Hey, it’s me!
Been taking my first legitimate “vacation time” for almost three years, and it’s been really cool. Yeah, I sort of unplugged for a bit. Disengaged. Relaxed. No. RELAXED! I highly recommend it! Of course, Reefapalooza NY is this weekend, so how relaxing will that be? Looking forward to seeing some of you there! Anyways, thought I’d share a little piece with you today.
In this rapidly-changing world of “E-Coral-Commerce”, it seems like new “coral vendors” are popping up like Aiptasia from every corner…Like, dozens of ‘em every month! With the surge in new “coral vendors”, there is a corresponding “experience feedback loop” among concumers. Some great sources have emerged from this new milieu, and some reconstituted ripoff artists have simply found a new playground.
The impetus for this blog was a Facebook post in which I was tagged, about a very bad experience a reefer had in a recent transaction with a “vendor.” Now, I’m certainly not the consumer protection guy for the reef hobby, and I’m not the expert on everything related to coral commerce in this new era, but I do have an opinion, hear from dozens of coral consumers weekly, and do consider myself a student of this market, and as such, have formulated a few opinions and talking points that might help you get a vibe for the vendor your thinking of working with. These are just some things that, if you encounter during your coral shopping, should at least raise an eyebrow or two and make you proceed with greater caution:
The vendor has a crazy name you’ve never heard of- Okay, really, this is not a non-starter by any stretch. Every vendor was unknown to the coral buying public at some point. Lots of new people are entering the coral propagation game, and that’s great. I don’t care if the guy is operating out of his bedroom, Aunt Helen’s basement, or a storage shed. That’s not a problem. Entrepreneurial opportunities are awesome, and I love seeing intrepid reefers go for it. And, with the advent of sites like eBay, Easy, Made Freshly, etc. creating cool new e-commerce platforms for small businesses, it’s never been easy to be “legit” for a small business. Even Facebook has some options. It’s the way in which the business is conducted that would make me wonder…
A “vendor” that solely exists in a forum or discussion group somewhere is not a brilliant “niche marketer”, IMHO…It’s often someone that thinks they can avoid conforming with the legitimate requirements of business (ie; taxes, dba, licensing, etc.). It’s one thing for an individual to sell on a forum-that’s a nice way to raise some extra cash. However, it’s quite another when someone is passing themselves off as a “business” without doing the things required of a business, IMHO. This view will not make me popular with some people, but it’s my opinion, as stated previously.
Big or small, everyone in the biz needs to play by the rules, including operating in an ethical manner and registering a business with the government (ie; a tax ID number). I hate people that skirt the rules and rip off people or the government that, like it or not, pays for our brave servicemen and women to protect us with revenue provided by our tax dollars. If it were so easy, everyone would do it, right? It’s ridiculous that I even have to mention this.
Ripoff artists hurt the people who protect us. Like it or not.
No “buzz” in the hobby community- It IS a small community of geeks we have here, and when someone new enters the fray, you usually hear some “buzz on the street’, as they say, about the vendor. No feedback at all is not a deal killer, IMHO, as long as you can have meaningful real conversation with the owner to make you more comfortable. Maybe the legitimate guy IS just starting out. I always like to at least know the name of the human I’m dealing with..A lot of guys that enter “the biz” will use a “screen name” from the forum they frequent, which is, of course, a good point of reference. Regardless, it’s nice to be able to engage with a human, ya know?
Who heard of these guys a few years ago?
The vendor uses pics that are not his/hers- Really? Yeah, seriously, this is almost epidemic! I mean, I’ve actually seen our pics used to sell some other guy’s coral on a number of occasions. Sometimes, they tweak the colors, which is weird, but not surprising. On other occasions, the moron shamelessly used our pic, watermark an all, to advertise his “version” of our coral, complete with ridiculous price! Take away point here: If your “vendor” can’t afford to take his own pics, and rips off someone else’s, it should speak volumes about his /her operation. Run. Run fast.
That's one of ours!
Vague or non-existent policies concerning DOAs, delayed shipments, etc.- I mean, it’s not a perfect world, and unfortunately, corals do die in transit. Shipments are delayed for no apparent reason. However, when the vendor is long on hype and sales talk, and basic policies are simply non-existent, you have to wonder, right? A lot of these types are big on sales hype and such, and have nothing to offer from a consumer practices standpoint. No communication, or shaky communications at best. It reminds me of those guys that just sell cable boxes or “gold chains” from the back of their car…”I got this Rainbow Millie-last one left…$350…Gotta act NOW!” Yikes. Slimy.
Weird "business practices"- “I only take Paypal if it’s sent to my sister’s account” or, “Use my friend’s Paypal account for this transaction…” - RED ALERT! Okay, I’m not the expert on accounting and such, but if I see some strange arrangement like that, I’d at least want to know about why. Yes, PayPal does offer you some protection, but why open yourself up to trouble if you have a nagging feeling, right? Investigate and don’t send your hard-earned dollars until you’re comfortable.
"I got this coral, see...and it's the last one, see..."
Okay, I could go on and on, and be the proverbial “Pain in the Porites”, but you get the idea. I’m not trying to rail on everyone who is running a home-based coral business, sells stuff on E Bay, etc. No. The point is that, despite the fact that commerce as we know it is evolving almost daily, there are still standards and practices that, if skirted, should send up a big red flag to you, the consumer. There is no limit to creativity, effective marketing ideas, and sales platforms these days, and that’s cool. It allows all sorts of people to achieve the dream of creating and running their own businesses. However, it’s also opened the floodgates for ripoff artists, scammers, and low life who think they can beat the system and laugh all the way to the bank.
It’s no secret that almost anyone can source some corals from an outfit in Bali these days, fill out some paperwork and shoot over money and suddenly become a “coral importer/vendor.” There are a lot of hungry businesses down there that will sell to anyone with dollars and a pulse. As you know, there is more to the coral business than just slinging colonies fresh out of the box. Again, the old adage that "if something is so easy, everyone would be doing it" rings true.
Be open to new ideas, new vendors, and new opportunties. When you find legitimate people at any level, support them. However, along the way- take care of yourself. Be careful, be vigilant. Be kind, understanding, and supportive of those doing it right.
Today’s tale of commerce and caution.
Stay Wet.
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
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