BST Courtesy and Protocol

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by mattsey9

My experience has been that the first to commit to purchase and pay gets the cards over an ongoing negotiation unless otherwise specifically agreed to by the seller.

^^this^^ also adding that a lot of people will just send a PM without posting in the thread.

[Bpm0014]

Is there an unwritten rule on BST that first inquiry has any priority?

No, none. First to say "I'll take it" does....

[trdcrdkid]

It sounds like this was a case of the seller not updating the thread to say that the item was sold. It's generally considered good BST etiquette to do that, but sometimes people are slow to do it, or they forget or neglect to do it for whatever reason. That's why I always say "I'll take it if nobody has already claimed it" when responding to a BST post. Also, as others have said, people don't always post "PM sent" or "E-mail sent" in the thread. I would say that's a best practice, but not absolutely necessary. When I do it, it's more to make sure the seller sees that I've responded, rather than to make any official claim as the first responder.

[edhans]

Originally Posted by Bpm0014

Is there an unwritten rule on BST that first inquiry has any priority?

No, none. First to say "I'll take it" does....

An emphatic +1.

[pokerplyr80]

Why would asking a question, or for more pictures give you any priority over someone who actually wants to buy the card or cards? A seller should pass on a sale to answer your questions and hope you agree to purchase?

I don't understand this mind set at all. Obviously as others have stated a commitment to buy takes priority over an on going negotiation. In cards, and pretty much everything else in life.

[renoch01]

This was my items and it so happened that I had three individuals including the one that is upset in this post asking about the sets all around the same time so of course I sold to the first one that paid the money plus I told him and the other two that I had doubles on the sets but was not sure about the 1984 topps football set and would sell the others to them if interested. The one posting this did not respond to the pm but the other did and is interested any duplicate sets. I am sorry that I had everyone wanting the set run at the same time but first with the money gets the merchandise......I still have the duplicate sets on the other years but 84 if you are interested.....thanks

[doug.goodman]

In my mind, the BST is like a candy machine, once you put the money in, you get the candy. Until then, no matter how early or often you look at the candy, or how many questions you ask, the candy isn't yours.

On a related topic, while I can understand the logic of posting an "email sent" note on a BST thread, I generally contact the seller directly and I don't always post about it in the thread. Unless I post "I'll take it" in the thread, which means "I'll take it if you haven't already sold it to somebody else".

Doug

[Stampsfan]

Thanks for the info to everyone who took the time to post.

And no, I am not "upset" at all; they are all pretty common items. I thought I could capture some "low hanging fruit" on a low priority want list. I was simply looking for a clarification and opinions, mostly for future reference.

Yes, I wanted a better scan before making the decision, which I still feel is reasonable. I also completely understand if someone came in and purchased outright without asking for scans. I wasn't prepared to do so. Simply wondering if there are rules or courtesies around being first in, which I thought I might have been.

Thanks for the feedback and clarifications. Much appreciated.

Bob

[ALR-bishop]

Originally Posted by doug.goodman

In my mind, the BST is like a candy machine, once you put the money in, you get the candy. Until then, no matter how early or often you look at the candy, or how many questions you ask, the candy

Doug

Knowing Doug, I could not help but picture him standing at a candy machine and asking it questions