Re: Trading Guidelines

[ket_the_jet]

Trading Ethics

First, let me say that this is in no way connected to any trader on this site, but I saw a post on another thread that I thought brought up some good points and warranted attention.

Personally, I really hate it when a certain card is "on hold" because one person asked about it first. If two people want the same card, it should go to whoever will trade more for it or trade better cards - it shouldn't AT ALL depend on who posted/emailed first. [It] is unfortunate since that's how almost everyone on this board operates.

I thought that was a valid frustration when you are trying to trade for cards that you want (need?) and I have certainly had that frustration happen many times. I did want to pass on my thoughts on "holding" cards for traders.

When a second person inquires on a card that is currently in negotiation, I always promptly explain to the second person that this card is currently being negotiated in another deal; however, they are still free to make an offer and I will keep that in mind as well. Now, because most of my trades end up being groups of cards against a few cards I am looking for, it is not hard for me to say to the first person, "I received an offer on this card from another user...I apologize but that offer is almost too good to pass up." I always give the first user an opportunity to match the offer (in value...it seems unlikely that the trader will have the same cards) on the first-come-first-serve basis.

Of course, through the art of tactful negotiation, you could remove the card in question from the first deal (particularly in larger trades), or, and I know this is a shocker, decline an offer altogether and trade with the second person.

For what it is worth, I have about 12 years of trading online experience and have never been involved in a bad trade because I operate under the simple rules of checking references and knowing who I am trading with. www.gabtraders.com is a wonderful site to check if someone has been involved in a sour deal (or more likely, mail fraud) and keeping track of references on that site, mahasamatman.com, and any other trading boards is always a good idea.

Happy trading to all.
-wtk