How would you handle these selling scenarios ?

[random]

Not properties btw but vehicles and RV's .

L'm not a salesman but unfortunately part of my work involves selling after the job . l buy and sell RV's , campers and stuff , usually after doing different work or fit outs on them .
l've probably sold 100 or so over the years , more . Sometimes to because of my area ,we negotiate a delivery or to meet 1/2way as it often helps move something l may've been stuck with for much longer other wise.
But every now and then l get stumped or on the spot and to this day , although l handle most scenarios pretty well if l do say so myself , and there's been some doozies , there have been a few , and l just had another one of those again today.

We arrange to meet about an hour from my home where he's meant to pay for and take the vehicle.
And ok , this one was without the deposit down as we just did the deal last night, meeting today and all was good to go , should've been fine.
Except he was suss about some of the paperwork and nothing l could say would change his mind. It was all fine but he was stuck on one detail , doesn't really matter what but the point is he refused to go ahead.
l'd just spent an hr on and off with him last night and then two hours today getting stuff ready and driving.
l mean what do you do ?
You can't make someone take the thing or stick to their deal, drag the cash out of their pocket .
l spent10mins or so trying to work it out , he wasn't budging ,l was getting very peed of. In the end said fk this and took off.So that's how that one panned out.

Another one once ,same , did the deal the night before, meeting him at 8am , an hour away . Hooked up and got there on time . But he had a gripe about something and refused to go ahead with the deal. Again l'd wasted all that time , driven all that way, he offered to cover me for the fuel , big deal, great !
But again ,really nothing was going to budge him.

Now l hear you say deposit deposit but hey , sometimes , mostly ,yet here's the same again.
Guy rang from interstate , saw all the pics on the net. We'd spent about an hour all up texting and talking details and he wanted the van , put 2k on it that night and wanted to race down over night and meet me 2hrs from my place 9am.
Rocks up with 4 mates , not happy with the van. Now l have to be careful here , l was alone and had 4 very tired blokes in front of me , peed off because they'd driven all that way and didn't like the van.
l'd wasted by the time l take it home again , 4 or 5hrs and fuel, plus all the time on the deal itself , what do you do.
l couldn't give him he's deposit back because l'd transferred it into some other stuff that very night before . And are you gonna tell 4 tired peed of blokes your keeping their deposit ?
So , he was mainly peed about one particular thing in the kitchen so he wanted some money off.
He had the balance which was 10k , right there but refused and said he'd only give me 9 .
The 1/2 a day it was taking me was worth 4 or 500 anyway because l didn't charge him to run it over there considering how far he was coming.
So , in the end l agreed , he took he's van and l go home 1k out plus 1/2 a day.
But what else could l have done ?

You know , my stuffs advertised on the net so they're buying through pictures and whatever info you can both discuss . And it can get damn tricky.
l'd actually take the good old paper ads any day actually after 7yrs of dealing through the internet but no one buys them any more and my areas too small anyway. My customers come from all over with the net.

 

[property_girl]

What a bummer. Next time can you have the deposit ready to give back to them? Can you meet them in a public place so that you're not at their mercy? Can you make them come to you so that you don't have to do so much driving?

 

[random]

l suppose l could work deposits like that in the future , but do you give a deposit back when they've already costed you ?
this has been a dilemma a few times. 4 grumpy blokes though, yeah l guess you do give it back if you have to hu !

It is usually somewhere public actually , usually as a landmark so that it's easier for us both to find. Does help , but many have been out in woop woop to , those ones are a bit creepy. Might stop that .

Yeah many do come to me , probably 80% but often it's helping out a bit if they have to come a long way, Sydney or something . l don't actually like doing it at all really because who know what your gonna get when you get there really but it does help sell a few to so .
One day l took one 4hrs for a Queensland guy , he wasn't there and l never heard from him again. He didn't even try to get his deposit back.

 

[Macca]

I think it depends how you present yourself on the net. If you are a business trading in vans and motorhomes then I would expect them to come to me and I would keep the whole thing professional.

If you simply buy and sell vans and MHs as a sideline and don't disclose that it is a business, then the buyers think you are a private seller and anything goes.

