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A little project I'm working on...

moki

moki

el Presidente
Joined
Dec 16, 2003
Messages
9,418
Location
Rochester, NY USA
[I cleared this with Rod for posting, FYI]

I'm working on a new little cigar-related pet project of mine. I'm not entirely clear where I'll be taking it, but what I am clear on is that I'd like to hear people's feedback. Here's the web site:

http://www.GarTrader.com/

The idea is to have a central place to place listings for cigars and cigar related items that people want to buy, sell, or trade. The site is just a facilitator, it hooks a seller up to a buyer, like a classified ad in a newspaper.

It's not a replacement for forum-related trades, which I view as akin to trading/selling amongst friends. It's a marketplace that anyone can participate in, since eBay doesn't allow for tobacco listings, and Yahoo has pulled out of the US market.

I think a specialized site, done well, could be very useful to people, especially if it gains momentum and is a central place for niche product sales like cigars. The software I'm using for the site works really well for this type of thing, I think, and I can improve on it in the future.

The site is functional now; you can register, and then you can post items that you want to sell or want to buy (or trade). You can respond to classified ads whether you are registered on the site or not.

So here's where the feedback thing comes in. Tell me what you think.

What do you like about the site?

What do you not like about the site?

What would you like to see implemented? The system is quite flexible, I can add whatever I want.

What would be a reasonable balance between verifying the legitimacy of sellers/buyers, and being inviting to new people? eg, I'm working on a "star rating" system for classified ads, and also for registered users of the site [this part isn't fully functional yet]

Are there any custom fields that I should add to each category? eg, the "Cigars" category has fields for the box code, year, condition, etc. to encourage people to fill in that information.

Any and all feedback would be welcome. My current attitude towards prices on there is very laissez-faire... people can list things for any price they want, and if people want to pay that price, so be it.

On my "to do" list:

-- The "star ratings" don't work right for users (though they work fine for classified ads). I am working on fixing this

-- The "help" and "terms of service" are not written yet. The feedback I receive will help shape this, so I'm holding off on writing it

-- Possibly adding sub-sections to each category for "Want to Buy" and "Want to Sell"... right now they are all mixed together in the same category, with the "Type" (buy/sell/trade) listed as an attribute. I'm not sure which is more optimal

-- Add links to various MSRP pages to help people be informed

-- Fix the emails so that they come from @GarTrader.com and rather from my email address

-- Add any custom fields that people think they might want for each category

-- Way, way down the road, I can explore the possibility of using the eCommerce module of this software to facilitate the transactions. ie, escrow funds from the buyer until he has receive the item, at which point the seller is paid. The implications of this will require me to really think about whether I want to do it or not, but the potential is there.

Anyway, the only way I'll know if this is something worth pursuing is if people give it a go, and tell me what they think so... have at it! ;)
 
Would this be geared for established members of CP and/or other boards? How would you filter the past asshats & banned members?
 
WOW Nice Work Moki.
I like it. Questions and thoughts to follow

Art

NASTY said:
Would this be geared for established members of CP and/or other boards? How would you filter the past asshats & banned members?
Click to expand...

I guess I was wondering the same. Especially with the "email this to a friend" button.Don't know if that will end up being more trouble than its worth.

Art
 
NASTY said:
Would this be geared for established members of CP and/or other boards? How would you filter the past asshats & banned members?
Click to expand...

Doesn't matter, it's open to anyone. You filter the asshats the same way you do it on eBay and other such sites. Banning people who rip others off, and letting users rate their transactions with said person for a dynamic "reputation"

Can it be abused? Yes. But there are asshats and scumbags on every cigar board, it's just human nature. I view it as a way to get a seller in touch with a buyer, just like a classified ad in a newspaper.
 
out of curiosity Andrew how would the site support it self? Would you bear the out of pocket cost for this, or would there be a nominal listing fee to help offset this?

It looks really nice from a quick glance, and I do like the idea of you having areas to include box codes, or dates purchased for domestic cigars (even though someone could easily lie about that sort of thing). :)

Nice work!
 
I like the idea nice concept :thumbs:
Will the rules be similar to CP when selling cigar no profiteer?
 
Kingantz said:
What's the "Rating" field?
Click to expand...

Maybe like a eBay-like feedback system. That's what most people are going to be leery of. Like what was said before, asshats are going to appear on every cigar board, this just seems like an opportunity for those who took advantage of people before to start anew and take advantage of more people.

***nevermind. I read Moki's response***
 
jfields said:
out of curiosity Andrew how would the site support it self? Would you bear the out of pocket cost for this, or would there be a nominal listing fee to help offset this?

It looks really nice from a quick glance, and I do like the idea of you having areas to include box codes, or dates purchased for domestic cigars (even though someone could easily lie about that sort of thing). :)

Nice work!
Click to expand...

Yeah, I mean people can lie about anything... but I included the fields in the hopes that it'd remind people to fill in that information if they have it

As for supporting the site, assuming I do it properly, it'll be pretty self-sufficient. The only thing it'll use up is a bit of bandwidth. If the site *really* took off, the software I'm using does have an eCommerce module so that sellers would need to buy credits to place listings (and there are also ways to buy featured listings and stuff).

My guess is that it'll never come to that, but the facility is there should the need arise.

NASTY said:
Maybe like a eBay-like feedback system. That's what most people are going to be leery of. Like what was said before, asshats are going to appear on every cigar board, this just seems like an opportunity for those who took advantage of people before to start anew and take advantage of more people.
Click to expand...

Yeah, so I integrate the "bad trader's list" with the site, and ban-hammer the crap out of anyone who tries such a thing. :)
 
I like it. Honestly, while Wades is a decent site, I'd feel a lot more comfortable using your place simply because of who owns it (you). I'm sure that the scumbag list would be applied to this website in an attempt to weed out the jackasses, which gives me some peace of mind. Plus, I have a feeling it would be populated by a lot of fellow CP members, which also gives peace of mind.

I do think that each category should be separated into WTB and WTS sections, so as to keep the amount of sorting through ad's to a minimum.

I think that the user rating system coupled with the amount of people on these boards that know each other will provide a pretty good defense against shady people. I think that if there is any way to maybe get the IP numbers of certain high profile individuals such as smokinj and use it as an additional buffer, that would be outstanding. I know it isn't foolproof, but it's at least something.

Great looking page Andrew! :thumbs
 
I like it. I could see myself using it if I were looking for something specific. I'll register and poke around more and give more feedback.
 
Nice job thus far moki! Will definitely be following along to see how it turns out.

*Damn you Greg for posting a great price on the Triunfador 5er so close to Christmas shopping time!!:thumbs:
 
BTW, I will NOT be policing price on it at all. If someone wants to post an Opus X "A" cigar for $100, they can. I doubt the savvy individuals who I expect will be using it would ever buy at that price anyway, but I just wanted to make it clear.

I view disparaging gougers and profiteers on cigar boards as common sense; the trading forums here exist as a convenience to members, not as a marketplace. Trying to profit off of friends and family is not acceptable; but I don't hold it against anyone if they offer something in a classified ad for a price that may or may not include a profit.

If someone want something at the price offered, let them buy it. I expect overpriced items will just languish and never move anyway, though. Let the free market sort it self out amongst the masses.
 
Aww Moki, you removed my Pre-Embargo rolled by Fidel ad! :sign:

On a more useful note, I think it's a great idea, and appreciate the effort. I would like to see a "Post new ad" button on top of the section I'm surfing just like on the forum, took me about 10 minutes to figure out you had to hit the button on top of the header to post a new ad and then select the section.
 
I really like the site and thank you for your hard work on it.
 
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