What is an "off eBay" deal mean to you? Different if with a member?

Too often you get into a discussion with someone (whether on eBay messaging or email or on a board) who has a card or cards you want and you start negotiating on price, etc. Most times it becomes an arm wrestling match about who says a price first and eventually leads to "well, make me a deal" or the famous "off eBay" term comes out.

What does "off eBay" mean to you or how would you define it? Certain % off most recent eBay sale or average sale price? Maybe it's a deeper discount? What if it's a 1/1? Maybe it's you just want to avoid the time/energy with eBay and just work a deal for what it sells for there off it?

The second part to the question is, do you give a fellow member here any more room than someone you got a message for elsewhere?

Last, do you even like dealing "off eBay" or are you in the camp of everything goes on eBay and I'll suck up the fees and not save face to avoid any issues and even if that means not helping someone out on the board you're on, etc.

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I personally don't sell much on eBay and usually love to work deals off eBay for Belle cards as the buyer. My reason is simple, too often I am one of the only guys going after Belle cards anyways and I'd rather save on the time, energy, etc. of going the eBay route. The other reason is 9 times out of 10, my thoughts on sale price are spot on and in the end could of saved everyone time and money.

That said, I honestly will do a deal off eBay for about what the previous sales were of the Belle cards, minus the fees associated with eBay and PayPal. That's at least my feelings. If I have a card and I'm the seller, I would give a fellow member a better deal than someone that just messaged me on eBay or sent me a personal email.

That said, everyone has their own opinion on this and that is why I'm asking.

Off Ebay means a direct transaction without ebay involved. Thanks.

Does this have anything to do with the member here that pulled a 1/1 Tribute Belle that you weren't able to negotiate a deal with?
I think you were posting in the MT about this that night it was pulled.

Off eBay is a deal made off of eBay

The only thing that bothers me is when people ask through an eBay listing to deal off eBay to avoid the fees associated. The result is manipulating a service that should be paid for and getting it for free. I hate paying the fees but eBay provides a massive selling platform allowing sellers access to a vast network of buyers to get the best price and should be compensated for that.


Ogando, Michael Young, Leonys Martin and all Texas Rangers

lisu said:

Off Ebay means a direct transaction without ebay involved. Thanks.

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You mean without them being involved in getting your cards attention in the first place? or maybe you're just being funny lol

Dmscards said:

Off eBay is a deal made off of eBay

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Nice!!!

klute14 said:

Does this have anything to do with the member here that pulled a 1/1 Tribute Belle that you weren't able to negotiate a deal with?
I think you were posting in the MT about this that night it was pulled.

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No, not really. That situation is one of many I've been in over the years but this is really just about how members think about "off eBay" deals. Some people just don't like doing off eBay deals and others do. Some think that as long as you bid the sh!t out of an eBay auction, an "off eBay" deal is just skipping fees but keeping the price you won it for on eBay... others might think of it as a deeper discount... others might think otherwise?

It was an interesting debate I had with a buddy and thought I'd raise it here but looks like the thread is just being met with "off eBay is off eBay" type comments and no one really cares to comment, so might just nix the thing :lol:

Off ebay is just as it sounds. Using other forms/mediums to close a deal without involving ebay.

To me anytime I can get a card I really want through and "off" ebay deal I will do it. My reasoning is this.... When buying, If i can get the card without having to worry about someone sniping me at the end even if I have to pay a little premium then I have no problem. My goal is to take the stress of having to watch an auction for 3-5-7 days. My issue with off ebay, is people will say exactly what you mentioned.... Would you take XXXX for the card stright to pay pal for this amount because you are saving on fees ect. I have no problem dealing off eBay, just dont act like you are doing me a favor by mentioning the fees.

mrdallas said:

Off ebay is just as it sounds. Using other forms/mediums to close a deal without involving ebay.

