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Middle-manning
Happendy
Seattle, WARegistered User regular
Seattle, WARegistered User regular
in Pinny Arcade
So I've run into a problem with pin trading where neither I or the person I am trading with have been around really long. Neither of us really have any trade history, so it's hard to place trust onto the other person. In situations like these, what I have done in the past for other mail in trades of other valuables is request someone who is somewhat reputable to be a middleman, who sometimes charges a small convenience fee. After this initial trade, traders will have some sort of trade history.
Could this be something we can implement on a larger scale that oldies can volunteer for and newbies can utilize?
Also, does anyone living in Melbourne, or who is going from Melbourne to Seattle want to middleman for me? I'll give you a free fodder =3
Could this be something we can implement on a larger scale that oldies can volunteer for and newbies can utilize?
Also, does anyone living in Melbourne, or who is going from Melbourne to Seattle want to middleman for me? I'll give you a free fodder =3
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The thing is that we all started at 0 feedback. When I joined PinnyPals I was a n00b and people still trusted me and vice versa. There will always be bad eggs and it's somewhat hard to weed out those people. With that said, I have 6 trades under my belt and could definitely act as a middle man. The overall process doesn't seem very cost effective since there will be additional shipping fees involved. Both people have to send pins to a middle man and then that middle man has to ship out again. Time and money are all factors in the effectiveness in implementing such an idea. I think this would be a case by case situation IF you really wanted to use a middleman and IF you were really worried about a particular pin trade. I think in most cases people would trust the other. I am sending two of my Carl pins to Australia for some trades and I don't really have any reasonable assurance other than the other person's word; the same goes for them as well. I like to think that there are more good people in this world than bad.
Another year of Prime gone by... commence the struggle!
https://www.pinnypals.com/pals/dchoy
I agree but if someone needed the added security the extra shipping might be worth it. Trust is something we should all have in the community, but I would have a hard time trading something like an AUS 2013 pin over the nets with someone I've never met or seen in the forums before. I would probably still do it because I am an optimist as well, but I could see someone being scared and wanting to protect their more rare pins.
Lesson 1: Never make a trade just through the pinnypals site. Pinnypals is awesome for building a trade offer, but before anything ships out you need to move the deal onto a PM here on the forums. On here people have more to lose by screwing you -- their whole reputation in the community. For all you know a pinnypals person could be a throwaway account that they setup to scam with. They could easily register multiple accounts and trade with themselves to boost rep. These forums have a much better handle on that kind of activity. I got lucky, in that I was able to track down this persons PA forum name (totally different from their pinnypals name) from digging through other sites, otherwise I wouldn't even have any name/shame leverage.
Hand in hand with this, is the fact that here on the forums you have an active way to nag the person to communicate with you through PM/email. On pinnypals right now, the person can just not open the trade discussion and pretend you don't exist while you yell at the void.
Lesson 2: Before anything ships, both sides should post a pic in the PM of the pins being sent along with a piece of paper with both their names and the date. This will give you some peace of mind that the other person actually has what they say they do. No guarantees from this of course, but it's one more small assurance.
Lesson 3: If you're suspicious about anything; then both sides should post tracking/DC numbers in the PM before either of them actually hits the mailbox. When you print a label online (at least in the US, although I suspect it'd be true in Aus as well), you can indicate which day you're going to actually drop the package in the mail. If I was doing this trade over again, I would post the Tracking/DC number in the thread -- so they knew I went all the way through paying for the label -- and then not actually drop it in the mail till they did the same. Again it's not a guarantee, the other person could just pay a few bucks for a shipping label and then throw it in the trash after you ship your pin, but it's another assurance.
Anyone else have some good scam prevention tips?
http://pinmash.info - Two pins enter, one pins leaves... then the other pin leaves with a lower Elo rating
If it were anyone who was part of the community, I probably wouldn't have even hesitated. But 1 post seems a little fishy. The person seems perfectly nice, sane, and in general their character doesn't seem the kind to scam me out of a pin. But I want my tracks covered.
