Buying, selling, and/or trading online is a great way to make some money on the items you no longer need and a thrifty way to get the things you want. I started doing this seven years ago and absolutely love it because it has helped our family in so many ways!

Over the past 6 years or so, I created and ran three local Facebook sales sites in our community and let me tell you- I have seen A LOT.  So, if you’re new to the Sales Site scene (yay!) there are a few things that you will need to learn before dabbling in it, and this post is for you!

Online Buy Sell Trade Basics

ACRONYMS

First and foremost- acronyms. You’ll see these in the post descriptions or in the comments. It helps to know what they mean. Some important ones to get you started are as follows:

BST- Buy, Sell, Trade

ISO- In Search of

INT- Interested

Next- The interested party would like to be next in line for that item should the sale fall through.

EUC/GUC- Excellent Used Condition or Good Used Condition (respectively)

NWT- New with Tags

POMS- Posted on multiple sites (Meaning the item has been posted on multiple sites- so it’s possible that it may already have an interested buyer- but always try for it if you are interested! You might be the first person to have commented.)

PPU- Pending Pick Up (Don’t be disappointed if you see this one. Unfortunately, there are A LOT of flaky people out there- especially on these sites. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve had someone interested and then never heard from them again.) UPDATE: In some areas, PPU stands for Porch Pick Up- where the item is left on a porch for pick up by the buyer.

MPU- Must Pick Up- This is popular with larger/bulky items for obvious reasons.

PM- Private Message

TIA- Thanks in Advance

SAFETY

Now that we got those out of the way, let’s get on to safety. This is so important!!

Please meet in a well-lit public place when trading. You don’t really know the person you are trading with, so taking all the necessary precautions is imperative. Many people meet in Target parking lots or similar locations.

The good news is that as online BST sites are becoming more popular, local governments are now designating and posting signs in certain areas to mark them as safe online trading locations. This is great! So contact your local government to see if they have one yet.

Make sure that someone knows who you are meeting where, when and for what. Better yet, take someone with you- again, you don’t know the person behind the screen, so better safe than sorry.

WHAT TO EXPECT

So you’ve joined a sales site and want to start buying, selling or trading but don’t know what to expect… Well, here are five things that you may come across in your Sales Site experience:

1. People will flake on you. They’ll tell you they’re interested, arrange to meet you on a certain day/time. You end up waiting there, messaging them to no avail. It’s frustrating and a waste of time. Some people are just very inconsiderate and I am sorry for that. I don’t wait more than 10 minutes after the agreed upon meet time unless we are communicating. For example, if they called and said they were running late, I’d wait, but set a firm expectation. Letting them know that you cannot wait any longer than 10 minutes or so can help in that situation. Some people will also say they are interested in an item and then won’t respond to your messages. Give it some time and move on to the next person.
2. NO HOLDS!! People will say they are interested but don’t get paid until next week- could you please hold the item for them until then…blah blah blah. I would say that 2 out of the 3 times that I agreed to hold an item, the sale fell through. The person never returned my messages, etc… Many people already include “no holds” in the description of their posts for this reason.
3. Always get a phone number/car description. It’s happened a few times to me that I have slow or no internet connection and cannot message the person I’m meeting to find out where they are exactly. I’ve also forgotten my phone in the past. Save yourself the time and trouble by getting their phone # and car make/model ahead of time (also not a bad idea for safety reasons!).
4. People sometimes value their items according to their emotions. LOL Before you buy an item, please be sure to check it’s retail price online. That clock might have been from Granny, but that doesn’t exactly make it an antique with the price tag to match.
5. Don’t be afraid to negotiate. You never know- you might get a great deal! People sometimes overprice their items with that in mind.

So now that you have a little more information, are you excited to start? What will you buy? sell? trade? Let me know in the comments below. Check out my posts

Check out my posts 6 Reasons to De-Clutter Your Casa and One Mom’s Trash is Another Mom’s Treasure to get you started…

Pam

Pamela is a Freelance Writer, Blogger, WAHM of 3, and Veteran Military Wife living in Southwest Texas. Raised in the Northeast and having lived a few years in the Pacific Northwest, she likes to write about mom life, parenting, frugal living, experiences, and WINE. (Lots of wine!) When she’s not busy chasing toddlers around, you can find her on the blog or on social media. Check her out on Instagram: instagram.com/wineandlavender