It's not usually mad/rude ones that are the problem ... I find misleading comments to be a big issue. Example: someone asks "why is your traffic so low." Well, the traffic is stated on the auction so that question adds no new information ... it just biases other potential bidders who can see how much traffic there is for themselves but might wonder why someone else thinks it is low.
I would also add: when you sort auction by 'ending soonest' don't display completed auctions or make their display optional - it is a real pain to have to scroll through all of the finished auctions when you are just looking for still-open auctions you might want to bid on.
Last one I promise: one of the problems with this new system is the legally binding aspect of the new SitePoint. Imagine I accept a top bid but the bidder doesn't get back to me or tries to scam me somehow. Technically I'm obliged to sell. I'd rather have the option of saying 'look, you seem like a scammer, I'm going to the second bidder' after the fact. Thanks and sorry this got so long :)
I much preferred the old system which I think is better for both buyers and sellers: it lets the sellers have the option of going to the second-tier bidder if the first one falls through and it lets buyers know what other bids have been placed rather than them having to 'bid blind' because some bids might not have been accepted/rejected yet
Yup, this is a huge problem for me actually. I used to be able to just accept all bids and the auction would work like a normal auction with everyone seeing what the previous person bid. Now I have to refuse to accept bids until I talk with the seller and verify they are legitimate. Now the top bid showing on the auction at any given time is inaccurate and people don't know what to bid as a result
What if the seller doesn't want to show all of that information? For example, Alexa rank is skewed up on sites with tech-savvy Alexa-toolbar-using visitors and skewed down for sites with a lot of lay search traffic. No reason to automatically bring in stats the seller may or may not want to show off.
This would be a great idea. With the new SitePoint requirement that sellers sell to the highest bidder I have seen so many auctions have to be relisted because the seller couldn't make sure the bidder was serious - they simply had to accept the top bid. With a downpayment there wouldn't be the same high level of deadbeat bidders that plagues the auctionplace.
Editing the auction helps buyers test what key points should go where. You could allow editing but reserve the right to ban sellers who change actual facts/statistics about their auctions. You could even leave old versions viewable to buyers who want to see them. Editing auctions is a great way for sellers to respond to a flurry of comments or messages about a paricular item. Was a great feature.
Competitors leave sabotage comments - it's as simple as that. The SitePoint marketplace is like any user forum on the internet: lots of hecklers, spammers and idiots. Why not give moderation powers to the person who made the auction and paid for it? No change is needed here.
As long as there aren't too many ways to back out like there are on Escrow ... buyer not satisfied? They back out ... time wasted, auction relist forced. Pain.
It's not usually mad/rude ones that are the problem ... I find misleading comments to be a big issue. Example: someone asks "why is your traffic so low." Well, the traffic is stated on the auction so that question adds no new information ... it just biases other potential bidders who can see how much traffic there is for themselves but might wonder why someone else thinks it is low.
0 Don't allow owner to delete member comments - 5 months ago
I would also add: when you sort auction by 'ending soonest' don't display completed auctions or make their display optional - it is a real pain to have to scroll through all of the finished auctions when you are just looking for still-open auctions you might want to bid on.
1 Provide a list of Auctions Ending Soon on the homepage - 5 months ago
Last one I promise: one of the problems with this new system is the legally binding aspect of the new SitePoint. Imagine I accept a top bid but the bidder doesn't get back to me or tries to scam me somehow. Technically I'm obliged to sell. I'd rather have the option of saying 'look, you seem like a scammer, I'm going to the second bidder' after the fact. Thanks and sorry this got so long :)
1 Don't Force Sellers to Sell to the Top Bidder - 5 months ago
[In the first comment I meant 'talk with the bidders' - not 'sellers']
1 Don't Force Sellers to Sell to the Top Bidder - 5 months ago
I much preferred the old system which I think is better for both buyers and sellers: it lets the sellers have the option of going to the second-tier bidder if the first one falls through and it lets buyers know what other bids have been placed rather than them having to 'bid blind' because some bids might not have been accepted/rejected yet
1 Don't Force Sellers to Sell to the Top Bidder - 5 months ago
Yup, this is a huge problem for me actually. I used to be able to just accept all bids and the auction would work like a normal auction with everyone seeing what the previous person bid. Now I have to refuse to accept bids until I talk with the seller and verify they are legitimate. Now the top bid showing on the auction at any given time is inaccurate and people don't know what to bid as a result
1 Don't Force Sellers to Sell to the Top Bidder - 5 months ago
What if the seller doesn't want to show all of that information? For example, Alexa rank is skewed up on sites with tech-savvy Alexa-toolbar-using visitors and skewed down for sites with a lot of lay search traffic. No reason to automatically bring in stats the seller may or may not want to show off.
0 Auto-fill website details when creating an auction - 5 months ago
This would be a great idea. With the new SitePoint requirement that sellers sell to the highest bidder I have seen so many auctions have to be relisted because the seller couldn't make sure the bidder was serious - they simply had to accept the top bid. With a downpayment there wouldn't be the same high level of deadbeat bidders that plagues the auctionplace.
3 Let sellers require bidders to make a deposit before bidding - 5 months ago
Awesome idea.
1 Provide a list of Auctions Ending Soon on the homepage - 5 months ago
Editing the auction helps buyers test what key points should go where. You could allow editing but reserve the right to ban sellers who change actual facts/statistics about their auctions. You could even leave old versions viewable to buyers who want to see them. Editing auctions is a great way for sellers to respond to a flurry of comments or messages about a paricular item. Was a great feature.
3 Bring back "Edit Auction" link - 5 months ago
Competitors leave sabotage comments - it's as simple as that. The SitePoint marketplace is like any user forum on the internet: lots of hecklers, spammers and idiots. Why not give moderation powers to the person who made the auction and paid for it? No change is needed here.
0 Don't allow owner to delete member comments - 5 months ago
As long as there aren't too many ways to back out like there are on Escrow ... buyer not satisfied? They back out ... time wasted, auction relist forced. Pain.
0 Integrate an escrow service - 5 months ago
View counters are nice ... let's you see what folks are interested in.
0 Restore listing view counters - 5 months ago