Keeping all that in mind, there are all sorts of people in this world, no matter how many you deal with the ratio seems to stay the same. I would think about 2% of people don't get on with any body

 

[random]

Yeah your right macca and that does help. It is my business but mostly a one man show. So it can be weird turning up some where usually alone. The customers often have somebody with them.
l usually charge for meeting them somewhere to and def' charge and well for a full delivery.
The guy yesterday was only 45mins away though, l usually don't charge for close ones like that .

l mean anyone in business knows your never gonna get 100% l guess . l spose probably 5 or 6 out of well over 100 , isn't too bad .
There's a certain personality type that l know , may give me trouble . l only come across them now and then but l can usually feel it starting the deal . l came home from yesterdays thinking to myself , when l feel those personality types from now on , right , " make" them come to me from now on . Don't lift a finger for them.
l'm going to listen to that from now on.
One or two though have caught me totally of guard l must admit. You can't always read them right .

The thing is though , what do l do in those sitches ?
l got pretty agro at this guy yesterday in the end , wasting my damn time like that, being such a p@ssy. And , he was getting a damn good buy to boot anyway and - l'd gone to all that trouble for him.

l was a bit angry with myself later for losing it a bit with him , hard not to though when you've gone to that much trouble . As l say though , you can't take the money out of their pockets and close the sale can you .

 

[wylie]

If I was your buyer, and prepared to buy the vehicle, I would be happy to transfer a hundred or so to cover your fuel and travel time on the proviso that I pay the balance when I take delivery, assuming I'm meeting you half way or you are delivering to me.

If I don't take the vehicle for any reason, I would agree upfront (before arranging to meet) that you keep the deposit.

Anybody prepared to pay money for a vehicle should be happy to agree to this and if not, I wouldn't be delivering it. I would insist they come and collect it and waste their own time if they don't take it.

 

[jrc]

In your 3 scenarios:

1. he was suss about some of the paperwork.
2. he had a gripe about something
3. he was peed off about something in the kitchen

You have not given enough information for us to determine whether the complaints are legitimate or could be perceived as legitimate or whether you could change anything in your processes to prevent them happening again.

You are a business selling by description over the internet. It is your obligation to comply with any legislation re sale by description.

Maybe you've been fortunate you've had so few complaints. Maybe these 3 complaints shouldn't have ben made. We don't know one way or the other.

But one of the issues both for your pricing and your time is that you have chosen to base your business a long way from your market. Can you have your vehicles on display somewhere closer to your market? Does any surrounding area have a sell your own car/vehicle place?

 

[kingchevy]

Take a decent fee for delivery and try and explain everything over the phone and with photos so the delivery is more of a formality than an inspection?

 

[random]

Yeah l need to be a bit tougher on at least fuel costs upfront l think. Fuel is nothing if you've spent a day going there and back or even a few hours but at least it's something.
An over nighter which means across the border is a grand , l won't do it for less as l use motels , lose a day or twos pay , fuel .
That's still way cheaper and way simpler than using a trucking mob and , l know it will get done .
l can usually be home before those guys have even finished their 3mile long list of forms and crap let alone actually do the simple job itself .
l do try to cover everything when we do a deal , often double check. But there's always things , you often can't get it all and then there's the person at the other end that sometimes don't even wanna know. They turn onto doctor Jeckle though when you turn up, sometimes even wait till then to start haggling .

The internet is damn tricky like that . l have tried putting my stuff down in Melbourne and stuff but there's a lot of extra work and costs in getting it there , l'm only a one man show . Keeping it simple is what makes me good money , but of course there are things .

l didn't bother with those details jrc mentioned because they aren't really the point. And they were often discussed doing the deal anyway.

My point is , how would you handle those situations if you turn up with the van or RV and cop that when all was upfront before anyway ?
How would you have dealt with the situation ?

Yes l am also interested in doing anything l can to avoid them in the future to , but your dealing with strangers from all over the country , through internet advertising , sh@t is gonna happen at least sometimes no matter what you do.
Sometimes to l might use Ebay to depending on the van and my God . l owned the same business for 13yrs down in Melbourne before internet , using the good old papers advertising . The difference now is still mind boggling , and the difference in peoples bravado because they are dealing through the internet behind a key board is also mind boggling .
Not to mention the work . It is 3x the work now that it use to be. Just keeping Ebay and Pay Pals working alone is a feat all it's own , hate it , them .
But people buying through an Ebay auction are a whole new kettle of fish to fore sure .
But the big issue is people often buy via photo and description. You try your best but !

Where as they use to just come out from the paper , look at the rv and take it or not , no dramas at all. Remember selling your car or something in the paper !

