Trading and selling on Basschat seems to have dramatically declined

[karlfer]

Thunderbird, if you think people ask a lot for there stuff here, you are right,in a small number of cases. But have a look on some of the free sites
£450 for an Epiphone Explorer
£700 for a Japanese 57 RI
£800 for a 5 year old US Precision
£750 for a 10 year old US jazz
In general buyers on here get an excellent deal.

[Conan]

I have bought and sold a moderate but significant amount on here in the last few years. When I sell something I make a donation. When I buy something I trust that the seller does this too.

In the last few weeks I have bought a bass, sold a bass, traded a cabinet and an effects unit. Not bad for the middle of a recession! I think the amount of trading has increased as it involves less cash changing hands and means people can try other gear when they get bored of their own or fancy a change.

I would have paid the £20 just for the privilege of having access to BC! It is a brilliant resource even if you never buy of sell anything IMO. As a paid-up member I can buy, sell or trade to my heart's content.

But then I'm a glass-half-full kind of guy...

[martin8708]

[quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1371410958' post='2113578']


The recession is not hitting every part of every market, in fact many business are booming, especially those that are able to adapt and work with consumers, rather than alienate them.


[/quote]

When I walk down the High Street and I am faced with the choice of 1) empty shop 2) charity shop 3 ) Poundland or 99p shop , I would have to say things ain't what they used to be .

Yes , some sectors are doing well and bucking the trend , I believe Poundland made huge profits this year ,and Range Rovers order books are full , but I'm sure most of those luxury cars are heading for emerging markets or China ( or Cheshire )
I agree , we have to adapt to the new situation , but the simple fact is many of us are affected by the closure of shops/ factories / prisons /army barracks / police stations etc .

Just my 2p

[tonybassplayer]

There are a couple of good sites round my way on facebook that are very active and I have sold quite a bit on it ( 5 string bass, PA system, Electronic drum kit, Effects unit etc ) and by the very nature of it they are relatively local people so they collect and pay with no fees so much better than ebay etc

[chris_b]

A few years ago I tried to sell my Mesa Boogie cabs on Gumtree. All I got was emails from 2 Nigerians!

They sold straight away on BC.


I know where I'll always start if I have some bass gear to sell.

[Thunderbird]

[quote name='karlfer' timestamp='1371449916' post='2113937']
Thunderbird, if you think people ask a lot for there stuff here, you are right,in a small number of cases. But have a look on some of the free sites
£450 for an Epiphone Explorer
£700 for a Japanese 57 RI
£800 for a 5 year old US Precision
£750 for a 10 year old US jazz
In general buyers on here get an excellent deal.
[/quote]Yes I agree it is a small number of cases and like I said there are some good deals on here I myself have had a couple I still think lack of money is the problem though most people just don't seem to have much spare money nowadays once the bills are paid there doesn't seem to be much cash left over but hopefully in the future things may pick up who knows? but on the whole yes Basschat market place is a cool place.

[iconic]

I thought the lack of stuff around was just me, I love to window shop (and buy!) bass's are a quite addictive in the way we want to try them all!

I personally feel sure (for what my opinion is worth it usually isn't worth much) that if a straw poll was taken, it's simply down to the 'fee to sell', what a load of sad sacks we maybe.

BC market place has changed from a [b]'free to sell source'[/b], to a [b]'fee to sell source'[/b]. I believe being free was why this site's for 'sale section' was such a draw in the first place, charging is reasonable but humans can be so unreasonable...I know I can be.....cue song...good bassline too

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mX8gsr9sWc[/media]


I wonder if that that olde stylee 'free for sale' section may also of been a good source for drawing in new members, whom then went on to become to be active members & posters and then sellers/buyers?

I really hope that the current for sale bass blip is temporary as this IS BY FAR the best bass forum I've come across, period, as they say across the pond. Obviously money is needed to run this site & the 'for sale' section is a way to generate this revenue method, so it needs to work?

Edited June 17, 2013 by iconic

[neepheid]

I'm not buying just now because I'm busy restoring my Gibson Ripper, and that involves trawling the globe for parts. I'm not feeling that flush either, and I'm also pretty happy with my lot right now.

I've got nothing big to sell. Been raising some funds recently by selling little odds and sods < £50.

