us think of those bedroom traders as being, so while you want to stamp them out, most of us would sooner encourage them as they are often a great source of cheap bits.

Chip

iTrader: (3)

An american company called internet brands as far as im aware.

northerner

Is there a cap on how many items Gold Members can sell in a year? If not, setting a cap may go some way to appease the traders who pay for the privilege to advertise as traders.

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

I understand that bedroom traders are great for the buyer , but you cant expect me to pay a large fee compared with the £10 they pay

Hence why i say if they want to trade at least shorten the gap between what we " the real trader " and them " the bedroom trader " pays , then lets see how cheap there parts are

Chip

iTrader: (3)

It will be a nightmare to police though realistically, for example, how many times are they allowed to list on a single advert? Is there a cap on the value of adverts, would you ban phrases like "breaking complete car everything available" etc?

Personally I think the system works fairly well at the moment from what Ive seen, and see little value for the forum or its users in what you want, and the 2 or 3 traders it might tempt back arent even going to come close to covering the admin cost of implementing it IMHO

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

Let the bedroom traders run the place then

The main reason for my post was to make the place better " fairer " for everyone not just real traders . altho it would IMO bring back 2 /3 traders
But i am realistic and know that this website ( unlike most others i use ) doesnt give a fook about having real traders , well not like they did in the early days , but understand now that with the new owners big bank accounts traders arnt worthy anymore and in real terms not needed

shame they forget how this place used to be paid for

Chip

iTrader: (3)

i dont think they have forgetten anything at all, it just no longer makes as much financial sence to rely on a few traders and pander to their wishes accordingly than it does to run the site in the interests of the thousands of paying members.
I remember carbs and points, but I have neither on my car as there is a better way now.

IMHO traders still have the option of signing up if they wish, and in fact many do, but they no longer have as much control over how the site is run as they used to, and IMHO thats better for the members.

That said its a shame if you feel that PF wont bring you enough business to justify 400 pounds a year, as I view you as one of the good guys and are one of the few people selling secondhand parts that I would recomend to people (and do so quite often in fact) as I would have thought that with so many people on here looking for parts, it should be relatively easy to recover that sort of expenditure.

My opinion (like arseholes we all have one) is that you arent looking at this from a purely current business perspective, you feel that you should be in some way rewarded for supporting the site in the early days, and YOU forget that you WERE rewarded for that support by lots of sale.
Either it makes 400 pounds worth of profit right now to advertise or it doesnt, those are the options and I think you should either do it, or not keep going on about it really.

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

The cost has nothing to do with me not paying chip
Im a man of principles ( spelling ) and i believe in getting what i pay for same as im sure you do , and i feel that paying the traders fees should give " the real traders " somthing more than it seems the std gold mamber gets

all i want is what i pay for nothing more nothing less

I know the mods / admin cant see everything , but FFS some on here take the piss and unless somone moans they just get left to do as they please

altho i must admit it does seem to be less these days

Chip

iTrader: (3)

IMHO traders DO get what they pay for, they get:

Ability to post an advert in general (does that still get allowed?)
A trade designation under their name
A trade signature
A trade username

They also get unhindered access to for sale, which is something that gold members kind of get, but all of the above arent.

You get to look professional for your 400 quid, the bedroom traders dont.

I think you are underestimating what the differences are, and just seeing the adverts themselves.

mechanic28

iTrader: (5)

so this new company must of got this site to make a profit!i would assume!so surely the gold membership is just for them for profit rather then up keep of the site?

NEWTON

bedroom traders and ebay rule for cheaper parts,why stop that?

Chip

iTrader: (3)

Its for both, like any business venture you need money to provide a good service and you need some to take as profit to make it worth you continuing.

Mr RS500

iTrader: (6)

Who is saying stop them

what i am saying is just expect them to pay a little more than they do now

and BTW bedroom traders dont use ebay for £10 a year do they

Chip

iTrader: (3)

Full time traders selling lots of cars and parts dont use it for 400 a year and dont get to stand out so well from the bedroom traders either

Micky The Finn

but just look at how many complaints there are about the bedroom traders,3 4 5 weeks to post parts out,whearas a proper trader will usually send items out straight away with a proper courier with tracking,not just normal royal fail or parcel farce,and they blame them and say the cannot trace the parcels.
i would rather buy off a genuine trader all day long than an unknown who can,and so often has on here,cut and run with no traces.

i agree whole hearedly with paul,there are loads on here bedroom trading,there are at least 5 with addvert listed in the last 48 hours or so that i know of.

NEWTON

i know what you mean,but this company makes enough surely

Chip

iTrader: (3)

I agree, in fact so much so that I will happily pay a couple of quid more to buy from someone like paul than from an unknown bedroom trader, it was always my belief that this couple of quid extra went towards things like covering the cost of his trade status on here.

