Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Scam Convos...Sellers Beware

I received this Convo today... I have reported it to Etsy. I believe It is a scam. Notice the way the English is not "right". (i would like to purchase some of it in bulk order) and "price lists" (when the wording should say Price List not the plural).  "I saw"-- that should read 'I see'.  She also goes from capitol I to small i's in her words.

Granted some of it is minor grammar mistakes that anyone could make, but When you read the convo out loud you can see that is not how natural Americans talk....and together with the subject is the other red flag.

Plus the fact that she is trying to get me to sell her my things off of Etsy-- which is a Major No-No.

AND the fact that I only have 1 Quilt up for sale.. and I don't promote my shop as a Quilt shop. That was the biggest Red Flag to me.

Also- she doesn't have any feedback, nor does she have a shop...and she just joined today!

Here is the convo:
Hi there!
I saw that you are selling quilts ,and i would like to purchase some of it in bulk order.
Can you please send me your price lists together with your phone number that i can call?
Or you can email me at ... (I removed her email).
Thanks!


I also know that there are other scams with sellers trying to get your phone number and bank account information. I have had team members tell me of ones where someone convos to ask about an already sold quilt-- that they will pay more for it-- if you just refund the difference to them..

Another-- watch out for the persons asking you to put your item on their web site-- then if it sells there-- they will pay for it and you ship to the customer.... a drop shipper.

I have not responded to her as I don't want to encourage her. I am not interested... as much as I would love someone to buy a bunch of items from me...But I want it done legally.

Understand... also that with Yahoo or Hotmail or even Gmail-- you do not have to give your real name or age or zip code or anything. You can totally make up a new identity for yourself.

Sellers- Just be careful.. I get that we all want sales.. but I like Etsy and have no desire to mess that up. I think if some convo you get--- doesn't feel right, it is best to just report it and let them handle it.

Have a good day...

1 comment:

  1. Something similar just happened to me.. The wording was almost the same, with just a few odd grammatical errors. Again, it's a new profile created today, no feedback or store, and a headshot of a model as their profile pic.. lol.
    I'm getting better at saying 'no' when I feel uncomfortable- when I started out, I wanted to say yes to everyone, even if it meant offering too much of a discount.
    I never directly email customers, and I'm much more wary.
    Glad you said "no" and posted here- it really made me certain my interaction was a scam.

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