Should all questions about bass sales be sent through PM, for those with no intentions of buying?

[pedulla-2007]

I would like to lobby for a new rule for those members with just a natural curiosity about a sale , be sent through a PM if they have no intentions of buying. I know I personally am too lazy to do the research on a sale item. So I have to stop and remind myself, not to clutter a post out of curiosity, if I have no intentions of buying. I know sometimes I omit pertinent information, in some of my sales, but I would appreciate general questions from tire kickers, be sent through a personal message, if you have no intentions of buying. Please keep your replies civil,.

 

[jmattbassplaya]

Personally, I’d rather general questions be in the FS thread so that the answer is there in case someone else has the same question. This seems beneficial as both a seller and a potential buyer. Plus, the answer to said question could be the reason I go from potential buyer to tire kicker.

 

[hrodbert696]

Per the Classifieds rules/FAQ:

"Questions for sellers Potential buyers are permitted to ask relevant questions/make relevant comments in your thread (this does not include any disparaging or negative comments that could affect a seller’s ad). Do not request that potential buyers not post in your thread or to PM you if they have any questions. All pricing discussions or trade offers must be kept to PMs."

What you're asking would be a rule change. That's not impossible if there are compelling reasons for it. But I think there are a couple of reasons why the rule is what it is. One, TB is a community and the classifieds are part of our function as a community. So it's reasonable that items offered would be topics of constructive discussion. We don't allow ads to be deleted or prices zeroed out, even if the item is removed from the market, because the listing itself is a source of information for the community. The no-negative-comments rule is because the fundamental rule of respect for other community members means not sabotaging their efforts to sell something.

Two, enforceability. If we had a rule that only "serious" buyers are allowed to post in FS threads, does that mean you can report someone and have the mods ding them for a rule violation any time they posted and then didn't make an offer? How are we supposed to police who's a "serious" shopper and who's just a tire-kicker? Tire-kicking behavior may be annoying but, IMO, that's just part of the deal when you're trying to sell something.