YAHOO GROUPS ~ Trade, Barter, Swap & Shopping Groups ~ Think Twice Before You Join
April 27, 2008 by Moomettesgram
Filed under e-commerce, internet marketing, networking, rantings, sahm, social networking, wahm, work at home
Back in January or so, I did a couple of blog entries here and here praising the benefits of joining Yahoo Swap, Barter & Trade Groups, as well as Yahoo Shopping Groups, as a means of shedding excess eBay inventory and meeting quota for the various companies I’m an affiliate rep for.
Well, I’m eating humble pie now, and am here as a hard-working WAHM to tell you, whoa nelly, slow down before you do anything like that and make the same mistakes I did.
I’m so much wiser for it now, and I’d like to tell you why. If I had come across any blogs telling it like it is before I joined, I would have thought twice.
I played by all the rules. One rep per company, listed my items, tried to join in the conversations, promoted my specials, yada yada yada.
But it’s not pretty. On the swap groups, I got taken for a ride. I’ve withdrawn from all I ever joined. I listed pretty good inventory from my eBay store - NWT (New, With Tag) kids Baby Gap PJs, Webkinz, etc. I sent my items with Delivery Confirmation when the vultures snapped them up. Any time I went online (which was really, really often) to try to “grab” an item - nothing was listed. What was on there? Pacifiers (used?)…. I’m not kidding here; coasters, probably just junk that was lying around the house.
All the gals were begging for “Walmart” gift certificates, and grabbed anything they could get their hands on, leaving nothing else. What really was the last straw for me on one group was that someone was offering to “burn DVD’s” to swap. Now, anyone with an ounce of ethics knows that it’s illegal to do that. As a paralegal, I protested and said I didn’t want to be any part of that ~ guess what ~ the group owner decided to hold a “vote” to see what the group thought about burning the DVDs. Well, I was outta there - and withdrew faster than you could hit “enter.” And I left behind probably several hundred dollars in “points to spend” and figure the Walmart gals could use them more than I need them.
My latest rant today is about the “Shopping Groups” that promote one rep per company, and you get to be Consultant-of-the-Month (COTM.) I belonged to two groups. Each month, I faithfully placed my order, and waited my turn to be COTM.
There’s supposed to be two COTM per month. As a COTM, everyone is supposed to place an order with you, and theoretically, you can get 4-5 orders, which would allow you to meet quota. Well, the other rep got all the orders, and I only got one.
I got an email from one group member in response to my withdrawal, who had this to say about me: …. maybe no one wanted what i had to offer that month?
At this point, I’ve had enough of these cliquey, greedy groups. When I withdrew from one other shopping group today, one nice gal e-mailed me and said she was in agreement with me and ‘right behind me on her way out.’ Fortunately, there are some nice, honorable people that I met on these groups, but they’re few & far between.
Am I whining? Yes, in a way, I admit it. But the only positive experience that I feel has come of this, is that I’m brazen enough to post it here and try to warn anyone who’s thinking that this is the next best thing since sliced bread, to think twice. You don’t want to end up with a bad taste in your mouth.
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Related posts:
- YAHOO GROUPS ~ Trade Forums & Swap Groups are a Worthless Way to Shed Excess Inventory for eBay Store Owners or Meet Quota for Direct Sales Reps!
- GAIN TRAFFIC For your DIRECT SALES or HOME PARTY Company ~ Join MOMS SHOP at Yahoo Groups!- NOT
- Caution - If You’re a WAHM Affiliate Rep - Pay Attention to the Yahoo Group Company Boards
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Webkinz » YAHOO GROUPS ~ Trade Forums & Swap Groups & Shopping Groups ~Think Twice Before You Join Any on Sun, 27th Apr 2008 3:12 am
[...] Moomette’s Magnificents wrote an interesting post today on YAHOO GROUPS ~ Trade Forums & Swap Groups & Shopping Groups ~Think Twice Before You Join AnyHere’s a quick excerpt I listed pretty good inventory from my eBay store - NWT (New, With Tag) kids Baby Gap PJs, Webkinz, etc…. [...]
Heather Cummins on Mon, 28th Apr 2008 9:42 pm
Cindi-
I really appreciate your honesty and openness on this subject! I have never been a part of any of these groups and now I don’t have to waste my time!
Thank you,
Heather
Jen on Wed, 30th Apr 2008 12:11 pm
I’ve never heard of these before and by reading your post I’m glad I haven’t! Thanks for the warning on them.
I enjoy selling things on Craigslist.. you don’t have the fees like you do on Ebay.
Smilesandsunshine on Sun, 13th Jul 2008 2:44 pm
Why don’t you check out swap-bot.com? This site has ratings and rules and probably more equal trades that you have experienced.
Lori on Wed, 22nd Oct 2008 2:53 pm
I agree with you 100%. I first found the shopping groups back in January. I belonged to up to 8 different groups at one time! I currently am a group owner, but I am relinquishing ownership at the end of the month and I’ve withdrawn from all the others. More hassles/headaches than benefits. I won’t miss them.
Chris on Thu, 23rd Oct 2008 9:47 am
I’m sorry you had bad experiences with these kinds of groups. I have never participated in a swap group that traded existing inventory, so I’m not sure how those work exactly. But I am in 2 groups that trade orders directly from websites and have no complaints so far.
In the first group I joined, the owner split members up into smaller sub-groups. There is a COTM in each group each month, everyone orders via the COTM’s site (so delivery fulfillment isn’t an issue) and everyone gets 2 months per year to be the COTM. I’ve only been in this group for 2 months. I’ve faithfully placed my 2 orders and have no reason to think that everyone else will not do the same when it is my turn in November. If they don’t, the group owner bans them and places them on a “bad traders” list.
The second group I joined works a bit differently. When someone joins this group, she immediately places an order of any size (no minimum) from the person who referred her to the group. After her order is confirmed, the new member may add her links to the database and post ads (one a day) to the group about what she has to offer. Each month, everyone places at least one order (again, no minimum amount) from anyone else in the group. This one isn’t just for consultants with direct sales companies. Etsy gals and others with businesses of their own are welcome to participate.
In addition to the shopping, members also trade marketing tips and just friendly conversation. I’ve met some wonderful women in these groups.
I guess my point in commenting is to say that it’s not fair to paint all those who see these groups as a good way to build business as greedy and dishonest. If you find the right groups, they can be a lot of fun!
Tina McAllister on Fri, 7th Nov 2008 11:20 am
I don’t think you’re whining at all!! I like a good swap, trade or barter here and there, but am not interested in joining a group. I would rather have someone contact me directly (or me contact them) and work something out that is fair and equitable.
Great post to enlighten others about the possible pitfalls of groups!!
Minxy Mimi on Fri, 7th Nov 2008 11:46 am
I am glad I never tried those sites. Sorry for your bad experiences.