 

[skater]

I think you are making things more complicated than they need to be.

If it is arranged that you will be meeting a customer, then you need to do it in a professional manner. They can come to you, or for a fee ON TOP OF THE PURCHASE PRICE, you will take it to them. The fee you decide needs to be paid up front, and is NOT refundable, should they decide not to go ahead.

So....work out your hourly rate, add in the fuel costs & if they don't pay, you don't go. Let them know that the funds need to be cleared funds too, so they can't ring you one day & expect you to drive out to woop, woop the next.

In the instance of the guys that got you to drop the $1k, I can't for the life of me work out why you went ahead with that.

I have some stuff listed on Gumtree. Now Gumtree buyers are a real PITA. Some don't show up, some want you to deliver, and some want to pay you less than half of what you are asking. Why do they behave in this way? Simple! It's a numbers game, & some of the sellers have no backbone & will just give in.

The other day I got a call from two people wanting to buy an item I have listed. It's brand new RRP is $99 and I'm asking $59. First one did the usual painful stuff of asking me all sorts of questions (the answers were all in the listing), before asking how much I wanted. I told him & he came back with "I can't go over $30". I said, well I guess you miss out. A couple of hours later he came back & said to let him know if I change my mind. I said that I won't & if he doesn't buy it, someone else will.

Second one wanted me to deliver it to him in the CBD. I said it's pick up only, but I will post for an extra $10 once cleared funds are received. He didn't buy it either.

The point I'm trying to make here is that I could have sold that item to either one of these purchasers, but I don't HAVE to, because they don't meet my criteria. I'm not going to sell something for less than I want & I certainly aren't going out of my way for someone that may or may not be there.

 

[wylie]

I think skater makes good points, however, your product price point is very different to the things she is selling and you have said your distance from most buyers is a big reason why you are happy to meet them half way. If you are selling something for $7K (or whatever the price happens to be) then I'm guessing you don't mind at all spending a couple of hours because you would be making some good profit.

You could take a deposit to cover your costs should they not go ahead and buy it, and you make it clear it is a delivery fee on top of the purchase price, or you may prefer to take it off the price once they accept delivery, to get the deal over the line, especially if making a delivery is something that you need to offer due to where you live or have them find another vehicle closer to home. Either way, I'm sure you are building into the price the cost of your time to deliver. It's not like you are selling a new item with a RRP that they can know if you have loaded it up for your time to deliver.

But skater is so right with the Gumtree buyers. They are a PITA. I listed something a week ago for $80. I was asked if I could deliver it. I texted back that I would deliver it for an extra $20. Heard nothing more. They wanted me to get a desk into a trailer, drive it to them and they pay me nothing more than I'm asking. I could go to all that trouble, get there and have them decide they don't like it. Pffftt!!!

I've been selling an antique for $990 and had people offer me $150. It is not my antique. I'm doing someone a favour and I've really enjoyed telling them "no".

I also think it is a numbers game, but don't think it comes down to the seller having no backbone. I think there are so many people who are looking for a seller who is so desperate for money that they will accept stupidly low offers.

I do agree though, and have learned that you need to point out any shortcomings and put up lots of photos and plenty of information, so that you lessen the possibility that they arrive and decide they don't want it. That won't stop the PITA smarties who try to pull the wool over you by threatening that they don't want it after you've spent hours getting there. That is where you keep the delivery fee and as long as you spell it out, they cannot say they don't accept those terms. And always take someone with you or meet in a very public place.

 

[random]

Thanks for that.
Because Skate you missed the fine print. That was a 12k deal plus 200 for taking it over to the spot an hour away. Big dif' between that and 50bucks.
They drove 12 hours over night and were paying me 12.200 on a good profit deal , of course l'll take it over an hour closer for 200 bucks . That will save them 4hrs extra because of trying to find my spot on top of their trip down.
But l had 4 agro tired guys on my hands and l'm just 1guy alone .
l'd already put his deposit into something else the night before so l could not refund that either.
So i need to get outa there in one piece , and l needed either the deal to go through or give him back his deposit or they would of had me for breakfast.
l couldn't give his deposit back , they weren't happy , so that was my compromise asWylie said and l'm still making very good money out of it.
The non refundable up front fee is a damn good idea though .

