Alot of Users posting their businesses in YOUR FORUM

Hi Bliss,

We'll not be charging for 2nd-hand items. Let's hope it works and does not get abused.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 


Hi Chin Leng,
Thank you for the decision for not imposing any fee for 2nd hand items. Greatly appreciate it.

Best Regards,
Janet
 
Chin Leng,
I think you have made the right decision to impose a charge in Marketplace, this is the best solution at the moment.

I am also happy that you will not be charging for 2nd hand items, because like Janet, I often sell my items at a very cheap price too.
But then how do you define 2nd hand ? I have a brand new swimsuit I have never worn before, if I want to sell is it considered 2nd hand ?
 
Hi Chin Leng!

*Applause* Glad to read the announcement.

I think by not charging for 2nd hand items, that section will still get abused after some time. So I think a fee is still useful/necessary. If not, defeat the purpose, ya?
 
Hi Janet,

You are welcome!
kao_wink.gif


Hi Tamarind,

To avoid the 2nd-hand items from being abused, it'll have to be items that have been used or worn before. So all threads created there have to clearly state that the items are used/worned. If they are new, the items will have to be sold in "Want To Sell" category.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Pink_Tulip,

We'll not charge for the time-being. If it get abused, we'll review the policy again then.

kao_biggrin.gif


Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Chin Leng

Just need to check something. U indicated that if we pay a fees of S$10.00 for BP, the thread will be automatically deleted after 7 days. For a BP it is not that practical as it drags to days before the BP closed. Any advise ?

And for new item to sell, like me i am trying to sell off my ger pampers which cost S$6.00. I have to pay S$10.00 for it ? Maybe you and the management can review them (the charges are pretty steep for selling 1 thing) so that at the company profit view, more mommies like me can post and sell their things. It is a win-win situation. Thanks for ur time
 
My comments/questions:

1) bulk purchase - the listing window is only for 7 days. for certain sprees where the $ amt is big (e.g. breast pumps, bumper mats, children wetsuit which i had organized just recently), it takes more than 1-3 weeks before you can even garner sufficient orders to get the discount. in this case, 7 day is too short? also, does the BP organizer has to pay the $10 upfront or only if the BP is successful? otherwise, the organizer would lugi $10 right? for genuine BP organizers, this is like a double whammy: spent the time/effort to start a BP with benefit to all mothers, yet risking $10 upfront.....note: for a successful BP, i agree sharing $10 is not a great problem.....

2) for genuine mommies who want to sell off a couple of brand new unused items (could be a present, or buy then didn't get the chance to use)....paying $10 would be too much?

How can the above issues be addressed?
 
Chin Leng,
Some new diapers which mummies here let go are things like diapers which their babies have outgrown. Sometimes, the diapers being sold are like 1/2 or 3/4 of a packet, so maybe there could be some provisions being made for such items.

Since you have decided to waive the $10 charge for 2nd-hand items, regulars mummies like myself would be able to help out to ensure the items posted in that particular thread are not brand new. I guess this is our way of showing appreciation for your flexibility in reviewing the new rule.

Thanks & Rgds,
Janet
 
Chin Leng,
The $10 is applicable to every new thread, right ? What if I start a new thread called "Tamarind's sales items", can I add on new items to the same thread as and when needed ?
 
Dear CL,
may I suggest that the thread starter be allowed to edit/remove postings in the thread.
Cause someone might come & just add in,
"I also have the same... blah blah blah... at a cheaper price, please email [email protected] for more information".
& you won't be 24/7 online to remove it immediately.

Of some business owners may just go into everyone's thread to post their business information,
hit & run...
By the time their postings are removed,
enough awareness had been created already.

Just my 2 cents.
 
Hi Querida.78 and Suelee,

If the BP requires more days to complete, you can choose to extend another 7-days block at $10 each. If there are 20 members to the bulk purchase which reuqires 3 weeks to complete, the $30 can be shared among the 20 members at $1.50 each only.

