Sciencemadness Discussion Board

science madness swap sell and buy site

Little_Ghost_again - 9-10-2015 at 15:31

hi
In a thread I cant find now it was mentioned that people would like something like the title says with maybe a 1% fee for the site owner.
I U2U the top man and got permission to go ahead if enough people want it.

The condition being only one thread on it.
Now 1% isnt going to cover server costs or make it possible to offer escrow etc. But if enough people are interested I have a plan, I would get the site up and running and charge 1%, however it would need people who use amazon etc to order through the site so I could get an affiliate fee. the affiliate fee dosnt cost you a penny its just a link from my site to what you buy and I would get a small commission.

If enough people did this then it might just be feasible to get something up and running.
I know I am a kid but hey I am willing to give this my best shot.
So tell me what you think (aga only allowed when sober :P)...

Added gaps for aga

[Edited on 9-10-2015 by Little_Ghost_again]

aga - 9-10-2015 at 15:37

Try to make sense whilst sober.

Add a blank line now and then, between paragraphs at least ?

Little_Ghost_again - 9-10-2015 at 15:44

anything else to add? your advice would be hugely appreciated on this seeing as its your area of real expertise (being serious).

LG

Dr.Bob - 9-10-2015 at 19:16

I don't like using Amazon to sell lab supplies, as they charge a minimum of 15% in fees and don't allow most people to sell science supplies unless you get Jeff's personal blessing. I used to sell lab supplies there, but they made it so difficult that I moved to Ebay and also here. Paypal works well for small purchases, and they only charge 3% and give buyers protection, which seems reasonable to me. For books, they are more practical (and don't have many real competitors), but even that is 15% plus more fees. But I would be happy to do any links or affiliates if it generates something useful.

I would be happy to list things here or on a sciencemadness site of some sort, I have been meaning to find a better system than I have now, but have been just too busy. I know that Zombie tried to organize some group buys, and found it challenging, and I have had some hiccups myself, but if you can do it, great. Maybe you could also try to get a few companies to offer some sort of sponsorship to sci mad, like Elemental or a few others. I have offered to try to help sciencemadness, in some ways, but not done much. I hope to offer some books up for cheap/free/postage only, but not sure of a good ways to do that. Also, shipping overseas is tough, so not many people or businesses are likely to want to do that. I do some shipments, but packages over 4 pounds have been a pain/nightmare in general.

Little_Ghost_again - 10-10-2015 at 03:12

Quote: Originally posted by Dr.Bob  
I don't like using Amazon to sell lab supplies, as they charge a minimum of 15% in fees and don't allow most people to sell science supplies unless you get Jeff's personal blessing. I used to sell lab supplies there, but they made it so difficult that I moved to Ebay and also here. Paypal works well for small purchases, and they only charge 3% and give buyers protection, which seems reasonable to me. For books, they are more practical (and don't have many real competitors), but even that is 15% plus more fees. But I would be happy to do any links or affiliates if it generates something useful.

I would be happy to list things here or on a sciencemadness site of some sort, I have been meaning to find a better system than I have now, but have been just too busy. I know that Zombie tried to organize some group buys, and found it challenging, and I have had some hiccups myself, but if you can do it, great. Maybe you could also try to get a few companies to offer some sort of sponsorship to sci mad, like Elemental or a few others. I have offered to try to help sciencemadness, in some ways, but not done much. I hope to offer some books up for cheap/free/postage only, but not sure of a good ways to do that. Also, shipping overseas is tough, so not many people or businesses are likely to want to do that. I do some shipments, but packages over 4 pounds have been a pain/nightmare in general.


Thank you Dr Bob,

Really helpful information. I am not 100% sure yet how to go about this which is why I started a thread and asked Polverone if it would be ok.

