Forum etiquette

M

maxman

Veteran
 Wrexham
Seems to be a trend starting with new members joining to sell.I know we have covered the subject before as the bonus of buying off members you sort of get a feel of the type of person they are based on their posts over a period,with new members you don't have that.
A number of posts or a period of time,maybe both should be a requirement before posting in the sale section.
I know this won't please some .
 
Sort of know what you mean but at the same time it's difficult to police. Maybe new members could post parts for sale but not whole cars. To be honest though, that sounds even more difficult to police. Also some stunners have come in from people outside the forum (agreed there have been some rotters too!!)
 
Yes, it has been noticed and we believe that there could be a benefit to the members here to allow this. If you see where someone is not following the rules let one of the Mods know.
 
Most of these members appear to be joining, just to give their Zeds some provenance and I believe many car enthusiast do see marque forum members as enthusiast, who look after their cars better than Joe public. So a clear benefit to the seller.

What is the benefit to the forum and other members?
 
Its not a private club & to a certain extent relies on new blood / new posts to remain stimulating
For the mostpart the place polices itself as in newbies clearly trying to fleece forum members don't get long before they feel the flames :wink:
Ultimately if something is worth what its offered at then it should sell wherever it gets listed
TTforum has a min 50posts before selling & no comments on sale posts , both are self defeating imo
 
buzyg said:
What is the benefit to the forum and other members?
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Just the opportunity to purchase something that is what they need at the right price for the careful buyer.
 
WLH said:
buzyg said:
What is the benefit to the forum and other members?
Click to expand...
Just the opportunity to purchase something that is what they need at the right price for the careful buyer.
Click to expand...

Playing devils advocate. As I have no issues with new members joining simply to sell.

These cars are generally advertised elsewhere as well. So any one looking, forum member or no. Is likely to find them for sale. The reason for joining the forum is sometimes simply to make the car appear more cared for than it may in fact be.

I'm sure there are others who advertise here, as it's free and there's a chance they could sell quickly and cheaply to a new caring owner. An existing forum member may well get first dibs on a new P&J through this process. This is the reason I have no qualms with the practice. :)
 
I have seen it on another forum where there is a minimum post count before advertising and this gets abused.
The new member just replies to threads with a smiley face or a +1 just to get the post count up.
I have even seen some that keep replying to the same thread saying 3 more to go.... 2 more to go.... 1 more to go
This gets annoying.
 
Initially I used to get a bit miffed when newbies joined simply to sell their cars. It almost felt like an abuse of the spirit of the forum. Now I'm not so bothered - its obvious they are trying to find the right market for their cars, and often there are some real gems to be had.
As already mentioned, those who are trying to take advantage of the forum are given a sharp reality check; it polices its self in that respect. So I say leave things as they are - we can weed out the chancers, and welcome those who have a special car that they want to advertise in a special arena.
 
Wise words from Marlon. Also, as Mr Wilks said, ultimately it's self-policing as there are enough of us who are sufficiently savvy to suss out wide boys etc.

I vote to stay as we are. Oh sorry, I assumed it was a poll!
 
For the most part these new members won't be staying and adding to the forum,they are only after free advertising.
If all they are after is a sale ,surely Auto trader,eBay or Gumtree fits their needs .
 
Marlon said:
Initially I used to get a bit miffed when newbies joined simply to sell their cars. It almost felt like an abuse of the spirit of the forum. Now I'm not so bothered - its obvious they are trying to find the right market for their cars, and often there are some real gems to be had.
As already mentioned, those who are trying to take advantage of the forum are given a sharp reality check; it polices its self in that respect. So I say leave things as they are - we can weed out the chancers, and welcome those who have a special car that they want to advertise in a special arena.
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This has been my 'journey' too, I'm with Marlon.

It makes sense to try and sell to enthusiasts, but if you do you need to be well prepared. The benefit for both sellers and buyers is obvious if the car in question is a good one.

What really annoys me are those who put zero effort into the ad, sometime with little more than a colour, mileage and price. Not even a link to an external advert. Or just posting a link to an external ad and no more.
 
Bing said:
What really annoys me are those who put zero effort into the ad, sometime with little more than a colour, mileage and price. Not even a link to an external advert. Or just posting a link to an external ad and no more.
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Interesting point, Bing. Perhaps we need to put some better guidelines for adverts, especially those being posted by new members, where the history of the car doesn't exist within the forum. Might make the process easier and of more value to all concerned.

I stand by allowing new members to post their cars for sale, as it is the obvious place to come to sell a car privately, providing the advert is of sufficient quality and detail.
 
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