ABOUT LBE
LightbarsEtc.com was published on 8/22/02.
It started out as a very small site used by the owners to sell items that were prohibited on popular auction sites. Since LightbarsEtc.com was published a year ago August 03, it has grown astonishingly fast and currently has over 1000 registered users, and thousands of individual items reported as sold from LightbarsEtc. As of November of 05, we have had 300,000 hits.
LightbarsEtc.com is ran, maintained and administered by a very small staff with the majority of the work being updated and monitored manually.
LightbarsEtc was designed to give Public Safety, E.M.S., firefighters, volunteers, SAR and public works employees the opportunity to purchase new or used equipment and gear at great prices without the hassle of waiting and watching for an auction to end just to be outbid at the last moment. Shopping at LightbarsEtc.com gives you the opportunity to simply buy an item you see or even work out a deal or a trade with the seller of an item.
It's secondary function is to give individuals or companies the opportunity to sell new or used equipment without the sometimes large listing fees and even larger final value fees that can delete a large portion of the overall profit of a sell.
For the first year of operation, LightbarsEtc.com was a 100% free site. During the first year, we have had to make several upgrades regarding our server fees, hosting and bandwidth to maintain the operation. Thus, we have had to implement some small listing fee options to keep the site operational and running smooth. These fees will only pertain to users who are listing items that are $75.00 and above. All items listed under $75.00 will remain free to list! Our price scale and options are as follows.
A flat rate of only $5.00 per item above $75.00 for 90 days! or until your item is sold,
or,
$50.00 for six months of unlimited listings. You can list as many items as you wish and have them active for the six month period!
As of 8/03, payments on a "per item" basis can be made through paypal to LightbarsEtc@comcast.net. If you are not familiar with paypal, it is very easy to get set up with and you can pay with a credit card. If you do not like paypal, money orders, cashiers checks or personal checks are accepted as well for "per item" or the six month plan. Personal checks will be held until they are cleared. Your item(s) will be listed in most cases within 24 hours of receiving payment and item submission information.
What do I do to get started?
First, fill out the registration form, ( if you are not a registered user.) Once you are registered and you receive your registration confirmation email, simply go to the "Sell Your Item" page, select which payment option is best for your situation. Fill in the appropriate information regarding your item and click on the submit button. Then, just email us a photo or photos of your item to LightbarsEtc@comcast.net. It is not required to have a photo, but it greatly increases the probability of a fast sell. *For security reasons, only images in JPG, JPEG, GIF OR BMP formats will be accepted. All others will be deleted. Images will be resized to 350 pixels wide, the vertical size can be how long you need it to be. . If you need assistance with resizing your image just send it to us and we can do that for you prior to listing your item.
What should I expect as a seller?
When an item is initially listed, it will be displayed in the appropriate category as a thumbnail image with a link to a larger image with the information submitted on the submission form. It is also displayed on a "New Listing" page where it will remain as a new listing for 7 days. Within the 7 days, items get on the average of 200+ hits. After 7 days has expired, it is removed from the new listing page but it will remain in the appropriate category until the item is sold or the allocated time frame has expired.
When a buyer or interested party wants to purchase your item or inquire about it, he / she fills out the information on a form next to your item information and photo. You will receive an automatic email form our servers. *DO NOT REPLY DIRECTLY TO THE EMAIL! All of the information you will need to get in contact with the individual inquiring about your item will be in the email that is sent to you. You can either copy and paste the email address or just click on the email address to reply.
Is LightbarsEtc.com safe to buy from?
In the first year of operation, we have had complaints regarding only three of the near 1000 registered users and over 2000 items successfully sold! We have implemented and encourage users to use a "Grading Form" This allows registered users to "grade" the transactions with individuals and get an idea if the user has a good reputation or not. If and when we receive negative feedback regarding a user and it is proven valid, we have the right to remove the user and his/her items from the site. LightbarsEtc.com shares and welcomes information from one of the best forums on the web, Elightbars.org. Elightbars.org has an extensive feedback system with knowledgeable members and staff who can help with questions regarding the honesty and integrity of sellers.
