Where Common courtesy can be a thing of the past
Courtesy. Remember that? The art of manners. Please. Thank you, and so on. Well, let’s go to Facebook Marketplace, where peculiar things happen. If you have ever listed anything on there, you will know exactly what I am talking about. The premise is easy. Advertise something. Someone expresses interest. A transaction takes place. Easy, right? Oh no. Marketplace has changed. No longer is it about buying and selling. It seems to be more about ghosting, no shows and conversations that are downright rude or vanish into the messenger abyss.
Every single conversation starts with the infamous, “Is this available?” That is the first red flag. While you are dying to say something like, “I posted it 5 minutes ago, what do you think?” or “‘if I had sold it, it would not be up for sale would it,” you don’t say that. You politely type back, “yes, it’s available.” Then the saga begins.
What saga you ask? Let me tell you. I am talking about the silence. The yawning chasm that awaits you while you are waiting for their response. Ten minutes. An hour. A day. You wait and there is nothing. Not a single comment. Not even a “sorry I changed my mind.” Nothing.
The second red flag are the questions. The endless questions. You know the sort. “What are the exact measurements?” – you direct the potential buyer to the ad. “Has it been around smokers or pets?” – much as you want to, you refrain from saying something like, “no, but it’s been around my mother-in-law. Does that count?” You answer the questions patiently because, lets face it, you want the furniture sold and gone.
The person you are conversing with says, “great, I’ll have it.” You lock in a time and prepare yourself. You even allow your hopes to be raised. After all, they want it and they’re coming, right? (You know the answer to this don’t you!) That answer is nope!
You wait. They don’t arrive. They do not message. You message to politely ask if they are on their way. Nothing. They have ghosted you and disappeared into the great beyond of Facebook messenger. If they really want to annoy you, a few days later they will reappear with the inevitable “something come up, is it still available?” Now you have a choice. Do you respond to them, or do you repay the favour and ignore their message?
Every now and then, luck is on your side, and someone shows up to your front door. Here is where you need to be ready for the next red flag. They start haggling. “I know you want $100 but I only have $75.” Now you and I know they have $100 as they have turned up prepared to pay that. Do you take the $75 to get rid of them or do you call their bluff and say that you want the agreed price?
Facebook marketplace is a bizarre culture. Remember the old days of garage sales and classified ads? Call, commit, show up, pay and take the goods. It worked. Marketplace has turned us into unpaid performers, living on emotions of heartbreak, hope or at times, a dose of hilarity.
That being the case, why do we still use it? Because for every 5 no shows, there is one. One person that turns up, with the money and some manners. That one person that restores your long-lost faith in humanity.
But of course, that’s not where it ends. You have more things to sell. It all starts again….
