Please Vote - Considering Major Changes for Classifeds

[SirBannedAlot]

I really want to drive home the point about quality over quantity...

Ignoring overpriced ads is easy. But does it solve the problem?

I don't think that it does. I would rather pay, which I now am(just signed up as a 2 year supporter this morning) and have less ads but higher quality ads, then to have to wade through page upon page of overpriced items I can get new, anywhere, cheaper...

Again I draw the gun show analogy... They went downhill. Same stuff I can get at the LGS, only it costs more. Half the tables aren't even gun related anymore, and unless you are really after that 1 in a thousand deal that actually exists... they just aren't worth it to most people any more... I can buy copper bracelets and tasers and strawberry jams, elsewhere... Unless it is a rare collector items, guns are commodities... A Glock 19 is a Glock 19. If the prices are most of the time artificially high, my and a lot of people's response becomes, "This place sucks, why am I here, I am better off just going elsewhere"...

I don't wear a tinfoil hat. I am not afraid to fill out a 4473 and pay with a debit card. It's how the world works. So I don't need to come here, or go to a show, to pay $50-$100 more for a used product than 5 LGS's close to my house are selling new ones for.

I make this point, again, because if you want to charge people for the site, which I think DOES make sense, then you should also make an effort to IMPROVE the site. Make people feel like they are getting some tangible benefit for their money. Make the site better, by find a way to... politely, keep prices in check, keep the junk ads out, etc...

Charging will help some of that, as the "riff raff" won't want to pay anything and they will go elsewhere... But something as simply as we already have the "like" button... why not have an "Don't Like" button?

You don't have to call the person out and get into a pissing match over pricing, but if we want to keep this places reputation as having good, quality, honest deals... then ignoring the 75% of the deals that AREN'T good, doesn't achieve that goal, IMHO.

Give people a reason to WANT to pay for the sight, by increasing the value of doing so. How exactly that can be accomplished, we can discuss and come up with some ideas, but just charging money without finding ways to clean some stuff up and increase the value, I think misses the mark...

 

[BDR1]

So to save maybe $6 per tank of gas, they sold their car and spend thousands more to get a new car, to save $6 per tank... People do really stupid, reactionary things... I can't count how many times I have talked to someone who said they were considering getting a motorcycle to save money on gas...

I am like, you want to spend $5k on a used bike, plus insurance which is often more than the car... plus a helmet, gear, tires and wear and tear items... Add it all up and you are in for $6500... How much gas does $6500 buy you?

If you worry about gas price fluctuations, then you have bigger financial issues to worry about, it an extra $10 a week makes or breaks you... Same here. If a simple $15-$25 a year membership fee is "too much" to spend on a year of listing dozens or even hundreds of items for sale, then you probably shouldn't be in this hobby to begin with.

I get value here, despite the large quantity of higher than retail prices... Hopefully a membership model will weed some of those dweebs out...

I saw the argument posted that perhaps they don't know the value... Sorry, if they are here, on the interwebs, then they have 5 second access to what the going rates are. Laziness isn't an excuse... Although, I still see people stuck on how to rotate a picture so who knows, apparently expecting people having managed to join this century when it comes to technology, might be giving them too much credit...

I will sign up as a Supporter today, might as well have some skin in the game rather than just posting my opinion, right?

I assume you take a debit card or PayPal? And for you guys wanting to write checks... get on your horse and buggy and get to the bank and order a debit card already. It's not the 1970's... LOL

I ain't getting a debit card....if I gotta ride my horse over to Steve's house and hand him cash that's what I guess il have to do...

 

[BDR1]

Well, I signed up as well.

If nothing else, this thread has gotten enough people to pony up that we can keep the lights on another year or two.

View attachment 2086640

You really had to pick this picture?

 

[BDR1]

Well stated post and while I wish there were better options to keep it free, I think this would be best in the long run.
I believe we would have a tighter more “family” type atmosphere in the long run.
Would we lose some short term? Yeah, but I think long term it would be better.

I’ve met lots of people in person that have told me they don’t log in here anymore because of all the riff raff and the tendency for some of the “drive by” types that have a tendency belittle anyone they don’t agree with.

