Too many reports of scam sellers when there are actually many, many shitty buyers. In fact, it is not the sellers who are shitty. It is the buyers.
Carousell SG in fact, has many sellers who are honest in selling. Although positive reviews don't necessarily reflect truly good people, many sellers are not scammers. Meaning they don't just run away with your money.
Take a look at the sellers' feedback columns. Over & over, I see many many more feedback of bad buyers compared to bad sellers.
Think about it. It makes no sense for sellers to be bad. In fact, they are too desperate to sell. And thus are taken advantage of by bad buyers.
Buyers on Carousell SG are worse than buyers on other buy-sell platforms. I have met buyers from other platforms & they have been fine. Only Carousell buyers are a problem.
Reading sellers' feedback columns, you can identify many shitty buyers who admit to all kinds of selfish problems they cause. Shitty buyers pretend to apologise. With no deeper moral understanding that what they did reflects badly on their upbringing & character. Instead, they thank the sellers for accepting their inconsiderate behaviors.
1) Lateness. Very common problem. I would say intentional.
Buyers think the seller will wait indefinitely because the seller is desperate for a sale. With this in mind, such buyers don't bother making the effort to be punctual. They know the seller will wait. 5 mins, 10 mins, 20 mins, even 1 hr or more. They stroll casually to the meeting place or pretend to rush, with or without apology.
A responsible person will not be late. Don't forget, this is the first time meeting someone. How can anyone be late & let the other person wait? So thick-skinned & inconsiderate. After that, they thank the person who waited & waited like a fool for just some little cash.
Very bad buyers.
2) No return positive feedback. Buyers who don't have the courtesy to return a positive feedback.
Buyer thinks that since it's your initiative that you gave a positive feedback, he/she don't have to return it. This is a very shitty person. Take but don't reciprocate. Ingratitude.
Even if a buyer don't like a seller for some reason, it is basic courtesy & manners to return a positive feedback when you receive it first. It's like a handshake. When someone extends a hand, you don't just ignore it. Very bad manners. Very poor upbringing.
If a buyer don't give a positive feedback on the same day of the sale, don't bother giving him/her any. That person will not be reciprocating.
So far, it has happened twice. Both times were couples.
Yesterday, a woman earlier contacted me to purchase an item. Looking at her profile pic, I had a feeling she wasn't quite trustworthy, but gave her the benefit of the doubt because she was polite in message. She asked for a $6 discount. I gave her a $4 discount. Her request for a few dollars discount shows a stingy nature. Not a good sign.
Met the couple a few hours later at night. They went punctual & polite. Smoothly completed.
After a got back & I left positive review for her, she gave me none even now (the next day).
Before giving her a positive review, I had checked that she had previously returned a positive review to another seller. It is likely she gave that seller a positive review first in order to get her first positive review. That seller already had many positive reviews but she had none. So she stood to gain by initiating.
I know this because I previously tested it on three fresh buyers who needed +ve reviews. After a positive experience selling to them, I refrained from giving a positive review. They then initiated positive reviews because they needed a positive review more than me. Two of them even sent messages asking for a positive review after they had left one for me. One of the two had a negative review & needed me to upturn it with a positive one (although he didn't say so).
This was after the below case:
The first couple who did not leave me a reciprocal positive review was some time back in Feb. The guy had contacted me to purchase an item. The meet up went smoothly & they were punctual.
However as I mentioned in another blog post, the woman behaved very rudely & without manners or respect for me as a seller. The man however, was friendly. Considering that, I gave him a positive review.
However, he left me none.
After that, I decided that I would give nobody a positive review unless he/she gave me one first. Last night, I broke my own rule & gave that 2nd couple a positive review with the expected result that it was not reciprocated.
Such couples, with their lack of respect & manners for other people, are naturally not as sincere or honest in their relationships as they pretend to be. Sooner or later, they will break up or they are already having problems.
