After reading the thread posted about the trade who seems to be getting over on people, I decided to post my own ideas about trading in hopes of giving people ideas on how to work things out or just making trading easier.I am certainly not the perfect trader! Ive mailed cards to the wrong people, put the wrong address on the envelope, forgot to put cards in the envelope, not put mail out myself (I run my own business and usually leave it in the out box for my interns and secretary, which is problematic at times), and sometime I reply late to inquiries because Im either out of town, or out of the country.
That said here are some things that Ive done, and other people have done in conjunction in order to make trading a little better.
1. NEVER TRADE CARDS YOU DONT HAVE AVAILIBLE
9/10 this is why your trades dont get to you on time, and 10/10 this is why people are clogging up your inbox with mail
2. Always use DC# no matter what the size of the trade
More times than not. that 2.80 at the post office is LESS than the tax you'd pay at your local game store and when items get lost in the mail that 2.80 could have saved you A LOT more in replacement cards and legal fees.
3. BE RESPECTFUL OF PEOPLES LIVES!
Some of us are single parents, some of us have lost everything in a Hurricane, most of us work, and a lot of us are not professional magic players or we wouldnt be on this site trading, we'd be sponsored by a store. If you dont hear back from them in 5 minutes or even a day or 2, they my just be dealing with life on life's terms. Harassment is just as serious as mail fraud.
4. COMMUNICATION
3 Traders in particular, Cody M, David191231 and Andy Yuan are EXCELLENT at it. No matter what the issue it goes a long way to resolving problems and keeping the peace. Whether you are in the right, or are in the wrong talk it out work it out, and encourage working it out so both parties are satisfied. You may take some criticism, but life is about being and doing better, not settling for mediocre (Thank you Andy).
5. IF YOU HAVE A LOWER RATING, SEND FIRST
Ironically, the trader in question has a lower rating that most of the people complaining about trading with him. Do NOT SEND first if you have a lower rating. 1-10 points is marginal, but when the difference is more, lets all follow the unwritten rule so that established traders receive their cards without fear, and newer traders establish EXCELLENT trading habits.
6. INSURE TRADES OVER 100USD, OR WITH MYTHICS AND STAPLES YOU CANT REPLACE
Again, you knew going into your trades your Jace could be lost in the mail. You protect your investment by sleeving up every FNM to prevent someone from spilling their soda on your cards, why not spend the money to protect your investment that if lost you cant replace. I have lost items in the mail and trust me, eBay and Starcity just doesn't cut it.
7. DONT OVERWHELM YOURSELF AND OTHERS WITH TONS OF TRADES
I am the guiltiest at this. Especially if you have a large collection and little time, DONT DO IT! You just make people frustrated including yourself. DO what you can and when you can. On the other side, if you see that a person has 15 trades on deck, dont add another one expecting to be first on his or her list unless you are trading your Moat for their Atog and you were sober when you proposed the trade.
8. MAIL YOUR ITEMS OUT YOURSELF!
I can not stress this enough. TRUST NO ONE ELSE WITH YOUR TRADES! Go to the post yourself, get your DC# yourself. You can better know what happened because.... you mailed it.
9. WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS, EMAIL SABASTIAN
He is awesome! There isnt a trade issue he cant help you solve and more times than not BOTH parties come out evenly (or you come out ahead).
I sincerely hope this gives some insights and helps people. Many thanks to ALL traders on this site for what you have done for my collection and decks, as well as being a more prudent trader.
CHEERS!
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