“You paid what kind???“
My buddy Alex couldn’t believe my luck – and to be honest, I couldn’t either.
Before us lay the last treasure I discovered on the Facebook Marketplace: $ 3,500 ultra-high-end loudspeakers.
Why didn’t Alex believe it? Well, I paid $ 100 for them, all thanks to a cute suburban mom who just wanted them to leave their house.
“Not fair! How do you keep getting these insane deals? “
He has begun to indignantly point out some of my other treasures on the Facebook Marketplace over the past five years, including:
- I paid $ 300 for a $ 4500 Italian leather section.
- $ 200 Kyorig, which I paid $ 10 for.
- My $ 2,000 TV, which cost me $ 500.
“Let’s not even talk about what’s in your damn driveway.” By that, I assume he was referring to my $ 10,000 Miata, which I paid $ 1,000 for.
Finding great deals on the Facebook marketplace has become my superpower and I’m ready to share my secrets.
1. Search using various combinations of keywords.
Unlike Amazon, searching the Facebook Marketplace sometimes takes a bit of dexterity.
Amazon product listings packed with keywords to make it easier for you to find them. Here’s how we get such short, catchy product names:
However, on Facebook, lists can only have one or two keywords, making them difficult to find:
Heck, my $ 3,500 speakers were listed as just “surround speakers” – no make or model.
So how do you find these amazing ghost lists?
Simple: throw the wide web!
I found these speakers by searching for several keywords and phrases. While I especially need Paradigm-branded speakers, I did all five of these searches over the course of several days:
- Mini-monitor speakers Paradigm.
- Speakers of the paradigm.
- 5.1 Speakers.
- Home theater speakers.
- Surround speakers.
Finally, on attempt number five, lotto appeared – the speakers of my dreams!
2. Filter out unwanted lists.
Unfortunately, there are still some “junk mail lists” on the Facebook Marketplace that have completely overtaken Craigslist.
What are Junk Email Lists? Well, these are dubious lists from sketchy online retailers selling headphones for $ 200 for $ 55 (yes, that’s right):
Fortunately, these lists are easy to spot visually, as they usually use standard images, while real lists use photos taken with someone’s phone.
However, you can instantly filter out most junk lists by simply filtering out “Pickup”.
Just above that, you can set the radius of how far you are willing to travel to meet the salesperson (I still recommend that you meet in a public place, ideally a police station).
Finally, I really not filter by “Used” as many people mark unopened gifts or items in good condition as “New!”
More details: Forget Craigslist: 7 Safe Alternatives to Buy and Sell Online
3. Watch for signs of fraud.
In my five years of passionate search for deals on the Facebook Marketplace, I’ve only been tricked once. Xbox Series X salesperson told me he got several suggestions and wanted me to shell out $ 25 to prove I was a serious buyer before she met me.
Blinded by excitement, I gave her $ 25. Then, unexpectedly surprising, she blocked me.
Sigh…
Putting on my blunt cap, I backdating ran her profile through my scam checklist. That’s when I started noticing red flags:
Facebook Marketplace Scam Checklist:
- Does your Facebook seller profile seem fake or incomplete?
- Do they have a lot of random photos on their Facebook profile with almost zero outside involvement?
- Do they have 0 seller ratings?
- Did they refuse to share their general location, or did they say they were “from another city”?
- Was there something wrong with their Facebook chat?
- Was the deal too good to be true?
- Did they ask for a deposit or a deposit?
Of course she checked all these boxes.
If the seller does not show red flags, but you still feel that something is wrong, check them using the following techniques:
- Ask for more photos.
- Ask for more information on the condition of the item.
- Ask if they are ready to meet at the police station.
If they give up any three of them for no good reason, run. There will be one more deal.
4. Ask the salespeople what else they have.
The Facebook Marketplace is a magnet for selling garages and real estate, so a seller could only list 5 or 6 of the 179 things they really want to sell.
First things first: you can check other published seller listings by simply clicking their name in the list:
If the seller has things Related what do you want, ask what they have!
For example, I noticed that Speaker Lisa had a lot of furniture to sell, so I asked if she had a TV stand. Aha!
Likewise, I love car models, so I often ask sellers, “Do you have other cars for sale besides these?”
Darrin pictured in the screenshot above posted this when I asked him the same question:
“Hundreds,” he replied.
So, I hammered a bushel of vintage cars for pennies on a dollar.
Feel free to ask the salespeople what else they have – you’ll be doing them a favor, saving them the tedious half-day of listing items!
5. Be patient and check often
One “caveat” about shopping on the Facebook marketplace is that amazing deals come and go quickly. I wrote to Speaker Liza when her ad was an hour ago, and there was already a buyer ahead of me.
Therefore, it can take days or weeks to find a 10/10 trade.
I also live in a city of six million; if you live in a small town, you may need to be even more patient (and set a wider search radius).
If today you do not find what you want, just be patient. The good news is that Facebook Marketplace deal hunting becomes like a game: you never know what an amazing deal is about to hit, and the 90% off the espresso machine you’ve been craving for months gives you the maximum no other.
6. Know how to break the ice.
Entering into a dialogue with a “merchant”, centuries-old traditions dictate that you:
- Make your best poker face.
- Come at a low price offering 50% of the asking price.
Although this approach May working on yard sales, it won’t get you anywhere on the Facebook Marketplace.
This is because Facebook Marketplace is seller’s market… Unlike other sites, Facebook sellers do not have sell to the first interested buyer or even the highest bidder. Rather they will get to choose their buyer.
This is usually the person they think will be easiest to deal with…
I wire the sellers that I am easy to deal with:
- Ask if the item is still available.
- Offering cash.
- Time setting.
Everything inside two Messages.
Here’s an example from last night when I bought a $ 514 chrome trunk for my $ 50 Miata:
And that’s how they sealed the deal. Happy seller, happy buyer. Discount 90 percent off. So, break the ice just by showing kindness, offering money and making a plan – all as expediently as possible.
7. Agree Right way
Since the prices are already lowI rarely negotiate on the Facebook marketplace. But when I makeI am either giving a good reason, or offering convenience, or both.
Sometimes I point to a missing part or component:
In other cases, I simply suggest picking up the item as soon as possible. This works especially well with ads created several weeks ago, as sellers are usually more eager to get rid of the item by this point:
To put it anecdotally, I would say that I negotiate 25% of the time and it works. half time.
Summary
As with the martial arts, finding deals on the Facebook marketplace takes patience, skill, and finesse. However, learning these skills pays off and is the best way to get good things. without pay good prices for things.
Keep these tips in mind as you go, and you’re sure to make your Facebook Marketplace positive.