Sellers' Descriptions: do you need explanation for the sale?

Locutus D'Borg said:
Seems like 95% of sellers give a reason for the sale, i.e., sick kid, divorce, hunting another knife, etc. In other words, ”My knife is phenomenal but I have to sell it.'

Personally, if I like a knife I buy it regardless of the sob story or explanation. I am happy, though, if my payment helps a BF member in need. But I wonder if others place a value on the explanation for selling as opposed to just the knife.

PS: If anyone is offended by this post, you have my profound apology.
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I like to include an explanation so it does seem like I'm trying to rip off or flip an item. Of course, 99% of the time I'm selling because I no longer carry or use it.
 
No, a reason is not needed. The knife will sell itself, no need to add another selling point. If I want to know why, I’ll ask privately.
I’m not a fan of trying to play on someone’s emotions to aide in a sale.
 
I don’t need to know the “why” of a sale, only an accurate representation of condition of the knife and payment via an acceptable method.

I do confess that I’ve bought knives that i didn’t want or need because the seller told a good story of their particular need. I usually offer to sell the knives back for what I paid for them if the seller’s situation improves. So far; no takers for that.
 
DMG said:
I dont need to explain why i am selling something and am annoyed when people ask. Usually I am selling it because I want to try something different and still be able to close my knife drawer.
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While I fully agree you don't need to explain, explaining may help your item sell faster or for your asking price. Especially if the reason is as simple as wanting to turn one knife into money for another knife.
 
it depends, some times the story just tugs on the heart strings... im still stuck with a large benchmade griptillian with ti handles that I bought cause the seller Really needed the money. they really really needed it.
 
You can tell if a BF members’ story is sincere.

“So I’m selling this $10,000 box of knives for $50 because I’ve got a bad addiction, a real monkey on my back. It’s not drugs, not gambling, not alcohol abuse, far more insidious than those. It’s compulsive knife buying.

I wasn’t always like you see me now. I had a good job, nice home, pretty wife. Things started downhill when I spent my car payment money on knives - I was gonna flip them for a profit when everybody got their stimulus checks. I didn’t expect them to responsibly invest all that free money in groceries and fuel and heating oil in the winter.

When my car got repossessed, I still had money for bus fare, but I spent it on knives figuring the big knife shortage was just around the corner, and started walking to work. But I had bought cheap shoes, to buy more knives, and when they wore out, I had spent all my shoe money on more knives.

My lovely wife never said a harsh word to me about our house getting foreclosed after I spent the mortgage payments on knives, although she did wonder aloud where I would receive future knife deliveries. I already had that figured out, I’d have them shipped USPS to “General Delivery” at the nearest post office that doesn’t require shoes for entry. Naw, she left me after I snuck her wedding ring from the jewelry box and pawned it for knife money.

You see my clothes are kinda dirty and shabby, laundry money was better added to the knife budget. Skinny, you say? Man, I used to weigh 290. I spent the grocery money on knives too, justified it as a weight loss program I could really stick to.

So here I am sitting on this curb with a tin cup, and so far the passersby have been less sympathetic than I hoped. Got 4.79 in change, including a dime I found on the park bench where I slept last night.

What, Knife-oholics Anonymous? Naw man, that’s the bottom of the barrel. I can still quit any time I want.

No deal on the knives, huh? That’s okay, no hard feelings. But hey, how’d ya like to buy this tin cup? Been watching this original Bowie on eBay, BuyitNow with free shipping. Only 89 cents more and it’ll be all mine!

Tin cup, tin cup for 89 cents! Looks and runs like new! Come on mister, this baby holds a full 8 ounces…”

Parker
 
Owen K. said:
Yeah, it's hard because if people were 100% honest, they could have trouble selling knives. "The finish or cost of the knife makes me not want to use it, for fear of losing the resale value." Or "I want to buy something else and this is one of my least favorite blades I own so I'm selling it to fund another."
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Funny because I'll usually say those kind of things. "Bought a bunch and need to recoup funds" or Slimming down and these didn't make the cut" or "Wanted to check it out but it's not for me" are all lines I've used, and they were the truth. I guess I use it as a way of saying that there's nothing wrong with the knife itself, but I don't want to keep it for whatever reason. Obviously if there was something wrong with the knife I would disclose it specifically anyway, so it is kind of superfluous to give the little "explanation."
 
A lot of potential buyers ask why it's being sold, if a reason isn't given in the ad. My reason is usually that I have too damn many knives and I don't carry this one.
If there's something I dislike about the knife, I say it because I don't want to listen to the whining if the buyer doesn't like that same thing.
 
Locutus D'Borg said:
Seems like 95% of sellers give a reason for the sale, i.e., sick kid, divorce, hunting another knife, etc. In other words, ”My knife is phenomenal but I have to sell it.'

Personally, if I like a knife I buy it regardless of the sob story or explanation. I am happy, though, if my payment helps a BF member in need. But I wonder if others place a value on the explanation for selling as opposed to just the knife.

