Selling gear in the age of COVID

Dave Merrill

Dave Merrill

Axe-Master
I've always sold gear locally, for cash, simpler and no risk of chargebacks etc. That's not going to work now.

How are folks handling gear sales these days? Do you use Craigslist? Do you ship, or meet somewhere? How do you do payment? I've paid with PayPal, but mostly not received money that way, and I hear horror stories of buyers claiming this and that and things getting messy.

Thoughts?
 
I use Reverb or, as a last resort, ebay. I usually go by their buying/selling history as a gauge whether to follow through or not. Typically you will do a bit of interacting through email to discuss the transaction and usually any red flags will pop up during that time. Just by the way they ask questions and the kind of questions they may ask should make your Spidey Sense tingle if they're up to something nefarious.
 
I've never been comfortable selling on Craigslist because it means either having a stranger come into your home to play your gear. Or you go to the buyer, which is usually a waste of time because it's rare that they are really interested in buying. Or you go to a neutral place where the buyer can't try out the gear.

Selling online has become difficult due to rampant buyer fraud. And the Ebay ratings system has become neutered to the point that it's almost impossible to determine if the buyer is honest. I know people will reply and say they have a special technique to detect if a buyer is legit or not, but my experience is that it is extremely difficult to make that assessment.

So....even before the virus, I've found it frustratingly difficult to sell gear. I know it doesn't help, but my answer to your question is: my last couple of sales have been to friends :).
 
I buy and sell a lot less since getting into the Axe Fx...

I was primarily an eBay user as most Craigslist "buyers" have been flakes in my past experience.

The last few years I've gone completely over to Reverb. Having a site specifically for and about music gear works much better for me.
 
unix-guy said:
I buy and sell a lot less since getting into the Axe Fx...
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Yeah, I could be wrong, but it feels like my III is here for the long haul, really astonishingly good. But I have stuff I don't need any more for the same reason :)

unix-guy said:
The last few years I've gone completely over to Reverb. Having a site specifically for and about music gear works much better for me.
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I keep hearing rumors they're quite tilted towards the buyer, sellers don't get a lot of protection. Not your experience?
 
Dave Merrill said:
Yeah, I could be wrong, but it feels like my III is here for the long haul, really astonishingly good. But I have stuff I don't need any more for the same reason :)


I keep hearing rumors they're quite tilted towards the buyer, sellers don't get a lot of protection. Not your experience?
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I haven't had any bad experiences as either a seller or buyer, so I can't offer first hand input there.
 
Sixstring said:
Then there's PayPal...
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Paypal relies on eBay and Reverb, so all three have similar favoritism towards buyers over sellers. The economics are such that they need buyers more than they need sellers. Consequently, buyer fraud is now so easy to perpetrate that it has become widespread. To make matters worse, the tools that a seller might use for protection have been taken away. I’ve been a victim myself, but the seller forums are full of fraud stories. It’s risky these days to try to sell anything valuable online through Reverb or eBay.
 
GlennO said:
Paypal relies on eBay and Reverb, so all three have similar favoritism towards buyers over sellers. The economics are such that they need buyers more than they need sellers. Consequently, buyer fraud is now so easy to perpetrate that it has become widespread. To make matters worse, the tools that a seller might use for protection have been taken away. I’ve been a victim myself, but the seller forums are full of fraud stories. It’s risky these days to try to sell anything valuable online through Reverb or eBay.
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I'm not very happy with PayPal right now. They have messed with my bank account in a way that is not good. I liked it the way it was before it was messed with.
 
GlennO said:
Paypal relies on eBay and Reverb, so all three have similar favoritism towards buyers over sellers. The economics are such that they need buyers more than they need sellers. Consequently, buyer fraud is now so easy to perpetrate that it has become widespread. To make matters worse, the tools that a seller might use for protection have been taken away. I’ve been a victim myself, but the seller forums are full of fraud stories. It’s risky these days to try to sell anything valuable online through Reverb or eBay.
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You can sell on Reverb without using PayPal.
 
