Craigslist Ad & Helping Someone Replace a Lost BlackBerry Bold
Have you ever lost your phone and had a hard time finding an immediate replacement?
Its been almost a month since I’ve posted my ad on Craigslist for: BlackBerry 8900 Javlin Curve 2 – BEST DEAL ONLY – $375 http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/mob/1315669304.html
I have sold the phone through eBay – sort of, the guy came and picked it up locally. I have never taken down this Craigslist post; I still get calls for this phone. Craigslist at times doesn’t exactly produce the best buyers though. Often times people call and try to low ball, bullshit just to get some info, you or even worse, make an appointment to view/pick up the product and never come through.
I received a call just about an hour ago regarding my post/ad/listing for the BB 8900 I had for sale; he stated he was really looking for The BlackBerry Bold, but was looking for any good BlackBerry to replace the one that he lost at the Airport yesterday. I told him that I do not have the phone anymore, however, the buyer of my last BB 8900 happened to be replacing his BB Bold. So I promised to reach out and see if I could get in contact with that buyer & see if he still had his Bold & if he was looking to sell it. He didn’t pick up, so I left a msg providing the the name and ph# of this guy that wants to buy.
I give this guy a follow up call and take it a step further: I advise him an alternative method to Craigslist. For someone looking to purchase a replacement ASAP, one could also use eBay!
I tell him that he could search local listings on eBay, and attempt to contact a seller immediately for a sale. He didn’t have an eBay account, so I offered to do this for him. It took all of 5 minutes while we were on this follow up call. I asked for his zipcode, and search within 10 miles for “BlackBerry Bold”. There were (5) results, (2) of which were for Brand New BB Bolds for sale over $500. The other three were good possibilities. I tell him I will contact each seller and provide his contact info. I followed up with this email:
Hi Danny,
As discussed, I have shot the following email out the three people:
“A friend of mine is down in Miami and has just lost his BB Bold. He is within 10miles of your location. I will make payment via eBay or he can pick up and pay in cash. Please call him ASAP so he can confirm. Danny L. (305) 555-5555 ext 101 ~ Again, he needs this phone TODAY!”
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120465913168 / No feedbacks (0)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160360210051 / 100% Feedback (404)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120465991464 / $300 buy it now / 100% Feedback (426)
The last two listings are solid sellers (based on their feed backs)
Hopefully you hear back from one of these sellers today!
~ Louis
(954) MEGABIT | (954) 634-2248
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eBay Tricks for buyers: Not only would someone be more serious on eBay vs Craigslist (because they are paying for the listing fees + Final Value Fees if the item sells via eBay), they may also be more inclined to do business locally with someone that they could speak with to confirm a more definite & immediate sale. They just want to close their listing & get paid immediately without worry of a fraudulent bid (scammers) or dead-beat bidders that never complete the transaction. Dealing locally saves them even more time from packing & shipping the item. Do you like the advantages of dealing locally with buyers & sellers on Craigslist? Try using the Advanced Search to drill down to your locality on eBay which gives similar access but potentially with less bullshit & hassle by dealing on a more serious channel.
So, there it is…. Sometimes I take that extra step to help out someone in great need 
… This guy Danny said he has been searching on Craigslist since 7am! Fifteen minutes of your time, knowledge, and ‘expertise’ may save someone else hours!
I am a believer that good things happen to people that give back.
BlackBerry 8900 Curve 2 Javlin - The BB's I've sold over the past few months.