I have to say that the last few bass sales I have done (pre-fees) have not been here despite them being advertised on here - had more success on local music fora and gumtree. I think the last successful transaction ended up being a trade.

I'm not going to pay the £20 until I need it - I don't think it's unreasonable, it just makes absolutely no sense to have the clock ticking when I've nothing big to sell.

[BigRedX]

Unless the lack of fees from sellers is impacting upon Basschat's ability to carry on existing, does it matter?

I'm here first and foremost to talk about music and musical instruments. The market place is a very distant secondary importance to me. TBH I'm happy with the gear I've got and while there might be somethings that I'd be interested in buying if they came along at the right price, my tastes are such that they are unlikely to show up on Basschat.

I've done a fair bit of buying and selling of basses over the last 7 years, but I've always had more success in other places (mainly eBay). Baschat might have almost 27,000 members, but it appears that very few of them are actually active - witness the recent Rickenbacker poll with less than 300 votes. And there's still a lot of bassists in the UK who have never heard of this place, I come across them almost every week playing in bands that The Terrortones share the bill with. Also of 10 or so basses I've sold in the last 12 months only one of them was to a Basschat member.

Like it or the Basschat marketplace can be pretty conservative. You're OK if you are selling a bass from a well-known manufacturer or something that's basically a fancy Fender clone, but selling anything else can be hard work.

[Norris]

£20 is not exactly going to break the bank, and gives the site some much-needed funds. I've paid up, but rarely sell anything.

I have at least one bass I'm thinking of selling, but it's such a poor seller's market at the moment I'm hanging on to it until either things improve or I really need to cash it in (or the wife notices I did one in without the one out! ).

[Norris]

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1371396411' post='2113321']
<snip>
I've been looking for a USA Jazz of late, but there seem less of them around.
<snip>
[/quote]
Funnily enough, that's exactly what I'm NOT selling yet because of the lack of buyers with money ('99 US Jazz Standard)

[ambient]

I think the £20 fee puts people off.

There was a post the other week from someone who wanted to sell a bass, but couldn't afford the fee.

I sold a condenser mic a couple of weeks ago, I only wanted £70 for it, but take off the £20 and that leaves me with just £50, almost a 3rd of the price.

I sold it via Gumtree in the end, it cost nothing and sold within two hours.

[Mr Lizard]

I have used the site for selling gear in the past but won't be doing in the future due to the fee.

[Happy Jack]

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1371408761' post='2113534']
I paid the £20 when I was looking at selling an item, but in all honesty if it had been introduced that we all had to pay £20 to keep our membership going, sales or not, I`d have still paid the £20. Being a member of Basschat means a great deal to me, have met a lot of really great people on here, so a small "membership fee" like £20 wouldn`t put me off at all.
[/quote]

+1

I've bought/sold more than most on Basschat over the last few years.

The £20 fee (which I argued strongly FOR) happened to come in pretty much as my buying/selling largely dried up for completely different reasons. Sheer coincidence.

I still see it as £20 well spent and I'll spend it again next year, regardless of whether or not I buy/sell a single damned thing in the mean time.

[Clarky]

I think its clearly factual that the fee is putting people off selling from the posts so far. I guess its a different question whether you feel the site offers a great deal more than a marketplace and I for one would happily pay £20 a year just to be a member. Like wateroftyne said earlier, how much do the naysayers spend on beer at the weekend? - £20 a year for unlimited advice, camaraderie, music tips, knowledge is a super bargain in my book but clearly others disagree

[fretmeister]

I think the fee puts people off. There have been comments about it on other forums (admittedly owned by much larger organisations).

But it's much to early to tell if it will have a real impact on the site. All we have at the moment is correlation, NOT causation. They are not the same thing.

[yepmop]

Didn't mind the £20 as it goes to supporting the site plus if you sell a few items on here it probably works out a lot cheaper the fleabay costs.

I think the market is a bit falt at the mo (seasonal?), i've had loads of interest in my MIM Jazz but no takers.

[ambient]

Would it not be better to have set the fee at say £5 and have maybe 500 for sale adverts over a given period of time, rather than set it at £20 and only have say 50 adverts ?

Those are only just figures plucked from the ether of course, but you see my point ?

