While 99% of Trade Market transactions go off without a hitch, I’ve been receiving more complaints about trades lately. As the community grows this is bound to happen, and I know in speaking to other bloggers that run trade forums that this is sadly not unusual. Anyone who says it doesn’t happen is lying. In some cases people have not been happy with the condition of the item they’ve received. In other cases, people have agreed to trades only to send out their item and never receive the item they were promised in return. There are sadly some people who purposely defraud others. I thought it necessary to dedicate a post to trades specifically. If you haven’t read Gigi’s Tips to a Successful Swap, I highly recommend it. It’s a great guide on how to successfully pull off a trade.
Before posting your item for trade, please consider the following:
– Are you sure you want to trade the item?
If you aren’t willing to go through the transaction, please don’t post your item. The Trade Market is not a “well, maybe” forum.
– Is your item in salable condition?
If the item is in less than excellent condition, please don’t list it for trade. No one wants to receive a smelly, torn, majorly pilled, wrinkled mess. (And yes, sadly this has happened.)
– Are parts of your item missing?
Is a button missing? Are there removable straps? If your item is missing any of these parts, please be upfront about it in your listing. Or maybe the item should not be listed at all.
– Does the item need to be cleaned before trading it?
Please clean the item before listing it on the Trade Market.
– Is the item easily accessible?
Please don’t list items that are in storage or if you’re not sure where the item is. Why get someone else’s hopes up over an item you may not even have anymore?
– Be honest about the item’s origins.
If you bought the item off eBay, please disclose that. If you bought the item through the Trade Market, please disclose that. Basically, if the item came from anywhere besides an Anthropologie store or the website, please disclose that!
If you’ve decided to go through with a trade, here are some things both sides should keep in mind:
– Consider asking for photos of the item.
It’s not foolproof, but seeing pictures of an item before completing the trade can help both sides feel more comfortable.
– Consider exchanging the value of the item through Paypal.
Making a trade for an item worth $40? Consider paypal’ing each other $40, so that in the event something goes wrong you have financial recourse. I advise using a credit card in this situation so that you can contact your credit card company if need be.
– Get tracking numbers BEFORE you ship the item.
You can easily get a mailing label through the USPS or UPS sites before you mail the item out. Get that delivery confirmation/UPS tracking number from your trade partner BEFORE you drop your item in the mail.
– Respond to each other’s emails promptly.
I know how busy life can get. If you’re not going to be able to mail your package out for a few days, or won’t be able to check your email for awhile, let your trade partner know! I can’t tell you how many emails I get from people just waiting to hear back from their trade partner. Sometimes days. Please be prompt in your responses. Don’t leave someone hanging.
Above all, please be considerate. Treat your trade partner like you’d want to be treated.
WARNING SIGNS that you should walk away from a trade:
– The person is doing a trade on behalf of their sister, mother, daughter, wife, etc.
Yeah right. If the person doesn’t have the item themselves be wary.
– The person’s item is in storage/at the cleaner.
Tell them to reach out to you once it’s back.
– They refuse to send item photos, or something looks off about the product in the photo.
If you’re not completely comfortable, don’t follow through with the trade. (Let the person know you’re no longer interested.)
– You go days with no communication.
The person was interested and emailed you right away! Then they disappear for days, then come back and say they still want to trade. Then they disappear again…this isn’t going to end well.
– Something just doesn’t feel right.
If your gut is telling you don’t go through with the trade…well, don’t do it! I get emails too often from people who thought something was funny, but traded anyway.
– The person lives in Connecticut, especially north-central Connecticut.
God it kills me to say this as a CT native, but there’s apparently a ring of assholes in CT floating around the Trade Market pulling off fake trades. There have been 3 cases so far, all referred to the local authorities. Be HIGHLY skeptical of anyone in Connecticut asking to do a trade.
I’m disgusted that anyone would have the poor ethical makeup of a criminal, but sadly there are some lurkers here looking to poach your item. Even worse is how some of them found EA. Again, 99% of Trade Market transactions go smoothly and I have no involvement in any of the transactions. If a transaction goes sour I will do my best to help you out, but there is no guarantee. Keep yourself safe by protecting yourself.
Oh crap! I think I just got scammed. What can I do?
– If you mailed your item already, call either the Post Office in the destination town or UPS to see if you can get your package returned to sender.
– If the package was delivered and it’s been more than 14 days and you haven’t received the piece you expected in return, call their local police.
– If you start getting email bouncebacks (this is when you send an email, but it comes back to you as undeliverable) contact me right away. I will need some information from you — keep your trade emails until the transaction is successfully completed please!
– If you received an item that is either the wrong item or not as described, contact your trade partner directly first. Err on the polite side and name your terms clearly. Do you want your item back? Compensation? Don’t just email them without a goal in mind.
Remember to give your trade partner a fair amount of time to make things right. It’s not fair to complain if you’re waiting on a package that was just mailed two days ago. Patience is hard but it’s also key. Usually, 14 days is a fair amount of time to wait.
Personally I’ve had about 15 successful Trade Market transactions (no unsuccessful ones), including 2 trades. If you have any additional tips, thoughts or questions, please let us know in the comments.
