How do you feel about some people in the book bazaar ( wish list multipules , asking for orders of 3-4 )     I dont often find that many wl books I want and I refuse to order a bunch I dont want to get just to get the 1 or maybe 2 , but I will sometimes order the 2...I understand wanting to save on postage , but really four?   A few weeks ago I took a chance and asked someone if they would consider just 2..(they wanted 4)....I got no response at all.  They still have them, so is it better to have to hang on to them, or have orders. I thought this is a book swapping site?

I have put books in there as well , mine have asked for 2 ( or more) but many times I've sent singles.

Just your thoughts..

Like you I can seldom find 2 books on the multiple WL book site, but if I really want a book I'll order 2 (usually look for the one that has the most wishers), and when it comes I'll repost it.

I haven't yet ordered anything from someone who wants 3 or 4 books on the multiple WL site, but unless there really were something that I'd been waiting for and it hadn't come up in a long time I probably wouldn't go for the 3-4 deal.

Pat

Sometimes I'll go for the minimum request listed, sometimes I'll just pass. Occasionally I'll ask if they'd do a request of __ instead of __. If they won't or I've passed on it altogether then the listing simply wasn't for me.

I'm not saying that I don't understand (and sometimes feel) the frustration. On the other hand, while I don't have a Multiples post at the moment, I sometimes have books that I'm a bit on the fence about. For those I wouldn't take a lower request because it simply wouldn't be worth it. It would obviously be preferable for the requester to be able to scoop the 1-2 that they want, but it wouldn't be worth it to send them because I'm not 100% done with the titles.

I know it's not always the case, but in that instance it might not make sense at first glance. "Why would you list them at all if you're not done with them?" Good point. The thing is that if I'm mostly done with them and need credits then the combined shipping for that many can be the difference between listing them at all.

Also, and this is going to be the most unpopular answer, I can personally trade DVDs easier and more cheaply than books (not true for everyone). If I need credits I'm more likely to drop a movie into the system because I can watch it in about 2 hours (or skim it in less if it's a stinker) but a book requires more of a time commitment so the higher minimum helps make up the difference since DVDs are lighter and can contain more discs/credits in the box.

I'm not trying to say that everyone has a good reason, but everyone's reasons are different and it may just be how they need to offer particular titles to be able to offer them. Like I said, I do see several in the WL Multiples that I'm interested in, just... not along with X others.

Thanks for your answers ladies , just wanted to see what people think of them..

feel free to keep sharing your take on this everyone.

Lots of times I have to pass. I couldnt see using credits on books I didnt want or read already just to get a WL book. Then again, I dont have a lot of credits so I really want to use them on what I want.

I also think if you want 3-4 , then don't have a relatively short list with the line of can be combined with my bookshelf. I've seen people want 3 or more with a list of only 6. (Then you order from their shelf)

I am guessing that people with bigger minimum quants don't "need" the credits OR also don't care about space in their homes. If you were desperate for credits, you'd have smaller quants just to get the credits. So consider those folks less pressed to do deals.

I have a huge post in the thread always. At one point I had a 3 minimum, mostly because I didn't need the credits. But I want books out! So I have a quant of 2 -basically the lowest you can have to be IN the multiples thread haha. Also, I include a free one, so it's really 3 WL books for 2 credits! I don't actually need credits right now, I have about 11, but I want the books out of my apartment and this way, I can get a credit or too. The other option is library donation, which I do when things get out of hand. 

ETA: The only thing that makes me go DAFUQ (sorry, I am LATE to this one and it is my new favorite saying) is when someone asks for a minimum of 3 or 4, but like, they ONLY HAVE 3 books posted. So "minimum of 3 of these" and it's like, only those 3 books. Yeah, no.

I've seen your posts in the WL multiples Heather and it is always long! It would be easier to find 3 in your long list :-)

So "minimum of 3 of these" and it's like, only those 3 books. Yeah, no.

Yepp..sometimes it isnt even a series either.

I won't order books I don't want just to get one I do.  I don't keep a lot of credits on hand and don't want to bother with reposting and wrapping and mailing a book I haven't read and didn't want in the first place.

Yes, the minimum of three with a list of 4 or 5 books is ridiculous.  I don't even look then.

I post titles in that thread often. I ask for peeps to request two books. It seems to work for me and for the peeps wanting those books.

I rarely find more than one or two books that I want when looking at what others post.

