I was raised a packrat.
It became a problem. After 32 years I'd accumulated enough junk that I'd have trouble finding what I need, because I'd have to sift through piles of stuff that I hadn't touched in years -- and didn't anticipate using ever again.
So, I started on a quest to rid myself of the things I don't need. I even gave it a cool codename: Operation Nuke And Pave. The idea is a "fresh start," which I know is a little contrived, but the goal is worthwhile nonetheless. At any rate, I'm now in the process of trying to sell off a bunch of stuff that I really never use, mainly through Craigslist.
What I've noticed over the past few months, however, is that I keep getting the same questions, many of which are answered in my ad. I found myself repeating the same few things over and over again in my replies, which quite frankly became a bit of a pain and filled my inbox with a lot of needless messages. So, I decided it was time to unclutter my uncluttering (okay, it's not a great catch phrase, but I'm working on it).
I created an e-mail address with a single purpose: receive any query from an interested buyer, forward it to my personal e-mail address, and automatically reply to them with an FAQ of sorts (the Unitasker Wednesdays writers are probably already up in arms!).
Using Gmail, this is simple: just enable the "Vacation Responder" in Settings and enter the response you want to send, and then create a Filter that forwards any e-mail you receive to your personal address. Here's what mine says; feel free to use it and customize it for your purposes.
Hello,
Thanks for your interest. I'm in the process of selling a lot of stuff, so due to the amount of e-mail I receive, I've set up this autoresponder to help ensure efficiency for both of us. Your e-mail has been forwarded to my personal account and I'll get back to you ASAP. In the meanwhile, please review the important information below.
First, please note that I take a lot of time to ensure that my postings are thorough and accurate. If you've got a question about the item, please make sure that it's not already answered in the ad.
Additionally, here are the answers to some frequently asked questions that I receive:
AVAILABILITY: I do my best to remove my postings as soon as the item is sold. If you can see my ad, then it's 99.9% likely that the item still available for sale.
PRICE: I try to make sure that the price I ask is fair and comparable to market value. If you want to negotiate, send me an offer -- don't just ask me to "give you a better price." If it's reasonable, I'll consider it. If it isn't, I'll counteroffer. Please note that I may not be willing to negotiate on the particular item you want to buy.
HOLDING ITEMS AND DEPOSITS: I follow the rule of first-come-first-serve. The first person to pay me receives the item. The only exception to this is if you're willing to put down a non-refundable deposit of 10% of the selling price. If you choose to put down a deposit, I'll hold the item for a period of time that we agree to (not exceeding five days) and will not take any offers from other buyers during this period. Please note that I'll only take a deposit on items with a selling price of $100 or more.
COMMUNICATIONS: I prefer to maintain communication with you via e-mail unless we set a time and place to meet. I won't give out my phone number until then, nor will I ask for yours. This ensures that we both have a written record of what we agreed to, which protects both our interests.
PHOTOS: If there are photos in the posting, they are photos of the actual item I'm selling, unless it says otherwise.
If your e-mail is answered by the above, I'll simply reply to ask if you have any other questions. If it asks something other than what's in this autoresponse, I'll of course answer to the best of my ability.
Thanks again for your cooperation,
- Angelo
It's not exactly short, but it does cover pretty much all the questions that I typically receive about my postings. Once I receive their original query, I can discard any redundant question and get right to the point: a smooth, easy transaction for both parties.
The autoresponse is received immediately by the sender -- and is far more likely to be read than a big, overly-explicit ad or a link to a self-hosted FAQ with the same information. I thought I'd share this with you all, in case it's of use to you as well!