This is more in response to a recent thread where it was mentioned and some people seemed keen. The Amazon thing was just an example, I know in the UK ebay no longer lets you list nitric acid and some people use it.
The Amazon thing was more for people who buy things off there to go through the site and buy whatever they were getting via a affiliate link, I am not sure how it works but something like you want to buy something there and and send a message to the SM selling site this notifies me via phone I go read the message and set up the link, then they click the link on the site and I get the commission.

Not great but workable, for sellers I appreciate Amazon is not maybe the best but it would help keep the site costs down if people who were using Amazon for whatever (dosnt have to be science) used a link via the site.

My main concern is starting something that I cant afford to keep going, I am not after huge profit but equally at 15 I cant afford to run a site like that at a loss.

I was thinking of contacting Tom and the UK company that do the cheap clamps, I am wondering if it might make things easier if people order via one site and then the site sends the orders already sorted to the different companies.
In your or other main sellers cases I could give you kind of 'moderator' rites, this would allow you to list items in a shopping type software package. Depending on what others think it could then be possible to set up a monthly buy.
This is thinking out loud so just idea's........

If you listed books I could then send a bulk order to you once a month for the UK buyers and separate bulk orders for the other countries, so for the UK if shipping worked out cheaper to send Bulk to me then I split and send via the cheapo couriers like click and collect, this should cut the cost???

I dont know what software is out there but I can try and set up some basic packages and get members to feedback what they like or dont like and build from there. I also think its a good idea to contact Tom and the companies I use in the UK and see what they think, It would certainly help SM members if they had everything in one place and let the software or me then send the companies the presorted information.

I also would like to use the same software for people to do swaps etc, this could be a set fee or % commission depending if its a private sale or a swap, it might even be possible to get a simplified ebay clone type software but thats a bit ambitious at the moment.

I know over 4lb you get hammered in costs, but there must be a sweet spot where bulk sending gets much cheaper? I have brought a large hunk of equipment from over there before, it was a old logic analyzer, the shipping was around £120 but it weighed 40Kg.
I can send 10Kg within the UK for around £4 if I shop around.


Anyway I open to thoughts and suggestions.

Little_Ghost_again - 10-10-2015 at 16:58

not much interest then! Funny it gets mentioned in a couple of threads and people say yeah would be good and its been talked about, but when you offer to try and set something up little interest.

Oscilllator - 10-10-2015 at 22:22

Quote: Originally posted by Little_Ghost_again  
not much interest then! Funny it gets mentioned in a couple of threads and people say yeah would be good and its been talked about, but when you offer to try and set something up little interest.

Little_Ghost I think the problem is that there aren't actually that many members looking to buy and sell things, and so an informal system of posting threads in the Reagents and Apparatus Aquisition forum actually works quite well.
If it got to the point that there were so many buying and selling threads there that it inhibited discussion about other topics then perhaps a system like this could be set up.

I don't know if you were there at the time but a while back there was a surge in interest about radiochemisty, with quite a few active threads. It was eventually suggested that a new subforum be made and IIRC Polverone said it wouldn't be a good idea because although there might be an initial surge of posts, they would die off after a while. As you can see however the subforum was eventually made and things panned out exactly as Polverone predicted. Seems to me that this situation is almost exactly analogous, and that a new system probably wouldn't help at all.

Little_Ghost_again - 11-10-2015 at 02:00

Quote: Originally posted by Oscilllator  
Quote: Originally posted by Little_Ghost_again  
not much interest then! Funny it gets mentioned in a couple of threads and people say yeah would be good and its been talked about, but when you offer to try and set something up little interest.

Little_Ghost I think the problem is that there aren't actually that many members looking to buy and sell things, and so an informal system of posting threads in the Reagents and Apparatus Aquisition forum actually works quite well.
If it got to the point that there were so many buying and selling threads there that it inhibited discussion about other topics then perhaps a system like this could be set up.