Recently, the forum has become more marketplace centric instead of community focused. There are days where we've as much as 60% of the messages posted in the "Marketplace and Exchange Corner". As we've mentioned before that we've implemented this new policy to curb the number of threads created in "Marketplace and Exchange Corner". Please note that we are not trying to profit by implementing this policy as the whole process is manual and still labour intensive. We've implemented this new policy with the hope to bring the number of sales threads in the forum to a manageable level.

We understand that some BPs may not be successful which is why we would strongly encourage users to consider carefully before starting a BP. As mentioned, this new policy is to try curbing the number of sales threads in the forum.

For small items, we'll encourage users to consolidate their items before posting to the "Marketplace and Exchange Corner" to make it more worthwhile.

We understand that this new policy may bring inconvenience to some users. We've tried to be free and non-restrictive but the forum ended up being abused. We hope you'll understand the difficult position we are in and support our new policy. Thank you.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Janet,

Yes, those items you cited as examples would be considered as "used" items and no fees will be imposed. We would definitely require the assistance of genuine users to prevent the forum from being abused.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Tamarind,

New items can be added to your thread as long as it is within the 7-days period.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Mngo,

Don't worry, all non-marketplace related threads will not be imposed of any fees. Like I mentioned, we want the forum to be community focused instead of marketplace centric again.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Leng Leng,

We'll consider your suggestion. However, we may first try by getting more volunteer moderators first so that when the need arises, you can contact them and the posting removed quickly.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Chin Leng,
I would like to suggest that ladiies who have more than 2 items to sell, to set up a yahoo photo URL for potential buyers to view. This way, threads will be minimized.

What do you think ?

Rgds,
Janet
 
Chin Leng,

How about those who email to us instead of posting under Marketplace?

Recently got an email, not via PM, asking me whether to join in her BP, and the thread was actually removed by you.

Still puzzled how the sender got my email as I did not enquire on this BP.
 
chin leng,
i fully understand your need to make changes to the marketplace. it's great that you have specially designated a category for sale of 2nd hand items, so at least us mummies can sell off our 2nd hand unwanted items. i do have one concern though. many of us GENUINE mummies do receive tons of lovely gifts from friends & family, but we have no use for them or our kids outgrow them before even having a chance to use them. so how are we to sell off such items? they are not 2nd hand, as they are brand new and not been opened or used yet, but they definitely do not come under the category of "business pdts". if we need to pay the $10 fee then it would be pointless for us to sell such items in the marketplace, as the selling price is usually less than $10. if you look at previous/current postings on the present marketplace, genuine mummies do sell alot of such stuff (BN unused items they bought on impulse or received as gifts). now with the revamped system, how are we to sell such things? i certainly do hope you can create another category for such items, or at least allow us to sell such items in the "2nd hand items for sale" category too.

thanks,
Lani Chua
 
Hi Janet,

Well, it is actually up to the users to choose if they want to include a URL for the potential buys to view. As many items can be listed in one thread within the 7-days period, so it is really up to the thread owner.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
chin leng,
may I also suggest that you reconsider the decision to include all online sprees in your new charging model? This is an excellent way for mummies to share the shipping costs and if we have to fork out $10 for each transaction, I am afraid it would no longer be worthwhile to pursue this and it would be such a pity as these are genuine transactions with either no or largely marginal profit making elements. There is also little room for abuse as such transactions are plain on the face of the postings and you can tell at one glance if someone is doing business.
 
Hi Chin Leng
I understand Leng Leng's concerns about other sellers posting to everyone's threads.But I do hope that the current policy of no-editing after 20 mins of posting still remain.As I have seen sellers in other forums keep editing their original message,till it's completely different from their very first post.

Frankly, I feel that the no-charge-for-2nd hand items will be opened to abuse,as can be seen from current Market Place situations. The sellers started with used/pre-loved items, then slowly add in brand new items to existing threads.

