Breeders: Interested Buyers who Disappear off the Face of the Earth?

[Mt. Zion Chins]

yea - I guess will all get these types of emails - What gets me is that they seem so interested and want to see pictures - I ,too, hate taking pictures and I have to get my husband to help - Then when I finally send the pictures - nothing - Like they think taking and sending pictures is no big deal - I guess that is the 'way it is' and we have to deal with it

 

[shouts]

If you sell things online you find the click through rates are usually well below 10 percent (those who actually go through with a purchase after putting something in their cart) so it's not surprising that people have the impulse to ask without finishing the process.

It's just the nature of sales. If you get a lot of requests you can analyze what gets a higher sales rate - pictures, personalized response, repeated requests, patience, etc.

Just because they ask doesn't indicate a commitment to buy.

 

[Becky]

I agree with Jags. This has been going on for years.

I don't mind getting pics and weights for people, but what I hate is when I answer tons of email from someone, send the info they ask for, and then they just fall off the face of the earth. I would at least appreciate them telling me that they've decided that they are not interested.

 

[Cuddlebug]

I've had my fair share of those, too. I don't hold a chin for anyone anymore unless they send me a deposit. I only wait 3 - 4 days for the deposit to arrive and then I email them, saying that the chin is going back on the sale list. The chin goes to the first person who actually either gets me a deposit or actually shows up and buys it. If I have more than one person interested in a chin, I will let all parties know that there are others interested and that it will go to the first person to show up. I also offer to put people on my waiting list in case a deal falls through or I don't have quite what they are looking for. I have one young lady who has been in touch with me for at least 6 months. she wants a standard female and is willing to wait 'till I have one for her. Hopefully, I will have one for her soon.

 

[Spoof]

I'm lucky that I have this happen very rarely. Peddling both mine and Ronda's chins I get a lot of people emailing me. So far this year only one out of 16 people has disappeared - and reasonably, Ronda had already sold that specific chin.

If you sell things online you find the click through rates are usually well below 10 percent (those who actually go through with a purchase after putting something in their cart

That's what I do for a living. Right now the companies I work for are hanging between 7-12%, the economy sucks and people are very much comparison shopping. During good times I've seen it run 11-18%

 

[chinniecrew]

That is the reason a lot of bigger breeders don't bother with selling to pet folk actually. You have better things to do with your time then getting a picture of every single hair on a chin only for them to say.. you know.. I didn't like that hair in pic. 598367 I think we'll keep looking, but thanks, or as you said, just disappear.

At least you get someone who says No thanks! I've gotten the "I definitely want him/her" and/or make an appointment to come check the chin out then never show or anything. At least tell me if you're not interested. This has been happening to me a lot lately also, to the point where I was getting paranoid

 

[arf2184]

I've gotten the disappearing act ever since I started selling chins. It's just a part of selling anything. Lately I've been seeing it A LOT more though.

I've gotten emails from people that sounded great, asked all the right questions, and then just never wrote back. I don't mind if they've changed their mind or if they found a chin elsewhere. If I've taken the time to write back and forth with someone for a while though, I'd at least like a "thanks, but no thanks". A simple one-liner email is all I ask. Just something like "Thanks for you time, we decided not to get a chin" or "we found a chin elsewhere, but thanks anyway". Just something so I know for sure that they are no longer interested and I don't have any second thoughts about offering the chin to someone else.

 

[Lolie]

I'm not a breeder, but it could be that people are checking out several breeders at the same time. Just a thought. It is incredibly rude for them to not e-mail back though. Even a simple "thanks for the info, but we've decided we're not interested" would help a lot. I know when we were researching the breed of dog we were interested in, we talked to several breeders in the area to compare. Not prices, that wasn't the issue, but their set-up and their dogs. We were completely honest with them though and didn't ask about specific animals, just their operation as a whole and let them know a lot about us to see if they'd be interested in us too. The reason we did that was to weed out the shady breeders. Some seem good, but once you talk to them are really not..like this one lady who refused to let us see the dogs before she brought one out to our car for us to take home. We weren't even allowed to step on her property! I always thought it was standard practice to contact several breeders, but it may be different with chinchillas since there are much fewer chinchilla breeders around! Plus, buyers should be honest about it and have the courtesy to respond even if they aren't interested.

I've always found the deposit to be pretty standard too. Is it out of kindness that a lot of you don't do that? I don't mean to sound judgemental, I'm just curious. It's so frustrating that so many of you have had such bad experiences with buyers!

 

[StarGaz'N]

I agree with Jags. This has been going on for years.

I don't mind getting pics and weights for people, but what I hate is when I answer tons of email from someone, send the info they ask for, and then they just fall off the face of the earth. I would at least appreciate them telling me that they've decided that they are not interested.

