Doing the little things when selling - based on price, of course...

modessitt

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Doing the little things when selling - based on price, of course...

I'm not going to be specific, as it'll just cause shit from someone who already doesn't like me for no good reason that I can ascertain.

When you sell a working game, do you do the little things that make the game a more attractive buy:

1) Take a little magic eraser and clean up the control panel or side art/cabinet.
2) Pull off some easy-to-remove brackets/trim pieces/bolts that show some rust or wear and sand and paint them.
3) Put in a lock with a key?
4) Replace burnt-out coin door lights?
5) Fix burnt marquee lamps?
6) Wipe down the cabinet (especially the top!) and clean all the glass/plexi?
7) Etc.

Or do you just feel happy the monitor comes on and a game can be played, and figure only arcade hobbyists are going to be looking to buy your game anyway and they should be able to take care of that stuff on their own?

What about price? Let's say an average-condition working game (no-rebuilt monitor, etc) normally sells for $400. If one is listed at $300 or less, you probably don't care as long as the game works. For $300-500, you'd expect it to at least look as nice as possible. For $500 or above, you'd expect everything on it to be nice and rebuilt, right? Or do you expect the nice stuff closer to $300 or $400?

I remember when Scott (TxHotShot) with Hyperspace Arcade used to post ads for "totally refurbished" games, and someone would bitch about coin door or control panel bolt heads being rusty. Yet there are machines listed for sale here every day (one in particular that peaked my interest in this topic) that has several of the items on my list above not done to it (at least as seen in the pictures posted in the ad), even though the price is not sub-$400.

Now, to be fair, the game looks very nice as-is, and I don't think the price is out-of-line at all, as I'd probably ask something similar for the same machine, but as it only takes about 20-30 minutes total to do the 3 or 4 little things to make it nicer (at almost no expense to the seller), why not do so? You might pull in that casual buyer who wasn't looking specifically for an arcade game, but might if they think it looks "nice enough" that their wife/gf won't bitch too much about it being in their house.

Every working game I sell gets the little things done, even if it's a cheap sale. I do this because I'm a tech and the game is going out with my name and reputation on it. A lot of times, this might be someone's first game, and you want them to be happy with it, and maybe come back for more.

So, what do y'all think about the "little things" when it comes to selling? Or even as a buyer? Does it make you more likely to buy a machine if the price is what you expect, but you can see the little things have been done to make it nicer?

Discuss...
 
I dont have the time to go through all the "small things" that you mention. This month alone i have sold about 45 machines. There just isnt the time to do all that. Granted, I actually point out lots of those things to my customers and explain that I can do all that, just that the game will not be as cheap as it is right now. I get 75.00 an hour, so if you want to pay that rate for me to change a light bulb, fine, but its alot cheaper to do it your self.

But along with what you say. There is no price range in mind that should or should not be expected to have the small things done. You mentioned something about a game over 500 should have it. Well if i can get a quantum for 1000.00 and the marquee light doesnt work and the game dont have locks, then i still would take the deal. On the other hand, if i pay 300.00 for a cheesy jamma conversion game (which i wouldnt do) then i would expect it to have every little thing working, freshly painted, and a blowjob from the sellers wife, just my opinion
 
I dont have the time to go through all the "small things" that you mention. This month alone i have sold about 45 machines. There just isnt the time to do all that. Granted, I actually point out lots of those things to my customers and explain that I can do all that, just that the game will not be as cheap as it is right now. I get 75.00 an hour, so if you want to pay that rate for me to change a light bulb, fine, but its alot cheaper to do it your self.

My opinion on this is that - if you are a retailer and you're not selling games with working marquees, locks in the coin door, clean cabinets, etc, then you'd better be selling games for $200 or less, even that Quantum. I work for a retailer, too, and know that every $700-800 game we sell was probably picked up for under $100 and had a total of maybe $100 worth of parts done to it (if that, sometimes only $20 in parts). To say you can't spare 30 minutes to ensure you get that $600 profit is ridiculous. And to tell a customer, "Yeah, I know the screen's dark or the control panel's rusty, but I can fix all that for an extra $200" is ridiculous, too.

It's different if you are doing a repair job for a game they already own. Then it's all about what they want to pay for. But if they are buying something YOU own, then they should get it fully working - or extremely cheap.

But along with what you say. There is no price range in mind that should or should not be expected to have the small things done. You mentioned something about a game over 500 should have it. Well if i can get a quantum for 1000.00 and the marquee light doesnt work and the game dont have locks, then i still would take the deal. On the other hand, if i pay 300.00 for a cheesy jamma conversion game (which i wouldnt do) then i would expect it to have every little thing working, freshly painted, and a blowjob from the sellers wife, just my opinion

I mentioned $500 for a game that is normally priced at $400, not for a game that is normally priced for $1000 or more, so your entire argument here is irrelevant...
 
I made sure my Burgertime looked as close to new as I possibly could when I sent it off. I even took it out to dinner at Olive Garden. Peter Pepper loves their breadsticks.
 
I've always thought it works the same way as selling a car: wash it, vacuum it out, wipe some Armor-All on the tires and dash, make sure to take the pic where you can't see the tent in the left rear corner panel, etc.

