New Reef Classified Buy/Sell/Trade System

[revhtree]

Would love more input!

 

[revhtree]

This is gaining a lot of steam and it's gonna cost a ton of money. We want to create it if you will use it! PLEASE VOTE and please continue to add your ideas and input!

Thanks.

 

[Idoc]

It's going to be tough to compete with Amazon, since they have many aquarium items already... and it's at my house in 2 days!

Amazon is in the process of taking Wal-Mart down... something no one ever expected could happen!

Or, is this more just used items and new stuff by R2R sponsors?

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

Save your money Rev. I voted No. The only way I could see that work would be with Livestock and used equipment but it's still fraught with issues.
Though, if you have a ton of money burning a hole in your pocket, you can give me a business loan to open my LFS here in Los Angeles that I've been dreaming of for the last ten years.

 

[Rakie]

Honestly between BRS and Marinedepot we've pretty much got it.

The only stuff we have trouble finding once in awhile are the European things and stuff that just launched. But that can be remedied by both companies easily!

 

[Congaken]

UPDATE 9-11-17: This is gaining a lot of steam and it's gonna cost a ton of money. We want to create it if you will use it! PLEASE VOTE and please continue to add your ideas and input! If you click MAYBE please comment with what you would want to see in order to use the marketplace.

Hello R2R Members!

We have been mulling the idea of a comprehensive classified system that I hope would really change the face of how people buy and sell saltwater aquarium items on R2R and even on the internet. Many have tried to create an ebay style system for just this thing but they fail because they don't have the community of users like we have. Whatever it is we will have to pay to have it developed and it would be a pretty big undertaking.

We are looking to create an Amazon(ish) style market for all things saltwater aquariums.

With that being said I want you to pretend that there is no limits on what we can do and I would love to hear your ideas for a Reef Classified System that would be the all in one place to shop for aquarium related items.

What would you like to be able to do?
What would you like to see?
How would you like to buy, sell and trade?
Integrated Robust Feedback System for keeping people accountable?
How would you like it to look within the forum?
Seller levels from hobbyists to commercial?
Trading? What could set that apart?

Let the ideas fly! Nothing is too little or too big!

Money is the object...how can we compete with Amazon, EBay and such...some of us need to do this hobby as inexpensively as possible...I never buy a fish or coral on-line because of the $40.00 shipping...its a good thought, but i am skeptical...;Pompus

 

[revhtree]

It's going to be tough to compete with Amazon, since they have many aquarium items already... and it's at my house in 2 days!

Amazon is in the process of taking Wal-Mart down... something no one ever expected could happen!

Or, is this more just used items and new stuff by R2R sponsors?

Well we're not talking about Amazon in that we have a warehouse and fulfill orders. We're talking about a marketplace where everyone can sell livestock and drygoods in a robust way like Amazon does. Think of it like an Amazon/Angies lists for the hobby. It will be a place where everyone can buy, sell, trade, connect locally as a business and a hobbyists. There will be a reviews and ratings system and so much more! Too much to type here but a place designed specifically for the hobby we all love!

 

[revhtree]

Honestly between BRS and Marinedepot we've pretty much got it.

The only stuff we have trouble finding once in awhile are the European things and stuff that just launched. But that can be remedied by both companies easily!

I think you're kinda missing the point. BRS and MD would be able to open their own account within the market as well. This is going to be just as much about LIVE goods is it will be dry goods. This will be a place to bring everyone and everything together.

 

[revhtree]

Money is the object...how can we compete with Amazon, EBay and such...some of us need to do this hobby as inexpensively as possible...I never buy a fish or coral on-line because of the $40.00 shipping...its a good thought, but i am skeptical...;Pompus

What do you mean by saying that we will have to compete? Hobbyists and Vendors already sell here. We're just talking about a way to include everyone and everything!

 

[revhtree]

Save your money Rev. I voted No. The only way I could see that work would be with Livestock and used equipment but it's still fraught with issues.
Though, if you have a ton of money burning a hole in your pocket, you can give me a business loan to open my LFS here in Los Angeles that I've been dreaming of for the last ten years.

The main point of this market would be for livestock. Drygoods would be a plus but like noted before some of the biggest companies already have that locked down. We're talking mostly LIVE and connecting sellers and buyers. You can't sell livegoods on Amazon. You can sell on FB but they're cutting back on live animal sales and there is know good way to keep everyone accountable.

PS. I do not have a lot of money burning a hole in my pocket but as always I am willing to invest in the reefing community to find a better way!

 

[becks]

I would not be able to use it due to being in the UK. But maybe having the selling account linked to a verified PayPal address to reduce the risk of scammers

 

[GoVols]

I think a question that usually comes up with equipment is "will this work for/fit in my tank?" And being able to sort by tank size/suitability might help in that respect.

+1... to the above

And in inches / feet etc...

(lol) This is the USA, imperial math is all, we have left.

Gotta be at the best prices.