But then there are really a lot of mummies here trying to get rid of their unwanted/excess items or items which their children have outgrown,so it's rather hard to draw the line.

I enjoy the sprees for overseas online websites such as Gap,and these are the ones that are less likely to be abused,unlike local BPs.The prices of such sprees are stated in their websites for everyone to see.Order confirmations are generated which can be posted for everyone to verify.

Such sprees usually take more than 2 weeks to complete,which means added cost of $20-$30 to be shared among participants. Are we allowed to post somewhere to test the no.of parties interested, before we start such sprees?
 
chin leng,

aside from the above issue, i am also concerned about the 7-day posting rule and $10 fee for BPs. as a regular user of this forum, i have benefitted GREATLY from many BPs organised from so many mummies here! to be honest, i have never come across a BP that was concluded within 7 days. such BPs take anywhere from 2wks to 2mths to organise and conclude. and most of the times, the BPs are genuine, ie. not businesses masquerading as BP organisers. i certainly hope you can review your new policies as far as BPs go. it would be really sad if there aren't as many BPs organised by any mummies anymore...
sad.gif
 
Van,
I think once we test post, and the interested parties responded, the organizer can directly PM them without having to pay anything.

Tuffy,
Agree with you that it is no longer worthwhile.

Chin Leng,
How about a one time charge for one spree organizer ? For example, one person pay $50 and then she can organize as many sprees as she wants. This will minimize administration efforts too. It will be a lot more work for you if you have to monitor the 7 day posting rule.
 
Hi happy_33,

For these e-mails, you can feedback to us and we'll take appropriate actions. As you've posted your e-mail address publicly, some business owners will harvest the address and add in to their mailing list database and send you unsolicited e-mails. To prevent such occurence, users should avoid posting their e-mail address publicly.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Thanks for your reply, Chin Leng.

Kindly advise the email address where I can feedback to you for your necessart actions.
 
Hi Lani,

We understand your concern. However, as you may have noticed, many business owners have actually masqueraded the sale of their products as gifts received. We had spent much time investigating and removing such threads and this has distracted our resources in further developing SingaporeMotherhood portal. We would suggest and strongly encourage parents to consolidate their items and sell it through the forum when it is really worthwhile. We are sorry that we can't allow sale of new items to be free as this will definitely invite abused.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
to add,
we can leave the moderator with the discretion to determine which online sites are ok for spree (with no admin charge). For eg, we can allow the tried and tested gymboree, ON, Gap and such others as may be approved by the moderator. If i am not mistaken, I don't think the moderator is having much trouble with these threads right?

tamarind,
yah.. $10 would wipe out all my savings on vpost already. while we can always spread the costs around, the question is whether we should be asked to incur this cost in the first place if we are not abusing the use of the forum with these sprees. i really hope chin leng would reconsider his decision.. sigh...
 
Hi Chin Leng
Just my opinion about the new rules.
Personally i think is rather good and should go ahead so to prevent those business owners who come forward and sell their stuff.

However,
in cases where we start a BP and paid $10 for the fee. One person just interrupted halfway and say can offer lower price etc.
How do we deal with this? It will be unfair to the person who started the BP and paid for the $10 and this person just interrupt like this. or even maybe this person may be a business owner?
how do we justify for these acts?

of course it is always good to have someone offer lower prices..since it is beneficial..but cases like this are hard to prevent
 
Hi Tuffy,

It is exactly because even sprees have been abused and that is why we have imposed a fee for both BP and sprees. We have received feedback that local business owners actually masquerading their sales as sprees. Some even through sprees are able to gauge the quantity of orders they should make to their suppliers to ensure a definite profit without getting stuck with unsold stocks.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Joleena,

As similar to the concern voiced out earlier by Leng Leng, we'll try to curb this by having more volunteer moderators so that the thread owners can contact us to take action quickly.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi chin Leng,

with reference to your posting "The threads can now be business in nature. The threads will be subjected to approval as inappropriate items (eg. non-authentic items, pirated materials) will not be allowed."

