I just bought something online and I haggled the price down by about 20% just by threatening to quit the deal when it was practically closed. I claimed the shipping fees would be too high to said thanks for your time but I really can't pay so much. As I expected, he emailed me right back saying he would pay for the shipping fees so we agreed on the lower price. Do you find yourself haggling more aggressively online than you do in person? I'd never do this sort of thing if it had not been online.
I have never haggled online or in person yet since I always forget to do so when I'm buying at a thrift store, but what you did was a bit sneaky. So if the seller did not agree you would not buy the item anymore? I think the proper way to haggle is when you are still negotiating on the item and not when it was already a done or closed deal. But it worked for you, so the end justifies the means I guess.
I don't haggle online because I'm an eBay seller and I empathize with other small individual sellers who have bills to pay and kids to feed. I belong to a Facebook community of eBay small sellers and I see posts from sellers who have to pay for items and eBay fees and Paypal fees and then customers either send them lowball offers or insult their prices. As a single mother, I've been known to accept lowball offers out of desperation because my electric bill was due or I needed to buy groceries for my daughter. When I get these low offers or people try to haggle with me, or pressure me, or even threaten me, I wonder "Do you feel like a big man because you got a video game for $5 cheaper while I have $5 less profit to feed my family? Enjoy playing your $500 game console on your flat screen TV, jerk." eBay ,Craigslist and Amazon Marketplace sellers are human beings who have their own families and obligations and we do talk to each other about customers who try to screw us on shipping or get things for free or almost free.
I probably wouldn't have bought it, no. It was a completely frivolous purchase, just a videogame, so it's not like I needed to buy it I was buying it just because it was a good deal, so the more I paid the less interested I was in buying at all.
How exorbitant was the shipping fee though? I have only paid for shipping on Ebay when I bought an item from this UK seller, (the rest was free shipping because the sellers are from China) and I only paid around £5+ for shipping. I have seen some items that have very expensive shipping when it's just a phone, and I don't think that it meant that your package would arrive super fast, because in my case, the item arrived 5 days after I bought it, (from UK to Asia) and it only cost £5+. So that's clearly a rip-off especially if the item is not even heavy.
Yeah I think it as around $7,50 it was nothing too exorbitant, but I felt like it was affecting the price enough that it was no longer a "good deal" that's why I did that. I can see how people think this is strange, but I don't see anything wrong with managing to make a purchase for less money than it would cost, regardless of the price. Cheaper is always better, right?
Yeah I agree, and in your case, the seller agreed instead of just waiting for another buyer to buy the video game, so it's assumed that he is cool with paying for the shipping. Because if he thinks that he was being shortchanged, then he would pass up on your offer. So I guess it's all good. Would you consider doing it again though? Like haggle after a deal has been closed already because it seems to be effective?
I've never tried haggling online because most sites or sellers I buy from don't entertain it. I've only been somewhat successful at this with some services like phone or internet, but those are done over the phone and I wouldn't really call it haggling. I don't think I'd be any better or worse at haggling either online or offline, though. I usually just have a set price in mind and try to get as close to it as possible and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.
Not for something that I REALLY wanted to buy or needed to buy. I wouldn't necessarily consider that the deal was already closed, we agreed on the item price, but the shipping fees are something separate from that and open to negotiation. I only really did it because hey, if he didn't budge I could easily let the item go and not fret.
Yeah, I guess he probably didn't want to lose you as a buyer, and maybe not a lot of buyers were interested in his item, so he decided to not let go of the 1st fish who caught the bait, even if it means the shipping would be free, lol. So is the item in good condition? You don't have any complaints about the video game? What game is that, by the way?
I don't usually. If it's something that's clearly overpriced, then I might consider it. I'd ask for a slower shipping option, for example, because it'd be cheaper. Being as how I make my living online, though, and I've sold products on Ebay before, etc, then I wouldn't try to haggle just for the sake of saving a few bucks, though.
I got it and it's working fine, no problems whatsoever. I was Bravely Default for the 3DS, got it for $20, less than half the usual price.
I see, I checked it out, it seems interesting, I will try to download the PC version of the game. I have never played an RPG game before.
I haggle all the time wherever I go. The only place where I don't question the price, are art and craft markets where people sell handmade items. I can really appreciate how much thought and work goes into a piece of art, so whatever reasonable price the artist sets, I am happy to pay it. But as for everywhere else, especially in department stores, I will not stop negotiating until I have at least 30% off the original price. It's quite surprising how quickly that can be achieved.
You haggle at department stores? And the sales ladies allow you to do it? Over here the price on that tag is already fixed and I think you're not allowed to haggle in large department stores. Which stores allow that?