 

[Idoc]

Well we're not talking about Amazon in that we have a warehouse and fulfill orders. We're talking about a marketplace where everyone can sell livestock and drygoods in a robust way like Amazon does. Think of it like an Amazon/Angies lists for the hobby. It will be a place where everyone can buy, sell, trade, connect locally as a business and a hobbyists. There will be a reviews and ratings system and so much more! Too much to type here but a place designed specifically for the hobby we all love!

Sounds like a great idea and community! I was worried thinking of it like Amazon and warehouses, etc... I'm in, lol.

 

[revhtree]

I would not be able to use it due to being in the UK. But maybe having the selling account linked to a verified PayPal address to reduce the risk of scammers

There will be an integrated payment processor and a verification process for all sellers. Also there will be a way for you to participate! We're working on it!

 

[revhtree]

+1... to the above

And in inches / feet etc...

(lol) This is the USA, imperial math is all we have left.

YES agreed!

 

[revhtree]

Sounds like a great idea and community! I was worried thinking of it like Amazon and warehouses, etc... I'm in, lol.

No way man! HA! I'm not looking to go into business selling products. My business is connecting hobbyists and businesses to one another and to making reefing easier!

 

[CodyRVA]

Instead of investing into a new, robust, feature... I would try for some low hanging fruit to improve what you currently have. Gauge the impact with an MVP type feature release and use this usage data to justify expanding on the feature, stopping production entirely or going in a new direction all together.

The last thing you want to do is invest a boat load of time and money into an uncertain product; this is what kills start ups.

As far as getting BRS and MD to buy in, among others, they have to have an incentive. I love BRS and MD, but let's be real, they're a business. Unless you guys can offer them some incentive to come on board, they won't. In the very least, these other companies jumping on board should be the cherry on top, let the user base carry the success of this feature.

Provide more clear and concise details as to what exactly we're talking about, specifically what the new features will be. Judging by the responses there's definitely some confusion. If your user feedback is given under misconception; the outcome will fall flat.

Side note/question: this would likely require an even deeper commitment from reef2reef right? I mean, to manage and maintain the integrity of the buyers and sellers on the forum? Could it be self policing or would the marketplace here have the potential to get a bad rap and in turn low participation?

Kudos the exploring ideas and tapping into your user base prior to making drastic decisions; always a smart move!

 

[becks]

There will be an integrated payment processor and a verification process for all sellers. Also there will be a way for you to participate! We're working on it!

I still need to get round to donating to the site, the amount of info I have received is priceless

 

[Rakie]

I think you're kinda missing the point. BRS and MD would be able to open their own account within the market as well. This is going to be just as much about LIVE goods is it will be dry goods. This will be a place to bring everyone and everything together.

Okay i think I got where you're coming from now, so for example ---

So were on a huge sales site, *like* amazon, which we'll call Reef2Sales for now. To keep it simple we'll stick with Angels for this -- Say I want an Angel, click on 'Angels', say I have options of sizes and blah blah -- Looking through the list I see three that I like. 2 are offered from either MD/BRS, but 1 is only offered from BattleCorals (none of which sell angels) -- But they're all lumped together as options that fit my criteria, at one site.

Is that more of what you're suggesting?

 

[DLHDesign]

I'm sorry, but no - I wouldn't do this were it up to me.
R2R is a fantastic resource for connecting with other reefers - something that is hard to do in-person. There are other avenues for this (Facebook, LFS, other forums, etc.), but each of those has drawbacks and challenges (hard to find/not large enough, not always available nor convenient, etc.). As such, the community aspect of R2R is it's #1 asset for me.
There are other resources for buying products. The sponsoring vendors, for example. If you open an official virtual store-front, you go from being a resource to being a competitor. It's likely that vendors will, in time, stop sponsoring R2R. That would be a loss on both sides, but they would have no choice (you don't advertise your products in your competitor's window). The loss of even a few of the key sponsoring vendors (BRS, WWC, etc.) would remove one of the major draws to R2R. At it's worst, it could reduce R2R to the category of "just another forum" - which could then result in an exodus of it's non-vendor members as well.

Additionally; this isn't something unique. When your idea for a web offering is "like <insert proven company here>, but for <slightly different angle>", then you are already going to be fighting an uphill battle to claim market share. That means that for every dollar you spend to "do what they do", they can spend nothing and already have that. So the "new stuff" - the novel features - are the only differentiation between you and them. Leaving aside that you have to pay to get even first, now you are spending on something that they may have already tried and found lacking - which is a waste of money and time. Or perhaps you find something that really works. But then; what's to stop them from taking that feature and copying it? Their outlay to add a single feature is a far less significant investment and risk. In other words; "chasing the pack" websites are very hard to make work.

The one thing you've got, however, is a large group of members you can tap into. And that's not nothing. But those members generally don't stay here, I'd guess, to buy stuff. Sure; they may buy stuff from time to time and they may enjoy that aspect, but that's not why the core members are here every day; they are here checking and participating in a broad swath of forum topics that, in the end, have very little to do with a specific transaction. So if you tap into that membership - if you turn your member list into an advertising campaign for your new digital store - how many are going to like that?

IMO, your brand is your readily available information and friendly atmosphere of camaraderie around reefing. If you're looking to invest in this site, that's where I'd think you'd want to do it.