[MaybeMorgan]

Cause I'm getting a little tired of the thinly disguised "will this item sell?" or "how should I price this item?" posts.

[Bacardi1]

Unfortunately, I think a "no-charge sale/barter page" would just exacerbate the issue.

I vote for banning all those thinly-veiled "will this item sell/how should I price this item/where should I post this item for sale" threads PERIOD. I find them annoying as well, & wonder if the posters realize how transparent these threads are. They most likely know & don't care since the Mods allow them to stay up. Unless someone is talking about a truly unusual or antique item, I'll NEVER believe that folks have no idea how/where to market their "for sale" items - including horses. It's just a way for them to feel they're getting something for nothing.

COTH SURVIVES BY ADVERTISING FOLKS. DON'T CHEAT THEM OUT OF IT. Every classified, regardless of how small, generates the income that ultimately allows this board to run free of charge.

[Alagirl]

don't open them.

I completely miss out I suppose, mostly because I don't open them, since I wouldn't know if something sells or what to ask for it.

But since COTH is a for profit business....nah.

[Bacardi1]

But COTH already has a classified advertising section for PAID advertising. Folks can advertise there. Again - why does everyone seem to want something for nothing?

And what makes you think COTH wants to start bargaining with people for "commissions" on items bought/sold? They're a business, not an e-bay auction house.

(Not to mention you sure have balls openly asking for folks to contact you if they have what you want to buy, fully knowing about COTH'S non-advertising policy on these forums.)

[2tempe]

I thought there used to be a section here on the forum for "stuff for sale" for less than XXX dollars. For example, I'd currently like to buy a set of reins to replace my yucky webbed reins, without paying full, new price. They could charge a few bucks for the ad...

[Event4Life]

No. They have to make money somehow and we already have the privilege of posting & reading on the forums for free.

FWIW, I agree with you MM about thinly veiled ads but like others I don't think allowing advertising would help the situation because people likely still wouldn't bother to post in the advertising section.

[JohnDeere]

FWIW I posted one of those where should I post him threads but its because I honestly dont know, not in the breed so not familiar with where to post him, I dont think anyone from here wants to by him. So if thats wrong take it down but its not always a try at selling. At least not mine.

[Bacardi1]

Yes - I remember your post. The "Places to List QH For Sale?" thinly-veiled ad.

Honestly, you aren't capable of doing a websearch for QH or websites? Or frankly any other horses-for-sale website? I don't believe that for a minute. And you conveniently mentioned that you were only looking for places to list the horse for free. Gee.

You may not "think" anyone here wants to buy your horse, but you're still throwing it out there, & that's "thinly-veiled advertising".

[Bacardi1]

I thought there used to be a section here on the forum for "stuff for sale" for less than XXX dollars. For example, I'd currently like to buy a set of reins to replace my yucky webbed reins, without paying full, new price. They could charge a few bucks for the ad...

And they already do. In their CLASSIFIED section.

[Moderator 1]

We used to offer $10 and $20 ads for items for sale at different prices points and $10 wanted ads for anything. They received very little traffic, despite seeming to be quite effective for those who took advantage of them, and were phased out in favor of our full classifieds site at www.cothclassifieds.com.

Premium members receive a $20 annual credit to that site -- just contact me for your coupon code for the month you'd like to use it in.

We're in the midst of establishing a universal log-in system that will allow us to better sync our forum accounts with accounts on the main site, along with who is a subscriber to the magazine or an advertiser with us. After we complete that project, we're going to re-examine ways that we can offer a little more on the forums to those who help support the magazine through Premium forum subscriptions, magazine subscriptions or print/online advertising dollars.

Feel free to contact me via PM or email to offer any feedback or suggestions on what you'd like to see.

Thanks!
Mod 1