Starting a Trade Page

[bmd]

I am fairly new to collecting videos. I started with Van Halen and DLR. Now I pretty much collect Metallica now. Any suggestions on creating a trade page or trading advice would be appreciated.I would like to expand on my hobby. My friends dont collect and don't understand why I do.

[King_Nothing]

I am fairly new to collecting videos. I started with Van Halen and DLR. Now I pretty much collect Metallica now. Any suggestions on creating a trade page or trading advice would be appreciated.I would like to expand on my hobby. My friends dont collect and don't understand why I do.

Welcome to the game man, I am not the best one to seek for advice on a website, but with trading, feel free to browse our trader database for some insight as to who is a good, reliable trader here at metpage.
Also, if you are into filming, that is a great way to acquire a bunch of shows that you do not have. Offer your master recording(s) as trade bait
Until you are comfortable trading via mail, I would hold off on doing HUGE trades at a time, I have heard some horror stories where someone will arrange a 50 disc+ trade with someone, and then gets ripped off. Not a good way to start.

I have been trading for the better part of 8 years now, and have a collection of around 2500 shows on DVD & some of my friends think im bonkers & some love it and know they can come to me when they want to see a certain show. I've gotten a few of my buddies into trading and they love it.

[jcfuel]

... some of my friends think im bonkers & some love it and know they can come to me when they want to see a certain show. I've gotten a few of my buddies into trading and they love it.

Same here, some friends dont get me. They ask me, why you should have different sources from the same show or, why get the show from the 25,26,27. But then, they borrow some show they are interested on watching.

[Metfan72]

Hi there and welcome to the Trading Game.

For the most part it is fun getting to know new people and on the other hand it is a ton of work burning shows and shipping. Myself I am fairly new to Internet trading.

Depending on how far you want to go with this, start off with an Excel file just so you have things filed properly. I went with the Rolls Royce of websites for my collection because I saw others with big collections with them and the interface is very easy to use. Yes it takes time and effort to create pages with decent screens, but it will all be worth it in the end when the work is done. It is a viable tool to have as other traders can view your list and see quality of shows from the screens posted.

See where you want to go with trading. Is this something you feel you can continue to do in the long run, then by all means look into getting a webpage, but most traders use text docs or Excel to keep track of what they have.

And as Shawn has already said, keep trades to a minimum of 10 discs until you get to know people and then they can increase when you feel comfortable with someone.

There is also a great sub section on traders and you can go in there and check each persons name and see how much "Feedback" they have and if you think you could trust them to do larger trades. I have been lucky so far as I have run into some awesome people and traders on here and I really think you will find most traders on here very loyal and trustworthy.

Good luck and if you have any questions, fire away as there are tons of great people on here willing to lend a hand.

Cheers

[maidencolorado]

When you set up your list, however you decide to do it, make sure it is something easy for you to update and keep track of. I use a Microsoft Works database with 3 fields for information, band, date and location. As I add shows, I sort the records first by band and then by date, keeps everything in alphabetical order as well as in order by date with just a couple clicks of the mouse.

There are other traders here who are using sites like Metfan72 is and I was thinking about doing that, but I've got nearly 2000 shows on DVD and can't justify the time it would take me to set up a site like that. If you're interested in using a site like that, I'd recommend doing it before your collection gets out of hand.

Also would recommend sticking to smaller trades to get started, look for people willing to do B&Ps or 2 for 1s, and hit some torrents if you are able to.

Welcome to the addiction

[deadone]

indeed 1st of welcome to the forums.
as for setting up trades etc, a few things as you are just starting off, there is a traders database here and well worth checking out to find reliable traders who are not gonna rip you off..
so far i have had the pleasure in al the time i have been trading of not having a bad1. so traders sections on peoples sites also are worth looking into.
also if your just starting and your collection is small then i can only suggest that if your in this for the long term then new shows are gonna be coming your way thick and fast so you might want to either make your own site or check out the MHS **** http://www.myhobbysite.net/
mhs is used by quite a few people here and you can view there sites from the link above.

i myself had no intention in bootleg trading as it started off i went to a few shows, wanted to see if i could find the audio for those shows and hey presto, years later im still at it lol:)

if you have anything you want to ask then feel free, there are more than enough great members here willing to hepl you out if possible.

mick

[Ansem]

Use weebly.com to make a good, free and easy to use site.
Add info pages for the bootlegs and then advertise a bit. (Post your site on trading forums.)
(http://maggotbootlegs.weebly.com/dvd-bootlegs.html This is my site for if you need an example.)

What I did was add info for all my bootlegs before I started trading, didn't have a lot of them at that moment.
When you receive new discs, add them as soon as possible. When you delay it, the pack of DVDs to add grows bigger and bigger. (Still have a pack next to me... )

Make a .txt file for each month and add which discs are incomming (and from who), which discs you still need to add and which discs are already added that month.
It gives you a good view for the trades that aren't finished yet.
When the month is over, just make a new .txt file. When there are still open trades and discs to add to your site, copy them into the new .txt file.

[LeperMessiah26]

Tips on trading

Be nice, polite, and courteous, it DOES NOT pay to be a dick!
Give as much info about the show as possible, especially when using an excel or txt list
Have fun, this is a hobby, not a way of life!!
When you first start, get used to being declined, most people will have what you do, be polite, and say thanks anyway, move on to the next person, dont dwell on it, or get angry!

For a trade page, ask yourself, will i do this for a while? If yes, then see Spawn about his MHS software, Deadone posted the link.
Its the future of trade pages imo!!