PS: If anyone is offended by this post, you have my profound apology.
Click to expand...
Here's some sage advice from our own Bernard R. Levine:

"Buy the knife, not the story."


It's good advice.
 
Locutus D'Borg said:
Seems like 95% of sellers give a reason for the sale, i.e., sick kid, divorce, hunting another knife, etc. In other words, ”My knife is phenomenal but I have to sell it.'

Personally, if I like a knife I buy it regardless of the sob story or explanation. I am happy, though, if my payment helps a BF member in need. But I wonder if others place a value on the explanation for selling as opposed to just the knife.

PS: If anyone is offended by this post, you have my profound apology.
Click to expand...
I just looked through all the threads on page 1 of the individual folding knives for sale section and only found one thread that gave any explanation for the sale. I don't think it is that common and it just isn't anywhere near 95% of sellers.

In my sales threads I do give a brief reason, which is usually that I don't carry the knife, it just wasn't for me, or I want the funds for something else. If there is a sob story for why I'm selling the knife, the buyer won't hear it.

I'm wary of sellers who think they need a story to sell a knife. If the product is good and the price is right, the knife will sell, no need to convince anyone.
 
One practical reason for sellers listing an explanation for the listing is "No Trades!". In the past I have often gotten requests for trades, even though I have clearly stated "No Trades".

Edit: I am guessing half the time they don't even read the entire listing when they see something they want.
 
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Locutus D'Borg said:
Seems like 95% of sellers give a reason for the sale, i.e., sick kid, divorce, hunting another knife, etc. In other words, ”My knife is phenomenal but I have to sell it.'

Personally, if I like a knife I buy it regardless of the sob story or explanation. I am happy, though, if my payment helps a BF member in need. But I wonder if others place a value on the explanation for selling as opposed to just the knife.

PS: If anyone is offended by this post, you have my profound apology.
Click to expand...
I don't really care why someone is selling. If they're selling an item for a lot less than people usually sell it for, an explanation as to why would ease my suspicion though.
 
While sob stories aren't really helpful, an explanation of why the seller is selling can sometimes be helpful. Examples:

1. "The knife is in perfect condition, I'm just selling on the cheap for a quick sale because my radiator broke and I'm broke." [Allays suspicions that there might be some issue with the knife on account of its low price.]
2. "The knife is great, it's just that the choil feels too small for my hands (I wear a size large glove)." [Gives a heads up to the buyer that the knife may or may not be for him depending on whether his hand size matches the seller's.]
3. "The knife is otherwise good, but the pocket clip tension is a bit too much for my tastes." [Gives a heads up to the buyer who has issues with knife clips destroying his pants pockets (I fall in that camp!).]
 
catspa said:
You can tell if a BF members’ story is sincere.

“So I’m selling this $10,000 box of knives for $50 because I’ve got a bad addiction, a real monkey on my back. It’s not drugs, not gambling, not alcohol abuse, far more insidious than those. It’s compulsive knife buying.

I wasn’t always like you see me now. I had a good job, nice home, pretty wife. Things started downhill when I spent my car payment money on knives - I was gonna flip them for a profit when everybody got their stimulus checks. I didn’t expect them to responsibly invest all that free money in groceries and fuel and heating oil in the winter.

When my car got repossessed, I still had money for bus fare, but I spent it on knives figuring the big knife shortage was just around the corner, and started walking to work. But I had bought cheap shoes, to buy more knives, and when they wore out, I had spent all my shoe money on more knives.

My lovely wife never said a harsh word to me about our house getting foreclosed after I spent the mortgage payments on knives, although she did wonder aloud where I would receive future knife deliveries. I already had that figured out, I’d have them shipped USPS to “General Delivery” at the nearest post office that doesn’t require shoes for entry. Naw, she left me after I snuck her wedding ring from the jewelry box and pawned it for knife money.

You see my clothes are kinda dirty and shabby, laundry money was better added to the knife budget. Skinny, you say? Man, I used to weigh 290. I spent the grocery money on knives too, justified it as a weight loss program I could really stick to.

So here I am sitting on this curb with a tin cup, and so far the passersby have been less sympathetic than I hoped. Got 4.79 in change, including a dime I found on the park bench where I slept last night.

What, Knife-oholics Anonymous? Naw man, that’s the bottom of the barrel. I can still quit any time I want.

No deal on the knives, huh? That’s okay, no hard feelings. But hey, how’d ya like to buy this tin cup? Been watching this original Bowie on eBay, BuyitNow with free shipping. Only 89 cents more and it’ll be all mine!

Tin cup, tin cup for 89 cents! Looks and runs like new! Come on mister, this baby holds a full 8 ounces…”

Parker
Click to expand...
One word to remember: Pass
Two if you want to give it some flair: Hard Pass

Peace Out
 
dryflytrout said:
It's something I wonder about. If they are selling because it didn't live up to the hype I might not want as much as I thought I did.
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I totally get this. When I sell, I just state the facts: it's not getting carried and I'm hoping to sell it to someone who will. No sob story, just nice and clean.
 
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