The thing is that even if this particular trade does go through well without any middleman(as I feel it will), the success of that trade would lead me to do more risky trades like that if the opportunity would arise again knowing me.
This is simple and effective, your reputation is just as liable as theirs, they have an opportunity to build up their history and credibility and hopefully no one gets scammed.
People who are genuine rarely have a problem with this condition, they're not scammers and have nothing to fear and any reasonable person should understand the situation without being personally offended.
If they have an issue with it, I find this is a pretty quick way to let the alarms bells start ringing.
However scammers are a fact of life, I've been scammed many times on a host of services to know that scammers rarely care if you find out and I have never in my life had my items returned.
If you have any suspicion with an account or are scammed on PinnyPals, please let me know immediately. The quicker I know about it, the quicker we can take action.
http://pinmash.info - Head-To-Head battle of pins! Choose the most desirable.
http://pinnywise.com - iOS pin collection tracking app.
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My Delicious Pins For Trade
I've met a lot of people from the forums in person too, so that definitely helps assure legitimacy. Has anyone on here even been scammed yet? I'm sure pins have gotten lost, but I don't recall hearing anybody complain/panic yet.
Trade me pins! - https://pinnypals.com/pals/TheAggroCraig
I'm actually talking to two people who are AUS newbies it seems. One of them is completely fine with me sending their end of the deal first. The other one is rather hesitant, but we both agreed that if we found someone in Melbourne/Seattle who would be willing to be a middleman, it would work out. I think that this method is a really good alternative fix to the problem I'm facing... As soon as we find someone l=
Pinny Pals Lanyard
I am not a rich man. One new pin represents an hour of work for me. So yes, it would hurt if one or all of them took my pins and ran, but I could certainly replace them.
I'm really not trying to say you shouldn't conduct the trade to your satisfaction, but I find that my mind gets weighed down with worry if I assume every single new person could be out to get me. It would be a waste of my time until proven otherwise.
Check 'em: My Pins!
2015 PAX Prime Omeganaut (I will forever hate Katamari)
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My Digital Pin Lanyard
Just goes to show how little you know me
But in all seriousness, yeah, it does take a leap of faith. Sending a pic of the pin with the relevant date and handle surprisingly does a lot. Not only does it prove that you got the goods, but also that you are wanting to take the time to do it in the first place.
And the person who got me going on my first trade was @imsorad - so thanks to him for showing me the ways.
“I let out a battle cry. Sure, a lot of people might have mistaken it for a sudden yelp of unmanly fear, but trust me. It was a battle cry.”
Ask @grgemonkey about that.
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My Digital Pin Lanyard
I'm willing to middleman for anyone who wants me to. Would recommend @Kamelon if someone needs a middleman in Australia.
http://pinmash.info - Head-To-Head battle of pins! Choose the most desirable.
http://pinnywise.com - iOS pin collection tracking app.
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My Delicious Pins For Trade
Yep, I'd be happy to be an Aussie middleman. PM me if you need me. Oh, and I'm in Canberra, not Melbourne, if that matters.
If you need references, check my post history. I've met several pin pals in person, and I'll be on the PAX Aus 2014 pinny pals podcast.
Also can confirm @brettness37 is a good guy for this. He's stepped up for me on multiple occasions, and it's always been smooth sailing.
Heroic Coaching & Consulting - Personal Development & Coaching For Nerds
3DS Friend Code: 2165-6423-4833
"Every suggestion from the FAQ with a link? Kamelon. A truly Organised Pinthusiast." - PedroAsani
2015 PAX Prime Omeganaut (I will forever hate Katamari)
https://pinnypals.com/pals/Evenstar
2015 PAX Prime Omeganaut (I will forever hate Katamari)
Dinotimecopforce.com
[stares]
My Pinny Pals list
For example, on the flip side, we kinda all know who has DLCs and even who recently got one through sheer luck.