Some of us will still disagree I’m sure. But I think we will grow in the long run.

And I know folks that have left over some b.s. chest thumpers too...nothing is perfect

 

[SirBannedAlot]

You really had to pick this picture?

I typed in Mission Accomplished into the Googles and that came up and it fit the bill. haha

 

[SirBannedAlot]

I ain't getting a debit card....if I gotta ride my horse over to Steve's house and hand him cash that's what I guess il have to do...

Some day you will join this century, I promise... writing checks, which is just essentially an IOU, will go the way of the dodo at some point... There is no reason to write checks. Someone can just as easily write down your account info from the check and defraud your account that way. In fact, it's actually easier because you have your name, address, bank name, bank account and routing number, plus a copy of your signature, right there on a single piece of paper for someone to write down, photocopy or snap a pic of with their smart phone.

Everything they need to drain your account. I know that the perception is that a debit card is less secure, but the reality is that it's more secure than writing a check these days.

 

[jeepnuts]

I really want to drive home the point about quality over quantity...

Ignoring overpriced ads is easy. But does it solve the problem?

I don't think that it does. I would rather pay, which I now am(just signed up as a 2 year supporter this morning) and have less ads but higher quality ads, then to have to wade through page upon page of overpriced items I can get new, anywhere, cheaper...

Again I draw the gun show analogy... They went downhill. Same stuff I can get at the LGS, only it costs more. Half the tables aren't even gun related anymore, and unless you are really after that 1 in a thousand deal that actually exists... they just aren't worth it to most people any more... I can buy copper bracelets and tasers and strawberry jams, elsewhere... Unless it is a rare collector items, guns are commodities... A Glock 19 is a Glock 19. If the prices are most of the time artificially high, my and a lot of people's response becomes, "This place sucks, why am I here, I am better off just going elsewhere"...

I don't wear a tinfoil hat. I am not afraid to fill out a 4473 and pay with a debit card. It's how the world works. So I don't need to come here, or go to a show, to pay $50-$100 more for a used product than 5 LGS's close to my house are selling new ones for.

I make this point, again, because if you want to charge people for the site, which I think DOES make sense, then you should also make an effort to IMPROVE the site. Make people feel like they are getting some tangible benefit for their money. Make the site better, by find a way to... politely, keep prices in check, keep the junk ads out, etc...

Charging will help some of that, as the "riff raff" won't want to pay anything and they will go elsewhere... But something as simply as we already have the "like" button... why not have an "Don't Like" button?

You don't have to call the person out and get into a pissing match over pricing, but if we want to keep this places reputation as having good, quality, honest deals... then ignoring the 75% of the deals that AREN'T good, doesn't achieve that goal, IMHO.

Give people a reason to WANT to pay for the sight, by increasing the value of doing so. How exactly that can be accomplished, we can discuss and come up with some ideas, but just charging money without finding ways to clean some stuff up and increase the value, I think misses the mark...

I agree with this.

Oooh.. thought.. what if “likes” moved a listing up the page and “dislikes” moved it down. That would be a motivator for people to not post overpriced stuff

 

[InTune]

This site along with its cast of characters, provides me with hours of entertainment. Wish I could set my alerts for about to be deleted posts. I am sitting here now with the T V on and still checking in and we all know what the tube cost every month. Not only entertainment value, it has provided a path to new friends and accuantaces . Don't mind paying to continue on

 

[BDR1]

Some day you will join this century, I promise... writing checks, which is just essentially an IOU, will go the way of the dodo at some point... There is no reason to write checks. Someone can just as easily write down your account info from the check and defraud your account that way. In fact, it's actually easier because you have your name, address, bank name, bank account and routing number, plus a copy of your signature, right there on a single piece of paper for someone to write down, photocopy or snap a pic of with their smart phone.

Everything they need to drain your account. I know that the perception is that a debit card is less secure, but the reality is that it's more secure than writing a check these days.

They will play hell taking the cash outta my hands

 

[BIKER13]

OK I am staying