Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler TV puchasing advice needed!

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Anyway, Ian sees something he likes

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Was it a garden gnome?
Cuz everyone loves gardon gnomes.
I can see Ian being a collector.

Actually they were knobs, but in light of the tone of the rest of the thread I thought the less said the better. At least, until you weighed in, Chess! LOL.

Back to the TV topic... the seller of the better TV called me this morning and that TV is mine! Yay! Now I need bigjohn to give me a pep talk so I can drop the price from $400. The good news is that price includes the matching stand, which I don't need. I told the seller this and he said "then I guess I'll let you talk me down."

That's an explicit invitation to haggle if I ever heard one.

knobs, pearl necklaces ... is there something in the air today?

man, thats an open door for haggling. if you dont get that TV out the door for less than at least $375, then you have failed Haggling 101..

you dont wanna start too low and insult the guy.. but, you should make it clear that the stand is of no use to you.. even try and mention it twice, use the old double reverse guilt trip. see, he wants to get rid of the TV, and he already feels the cash in his pocket cause you have drove all the way to his house to pick it up. (unless you do it over the phone, then he gets the advantage).. if possible, always haggle in person. you will get better results. then, he sure dont want you to leave with the money, and he still has the TV, and he dont wanna have to go thru the trouble of having more people over to look at it, and make calls and try and sell it, etc.. he wants it out the door, and he WILL take a cut if he has to. i would start with offering $350, and make sure and mention again when you make the offer, that you just dont have any use for the stand. he may counter offer, but i wouldnt be surprised if he just says ok.. if he does counter, then i am positive he will say $375, shake his hand, load it up, give him the money, and be gone!!

i really think $375 is VERY attainable. but, shoot for $350 first. like i say, never hurts to ask.. and he wants to get rid of the thing, or he wouldnt have you over in the first place.

YOU CAN DO THIS PETER.. YOU HAVE THE POWER!!!!

then take the extra cash you saved, put some gas in the car, and go buy some GOOD beer, and pop-a-top for me!!

bigjohn

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Anyway, Ian sees something he likes and it takes nearly 25 minutes to complete the transaction, all because the people were waiting for him to haggle and Ian just wanted to buy and go.

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How much did he end up paying for the 50ft concrete gargoyle? Oops, I see there's another page of replies, I fear I'm too late for the joke!

Bren R.

oh yeah, i would totally get him to go lower! the thing only thing is, the stand is worthless to you, but the hassle of him trying to find a buyer of the stand without an accompanying TV might make him go a little higher. or you could just make him an offer he can't refuse... its hard to take money with broken fingers

p.s.- i soooooooo want one of those garden gnomes for the flower bed in front of the house!!! you never know when zombies might come around. (somewhat obscure movie reference)

ya know i have a computer store and now we are mostly service but 7years ago when we started we used to sell a ton of parts we were like a coomputer show that was open 7 days a week. and i hated hagglers if you tried to haggle not only would i not come down but i would not give you deal on anything. and people would always ask whats the price if i bought 2. wow 2 pieces your gonna buy 2 whole pices from me. the difference being my mark up was anywhere $2 to $10 and i think audio is better than that. just my 2 cents.

well, maybe i should set some 'parameters' on my haggling.

if you are buying anything from an individual(garage sale, paper ad, 'for sale' sign in yard), then EVERYTHING is haggleable.

i think labor/services are haggleable. shop charges you $60 an hour labor, and they round up.. i dont think asking for a cut, or maybe a free car wash is out of the question.

large retail stores are open game, but only on larger items.. its OK to ask for $50 bucks off of a $500 washer. but its not OK ask for $2 off a $20 towel rack.

i think the BEST haggling is with self-owned, small business owners. they want you to come back, and they want you to tell your friends. so they are much more willing to make deals. GREAT example.. the small mom&pops electrical store where i got my banana plugs from.. i bought 10 plugs, at $2.19 each. about $24 total with tax. but i still needed the tiny flat-head screwdriver to get to the screws. he had one for $3.49 on the counter, and all i had was $25 cash.. he threw the screw driver in the bag, i gave him the $25, and i walked out the door. so, basically, i saved about $3.00 bucks.. made me happy, he lost $3 bucks,, but, not really, cause he had already marked up the prices. plus, now that i am doing an HT for my buddy, we will go back and get another $25 worth of equip. thats how it works..

snake- if you wouldnt 'deal' with me, then i wouldnt come to your store.. simple as that. i will take my business to someone that will. there is no hatred or resentement involved, i am just looking out for me.

bigjohn

oh i dont get upset i just say thats my price. im not out to rape anyone my price structure is setup so i can make a living not a million dollars. especially when i came to computer parts there was no loyalty. im not saying i would not give a break to someone who had come back afew times but not up front. people would always say can you match a computer show price (which was only $2-$5 cheaper) and i would say ok pay me $6 to walk in my door and i will give you $4 off that harddrive. or come talk to me for an hour waste my time asking all these questions then go on the internet and buy it for $5 cheaper.im not mad at you John im just speaking from experience from the other side.