eBay offer etiquette

[ClementeFanOh]

Adam- Although I have most frequently bought/traded rather than sold cards, I have
no aversion to selling something when it a) has lost it's meaning in my collection or b)
has dramatically increased in value, thus paving my way to buy other things I want
more. So, I'm not averse to making money. I'm also very, very well aware that there
are many knowledgeable, kind and fair sellers- they get my business, and many use
this site

The reality is this, however. As much as I love cards, no one "needs" a card in the
way they "need" food, shelter, etc. Many sellers, on the other hand, "need" to sell.
Buyers control the purse strings, end of story. This doesn't mean that sellers are
somehow powerless- it merely means card values and sales, like any extravagant
collectible, start with the folks who want them (and who have the final say on whether
they will buy). Some sellers shy away from the reality of this statement, which doesn't
change it's ultimate accuracy. Many sellers are buyers themselves and understand the
reality. The ones who don't, eventually dig holes for themselves by employing pretzel
logic or "entitlement economics" while explaining their sales philosophy (you know, the
guy who buys a card for $1000 and insists he "has to get" $1500 to make it
worthwhile in a sale, or who expects a possible buyer to overpay for a certain card's
"potential", among many examples). I can smell that greed from a mile away, and
there is no clever oratory which will persuade me otherwise. Sadly, I am much more
likely to run into this type of seller on ebay, thus my preference to avoid it if possible.

Trent King