Make Me an Offer

[mishalaa]

I was talking to a rabbit breeder about this, but the practice certainly applies to chinchillas, or any animal/object really.

How do you feel when you offer to buy a chinchilla (or whatever) from someone and their response is "make me an offer"? Is it better either for the buyer or seller to have a set price, or is fishing for a price better and why?

 

[Essentia]

Coming from a buyers standpoint I much prefer a set price. I never know if my offer is going to be too low/high and I don't want to offend someone with a low offer. It takes too much thinking on my part. Just tell me the price already.

 

[Stackie]

Coming from a buyers standpoint I much prefer a set price. I never know if my offer is going to be too low/high and I don't want to offend someone with a low offer. It takes too much thinking on my part. Just tell me the price already.

Same here.

 

[Pikaia]

That annoys the heck out of me. I go to many garage/yard sales and hear that all the time.

 

[GorillaJTA]

"Make me an offer" is a great way to judge if someone actually knows the value of something. If they lowball, you can ask for more, and if they offer too much... just more profit.

 

[Vyxxin]

From a sellers standpoint, I never know what to price things/animals at. I don't want to overcharge and my customers go away or be disappointed. I see the buyers standpoint...but I figure it like this (when I'm a buyer) if my offer's too low they'll let me know if they are offended it is THEIR problem as they said to make the offer!

 

[Sandi]

Coming from a buyers standpoint I much prefer a set price. I never know if my offer is going to be too low/high and I don't want to offend someone with a low offer. It takes too much thinking on my part. Just tell me the price already.

Yep, I feel this way as well.

 

[greychins]

As a buyer, I prefer a set price. I never know what to offer - even if I think I know what the item is worth, they may have a different idea. I may think it's worth $20, they may think $90. On the flip side, I'd hate to OFFER $90 and them want $20, cause then it's like I've spent $70 unnecessarily.

I suppose the same goes for me, as a seller. I would never say "make an offer," because in my experience, people will make the lowest offer out there that they think is possible. I've had people email me saying $50 is too high for a rescue, how bout $15? If that's the kind of offers I'll get, no thanks. I would rather state the price, and if people think it's too high, then I'm not wasting their time by having them email me with a ridiculously low offer. I HATE those craigslist ads that say "rehoming fee" or "call and we'll discuss the price" - it's practically the same thing, an unknown price - because most times, if I KNEW the rehoming fee/price, I would never bother them in the first place. Sort of a side note, but I think sometimes when people put that, they seem to be aware that they're not asking what everyone might consider a reasonable price. Not always, but sometimes.

 

[Spoof]

Coming from a buyers standpoint I much prefer a set price. I never know if my offer is going to be too low/high and I don't want to offend someone with a low offer. It takes too much thinking on my part. Just tell me the price already.

Agreed!

Granted, if I have cash at a show I'll make offers based on how much I have in my pocket.

A lot of times I've run into the "make me an offer" and my answer is always Ten dollar! (with a funny accent). Sometimes it really offends people too. Ah well, you shouldn't have asked.

 

[equusus]

I find it really annoying when somebody has something for sale but won't give a price. If I have to make an offer, you bet I am offering next to nothing! Let them come back with an actual price, then we'll talk like reasonable people.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

In the words of the Spice Girls,

"Tell me what you want, what you really, really want..."

Please don't make me embarrass myself by offering too little.

When I purchased Little Two Paws, I asked the rancher, "What is the absolute lowest price at which you would sell him???", because I had no idea how much a 2-legged pet chin was worth. I still felt uncomfortable, but at least he told me what HE wanted. :thumbsup:

 

[dayofhope]

Coming from a buyers standpoint I much prefer a set price. I never know if my offer is going to be too low/high and I don't want to offend someone with a low offer. It takes too much thinking on my part. Just tell me the price already.

Exactly how I feel.
--Honestly, when someone says to make an offer I sometimes just ignore the ad, even if it's something I am looking for. I'd rather know the price right away when shopping than ask the seller what they will take. But this is coming from someone who hesitates when buying something expensive but loves good buys and cheap but great DIY projects. XD

But I see why you might be worried about over pricing something. It's hard to judge at times. I feel for ya.

