Just out of curiosity......

I have a question, I am sure it has been asked before, but I couldn't find it in previous posts.  I see a lot of people post on the BOI asking if anybody has done any dealings with prospective sellers.  I am assuming these people are looking for references for hese people.  If somebody were to try to sell snakes out ot their first clutch, wouldn't posting about them on the BOI be kind of pointless because they have never done business with anybody and therefore don't have any references?  If that is the case, how would somebody sell their first couple clutches to get a "good name" for themselves?

Lyle Boner

finding nothing on somehow is more good than bad.
most people are willing to buy as long as they do not find "bad" stuff on you.

So someone will not have any feedback - how does that make the BOI a bad thing. I think you are implying it is not good for a newbie or not fair. It is good and fair. I have made a few internet sales without being on the BOI when I had zero references as a seller. I still made sales, and now I could make more because of my feedback. Same thing on Ebay where I sold books and some other stuff, and same thing on GunBroker and AuctionArms. If you have something someone else wants badly enough, or something you offer at a good price it still stands a good chance of selling. Then if you did your part right you will likely get good feedback and that only helps as far as other sales go.

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Glenn Bartley @ Sep. 03 2002,23:25)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">So someone will not have any feedback - how does that make the BOI a bad thing. I think you are implying it is not good for a newbie or not fair. It is good and fair. I have made a few internet sales without being on the BOI when I had zero references as a seller. I still made sales, and now I could make more because of my feedback. Same thing on Ebay where I sold books and some other stuff, and same thing on GunBroker and AuctionArms. If you have something someone else wants badly enough, or something you offer at a good price it still stands a good chance of selling. Then if you did your part right you will likely get good feedback and that only helps as far as other sales go.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
I was in no way stating I felt the BOI was unfair. &nbsp;I find it a very useful tool in helping people figure out if they want to do business wth somebody or not, based on other people's experiences. &nbsp;I was simply curious about how somebody would start out, or better yet, how some of the people who have been praised over and over again (esentially making them stand-up-kind-of-people) started from the bottom. &nbsp;If, for instance, I were to have a clutch I wanted to sell and somebody wanted to find references on me before they buy, would I be S.O.L and wait for the next buyer, or is there some sort of way you can give character references instead of business references?

BTW - Ritchie, Thanks, you got my point and the answer makes sense.

Sorry if I misunderstood your statement. As I explained I thought you were implying it to be unfair. That is really neither here nor there though when it comes down to your question about selling. The advice I gave on that still stands, if you have ever sold or bought anywhere on the net where you have references, then use them. If you have no such references then hope for a sale without them. Make sure to offer a decent deal, excellent animals, and stay in good communication wiuth potential buyers.

To take it a step further you could always offer character references, but I doubt many people will want to check them. They mostly want to see good stuff about other sales you have made. As Ritchie suggested no bad stuff can be a good reference all on its own, but remember that the more good stuff you can show - such as feedback for times you were a buyer as opposed to a seller - will help even more so. If you don't have anything, then persistence is the key along with some good business smarts: sell what is in demand. Also advertise wisely. Don't just place an ad on a website - go out and join in the forums and answer lots of questions. Get some name recognition! Buyers will show up sooner or later. Best of luck to you. <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''>

Thank you Glen, I apreciate the detail. &nbsp;I am already an active member in Bob Clark's forum, but haven't really been too active here. &nbsp;I am not planning on a clutch for at least another year, but just wanted to know what my options were. &nbsp;Thanks again.