GlennO said:
Paypal relies on eBay and Reverb, so all three have similar favoritism towards buyers over sellers. The economics are such that they need buyers more than they need sellers. Consequently, buyer fraud is now so easy to perpetrate that it has become widespread. To make matters worse, the tools that a seller might use for protection have been taken away. I’ve been a victim myself, but the seller forums are full of fraud stories. It’s risky these days to try to sell anything valuable online through Reverb or eBay.
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What kind of buyer fraud have you experienced? Obviously you wait for the payment before you ship. Do they claim something is wrong with the item (or intentionally damage it) and ask for a refund?
 
I haven't had a bad experience with either eBay or Reverb, with the exception of the time I tried to buy concert tickets on eBay 15 years ago. Not smart.
I prefer using these portals to selling locally simply because it increases your marketplace. While only a few people might want my wireless mic unit that live near me, and might not be willing to pay what it's worth, hundreds of people across the nation want it. So I know I can probably make more selling it nationwide, even after paying the fees.
Plus, every time I've tried to sell something on Craigslist, the guy shows up and wants to give me less than the ad stated.
Every. Time.
 
I've sold a guitar and an Axe II on Reverb and had no problems.

I've also sold a few things on Craigslist over the years, and I have to agree, it's getting bad. People say they're interested and then don't show. Or they're just looking to completely rip you off. So I mostly use it for things we're giving away or things that are way too heavy and expensive to ship (think speaker cabs).
 
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ESW said:
You can sell on Reverb without using PayPal.
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That's the route I am taking from now on! PP just lost a long time customer this morning! With so many different ways to do business these days it's comical when a large company won't help you out when you need it. Hay PayPal are you listening??? Click!!
 
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Going to be all Reverb/Ebay and online payment for me.

No meeting in person.

I don't follow sales trends, but I'm guessing that purchases of beginner equipment are very good (kids or adults at home with time on their hands and want to learn).....and I'm guessing the sales of pro level gear have plummeted (as professional musicians that rely on gig money are hurting right now and likely don't know when they will be back to their Pre-COVID income).
 
I still have a guitar out there on Reverb...even though my experience there is decidedly spotty (one guy strung me along for a month...asking to meet me places...where he'd sit in my car and play it for 20 minutes, then say I've got to think about it...3 times.) The 'lowball' offers that come in every 5 minutes. But I've also met some great people there and spent time talking gear.

One thing I am, is patient. If you've priced it right, the right individual will come along. I'm of the mindset that I will keep it before I'd sell it under it's worth.

But in the age of Covid, it can be done. I'm not really the super cautious type, but I still observe distancing, will disinfect to the best of my ability that is not toxic to the gear. Without sounding elitist, most folks who are buying gear right now are well dialed in to online payment, so that is the way that it goes.

R
 
Ebay and paypal are an offshore scam bank - lets get that outta the way.

do they do real transactions? Yes . Do they sometimes transact without any scammery or illegal activity? Of course, that is why they are
“legitimate”. is there a large and unaccounted portion of fishy activity that constantly results in the same theft by paypal? Absolutely, there is no doubt in my mind there is foul play involved in a large part of online schemes. Also, you have a majority of scammers operating on there for paypal reversals and you also pay 15% commission so stay away form ebay and paypal at all costs.,

Reverb is a great place to sell. Most people are fairly honest, and i havent had any issues with scammers, except for that moron Adam howard that i had to deal with because he stalks me constantly...like a sick bastard. It’s not what it was at first. It was initially superior, and it’d recommend it 5/5...but after ebay lost most business to reverb and they took more payment options, things got “weird” like siding with a buyer the way ebay/paypal USED to....anyway, if you have the option and the buyer is highly rated, try it or go with the best option in person:

Craigslist is fine, as long as you dont do anything foolish, and i dont have any problems, in fact, Craigslist has been the most Honest and best for me out of all online sales
 
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