How long can Armslist last?

[bullseyeman]

As of this morning, there were less than 800 listings on Armslist of which only 500 were private party! (Vegas).less This is more than 50% less than the number prior to Armslist introduction of fees. I have no idea what the numbers are like in the rest of the country but this does not bode well for the future of Armslist I would think.

 

[MAC702]

What was Armslist's revenue stream before these new fees?

 

[bullseyeman]

What was Armslist's revenue stream before these new fees?

Privately held company so there is no info available. They have always charged dealers plus commercial ads.

 

[JR3]

you need to have a paid account to contact as well as sell.

 

[Janizary]

you need to have a paid account to contact as well as sell.

Yep. And I think that was the more asinine of their changes. It is one thing to have paid listings, but another for a potential buyer to have to pay to even ask a question.

I started listing a burner email (spaced) to get around that in AL ads. Went from getting no contact (okay, almost none) to getting several and making sales since doing so.

 

[MAC702]

...They have always charged dealers plus commercial ads.

So those who paid those fees received the benefit of exposure to the large nonpaying audience that browsed the ads. With less audience now, the commercial advertisers now have a lot less exposure for their money. Perhaps not all the math was done on their decision.

 

[VegasPlinking]

What was Armslist's revenue stream before these new fees?

It was an ad revenue model before their new fees. I think they would have been better off keeping the platform free but charging sellers to promote and “bump” posts to the top of their feeds.

 

[tdyoung58]

It'll be all commercial dealers soon. Almost is now. Ones that have a contact number in the llisting.I think Armslist is killing itself with the pay to contact a sellers listing.

If I'm going to sell a gun online, I'll use GunBroker. Only pay for the item listing instead of a subscription.

 

[Dr. Marneaus]

Gone are the days of easy private party advertising, sales, and transfers.

Not only are we having to fight the left and absurd laws, but now we are losing our ability to even communicate about it openly. Yes, I understand these are private companies and can do whatever they want. That is their prerogative. However, Backpage went away due to some nefarious (poop), but that was my main sales and purchase method in Vegas, aside from this website. Then Commiebook banned anything to do with sales of guns. Then Armslist starts charging. Now GunBroker is charging tax.


Whether its because they were forced to, or they are just moving this way on their own, hitting comapnies and buyers in the pocketbook is a highly effective strategy to slow or even completely stop the open access to advertisements and classifieds etc.


Anybody want to come help me dig out the hole under this rock that I'm gonna go live under?

 

[linny]

Armslist was one of the primary reasons UBC got passed in Nevada as well as Backpage before it was taken down.

Unfortunately there was a lot of illegal activity going on which kept getting highlighted on local news etc.

I hated posting as a private seller a handgun and the 30 responses from Californians saying "If I pay you an extra $200 will you sell to me?"

Or, "If I show you a NV ID that's all I need right? I don't need a background check?" (obvious prohibited person).

That and there was always the people who played games all the time. Show up in person to do a sale and they "forgot" to bring the full amount.

Maybe other people's experiences were different but mine were never positive and I always liked the trading post here.

Regarding your notice about the 50 billion ads yeah it's annoying, but I didn't know you needed a paid account to contact sellers. It must be going the way of Craigslist now (dead).

 

[jsprads]

Armslist was one of the primary reasons UBC got passed in Nevada as well as Backpage before it was taken down.

Unfortunately there was a lot of illegal activity going on which kept getting highlighted on local news etc.

I hated posting as a private seller a handgun and the 30 responses from Californians saying "If I pay you an extra $200 will you sell to me?"

Or, "If I show you a NV ID that's all I need right? I don't need a background check?" (obvious prohibited person).

That and there was always the people who played games all the time. Show up in person to do a sale and they "forgot" to bring the full amount.

Maybe other people's experiences were different but mine were never positive and I always liked the trading post here.

Regarding your notice about the 50 billion ads yeah it's annoying, but I didn't know you needed a paid account to contact sellers. It must be going the way of Craigslist now (dead).

CCW for guns, full amount of cash agreed, buyer coming to me if cash, might meet in the middle if trade, and don't be afraid to walk away. Solved a lot of problems for me.

 

[BerlinerBear]

I had mostly positive experiences buying and selling on Armslist. You just have to use some common sense and follow your instincts. Yes, there were a few flakes, but mostly transactions went smoothly. I checked the site this morning and they are down to 330ish private sales. It won't be long.