I don't know if you were there at the time but a while back there was a surge in interest about radiochemisty, with quite a few active threads. It was eventually suggested that a new subforum be made and IIRC Polverone said it wouldn't be a good idea because although there might be an initial surge of posts, they would die off after a while. As you can see however the subforum was eventually made and things panned out exactly as Polverone predicted. Seems to me that this situation is almost exactly analogous, and that a new system probably wouldn't help at all.


I can see what your saying, but I am just going by the suggestion of a swap or exchange site. Sure there is this section but the downside is people like Tom for example and Dr Bob have to be contacted directly etc, then things split and shipped to different places.

What I was proposing for example is in the case of Dr bobs books a site could collate the orders. He could then ship everything to one place in each country.

Also it would have been a single place to buy the things you buy all the time, for example not everyone has a sigma account. While I dont I do have access to someone who does at good prices.
I cant afford even there great price but, say for example 6 people ordered the same chemical from the site I could of then put forward a bulk order and got the price reduced.
So my idea in some ways was a mix of buy,sell,swap,exchange and bulk ordering in one place. What I would like to hear is where do people buy there chems from? I know many go OTC but equally alot of us dont have that option beyond vinegar .

I have contacted the place where the cheap clamps were from, they are on special offer but they would continue this for bulk orders and drop ship, I have also contacted Daschem who have said they could adjust the price because they wouldnt have ebay and Alibaba fees.

So it is possible to get some good deals.

[Edited on 11-10-2015 by Little_Ghost_again]

woelen - 11-10-2015 at 09:00

There are other issues besides panning out of a swap/sell/buy section. Transactions, involving (potentially hazardous) chemicals are frowned upon strongly by officials. If there ever would be serious problems with the (ab)use of chemicals, transferred after a deal on sciencemadness, then that could be the end of sciencemadness. Sciencemadness is a discussion forum and allows quite a lot of subjects to be discussed and also allows people to offer chemicals and equipment (as long as they are not direct drugsprecursors or can be used immediately for making bombs), but sciencemadness does not endorse such transactions. Transactions need to be arranged in private.

I think that the current policy of sciencemadness provides sufficient room for offering chemicals and equipment.

aga - 11-10-2015 at 09:11

Trying to Organise people at any level is very difficult.

In the context of the SM member's chem & apparatus purchases, there simply is not the sustained demand to make it worthwhile.

People will buy from people/companies they feel comfortable with no matter what other SM-based alternatives are/would be available.

The only real incentive that could coax people into buying from an SM based supplier would be a substantial discount over Every web-based discount chem seller (e.g. China, Poland or Czech based sellers)

Given the Global spread of the SM population, Postal Costs would screw any attempt at 'centralisation' right up.

Bottom line is that it won't work, and won't generate any $ for anyone.

Little_Ghost_again - 11-10-2015 at 09:33

no fair enough, I will drop it

aga - 11-10-2015 at 10:19

A simple alternative would be a Single thread called "Wanted/For Sale".

People post what they want or have for sale.

Texium - 11-10-2015 at 10:44

Quote: Originally posted by aga  
A simple alternative would be a Single thread called "Wanted/For Sale".

People post what they want or have for sale.
Or we could continue doing what we are already, as it seems to be working quite well. A single thread will have listings become outdated quickly with no way to remove them, barring moderator intervention. It would be very hard to tell which listings are dead and which ones are still active as the thread grows. Sellers who are having trouble getting noticed there would then likely revert to the system of starting new threads to sell their items.

That's my prediction of what would happen, though I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try it out anyway.

TheIdeanator - 9-11-2015 at 22:07

Quote: Originally posted by aga  
A simple alternative would be a Single thread called "Wanted/For Sale".


Why not set up a new section under non-chemistry instead? I'm vaguely interested in buying and sorting through non-sales threads for sale stuff is a bit time consuming.

Little_Ghost_again - 10-11-2015 at 15:53

I am trying out some auction software

The Volatile Chemist - 10-11-2015 at 16:07

Naa, no new section is necessary. The system now is good, and we don't have many sellers anyways.