[Silvia Bluejay]

I haven't sold or bought anything in the Marketplace here yet (I tend to buy new from shops, what with liking shiny new things and being a lefty etc.etc.[size=3] etc. [/size] [size=1]etc.[/size] ....) but I have donated money twice and given lots of my time on an ongoing basis - and I still feel I'm the one who's in debt to BC. Go figure...

[The Dark Lord]

[quote name='Norris' timestamp='1371469728' post='2114154']
Funnily enough, that's exactly what I'm NOT selling yet because of the lack of buyers with money ('99 US Jazz Standard)
[/quote]

Ok then, tell you what, strip it down to the bare wood, have it resprayed in gloss black and I'll give you £550 for it.

[skankdelvar]

Worth remembering that the fee was introduced because only 4% of sales generated a donation. If more of us had slipped a few quid in the kitty, then the fees wouldn't have been needed.

Fact is, Ped and Kiwi were funding the forum out of their own pockets while many sellers were benefitting financially or otherwise. Apart from being unsustainable, it was also entirely unfair.

The Dark Lord made the splendid point that switching from free to fee has a pronounced effect on internet-based activity. And this would be a predictable outcome if we were talking about a forum owned by a large media company. But this is a privately-owned, community driven platform and I would hope that we'd be a bit more relaxed and understanding about the issue. Sure, it's a pain and I can understand how it might impact more on casual, infrequent traders, newbs or the financially-challenged.

I don't want to rain on the parade but some have [i]very visibly[/i] gone above and beyond the cause when it comes to criticising this change. Perhaps some are disproportionately exercised by events and - I say this respectfully - should reflect on the simple choice between paid-for ads and the disappearance of the forum.

Perhaps others have an unconnected axe to grind with the ownership in which case they might be happier elsewhere on forums more suited to their specialist needs and interests.

Edited June 17, 2013 by skankdelvar

[Guest bassman7755]

Id prefer just an encouragement to donate when making a sale.

For a start I cant find any instructions anywhere on how to actually make the payment ...

[redstriper]

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1371474152' post='2114231']
Worth remembering that the fee was introduced because only 4% of sales generated a donation. If more of us had slipped a few quid in the kitty, then the fees wouldn't have been needed.

Fact is, Ped and Kiwi were funding the forum out of their own pockets while many sellers were benefitting financially or otherwise. Apart from being unsustainable, it was also entirely unfair.

The Dark Lord made the splendid point that switching from free to fee has a pronounced effect on internet-based activity. And this would be a predictable outcome if we were talking about a forum owned by a large media company. But this is a privately-owned, community driven platform and I would hope that we'd be a bit more relaxed and understanding about the issue. Sure, it's a pain and I can understand how it might impact more on casual, infrequent traders, newbs or the financially-challenged.

I don't want to rain on the parade but some have [i]very visibly[/i] gone above and beyond the cause when it comes to criticising this change. Perhaps some are disproportionately exercised by events and - I say this respectfully - should reflect on the simple choice between paid-for ads and the disappearance of the forum.

Perhaps others have an unconnected axe to grind with the ownership in which case they might be happier elsewhere on forums more suited to their specialist needs and interests.
[/quote]

I don't know if you're having a go at me here or not, but I would like to make it clear that I have never criticised the introduction of fees.
I only tried to offer some possible explanations for the decline in trading and selling in answer to the OP.
Those people that have criticised the fees are entitled to their opinion and should not have to suffer the jibes of other members who hold a different view.

The fact is there are a significant number of members who do not like the fees and they will not list items or visit the site as often.
I suggested a commission based fee as a possible alternative and I think it could work with the good will of the membership, if it was made compulsory instead of the previous voluntary donation.
Some people would abuse it, but I believe the majority would react well and it is easier to pay when you have just sold something than before hand when your item may not sell at all.

[Cat Burrito]

Personally I ran out of gear to sell, but that's divorce for you!

[BetaFunk]

[quote name='bassman7755' timestamp='1371474604' post='2114238']
Id prefer just an encouragement to donate when making a sale.
[/quote]
I was genuinely surprised when i saw how few sellers actually made a donation. It was inevitable that a fee would have to come in with so few making a donation.