Let's talk about "Lists."

This definitely annoys me. I would think if they just put the names of the beers in the title they would probably have a better chance of getting their trade done also.

 

I think if you have more than 3 solid beers (meaning they are all very equal and can make the trade happen) to offer, stating you have a "list" is a good thing. There's only so much room in the title line before things get messy.

 

You really have to be a certain kind of special if you think that forcing people to click on your thread to see whats for trade actually gets you more 'views' as opposed to just typing the beers in the title.

 

As someone who uses lists I agree and disagree. I think it depends on how they are used. I like to give people some options because I don't know what they really want and I have a lot of different beer I can trade. But a lot of people use them for auctions and winning and that is an issue.

 

Agreed. Stop acting like this is eBay or Craigslist and looking for hits.

List your want and your offer. Doesn't work- re work it and try again.

 

The problem with this is that it's just a long shot in the dark, hoping that there's someone out there that: A) currently has the exact beer you're looking for available for trade, B) is looking for the exact beer you're offering for it, and C) happens to be interested in doing a trade and looking at the forum at the right time to see your post. And then when that results in crickets, you have to wait three days before you can post a different combination and hope again that you'll be lucky enough that A, B, and C will all line up. I get that there are problems with lists, but based on my experience, limiting posts to just "ISO: X FT: Y" seems like a recipe for frustration, at least if you're looking for and/or offering anything other than the latest red hot beer of the week.

 

I'm a big fan of lists w/ points – more work to pull together, but it offers a lot of options for working out a successful trade while still making the terms crystal clear.

 

I agree that lists are sometimes abused, but they can be used properly, and within the trading guidelines on the site. Here is an approach I've used more than once, and I'm pretty sure it follows the rules:

I post a thread with the title "ISO: A Beer FT: lists"

Inside the post, I then have 2-3 different lists with instructions that anyone who is interested can select a certain number of items from each list to create a combination of their choosing. It's an easy way to give potential trade partners options while also restricting them to a specific value that I'm willing to trade for the bottle I'm ISO.

It's similar to points, because the beers I'm willing to trade have a specifically defined value with respect to the bottle I'm looking for.

 

I just posted an ISO for one specific beer, then I said see my list. I have an FT list in my profile...but, my post was swiftly deleted.

What is the point of my FT list if my post will be deleted within five seconds because I wasn't "specific" in listing all of my FT beers?

I don't want to tell all of BA that you have to trade me for these five specific beers or else the trade won't happen. I really want to be as open as possible to trading anything and don't want to limit it to a tiny list that may not be relevant to anyone.

I guess I just don't get why my post was deleted so swiftly when BA itself is the one that created our ability to mark our Gots as FT.

Help...? Do they really want me to paste 36 beers into the post, then also offer any and all local breweries that I am willing to go to?

 

While I understand you don't want to limit your potential FTs you are essentially making all prospective traders read all 36 of your Gots and do all the work in setting up the trade. It's a bit lazy imo. Just pull out a set of beers you think are fair offers for your ISO or beers you think will likely get more looks and set that up as your FT offer. You can also make a comment that you have other beers to trade or have access to locals. If after 24 hours you get no bites, mix up the FTs perhaps. Good luck.

 

I see what you're saying, I can try that.

My original thought process was if someone is sitting on the beer I'm looking for, not really intending on drinking it, I'd like them to have the opportunity to speak with me about letting go of it in a fair trade, instead of imposing on them what they must receive. I've had so many disappointing "oh, you just missed it" scenarios trying to get this beer that I'm pretty much out of options now that it's off the market.

Either way I'll see where this goes, thanks.

 

Oh, I can't post an ISO:FT now that I've posted for the day, even though it was deleted.

 

I don't think you are imposing on anyone what you list. Many times people will message asking if you have anything else or they might have looked at your Gots as well and will counter. All it takes is the right set of eyes. Good luck.

 

This. I had the same thing happen. I had a specific ISO and wasn't sure what would get it done, so I wanted to give people options (and they were generous). My post was deleted almost immediately. Right after that I was looking at the forum and I see multiple posts of 'ISO: LIST FT: LIST' and somehow these are left up. At least be consistent about what is allowed.

 

More often than not, we rely on user reports for things like this. We're not actively reading each and every trade post.

 

Makes me wonder do folks get dinged for abusing the report function? Some of these seem like a stretch.