Today, we will be covering identification of shitty buyers by their profile pics &/or their messages.
I am able to spot dishonest or untrustworthy people, just by looking at their photos. So it's even better when people on Carousell put their photos up in their profile. But even without photo, it's possible to spot unworthy buyers through the messages they send.
These cases are not in order as I list them.
Case #1: March
Look at this photo. Is this a person you can trust? When he first contacted me, I knew he wasn't trustworthy. First, the name. Second, the face.
The arrangement of the eyebrows, the beard, the hair style & the sideview says that he is not a trustworthy person.
Not to be biased, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Let's test him out.
First he never made an offer. It meant I couldn't leave him feedback. I never forced him to make an offer.
He had set the time, day & place to meet. But changed the day at close to the last minute just before I was going to leave.
When the day came to meet up, he waited at the wrong place. I waited 25mins at the arranged location but he never turned up. I actually waited for longer than 25 mins because I came early.
He then wanted another meet up at another day & time. Although I should have refused, I agreed because he was polite.
When that day came, he was 20mins late, strolled over with no apology & no smile. Very rude. I had waited longer than that since I came early. The least a buyer can do is be punctual.
Furthermore, he didn't bring the money even though I told him to bring exact amount.
He appeared to have lost interest in the purchase & showed no interest in the item that was still wrapped in the bag.
He said he will go over to the ATM to withdraw cash. "You can wait, right?".
I was so speechless with the upset that I did not answer. After waiting for so long, he had the gall to want me to wait longer. What was the matter with him?
He repeated, "Can wait, right?".
Obviously, he had it planned to make the seller wait. He knows I will wait. Which seller will walk away?
I said Ok & stood there waiting for longer while he casually, slowly strolled over to the ATM machine that was some distance away (Bugis MRT). Luckily, there was no queue at the ATM despite the evening crowd. After withdrawing the $50, he slowly strolled back like he was dragging his feet. No hurry whatsoever.
I have never met a person like that. I have sold 20 items & he is the only one who did this. I have done buy-sell for 4 years & he is the first person who did this.
As he approached, he looked elsewhere. And when he arrived back where I stood, he turned his face reluctantly back to the deal & forced a smile before handing over the cash. I gave him $1 coin change.
At the moment, he has 10 positive reviews. That's why I say positive reviews give no indication of how trustworthy a buyer/seller is.
Case #2: February
First, the name. But not to be biased, let's look at the photo. The photo appears fine (traditional/old-fashioned), except for what appears to be a larger-sized woman compared to the man.
The man's message was polite & accomodating. But he spelt working as "werkin". That was alarm bell for me. I wondered if he was a foreigner.
Let's test him out.
He looked different from his photo. Fatter, darker, rough acne skin. Could be a different person.
He had addressed me as "bro" in the messages & because I did not correct it, he probably felt conned that I was a woman. Or maybe he didn't like doing business with a woman or meeting a woman.
Whatever the reason, he kept a very stiff & unfriendly face throughout.
At the end when I thanked him, his face was tilted upwards with his nose up in the air while he walked away. Very rude & offensive.
As he had made an offer, I could leave a negative review. However, I have not done so.
Case #3: April
This photo instantly says he is a bad buyer. When you see this type of profile pic, you can avoid selling to the person. There is another profile with an even worse (similar style) photo & that person has negative reviews as well.
Let's test him.
He was polite in messages. But was odd in changing his own earlier decision regarding meet up schedule. Throughout, I let him decide day, time & place.
Yet he was late. As I was early, it meant I waited much longer. Although I didn't expect him to be early, I certainly didn't expect him to be 15-20 mins late. And just like the foreigner I encountered in an earlier deal, he just casually strolled over & asked if I was the seller without even an apology first or anytime after.
When I reminded him that he was late, he merely mumbled that he had come off work.
Well, the day, time & place was set by him. Not by me. He should know if he was going to be late & give himself enough allowance to be on time out of consideration for the person he was going to meet for the first time.