 

[Vyxxin]

I DO often tell people, when it's something I'm not sure how to price...that if the price is too steep let me know what they think is more fair. I absolutely do NOT like over charging I generally do research on the item I'm selling to see what a general price is and then sell a bit lower than that...but still...I try to be fair.

 

[mark miller]

If you are really good at seeing quality in chinchillas and if you have some knowledge of the pedigree lines your buying then "make me an offer" can really work to your advantage. Example: I saw a standard female at a show I really liked in January this year. She was priced at $300 on silent auction. I waited till Nationals in March to approach the owner and asked if I could look at any females he had at the show out of a sire male he'd got from me. He showed me 2 including the 1 I'd looked at in January. I liked them both and he said "make me an offer" so I said "how about $300 for the pair" and he said ok. One other time, I was at Nationals in Denver and I had 2 really nice Standard males that were half-brothers. I thought they were worth $400-$500 each because they were really top quality but I had no intentions of selling them. I was asked by a experienced breeder how much I wanted. I replied "make me an offer" and he offered $1000 each for them. If you know the quality you're dealing on, then "make me an offer" can be a really good opportunity as a buyer or seller. I think that holds true in chins, cars, antiques, etc.

 

[ticklechin]

Best of both worlds, 125.00 or best offer.

 

[mishellyshel]

i agree with Dawn.

i like a set price, with the option of negotiation.

$125.00 price negotiable

 

[starleomach]

If people want to make an offer different than your listed price they will. I get that all the time if it is resonable I will sometimes say OK, but usually it isn't reasonable like "I'll give you 50 for the two of them..." when they are 150 each or something. I even had a pet store call offering to buy chinchillas from me at 25.00 each. "No thanks"

I find sadly enough usually if someone is looking for a cheap chinchilla it is because they want to breed.

 

[6Dusters]

Good questions Mish.

You can always give them an amount. If the person doesn't like it then I ask, " What is your asking price? " or...." give me a ball park figure."

If they won't answer the question I will ask if my offer is close?
If they say no then I up the amount a bit. If they seem "put off" then I suggest they make tell me an offer more suited for sale. I will haggle. Some people will and some won't.

If I don't get an animal or object. Then I move along.

I do like when an animal has a set price. Never hurts to ask if they are willing to take a different amount. I recently sold an animal for less then my asking price because the person was polite, punctual and asked many questions. She asked me if I would accept a lesser amount.

This year at one of the shows I could not buy two animals. One of the showers said his animal was going to be placed in breeding. The person was nice enough to say they had some animals growing out that were real nice. I thanked them for their time.
The other animal was available prior to the show by a different person. Someone I knew had asked about the animal before judging and was given a price. It was too steep for them. It was expensive but I had the coinage.
When I asked about the animal after the show, the person said it was not for sale.

Really???:banghead:
I know the prices can go up when peoples animals show well. But this situation was absurd.

 

[threewingedfury]

This year at one of the shows I could not buy two animals. One of the showers said his animal was going to be placed in breeding. The person was nice enough to say they had some animals growing out that were real nice. I thanked them for their time.
The other animal was available prior to the show by a different person. Someone I knew had asked about the animal before judging and was given a price. It was too steep for them. It was expensive but I had the coinage.
When I asked about the animal after the show, the person said it was not for sale.

Really???:banghead:
I know the prices can go up when peoples animals show well. But this situation was absurd.

Well remember, the seller always has the right to change or refuse a sale. Most don't know what they have until an animal is shown and they decide to keep it after it has placed well. I don't think money is really the issue - it's the simple fact that you produced something that placed well and it's easier and cheaper to keep it for your own breeding than selling it to purchase another down the road.

As far as the "make an offer" situation - I don't really like being asked to make an offer, nor do I really like to hear a $25 offer on a $150-200 animal. I rarely make an offer on animals unless it's an animal someone refuses to sell. I've offered $500+ for a couple of animals that I really wanted, but the sellers just didn't want to sell. Hey, I understand - no problem, there will always be another down the road. As far as my animals for sale - if I had a $150 chin and someone offered $25 less, I may take it, it depends, but it's never $25 less, it's $50-100 less minimum and then I feel like it's a slap in the face.

 

[saphire]

I like set prices both ways, as a buyer and seller. From there if one wants to come back and deal a bit... lets see.....
But I really dislike `make me an offer` I will tell them to say the price they want to sell or pay, if they don't chances are I will walk away.