And yeah , the back bone thing ,um 50 bucks - compared to 12 to 20,000 dollar sales with high profit margin. Can't even compare sorry .
l get that same percentage offer all the time . l don't even respond to those usually.
On say a 12-15k van , l'll move a few 100 , maybe a k , depends plus as l say up to around 1500 delivery for as far as l'll transport them.
If they want me to deliver though l stick to full price plus delivery . Unless it's an extra high profit deal , then l might waver a bit if l have to to get it over the line .

That idea of yours Wylie , to take the delivery of the price as a sweetener if they go ahead but non refundable if they don't , there are plenty of the higher up profit deals l do that would easy compensate that, great idea .Nice sweetener for them, covers my a@@@ to.

But yeah , the higher the price the less smarta@@@s you get . As l was saying , any selling is only a small part of my job but l do really hate having to sell of any of the cheaper stuff that comes in bc l'll be dealing with bottom of the barrel customers usually. Not always , meet some really nice people that just can't afford much but it also brings all the cheap scape no money people out as well , they're shocking believe me .

 

[random]

Sometimes it's the end of the mth or whatever to and you need some cash in fast to cover things.

Best time to buy at Harvey Norman or a new car to

Speaking of similar , geez there's been a lot of pretty heavy sales on this year , any one notice. Heavy discounts !

 

[skater]

Random, I am quite aware that we are talking different price points, but the principal is the same. If you are going to offer delivery, then you need to make the customer know that the delivery fee is not refundable under any circumstances, and as for getting into a situation where you are outnumbered & you fear for your safety, then you really need to arrange the delivery to a more public place, or take someone else with you.

PLUS like I said, if you do a deal one day, then go deliver the next, you haven't got their non refundable deposit (read: delivery fee).

 

[random]

You can't always take people , everyone works and you don't know they're gonna turn up with 3 other guys. Most come alone actually .
Don't get the last bit , you can easily get a dep in a few hours right banks. But yeah the delivery fee up front would cover your a@@@ ,few people have suggested that and at least it's something .

But like most people know they've done their dep anyway of course if they change their mind. These guys weren't about to leave me with 2k after their drive down though .
Anyway , that one actually worked out quite well in the end. We both gave a little and met in the middle. Admittedly the kitchen was a bit rough.
PS , If you were in that exact sitch and with deadlines and payments due , four blokes lookin at you, you'd easily understand. But as l say , the kitch was a bit rough too.
Sometimes it could easily cost you a grand to just go back to work and start again with it anyway and you might only be able to get 3grand less next time. It happens .

 

[random]

l had a guy from Texas last year , yep. He'd been over here 2 wks. Somehow he found his way out to my property coming all the way down from Sydney , then he took of to tour the Great Ocean Rd , big grin, he was stoked.
Love a happy ending .

 

[random]

Point is too , it's not always about money. Situations can get heated as l say . How to handle those sitches , respond , keep them under control , often things like that are the biggest things first up.
And then if you can do that , maybe you can even salvage the deal to.

But again , the delivery fee upfront , rather than a deposit , would help that a lot to and help keep things calm because your still at least covered for something if it goes sth.

 

[wylie]

But again , the delivery fee upfront , rather than a deposit , would help that a lot to and help keep things calm because your still at least covered for something if it goes sth.

... and like anything in life, if backing down means you stay safe, then back down. Better to lose a few hours of your time or a thousand dollars than stand up for yourself and cop a belting.

 

[random]

I could tell a few funny /weird ones, where punch ups were highly poss and def' not in my favor. Like those 4 . If a customer isn't happy , they have extra bravado with back up and your solo. Seen it a few times. .

But there was one where l didn't know whether to laugh, cough or jump in the car and get outa there .
The guy had his mother with him and she went of her nut. Started poking and pushing , screaming her head off, all over something that didn't even exist . Stupid b@tch just jumped the gun about paper work and got it in her head that l was ripping them of. His trying to calm her down , damn funny in a way, mad women .
Yet l'd actually gone way out of my way for them and everything was in order and good to go, very similar thing to a mix up on their part again, l had just the other day. Somehow when l'd explain they'd mix it up even more, crazy. Mac donalds car park no less.
This was actually one of the best deals l'd ever done for someone . Lost the deal , they're probably still there yelling and screaming to this day haha, crazy sh@t .
They'd put a dep' on which l kept but never heard from them again.

People are very suspicious now at times with all the scams and net, going on . Fortunately most go well though thank God and everyone's happy .