It was very difficult to restrain my displeasure. I would have preferred he didn't purchase the item so I could sell it to someone better.
[Update 6 Jun Mon: Weeks later, after he realized I gave him negative feedback, he decided to send me one today. In it, he said he had apologised yet I gave him negative feedback.
Here we see how inconsiderate he is. He thinks that just because he apologized (when actually he didn't) & kept another person waiting for 20 mins, it's fine. Everything's fine & dandy just because he is the buyer.]
Case #4: May (date of my birthday).
Look at the photo. Same style as case #3. The lack of a frontal, honest, clean look at the camera. Straightaway, this photo tells me he is hiding something or has something to hide.
First, he messaged without a "Hi".
He asked about time & day to purchase the item. Disappeared for several hours until the morning. Suddenly says he can meet in 3 hours' time at Orchard.
Obligingly, I said Ok.
Suddenly, he veers course to ask about the item. Then goes back on track asking about meet up time. Appears care free about the meet up time without regard for the other person who will be taking the time to go there. Says "if" he is near by that time then ... (maybe we can meet up).
Finally, he admits that his group will be going to the embassy & he isn't sure when can meet up. Tells me he will arrange to meet up once he is done.
However, he disappears & never returns. As he did not make an offer on the item, I cannot leave a negative feedback.
Likely, a foreigner.
Case #5: May
This buyer has no profile pic. And has 2 positive reviews. Very often, a buyer will sit on 1 or 2 positive reviews as a front. He/she could have purchased from more sellers but made no offer & so sellers weren't able to leave reviews.
However, he first made an offer for the item.
He asked about discount for self-collection. Then disappeared till the next morning enquiring about post.
He said he wanted the item. Then suddenly asked again about meet up location when it was already mentioned last night.
Disappeared for another 2 hours, then said he wanted to meet at night but did not give a time.
Disappeared for several hours until at night, then asked (again) where to meet. At that time, I was out as he had not arranged a time for the meet up. I returned to reply to his message. Reminded him of the location & said I can be there shortly. But he disappeared completely.
A key tip off of a bad buyer is the irregular & long timing of the replies. How long he/she takes to reply is an indicator of whether the person is sincere in buying. Whether he/she has the "heart" to buy.
Case #6: Feb.
The first couple.
The man contacted me regarding purchase of an item. No profile photo. No greeting. Started with "I'm interested!". [As I mentioned before, be wary of buyers who don't greet first.].
Such "I'm interested!" messages are frequent & reflects very badly on the person. Only a fool will say "I'm interested!" like a primary school kid.
If you're really interested, just make an offer of the full price or arrange immediately to purchase. What do you expect a seller to say to "I'm interested!"??
When I get such messages, I feel like throwing it back exactly the same way "I'm interested!".
I had to ask if he was a sincere buyer. He switched to being serious & confirmed he was really interested in purchasing. [It later turned out that he was in fact offended that I had questioned his intention.].
I also remembered that previously before his message, I had "liked" one of his items & he had not reciprocated. (This is in fact an accurate indication of what sort of person he is, because later, he also did not reciprocate my positive review.).
He was polite in deciding meet up. On the eve of the meet up, I was surprised he was responsible in taking the initiative to remind me of the meet up (although it wasn't necessary).
Seemed like it would go well.
On the night of the meet up, he showed his lack of ettiquette without a greeting. Athough he seemed friendly, he did not respond to my "Hi" upon first seeing each other.
He brought along a woman companion who was even worse. Stiff-faced & mean. Turns out the item was meant for her.
She did not even smile or acknowledge me as the seller. Never once looked at me. Something wrong with her. Investigated the item like she was raping it together with the man. I regretted on the spot that I was selling the item to them.
Took a long, awful while before the woman nodded for him to pay me. All the while, I grimaced while watching them. Worst sales I ever made. Should have sold to the next nice man who wanted it later (I had to re-order it & unfortunately, it was of a poorer quality than the one I sold to this awful couple.).