I agree.

I just had a person who was interested in purchasing several chins from me. We had been corresponding for a few weeks and even had the date and time set up for us to meet so they could get the chins. I packed up the chins and drove 2.5 hours to the meeting place and they never showed up. I never received an email or a call from them saying something had come up or they had changed their minds. It was very frusterating. I understand that things happen, but a message or call would have been nice.

 

[Lolie]

I packed up the chins and drove 2.5 hours to the meeting place and they never showed up. I never received an email or a call from them saying something had come up or they had changed their minds. It was very frusterating. I understand that things happen, but a message or call would have been nice.

I can't believe someone would do that to you. That's so awful!! I am so angry for you. People like that give good buyers a bad name!

 

[arf2184]

I always thought it was standard practice to contact several breeders, but it may be different with chinchillas since there are much fewer chinchilla breeders around!

It is common for people to shop around and I encourage people who are interested in my chins as just a pet to do so. I give them contact info for other breeders in the area. It's nothing to do with cost. Most of the breeders in the area have around the same prices. I just want to make sure the buyer gets the animal they want. Sometimes it's mine, sometimes it's not. I don't mind so much when they disappear if all they've done is inquire about my herd. If they've said they are seriously interested in a specific animal, or if they've even said they'll send a deposit, and then they disappear, it's very frustrating.

I will not load up a chin to drive more than a 1/2 an hour to meet someone without a deposit. If they're coming here or if we're just meeting in the nearest city (1/2 hour drive), I don't require a deposit unless they want me to hold the animal for more than a week. I figure if they don't show up at my house, I spent a day waiting at home and I'll be annoyed, but no harm done. Chances are I got some cleaning done while I waited. I usually have other things to do in town, so that's no big deal either. Some people don't like to pay a deposit and I understand not wanting to send money to someone you've never met to put towards an animal you haven't seen in person yet.

 

[kwong2001]

Doesn't surprise me, I've found most people are flakes to begin with. I'm trying to sell my motorcycle and I've had about 4 people that seemed VERY interested, but won't go through with actually looking at the bike. Maybe it's because I want cash in hand before test riding?

Anyhoo, back on topic, I exchanged around 7 e-mails with the breeder that owned Zoe. Most of which was because it would basically be my first chinchilla and I wanted to make sure she was right for me. The breeder was really nice and VERY informative, and even after I purchased Zoe I exchanged a good 7 or so e-mails (and one phone call) with additional questions, updates, and pictures. Maybe I'm one of the better buyers to deal with?

 

[Cuddlebug]

You sound like the type of buyer we wish they all were.

 

[Stark Chinchillas]

Happens all the time, but what can you do. Just within the last week I've had probably 7 inquiries and only 3 are coming through so far and the others never even responded back to my response. Oh well.

 

[Ronda]

This happens to me a lot. Instead of taking pictures and weights I try to have the people come and check the chins out - specifically when I am cleaning cages. Yes, they see a dirty cage, but they also see that they are cared for. Scheduling at cleaning times also helps me with no-shows. The cages are cleaned and I didn’t waste time waiting around.

I never deliver without a definite purchase and a down payment. The last time I did that they hadn’t made a deposit and I drove over 7 hours. I actually gave the chin away to the people I was staying with because I don’t feel he would have made it back home due to dehydration and stress. He still has a nice home but I’m out the $$$ I had paid for this chin initially. I learned my lesson fast. I found out later that they had spent too much money at another breeder.

Only in rare cases will I hold an animal and it’s usually for a previous customer.

Ronda

 

[Twilight Chinchillas]

I just tried being nice in the past and have held onto animals with no deposit only to turn away other people, and then miss out on a sale altogether. I no longer hold onto anything unless you have "earned" my trust, paid on time, and I know you very well. What really sucks is when the people you actually know do the same thing, or they owe you money, and then go out and buy from someone else before paying you! That's what kicks you in the pants! I've had this experience more so with breeding birds vs the chins, but it still sucks!

 

[Anne-Lise]

Well I must admit that before buying a chin for breeder I do look and talk to more than one breeder. I ask info. Then when I got everything I need to know, I make the best decision. But I always inform the breeder that I will not be buying chins from them this time.

 

[Ronda]

Yes, Christine, I too have held animals and missed out on a sale. So that doesn't happen around here any more. It does fry me when people owe me money and then go out and purchase from elsewhere too. Nothing we can do about it but not give them credit again.

Anne-Lise - you are a rare person. Most of the time we never hear back from someone hunting for a chin and I have never had anybody contacting me out of the blue telling me that they are talking to other breeders in their search for an animal. I congratulate you on your ethics.

Ronda