The Benefits of Buying and Selling Locally
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By Donald Lee
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Shop at a flea
market in Oaxaca, Mexico. Trade
with a vendor in London, England.
Or sport your wares to collectors
in Geneva, Switzerland. You can
virtually do just that when you
shop or sell goods at an online
auction site. You know those global
auction Web sites, the ones that
allow you to bid on thousands
of items against millions of other
competitors. Sure, they allow
you to expand your world and uncover
cool knickknacks from around the
world. But these very same sites
also open the door to you getting
ripped off by someone four thousand
miles away. More than 8 billion
dollars were spent on auction
sites in the last three months
of last year, but how many dollars
were lost along the way?
Aside from these global auction
sites, there are the LOCAL classified
sites that are transforming the
Web into the spot for neighborhood
shopping. These local classified
sites offer convenience, selection,
and low prices that would expect
to find online, along with the
safety and privacy of local shopping.
Best of all, you can feel good
about buying from-and also selling
to-your neighbors.
Wheel and deal on collectibles,
vintage clothing, sporting goods,
even real estate-all with people
you know and trust in the comfort
and privacy of your living room
or study. The benefits of these
local classified sites don't stop
with these intangibles. They have
concrete advantages, such as:
Spontaneous delivery.
Package deliver in your neighborhood
may not be instantaneous, but
you definitely won't have to wait
two to six weeks if you buy something
locally.
What shipping?
You can agree to drop off or pick
up the sale item at one of your
homes, or meet at a convenient
middle-of-the-road spot. You also
won't need to worry about finding
those shipping peanuts under your
couch, your sheets, and in your
fridge two months later.
No frazzle.
Tracking codes are supposed to
help you locate your packages
in transit, but sometimes they
can be more of a headache-especially
when they don't help find your
lost package.
A friendly face.
Local classified sites let you
meet the person whom you're doing
business with. Of course, you
control if, when, and where this
happens.
The test drive.
Whether you're dealing with a
car, a mattress, or a tennis racket,
you can actually touch and try
out your item before you put down
cold hard cash. For sellers with
product as promised, that makes
closing the deal that much easier.
Simple switcheroos.
Local shopping opens up the possibility
of refunds and exchanges if you
and the person you're doing business
agree.
More ample assortment than auctions.
Imagine buying a refrigerator
or a couch at an auction site.
Then imagine receiving that package
at your door! Not very realistic,
right? These sorts of purchases
and sales, though, become a definite
possibility with local online
classifieds.
No tax tests.
You open a can of worms buying
and selling across national and
international borders when it
comes to taxes. Who owes what?
And whom? Local commerce simplifies
the whole issue, if taxes are
applicable at all.
A step ahead of scams.
Knowing whom you do business with,
face-to-face transactions, simpler
lines of communication-these qualities
of local classified sites all
reduce your risk of getting with
shysters and scam artists.
A stronger community.
Shopping around your hometown
not only gives you a warm, cuddly
sense of community. It also provides
the practical economic support
that keeps communities and businesses
vibrant and healthy.
So there you have it. There are
no losers when it comes to online
classified sites that allow you
to do your shopping locally. Buyers
and sellers enjoy an old-fashioned
sense of community, while enjoying
the high-tech benefits of convenience,
safety, and comfort that come
with Web shopping. Let those auction
risk takers have their Oaxaca,
London, and Geneva. You've got
your Houston, Texas.
Donald Lee is the public relationship
manager for Buysellcommunity.com.
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Buysellcommunity provides free classified
listing services for individuals
and businesses to market their
products and services online.
Please visit http://www.buysellcommunity.com
- Free Buy & Sell Classifieds.
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