Selling on facebook?

[monkian]

I know this has come up loads of times before but please please please, can we look at being able to sell stuff directly on the rad facebook page?

I do try to sell on the forum and I often post things on here first but if nothing is moving I have to take it to FB then eBay. I just think it's a crying shame that I always have to go to other groups to sell my stuff instead of it potentially helping the extended rad family.

I know some people don't use FB but I'm sure loads more of us do. Could we perhaps put up a poll and let this one go to a vote?

[crazycraig]

I think its voting the reason it's gone that way

FB is an easy platform to shift gear as its smart phone friendly . I remember taking photos on my cameras . Uploading them to my PC . Then in to photo bucket . Then on to here

Now it's instant .

[leehunt1]

A Vote..!! 

[monkian]

fook off Lee.

[monkian]

Tapatalk makes the forum more phone friendly and helps make sales pics easier to upload but that's not the point.

Try to change the record FFS.

[griff]

Lots of things are being discussed right now Paul, as you can probably imagine

Just one thing though..
If as you mentioned you are trying to sell here first, then you've already done the hard work (although I've never had trouble with photobucket I know other people sometimes have)
So all you'd need to do then is bung a link over 

Is always good to see what members think is best for the forum, can't guarantee everyone will be 100% happy but the current setup was done to help protect people from the kind of scammers you get all over FB & encourage traffic to this place 

[rodriguez]

This a collecting hobby that involves buying, selling and trading at it's core so a vibrant for sale, trade & wanted section is vital for a forum that caters to it.

Opening up the Facebook page to Sales, Trades and Wanted people will come looking to buy and sell parts.

Once people have started to use Facebook to buy and sell there's a fair chance they will come over to the site to access sections like tech and restoration, me and my bikes and the museum.

For example, build threads are viable on a forum but are not as viable on a facebook page, same can be said for how to threads.

The current model doesn't and will not encourage traffic on the site, it has been tried and it has failed in my opinion.

Time for a new approach   

PS as for Photobucket they deleted most of my account for no reason a few weeks back, I don't currently own a smartphone but I'm going to have to get one. 

[monkian]

It also seems difficult to copy a sales URL from tapatalk to post to the FB page (see my other post in this section). I'm finding if I use tapatalk for sales posts, I'll have to then go to my browser, log-in to the site and then copy / past to FB from there. Obviously not great and removes the practical benefit of using tapatalk in the first place.

[monkian]

Good to know it's up for discussion😉

[griff]

The current model doesn't and will not encourage traffic on the site, it has been tried and it has failed in my opinion.

Fair point but really the main benefit was to help prevent scamming cnuts from taking advantage of a free for all, thankfully that appears to have done the trick for the most part (& you do hear some shocking stories)
Not convinced about anything on FB driving traffic here though, I've tried posting links on there to here but it does seem the more people get used to the 'instant fix' the lazier they get.

How do non face bookers feel about this?  what would be the guidelines to help keep it all above board?

[monkian]

I don't think people who don't use FB will be too bothered tbh Griff.

General common sense guidelines about selling on FB is all that you can offer. Most people are capable of conducting their business sensibly, just as they do on all the other groups. If you have history with a buyer or knowledge of them from the forum then no worries. Paying or asking a bit extra to cover PP Goods payment shouldn't be a problem either. I don't think it should  have to be rads' responsibility to nanny the issue and if it isn't working in directing traffic to the forum then what's the harm? I can only see positives with having a vibrant trading section on FB. They'll no doubt be the odd incident and the fallout will have to be dealt with but ultimately buyers and sellers will be responsible for how they conduct themselves.

That's how I see it anyhow😉

[midschooljon]

I have to say I agree with what is being said here. I love the forum, have made many greta friends through it, and continue to support it with my annual subscription. There is a wealth of knowledge here and it makes for good banter as well...

Saying that, This hobby is all about building. To do that you have to buy and sell, and opening up the rad page to trading will definitely breathe life back into Radbmx. i for one would definitely use it, and has been said above, if you can get new folks to buy and sell on there it will attract them back to the forum.

I think it is also worth noting that the strategy on the Rad page of trying to divert traffic back here hasn't exactly worked either. Correct me if Im wrong, but that startegy has been in place for well over a year now as well. Love or hate facebook it isn't going anywhere (in the near future anyway), so we may as well use it to benefit Rad instead of try work around it.

It may be a stupid idea, but what about allowing people on here to post links in the for sale to Facebook for sale ads? If the FB group is open, even people not on FB can see the ads, and if the poster has shared the sale on here they will know who to contact if they are interested. just a thought.

 

[sparky]

At the time of writing this there are approximately 423 Site Supporters, many people support the site regardless of the SST so If you do open up the facebook group for all to sell then it would be interesting to see if that number drops. How many of those actively use the SST to sell and will continue to in the future. How many simply pay the SST to sell and then move on.

Also, if you open up the group for all to sell then people may well ask why pay on here. I appreciate many contribute to the site and it's not all about selling!

We know the SST is here in part to rid those who come along, sell and then bugger off as well as attempting to remove dodgy selling. That said, what is wrong with permitting people to pop in and sell. Over the years I've been on here I think I read as much about members messing one another about compared to scams or deceit.

Opening up the wanted could be one way to improve traffic but I appreciate this is linked to the SST membership, but if all members cannot ask for a part regardless of their subscription I think this is only a loss to the forum.

How about some sort of permission change based on post count so once you reach a certain level you're permitted to other areas

Just some thoughts

[griff]

I don't think people who don't use FB will be too bothered tbh Griff.