To me anytime I can get a card I really want through and "off" ebay deal I will do it. My reasoning is this.... When buying, If i can get the card without having to worry about someone sniping me at the end even if I have to pay a little premium then I have no problem. My goal is to take the stress of having to watch an auction for 3-5-7 days. My issue with off ebay, is people will say exactly what you mentioned.... Would you take XXXX for the card stright to pay pal for this amount because you are saving on fees ect. I have no problem dealing off eBay, just dont act like you are doing me a favor by mentioning the fees.

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Solid post.

I like your mention of avoiding having to watch the damn thing for 3-5-7 days when we can just do a quick deal and get it done.

The only thing that I don't like about "off" ebay deals is you lose the protection of eBay if the seller doesn't come through.
Now, I am not sure if PP has you covered in that instance, but I am always a little leery.

OFF EBAY DEAL

For starters, its against ebay rules and if the seller is caught ebay will suspend your acct. @ strikes they can/may kill your acct completely.
They even check paypal accts for wording leaving to proof of a card being sold on ebay, that was ended and try to link buyer/seller convo.

Basically this is how buyers try to save a few bucks, to build in profit. It's a way of saying, hey can you do me a favor and save me $10 bucks,
even though there is nothing in it for you and you may lose your acct, you worked hard to create over 17 years.

Yes, we all did it for years. But it is now death to only the seller. I have been calling and emailing ebay, reporting the 5-10 offers I get a week.
I am a buyer and seller. I don't ask sellers to do this, because I don't want them to risk their acct. I think it's a joke that only the seller gets in trouble for it.
If the seller gets suspended, so should the buyer. But, again, that's not what ebay is after. I am hoping if enough people do it, they wont have a choice.
I am lucky to have a brother who is a president over depts of ebay and paypal, so I hope to see something change.


Bottom line, buyers need to quit asking for this to be done. It's the correct thing to do.
Sellers watch your a$$. They will catch you.


FCB buyers, I always help out where I can with lower price or shipping. I go as low as I can for every one.

gmsieb said:

OFF EBAY DEAL

For starters, its against ebay rules and if the seller is caught ebay will suspend your acct. @ strikes they can/may kill your acct completely.
They even check paypal accts for wording leaving to proof of a card being sold on ebay, that was ended and try to link buyer/seller convo.

Basically this is how buyers try to save a few bucks, to build in profit. It's a way of saying, hey can you do me a favor and save me $10 bucks,
even though there is nothing in it for you and you may lose your acct, you worked hard to create over 17 years.

Yes, we all did it for years. But it is now death to only the seller. I have been calling and emailing ebay, reporting the 5-10 offers I get a week.
I am a buyer and seller. I don't ask sellers to do this, because I don't want them to risk their acct. I think it's a joke that only the seller gets in trouble for it.
If the seller gets suspended, so should the buyer. But, again, that's not what ebay is after. I am hoping if enough people do it, they wont have a choice.
I am lucky to have a brother who is a president over depts of ebay and paypal, so I hope to see something change.


Bottom line, buyers need to quit asking for this to be done. It's the correct thing to do.
Sellers watch your a$$. They will catch you.


FCB buyers, I always help out where I can with lower price or shipping. I go as low as I can for every one.

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Great post, thanks! It's an interesting perspective and I think one that note many people share but it's because of what you just said, it's ALL on the seller to get in trouble and at the end of the day the buyer could save some money, etc. Have you ever had eBay reply that they chanced someone down?

Also, for what it's worth and also another reason for the thread... I don't sell much at all or ever but I do have one card up now which I listed a few days ago and I've already got a few messages about doing a deal, "off eBay" and all. So it must happen a lot because the item I have up isn't something with a massive buying market at all lol

Off eBay means the card was or still is on eBay and someone would like you to take it down and sell it bypassing eBay altogether.

It should mean nothing else. Otherwise it lends credence to the train of thought that cards are only normally sold on eBay and rarely ever anywhere else which we all know isn't true.