Nobody wants to pay decent money for a car filled with old McDonald's bags and dirty socks, with dead bugs and bird shit all over it, no matter how good it runs...
 
I haven't sold a game, but when purchasing games I appreciate it when someone takes 30 minutes to clean it and repaint rusty bolt heads. I've been fortunate in that the last couple of games I purchased have been pretty clean.

One item I'll add to your list is "odor removal". I purchased a game a couple of years ago from a retailer, one that you actually mention, and he didn't bother to put a box of baking soda or other measures to remove a strong mildew smell. The smell dismissed after a few minutes of cleaning and adding a box of baking soda for a couple of days.
 
1) Take a little magic eraser and clean up the control panel or side art/cabinet.
2) Pull off some easy-to-remove brackets/trim pieces/bolts that show some rust or wear and sand and paint them.
3) Put in a lock with a key?
4) Replace burnt-out coin door lights?
5) Fix burnt marquee lamps?
6) Wipe down the cabinet (especially the top!) and clean all the glass/plexi?
7) Etc.

1) CP: Yes. Sides just get wiped down with 409.
2) No
3) Yes. All locks are replaced and back panel area fixed so locks work again.
4) Yes! These are CHEAP to replace.
5) YES YES YES! Irritating that a $7 bulb and starter combo has been left off.
6) Yes! Dirt reduces prices that people want to pay.
7) Yes - Monitors are recapped. Wiring that has been butchered will be fixed. Properly.

I don't paint unless it's a back door that I built that needs to be painted black. I leave most cosmetic stuff up to the buyer.

I'll replace buttons/sticks, clean buttons/sticks/control panels and do a wipedown of the rest of the cab to clean it up. BUT, I'll leave the rest of the painting and other items like that to the buyer.

I fix and make sure the electronics will last a long time. I'm not a carpenter or a professional refinisher. I don't have a T-molding bit or a router either.

RJ
 
Well, certain cabs, if the smell is too bad (like cat piss), I tend to just pull the parts, chunk the cab, then save the parts for another cab....
 
I don't paint unless it's a back door that I built that needs to be painted black. I leave most cosmetic stuff up to the buyer.

I'll replace buttons/sticks, clean buttons/sticks/control panels and do a wipedown of the rest of the cab to clean it up. BUT, I'll leave the rest of the painting and other items like that to the buyer.

I fix and make sure the electronics will last a long time. I'm not a carpenter or a professional refinisher. I don't have a T-molding bit or a router either.

RJ

Well, I'll paint a coin door, or the inside monitor area (like a Pac-Man or something) if it's all scuffed up. I'll even fix broken corners with bondo and repaint if I can do so without having to replace entire side art.

Now, I have no problem doing full side art and professional restorations, too, but I can't do it and still sell the game for the cheap original art price.

BUT - I don't list it for sale at one price then tell the customer I can do "extra" for more money. I figure out what I want to do before selling it, and a price I want to get for it - and do it all BEFORE listing it. (This is for my own personal games, btw.)

For example. I have an extra Tempest that looks nice and I already have a few people interested at $600. It isn't fixed yet, which is why it isn't for sale yet. Now, the side art, cpo, and marquee could be replaced to make it look brand-new again, but will I be able to get enough for it to justify the extra work? The artwork alone will cost me $252 + shipping. Add in the time to strip, prep, and redo the cab, and I'd need to ask close to $1200 to make it worth my time. Maybe I'd get it. Maybe I wouldn't. Still, the marquee, coin door, etc will be done regardless of whether I sell it for $600 or $1200...
 
Modessitt I appreciate your details I also try to do the little things that make it a little nicer but its more of caring about what you do I don't think the price of the game has anything to do with it I think its the pride you put into everything because ultimately its your name on it whether its a game or your job or what ever that's what were all judged by just my opionion ?
 
Whenever I get to the point of selling extra games, I would definitely clean them up a bit to get them looking presentable. If I had some extra lamps for the coin door or a new light for the marquee I would probably install those as well.

So far out of the games I have picked up, I wish the sellers would have done some of the above. (But I haven't really bought any games from serious collectors)

Right now, most of my coin door lamps are burned out... and its a pain to try and track down and order the correct replacements.
 
I do that too all my games, clean them up, new lights, paint, buttons, joysticks, etc., there all fixed up before I sell them.
As for buying I don't expect anything. I expect to buy a dirty old worn down cabinet and clean, fix it up myself.
 
Real quick lesson.

Keep your standards high. Keep them higher than any competition. You will succeed.

Goes for anything you do....including these games!

If you can live with the games going out in "halfway" done condition, that is completely up to you. However, with you even asking the question, you already know the answer. :)
 
However, with you even asking the question, you already know the answer. :)

Yeah, but I actually brought it up in reaction to a particular post, but made it generic to not seem as if I was bitching about someone in particular.

Not that it's really a bitch. More like a shaking of the head, a 'tsk tsk tsk', and a "I though this guy was serious about selling games, and then he posts a pic where any experienced arcade guy can look at it for a few seconds and point out 3 different things that take less than 10 minutes to take care of" kind of thing...
 
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