They were before, as were the people who simply wanted the FB page shut down 

keep the ideas coming though peeps!

[Jono]

A Vote..!! 

Ban this muggy c**t

[Jono]

I don't think people who don't use FB will be too bothered tbh Griff.

They were before, as were the people who simply wanted the FB page shut down 

keep the ideas coming though peeps!

I agree griff keep it as is, sell on Facebook only with links to here, knowing the sellers are reputable as Sst from here

[rodriguez]

I don't think people who don't use FB will be too bothered tbh Griff.

They were before, as were the people who simply wanted the FB page shut down 

keep the ideas coming though peeps!

I agree griff keep it as is, sell on Facebook only with links to here, knowing the sellers are reputable as Sst from here

Eh   

Really don't understand your logic as to build the bikes you've built you'll have bought parts from everywhere.

As has been alluded to before the SST is no guarantee, deals go bad everywhere, deals have gone bad on here too, lets not kid ourselves.

[Gnarlyscoots]

I will freely admit that 99% of what I buy comes from the US. Solely because there is plenty of it, and what I like rarely comes up for sale over here. The other 1% is EBay or Facebook. I can't remember the last thing I bought on here, because nearly ALL the sellers here sell on EBay or specific FB pages too.

It makes complete sense to fully open sales on the FB page. You will get more people on the page and it is easily moderated if you use the Messers page on FB to filter out the crap. You can always post links to the forum once a day so new FB members can decide if they want to come to the forum too. It just means you will be a busy boy John, moderating both places.

[CustardLips]

Here's a wacky idea...

Do away with the SST.
25 posts before you can post in market place... by this time folk might have sussed out how to use the site.
A MK/Radbmx fund raiser every year to cover costs/loss of SST subscription... If people want MK they're gonna have to pay for it in one way or another.
Restart the messers thread.... any repeat offenders banned from Rad and Rad fb page. Like Rod said deals have gone tits up here regardless of the SST.
Brighten the main page up... maybe a pic/avatar for each section highlighting it's contents.
eg...
Old School Race - a pic of racing
Members Events & gatherings - griffs signature pic
The lounge - some fookers living room
Vintage/Mid/Old School sections - members bikes

You get the picture... these can be changed by the mods whenever or played around with for their/our amusement.
If Rad is more pleasing on the eye and looks a little easier to use perhaps folk will stick around longer.

May mean the mods will be busier but something need to be done to create more traffic. We could sit around forever hoping Rad will get busy again but faceache ain't going away anytime soon so we're gonna have to deal with it or we may as well just pack up now.....

Like i said a wacky idea but something needs to be done. 

 

[dp and chopper dude]

I'm not sure this is possible with the forum options but some sites have a facebook button that can share the page you are on to facebook. With the right tweeking it might be possible to click the facebook button on a page here and it share the page straight to the RAD page on facebook.

It would save piddling about copying & pasting links on small devices. 

Something like this:
http://www.hyperarts.com/blog/tutorial-how-to-add-facebook-share-button-to-your-web-site-pages/ 

[CustardLips]

I'm not sure this is possible with the forum options but some sites have a facebook button that can share the page you are on to facebook. With the right tweeking it might be possible to click the facebook button on a page here and it share the page straight to the RAD page on facebook.

It would save piddling about copying & pasting links on small devices. 

Something like this:
http://www.hyperarts.com/blog/tutorial-how-to-add-facebook-share-button-to-your-web-site-pages/

This is already possible... i can share this or any other page by clicking "more" at the top right of my phone then "share" then all the options come up... Facebook , Googlemail, WhatsApp, Messenger and so on.
It's not a visible icon on the page but the option is there. 

[dilybum]

i must say i am an SST subscriber, come here everyday for sales etc

BUT... was rinsed proper last year by a long time SST holder and current contributor, so the SST is no guarantee!!

[Gnarlyscoots]

BUT... was rinsed proper last year by a long time SST holder and current contributor, so the SST is no guarantee!!

That's why a Messers thread is good. You can see who the member is, and your choice whether to deal with them or not.
We all know 2 people on here who take forever to post things, and there still a couple of flippers on here who buy at Rad prices, then move it on via the FB pages and Ebay 

[griff]

It just means you will be a busy boy John, moderating both places.

I'm already a 'busy boy' thank you Terry

[Jono]

I don't think people who don't use FB will be too bothered tbh Griff.

They were before, as were the people who simply wanted the FB page shut down 

keep the ideas coming though peeps!

I agree griff keep it as is, sell on Facebook only with links to here, knowing the sellers are reputable as Sst from here

Eh   

Really don't understand your logic as to build the bikes you've built you'll have bought parts from everywhere.

As has been alluded to before the SST is no guarantee, deals go bad everywhere, deals have gone bad on here too, lets not kid ourselves.

Of course I've bought elsewhere what I'm saying is that RADbmx FB page is not a sales page (never was set up for that) however if you're a site supporter you can sell on the forum and also if you wish link that to the FB page that is all, and yes deals go bad everywhere but they don't usually join the forum pay the tenner to sell something they've google images and never owned, I have bought of FB but I have not bought of someone I've not had previous dealings with whether that be many conversations, sold to , met at a meet etc I don't PayPal gift strangers just coz they happen to be on a FB page I'm on so SST gives me a little more security in that they intend to be on here to stay and are less likely to do a runner with my cash, of course we can all argue about what we regard as nos, mint, excellent condition etc that will always occur but it's more likely to exist and as I don't know if any scammers selling on rad FB page due to the fact they have to be a member on here I'd suggest it's working