I don't ask someone to do it unless they are a personal friend and we mutually trust each other. And usually at that point, it's not like I'm trying to mess over eBay or save money.I simply didn't know they had the card. Half the time, we might already have another deal going. So I tell them I want it. But no, I don't just normally go around asking sellers to take things down.

I will not ask for a deal off ebay from a seller, but i will message them and tell them i plan to bid so if they are going to take it down early, at least give me a shot. 9/10 times they reply with "i always let my auctions ride" to which i dont respond and snipe it, but that 1 time that someone says they were planning to take it down and shoot them an offer, i do. I dont buy nearly as much anymore on ebay, so when i send that initial email it must be a pretty important piece to me.

jpcz said:

I will not ask for a deal off ebay from a seller, but i will message them and tell them i plan to bid so if they are going to take it down early, at least give me a shot. 9/10 times they reply with "i always let my auctions ride" to which i dont respond and snipe it, but that 1 time that someone says they were planning to take it down and shoot them an offer, i do. I dont buy nearly as much anymore on ebay, so when i send that initial email it must be a pretty important piece to me.

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This is a good idea as I have had many card just disappear because of an offline sale. I have done it myself but do not like to as Im all about auction style. Hopefully this will eliminate those cards getting taken down in the future.

Off eBay to me is a win/win. Seller cuts a discount, and avoids fees, and makes a little more. Buyer gets a little better deal. Exactly what goes on here in the transactions forums. Take the going rate with fees and without fees and meet in the middle.

I never make off ebay deals for items listed on eBay, but I will "upsell" off eBay. Buyer purchases a card of player X on eBay, I message them letting them know of the other cards I may have prior to shipping. I might make an off eBay deal on those additional cards that I will package in with the item purchased on eBay.

jpcz said:

I will not ask for a deal off ebay from a seller, but i will message them and tell them i plan to bid so if they are going to take it down early, at least give me a shot. 9/10 times they reply with "i always let my auctions ride" to which i dont respond and snipe it, but that 1 time that someone says they were planning to take it down and shoot them an offer, i do. I dont buy nearly as much anymore on ebay, so when i send that initial email it must be a pretty important piece to me.

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You bring up another great point about off eBay and that is if you play by the rules or just go to eBay, you could get caught by another person just making a deal and you don't get your shot at it.

For what it's worth, I'm all for off eBay transactions but understand the conflict with eBay and everything...

jpcz said:

I will not ask for a deal off ebay from a seller, but i will message them and tell them i plan to bid so if they are going to take it down early, at least give me a shot. 9/10 times they reply with "i always let my auctions ride" to which i dont respond and snipe it, but that 1 time that someone says they were planning to take it down and shoot them an offer, i do. I dont buy nearly as much anymore on ebay, so when i send that initial email it must be a pretty important piece to me.

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This is exactly what I do - and this is exactly why you can't fault buyers for making offers. Until sellers stop taking auctions down early, buyers will continue to make offers, or risk losing out on an item they really want. If you don't end auctions early as a seller, I appreciate that. But the fact is the buyer doesn't know that, so they are going to contact you if it is something they really want. I used to not do this but after losing out on so many cards, I started contacting sellers and asking them if they are taking offers. If they say yes, I'll shoot them an offer.

I personally dont try to get a seller to sell off ebay, unless the item has ended and not sold. Then i would message the seller with an offer and if he takes it, then cool. If not, i usually find the item listed again, and then again, and then again. Oh well.


as far as me selling, if someone were to make an offer i would accept, then sure, i would sell it off ebay. But i would still have them pay thru paypal just for security sake. Sometimes, i would modify the listing to accept their offer. I find ebay a good way to keep track of the things i am selling, plus i feel it provides a secure transaction.


Anyone from FCB that makes an offer will always get preferential treatment from me. Its like giving an employee discount to family members. (hint hint, look at my ebay listings and pm me if you want something)