NEWTON

yes ,but only some people are like that,i always buy of people who have a lot of post and well know to the site.but i see what your saying,theres lots of ripping off cunts out there,and i have put 5 or so adverts in the last 48 hours,and everythink has sold,because they were cheap parts,

Rick

I like the bedroom traders, lots of cheap bits on offer. I know who the big boys are so i can always contact them off site.

Chip

iTrader: (3)

And continual "not a trade post" like this one from Paul @ North Yorks RS Spares are always a good reminder

Oh the irony of it whilst complaining about other people using PF to trade while he "not for trade reasons" continually mentions how he used to be a trader and might be again, just to remind people he is still trading but not currently a paid up trader, normally with lots of us suckered into mentioning how good he is, LOL

NEWTON

im with rick

Lloyd

true,but often what you buy is complete junk,with no warrenty.plus you can be ripped off,as happened to yourself recently

RWD_cossie_wil

iTrader: (9)

So, who are these bedroom traders then?? I have heard this virtually every time a trader or ex-trader posts, but never seen one name mentioned? If you are going to moan at least post up who you percive the problem to be?

Chip

iTrader: (3)

Absolutely, which as I said is why im prepared to pay a bit more to buy from an established trader who is prepared to pay the 400 pounds a year fee and whom complaining about makes a difference.
Although when dealing with bedroom traders the creditcard and paypal combination that I always use thankfully means even when you get ripped off you get your money back anyway, so no real risk done like that

Stu @ M Developments

iTrader: (12)

Its a great idea, but It would require far too much software to be specifically written for it. We would end up with a forum like eBay. At the end of the day, if you want to pay as you go, you would be better off using ebay as it would be far more successful and its also only £0.15p per advert too.


Lucky you dont have to advertise in magazines then Will as Fast Ford book rate for a year of full page adverts is £8400.
You can negotiate cheaper of course, but you will struggle to get one month in Fast Ford for less than Passionford charges for 1 year. And which do you think would be the best selling medium? I can answer that honestly as ive been in both mags, and this site, for the last 5 years. every month, without fail.


Off putting for who? Only Pete and Paul that ive noticed so far. And whilst its sad we lost those two great traders, we have gained more traders than we have lost so i think your argument is hugely flawed.


See above i guess, and potentially small gains?
In my honest opinion as a trader who has succesfully traded on the internet for 8 years, it is my honest opinion that any trader who spends 1 whole month trading on pf, and interacting with the members (customers), and still cant generate £33.40p to cover his trade fees for that month really is in the wrong trade mate.


Hmm... we have 13 traders at the moment and they all seem pretty happy. Are you saying you would prefer 6 Will?

Stu @ M Developments

iTrader: (12)

The bedroom traders tend to annoy the breakers more often than not, and since we only have one breaker now i expect it will be Tim Finch who is going to find the biggest problem and i am sure he will be contacting the mods with any information he has that wuill help themm to deal with it in teh correct manner.

remember, teh webteam are unpaid helpers who try to make your time here more enjoyable, but it would be nice if people lent a hand now and then as i too am sick of hearuing the term "Bedroom trader" bandied about asthough they are some all rulng clan that nobody is scared to speak up about.

One of the many reasons i let Pete Rs Specialist moderate on here was to stamp out bedroom trading, and i thought he had done an EXCELLENT job of it, but maybe he needs YOUR help to be more thourough with the rest of the webteam?

Just moaning is no good to ANYONE. lend a hand to make your site better.

fuzzy

if you cant beat them join them. dont pay traders fees , just be a gold member.
i dont understand why the hate towards bedroom traders though, theyre not all shysters. in fact ive had more problems with parts from professionals than the occasional bedroom traders. (ebay and real life not on here)

NEIL A

iTrader: (6)

Stu is there a limit to the amount of parts per year you can sell as a goldmember?

G2RSR

I have never seen any of theses bedroom traders and im always looking for parts

there just mostly people breaking there cars, i have never seen anyone breaking cars constantly

cossiecrew

i think johnyb is a bedroom trader

fuzzy

yes, other peoples bedrooms

bigal1978

cant beat them join um pay my £20.00 ill advertize all your stuff

Edmund

Damn cheap advertising for the trade if you ask me,and just look at the database,far bigger than any ford mag surely.

Breakers are expensive i know because of overheads,but i would rather by cheaper if i can and these kinda places like ebay get me that.You talk about trusting these bedroom traders,well like ebay i will check their feedback and decide myself wether to take the risk on buying cheaper,if not i will use a proper trader.Its a sad thing to say but the bedroom trader is taking over and i am not too unhappy about it.

In this world you have to try different angles,i note that motorsport developments have that sown up with there own made parts Always think one step ahead of your competitors or your going down,so stop whinging and either use your brain or get out of the game!