Little_Ghost_again - 10-11-2015 at 18:45

I will set it up as its a bit of a ebay clone and see how it goes, I will open it up wider than just here and the fees are alot less than ebay. If it dosnt work out then all I loose is some time, a few sellers and companies have come forward that are interested, most have said they can offer discounts as the fees are lower than ebay and Amazon.

Ultimately it will be down to whether people want to buy from it or not, for what its going to cost to set up its worth a punt.

Maybe the lack of sellers has something to do with the way its set up for selling? rather than people not having something to sell.

I dont know yet, but once its up and running feel free to use it... or not

[Edited on 11-11-2015 by Little_Ghost_again]

The Volatile Chemist - 11-11-2015 at 16:45

Sounds mice, will be looking forward to your 'beta' :)

Praxichys - 13-11-2015 at 10:32

Well, I came back to this thread to find that Little_Ghost_Again has beaten me to the punch.

I set something up. Let me know what you think:

EDIT: I bought a domain. We have http://www.synthsource.org/

[Edited on 13-11-2015 by Praxichys]

Dr.Bob - 13-11-2015 at 16:49

Pretty spiffy Praxichys. I'll try to find the time to set up something on there. Also happy to look at anything Little Ghost has to offer, but happy to try anything anyone is willing to set up.

Praxichys - 14-11-2015 at 07:31

Hey, that would be great. You should also create a thread about yourself in the "seller profile" section. It doesn't have to contain much information, mostly just reasons people should buy from you, references, etc. Mine just has links to threads from SM with mercury sales feedback and my eBay profile. The thread is designed to be a place for customers to leave feedback about sales, which will establish a database that helps future customers know who to trust. As soon as you create it, I would be happy to leave the first positive feedback, and I'm sure there are others waiting in line to do so as well.

j_sum1 - 14-11-2015 at 07:35

I just had a look and bookmarked. I think it has a lot of potential.
I also invited a seller in China that I have contact with to put his details on the site.
Zts, I got a nice vigreux from him really cheap.

rebenergy - 15-11-2015 at 10:42

I also Bookmarked. Will be checking in with interest.

The Volatile Chemist - 15-11-2015 at 14:45

Very nice, well worth the domain purchase!

Little_Ghost_again - 15-11-2015 at 18:16

I have a fair bit of work to do it on yet, and still sorting out paypal and world pay gateways etc.

Any suggestions on category etc would be appreciated. Its very much like a cut down version of ebay, you can pick a fixed price or opt for an auction. I wont be 'skinning' it until until I have the functions working right, I also have it under an existing domain name but will change that once I am happy with it.

I have the option of charging fixed fees for listings or charging a percentage of sale price. What kind of fee structure would people prefer?

Praxichys - 16-11-2015 at 05:37

@ Little_Ghost_again

Be careful. Skimming fees makes you liable for lots of stuff. Why do you think eBay/amazon are so draconian about their de-listing police? It's because if someone sells something illegal and you make money on it, you go to jail too. You could be wanted in random places if you're not careful. It could be something as simple as someone selling an Erlenmeyer flask to a Texas address without you knowing it. On top of that, unless you are a registered business with your state you'll eventually get nailed for tax evasion. It'll look even sketchier to be selling those kinds of things without having a legitimate business license.

Besides, all it takes is some meth head trying to get a reduced sentence to tell the cops about which site he got his glass/chems from and you get put away for aiding/abetting because you took a cut.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a great idea. Just know that you're playing with fire.

[Edited on 16-11-2015 by Praxichys]

Little_Ghost_again - 16-11-2015 at 15:20

The fee idea is just to cover cost's, If people take the piss and try and sell phosgene etc the add will be removed.
I am setting up a payment gateway etc.

The other way I could do it is to add in affiliate adds from ebay or Amazon for common things people get. Tax if owed will be paid, I am speaking to companies like the one with cheap clamp and lab jacks. The idea will be too give me 10% discount and I will pass 5% of that on.