Do you mean local business owners may now be listed on the mktplace by paying $10?
 
Hi Mystique,

Yes, they can sell their items in the marketplace by paying $10 for a 7 days period.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
hi Chin Leng

I do not support your decision entirely but I do understand the difficult situation you are put into. However, this being a public forum, I do wonder how much of the opinions are being taken into consideration before this decision is taken. Any voting given to valuable users like those who have voiced above?

Also, there is some thread that would not be closed by 30 June ... are these going to be gone once the clock strikes 12? there's 1 thread for example, Disney Cookie Cutters and Baking Sets! ... all interested parties have paid up but supplier can only provide stock in July. Can such exceptions remain in the forum to facilitate completion?

.ky.
 
Hi Chin Leng,

Would you consider not charging for sprees that is not local (eg: US)? For example Old Navy, Victoria Secrets, Gymboree, Gap. I dun think we can abuse these sprees done from these websites.

This really helps me save some money on the shipping cost... I hope you will consider.
 
Hi KY,

Thank you for your understanding. We have always received feedbacks and opinions from users and have taken them into our consideration. Which is why this has taken us so long to decide and implement. We did not conduct a vote as there are concerns which affect our daily operations which may not be fully appreciated by the users of the forum. Also, an online vote can be manipulated and may not fully represent the view of the users. This is why we didn't organise a vote. We have to make a decision which we feel is the most appropriate for the users and the future of SingaproeMotherhood.com.

Since the "Disney Cookie Cutters and Baking Sets" thread is only awaiting the arrival of the shipment, it'll be advisable for all parties involved to take down the contact details of the organisers to facilitate collection.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Dryperbaby,

Please refer to my response to Tuffy. It is exactly because overseas sprees have been abused as well and we had no choice but to implment this policy. We appreciate your understanding. Thank you.

Regards,
Chin Leng.
 
Hi Chin Leng,
What about posting under 2nd Hand Items which has a link to their yahoo auctions,listing both used and brand new items? Just saw one.
 
Hi Chin Leng,

Respect your decision and i guess you really can't please everyone. Sure the $10 charge will get many people sitting up straight when they read it (even me!!) but as time goes by, things will iron out i guess. Along the way we'll find ways to make it work.

I'm also one who sells unused kids' stuff. Would it be feasible say, we state the retail price and our selling price, and that our selling price HAS TO BE lower than that of the RP, therefore deeming it to be 2nd hand?

Hope you'll consider. Thanks!
 
Haha, yokine, not everyone knows whats the retail price (im one such example)..hehehe..

Chin Leng,
Do u think u can 'limit' the number of threads each member can post per week or something? That way, the Market place wont be too messy & can save the forum some costs as well?
 
hi Chin Leng
I'm responding to your new policy of implementing $10 for posting in market and exchange. Can those doing giveaways be exempted from this charge? these are seriously no business which involves NO money transactions. I do have quite a few items to giveaway coz' i'm moving. thanks for your attention.
 
hi chin leng,
I don't quite understand your position on the overseas spree. sorry, do you mind explaining further? how does this tie in with how much stock to bring in when the no. of items are listed out and it is clear that pple are just buying 1 or 2 items for own use?

I can understand the scenario you have painted if one person starts soliciting orders for a particular item under the pretext that she had sourced for the item from some "supplier". But how does this apply to ON or gymboree spree?

sorry hah.. not sure I understand where you are coming from. mind elaborating?
happy.gif
 


Chin Leng,
I have same doubts as tuffy too.What exactly is the problem if we are ordering directly from the web sites of say Gap,Gymboree?

I read that there have been some arguments over dollars/rebates which the organisers can use for subsequent purchases,or free gifts that the organisers might be getting out of the sprees.Are you referring to these?

Sorry to trouble you but do wish you could enlighten us.

Thanks!
 

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