This is the way.
Does FB Marketplace even have any sort of reputation system? Or are you banking entirely on the age of the account?
I'm a heavy Facebook user, but I avoid FB Marketplace like the plague. Just seems like a great place to get scammed.
Does FB Marketplace even have any sort of reputation system? Or are you banking entirely on the age of the account?
I'm a heavy Facebook user, but I avoid FB Marketplace like the plague. Just seems like a great place to get scammed.
I used the same criteria: Number of items listed, number of items sold, how long they have been on the platform. For good measure, I cyber stalk them a little bit to make sure they exist.
Even with an Ebay-like ratings system, one of the thing which happens is legit accounts get hacked and go rogue. (I am guessing they got hacked; someone who was legit could also just randomly decide to go rogue) You're always going to be at risk of that.
There are scams but I think they are avoidable.
My next door neighbor has spent many thousands of dollars on FB Marketplace and has never been scammed. He buys tools and construction supplies and equipment. Usually gets the stuff 90%+ off retail price and sometimes free.
I think the key is dealing in person.
Some are as you say - you order something and never receive it. Straight up
Some are fast fashion companies which get spun up quickly with slick ads and websites, which are somehow "going out of business" even though they were registered less than 2 months ago.
Some are kickstarters for products which obviously are just clones of other products which already are ubiquitous.
A lot are drop shippers who use slick ads to sell you something they aren't even in possession of, at 2-3x the price which you could get it for if you just took the time to look elsewhere.
* I see an ad that says "do you want to buy this item for this price?"
* If I like the price, I can buy the item. I got what was promised.
The fact that maybe I could have bought the same item elsewhere for less doesn't make it a scam. Lots of things are offered at different prices in different places at the same time. That's not a scam.
It's not a capital 'S' scam in a legal sense, but it's a scam in that they are playing a trick on you by jacking the price way up and relying on your ignorance to make the sale at an inflated price.
If we consider a door-to-door salesman who is selling (say) basic Android phones in retirement communities where hypothetically some folks have never used a smartphone, they might get away with selling a $100 basic phone for $1000. That's not illegal, but it surely is a scam in the ethical sense.
Oldest trick in the book.
They said they're selling (furniture, electronics, clothing, art) it all for 80-90% off retail. You know, just so they get it off the truck and get back home. I remember working in a commercial area and the owner of the business would come and tell the guys to GTFO their property so they'd pull out and then pull into the next driveway over and rinse and repeat until they were out of the area.
It was a total scam though. My boss bought some couch and said it started falling apart after a few months. I'm not sure these guys had stolen all the stuff, or if the truck got hijacked our what, but during the Summer it was a regular thing that happened a few times every month.
I'd be interested to find out if anybody else remembers these "truck load" scams in the late 90's early aughts.
They'll sell you a box of 20 ribeye steaks for only $40, but you open the box and realize that each "steak" is only about 1/4 inch thick and is absolute dog-food level marbling, completely zero intra-muscular fat.