Since it seems this is now a lost art, here are some rules & expectations for negotiating prices:
1. Never take an offer as a personal insult; negotiations always have to start somewhere and you will always place more value on your stuff than someone else.
2. When making an offer, do everything you can to avoid low-balling by doing some basic research on the fair market value (FMV) of what you're looking to buy. We all want the best deal we can get, but keep things reasonable and realistic.
For example, eBay might show recent sold listings for a given card between $1 and $5, some with free shipping, others without. In addition, eBay charges final value (and other) fees to the seller, further depleting that selling price accordingly. Buying/Selling on TCDB, while it has a higher inherent risk, doesn't incur those fees, so your price through this medium should be lower to reflect this.
3. Don't start with your max offer. If you hate the back & forth and just want to start with your max price, make sure it's clear to the seller (add a note explaining), so the seller doesn't waste their time putting together a counter-offer.
4. Don't ignore true costs - Shipping is never free, penny sleeves (while dirt-cheap) aren't free, top-loaders aren't free, Financial transactions can sometimes be costly. Many folks might not get in the weeds and account for these costs but we should all consider them, regardless.
I'm sure I'm forgetting something else but this ought to get us started so we can all be professional, mature, seasoned negotiators.
This post isn't about any TCDB member in particular but it's something I've been experiencing quite a bit lately. (It's especially problematic with things like Facebook Marketplace). My aim is to educate those who might not realize, or might not have ever been taught the "rules of negotiation".
Party on Wayne! Party on Garth!