I just go by what I'd be willing to spend (credit wise) for a WL book. Now that the minimum price of selling credits is $3, ordering two books for one that I really want values that one book at $6.  If I have to order three books for the one I really want, I'm spending $9. And I'm stuck with two books that I don't want.

Only speaking for me, my trades have slowed there. I post books and sometimes get takers. I've noticed that many peeps I used to trade with are no longer here or aren't as active.

My goal is to move books out of our house. Space is limited. I want to make it easier for folks to request my books from that thread. If the titles linger, I post them FIFO or donate them.

Guess the book bazaar is fine but I personally have never found even 2 books to order. Not so desperate that I will order something I have no interest in just to get something I want. There are other options.

Personally, I only ask for orders of 2 minimum.

I will only order 3 or more if I actually want all 3 (or more) books. So, most of those offers I do bypass.

And I don't make anybody turn off their RCs. I'm just upfront about which ones I would need to decline (pets) so people can turn off if they want to. I've mailed more than 2000 books and I've NEVER had any problem with people's RCs.

Pet peeves:

1. Short offer lists combined with high # minimum orders.

2. High minimum # orders, combined with a book offer list where most/all the books are completely unrelated ... like a list of 3 mysteries, 5 non-fiction about completely different topics and 1 cookbook, etc.

3. "You must take all these books in this series because I want to mail them together". Why? It makes no sense to me at all. You are immediately cutting out all the people who 1. Want to try the series but not order ALL the books immediately; 2. Would be perfectly happy with 1 or 2 from the middle of the series because that's where they are at in it; 3. the people who are caught up and just need the newest book; 4. people who have a couple of the books already but not all of them.

I never do that and I don't have ANY trouble getting rid of the middle or beginning books of a series.

Even worse: "these are not even in a series, they are just by the same author but I want to mail them all together." "These are 2 cookbooks not in the same series and not by the same author but just in the same cuisine and I want to mail them together"

4. Lists that are not readable or organized in some fashion, preferable by genre.

So ... yeah, I only go rarely to the Bazaar because it's not worth the time spent sorting thru all those badly organized lists.

I have ordered 3 or 4 books at a time in the BB, but it's rare, and it's usually from someone who has a lot of books in one category. I'm sure they don't expect to get many orders but know that if they get one or two they will get several credits at once.

The thing that frustrates me is when someone posts in the multiples thread and only has 3 books. This makes no sense to me.

i have posted quite a few books in the multiples thread lately and never had any of them requested. i only have a 2 book minimum. must not have very desirable titles. oh well.

I don’t mind people asking for orders of multiples of any quantity. I offer them myself in that thread and I’m fine sending only two or even only one. Eventually I just post them regularly since I’m not too concerned with postage costs; bundling is simply for the convenience with the extra benefit of paying less (postage) for more credits. The only time I don’t want to send fewer is when I’m offering a series as I really like to send those out intact, regardless of how many books are involved.

I guess I feel that way regarding keeping the series together because I’m so mentally invested in compiling the series. Often I’ve waited many years on the WL to accumulate them and struggled to curate them since there were times when it was really difficult to figure out books in the series as well as the series order. I want to help someone else from having to do that. 

Linda, that makes sense, but most people who know they are interested in a series, know that because they have already read some of the books, or they have a few of them already. I think it's pretty rare to find a person who owns or has read zero books in a series, and yet is interested enough in them to get all of them.  

But who knows, maybe you dont have any trouble getting rid of whole series ...

With almost 600 books on my TBR mountain, I will not order extras just to get one I want.  I seldom look at the book bazaar because I am getting WL books weekly plus I get them by playing in the games  ( much faster than waiting for them on the WL ).

i do not often get an order for two or more books and do not often order more than one unless they are in a series I am reading.  It does irritate me to see mandates for ordering 2 or more from someone's shelf, but I understand the desire to save on postage.  

Sara said:  But who knows, maybe you dont have any trouble getting rid of whole series ..

Actually, many times I don't. It often does depend on how many of the series books are WL. If it's an older one than it's more difficult since I guess others do have them alreadly. When I don't get a lot of responses I start to PM members on the WL for later ones to let them know I have the set and can offer a deal on any multiples they want. I do post as a deal with the heading saying for "Binge Readers". I just sent a dozen books together in a little box for $5.35 PBS postage and tracking. Cheaper than buying credits or earning them one-by-one not to mention the task of wrapping that many books individually to mail separately (and trying not to mix up so many packages, lol).