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@*tippy*toes* wrote:I had a listing once that was $18 with $7 postage. A got a message from a "buyer" that went so that something like "you will sell this to me for $9 and free postage".
I'd probably just say something like I'm sorry [buyer], I'm afraid I can't do that. (It's fairly innocuous, I know, but personally amuses me).
The kind of messages I get aren't usually quite that bad. One was just a (potential) buyer whose entire message was along the lines of 'I don't see why I should have to pay postage when I live a couple mins away from [item location suburb]'. That just got a short but polite reply explaining all my items are posted (I don't do pick up. Ever), so that's why they would indeed have to pay postage if they purchased.
Another one that sticks out started off well enough (enquiring about pick up) but when I said no, twice, they suddenly turned rude and agressive. I responded to the first one, because they were accusatory and I had my 'listen here, punk' mode triggered, but I went silent after that.
More recently, I received a surprising message from someone who wanted to complain about my postage costs, and the items. I won't go into too much detail, but I will say they went so far as to suggest they spent years contemplating whether or not to buy a particularly cheap item, thus heightening their apparent disappointment. I was fairly happy with my reply to that one, which was more matter of fact than anything else.
One seller I know of once received a message that opened with something like 'hey, f$%# face'. Now something like that I would definitely just block and ignore. 
The problem is that most rude people don't know they're being rude, and they never will know because they just can't see themselves. If anyone treats them the same way, of course the other person is being terribly rude. Note I did not say all rude people!
I had someone send an unsolicited offer the other day and she expected free postage, which would have cost me $5. I decided after the last thread on this subject that I really don't want to sell to rude buyers at all so I asked her which two meals did she think I should go without so she can live in luxury. 
Wow, did she tell me I was rude?!!! I thought it was hilarious and was quite grateful that she'd decided to buy elsewhere. She told me I'd only get a couple of bowls of noodles for $3 anyway. It was actually $5 and I was soooo tempted to respond but I left well alone after that (I'd already put her on my BBL before I answered).
What always gets me is that people say "it's only $3", as though I'm being lousy, but if it's only $3, why are they quibbling over it???
@kopenhagen5 wrote:You are probably right but try this.
Think of the person as being a kind old genuine gentleman, very well dressed and has a beautiful smile on his face as he writes the message.
Now re-read the message.
Sorry, a kind old genuine gentleman wouldn't have said it that way. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks..."
They've put plenty of effort into explaining about the wife working in a PO so why so abrupt with the other questions, and the last bit is definitely condescending, as in "I'd do you a big favour and take it off your hands if you were more reasonable on postage (and not so incompetent)." I'd be more worried about the first two questions than the bit about postage, actually.
If it's a well dressed old gentleman that's because he dresses on the savings from twisting sellers' arms up their backs. 