The man was friendly enough & since they were punctual, I gave him a positive review, thinking he would give me one in return.
Waited but nothing. He continued to benefit from my positive review for a month making his sales. Still nothing.
That was when I realized not to give anyone a positive review unless he/she gives me one first.
Tonight, (months later) he finally complained that he was in fact, able to leave positive feedback but chose not to. Just as I kept the original message to leave feedback, he also kept it on his side. It meant he chose to benefit from my positive feedback to him without returning the favor.
His excuse was that even though the deal went smoothly, he was offended at the start by my asking if he was serious in purchasing. That was all. And that was why he wouldn't give me a positive review while benefitting from the one I gave him.
He never once considered how stupid his introduction had been ("I'm interested!") & how many "I'm interested!" I get from "buyers". How lacking in ettiquette he had been without even a "hi" online or in meet up.
An unfortunate, selfish & despicable man (Profile ID: daniel8023).
Case #7: May
The 2nd couple. The woman contacted me. At first, I considered it was perhaps a man who had put up his gf's photo. However, even though there was no indication in the message of the gender, I still had a strong feeling that it was undeniably a woman & that this was her photo.
What's wrong with it? Nothing particularly wrong with it. Just the large nose. However, it's the eyes that speak to me. The shape of the eyes and the eyes themselves say that she is not very honest.
Well, let's test.
She started out with greeting. But wanted a $6 discount off an item. Not a particularly good start.
I offered a $4 discount instead & she accepted. As mentioned above, a person who wants a discount of even a few dollars off, can't be a nice person.
The arrangement of the meet up was settled very quickly. I asked her to make an offer for the item & then she did. I don't know if she had intended to make an offer but I doubt it.
Sellers: Note that buyers will almost never volunteer to "make an offer" for an item so that you can't leave them negative feedback. They will pretend & not make any offer if you don't mention it. Meaning they will get away with it if you let them.
I have tested this many times. 99.99% of buyers will not make offer if you don't tell them to do so. This is a sign of dishonesty, regardless of the deal turning out to be good later.
Why would a buyer not make an offer if he/she is genuine about buying? A doubt a buyer is such a newbie that he/she don't know how to click make an offer. Many buyers with zero scores are actually not newbies. Even many buyers who have scores do not bother to make offers.
Personally, I watch whether a buyer takes the initiative to make an offer. I don't insist, I don't force. Because making an offer is something they should do naturally if they are sincere in wanting to purchase.
I am sure they think I'm a newbie who let them get away with not making an offer. But it's not that I let them get away. It is that I give them chance to show me. It is a test.
I watch to see if who will take advantage of this "slack" that I give them. Then I realize that almost all will take good advantage of it by being late.
I realize that this is why many sellers insist that buyers make their offers first.
The woman was punctual & she waited near the agreed location with her male companion. She was alert to have spotted me & came over.
A smooth & positive experience with a few questions from the woman. She was polite. Nothing particularly outstanding. At the end, I said (as usual), "Thank you.".
Throughout, I was professional, smiled when necessary, replied briefly when necessary, just wanted to get paid & get out. I don't like chatting over a deal. I stayed as long as they needed me to.
When I got back, I checked her feedback column & saw that she had reciprocated a positive review from another seller. So, I left her a positive review.
But received none.
She did not have the courtesy to leave me one. Again, another one of those who just sit on positive reviews & give none back. No wonder I wanted to get out of there. They must be giving out bad vibes.
The deal was smooth. She should consider that & return a positive review.
This case #7 makes me think that couples are bad buyers.
And re-affirms my rule never to leave positive feedback unless the other person leaves one for me first. Regardless of how "nice" the person appears to be during meet up or how well the deal went. Because you don't know what the other person is thinking.
Carousell buyers are rotten. If I had money, I wouldn't be selling a single thing on that platform.
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