It would be great to do all this work and not make a penny from it, but then I would have little incentive to maintain the site and keep improving it.

Ebay is expensive and so is Amazon in fees, a couple of big ebay sellers I know have agreed to list thing once I am up and running and will adjust the price because it will be cheaper for them in fees. So the savings get passed on.

The software is unfriendly to skin!

I also have another site I am setting up but this is mainly to do with my interest in hydroponics and plant compounds, this will be free and have a classified section.

The Volatile Chemist - 17-11-2015 at 19:42

I'd reccomend funding by ads. If you make money, 'donate' it. Really, having money go through your hands at all except for site payments would be undesirable.

tekkado - 17-11-2015 at 19:48

What about facebook? There are so many buying and selling pages on there?
Could make a private group and people post what they have to offer or need. I don't think it has payment functionality but people could work that out themselves??
The only downside would be for the users that have an inventory they want to list, that format wouldn't be very conducive for them.

Little_Ghost_again - 18-11-2015 at 01:35

I honestly dont see the problem, I am in the UK so selling glassware isnt a problem. As for chemicals I have no intention of selling or letting anything be sold that isnt legal to have.

Having spoken to Praxichys about what his site is costing there is no way I can cover that just to do people a favor. Adds are a bit of a nightmare, takes time to get the traffic to make it worth doing and finding people to advertise is alot of work.

If there are so many pitfalls I dont get why people like Blogfast were able to sell chemicals etc online, I have some other things non chemistry related I want to sell online so I might just leave it at that.

I can understand people not wanting to pay to sell things but the work involved and the cost isnt sustainable otherwise. I will see how Praxichys goes with his, if that works out ok I will just use mine for the other stuff I want to sell and the companies who have expressed an interest in selling on it.

Surely if it was that bad ebay wouldnt allow glassware to be sold at all to places like Texas, its a bit like saying if you sell a car to someone and they get drunk and kill somebody then you are also done for selling them the car.

Unless people think I had intended to sell conc nitric acid etc?? Which there is no way I would anyway, the idea was simply to mak it easier and cheaper for people with excess equipment etc to sell ect without using ebay.

Facebook pages dont seem to work that well and the person who set the page up would be as liable as the guy with the shop, charging a fee dosnt make any difference from a legal stand point.

Dosnt matter at the moment as it will be a while to sort out the software to get it to do what I want.

Dr.Bob - 19-11-2015 at 08:42

If Praxichys's site becomes busy enough, it could make a simple sales system. Once you have a seller and a buyer, the cost of doing the actual payment through paypal is about 3%, which is much less than Ebay (~15%) or Amazon (>15%), and can still provide buyer protections like Ebay. Plus Ebay and Amazon have many quirks that are hard to get around, like Amazon's set shipping costs for many items, limits on who can sell science supplies, and Ebay's complex shipping algorithms. With Amazon, many people pay more for shipping than the item costs, but get no break on multiple items. I charge actual shipping costs so that the more you buy, the less the cost per item is (USPS cost per pound goes down up to a certain number of pounds for many items.)

I have done 100+ transactions that way, and while there are some issues, most are not bad. The main limitations are that purchases are not instant, and that I cannot calculate shipping quickly since I must weigh the actual package to determine it. But for most people, they don't mind the savings off of Amazon or Ebay.

The Volatile Chemist - 19-11-2015 at 10:35

I see. I still think ads are the way to go. LG, I didn't realize your sites weren't connected. Perhaps, unless you want it to be your own, you could help Praxychis (I always butcher his name...) with his site. Less costly :)

The Volatile Chemist - 19-11-2015 at 10:37

I see. I still think ads are the way to go. LG, I didn't realize your sites weren't connected. Perhaps, unless you want it to be your own, you could help Praxychis (I always butcher his name...) with his site. Less costly :)
Somehow, I managed to send this post less than 1 minute before the last. I guess my typing speed is faster than I thought...