Staying safe·3 min read
Reading a trader profile before you commit
The listing is half the deal. The other half is the person on the other side of the offer. Two minutes on their profile will tell you more than another week of polite messages.
Stars without a count are just a colour
A 5.0 with two reviews is a short story. A 4.8 with thirty is a pattern. Read the count before you read the number.
Open a couple of the less glowing ones. People write those when something actually happened: a late handover, a missing piece, a change of mind. That is the useful part.
How long they have been trading
A new account can be honest. It can also be a clean sheet. If they have no completed trades, keep the first deal small, public, and on the thread.
Completed trades and connections are the trail. Someone who has finished deals in your city is easier to meet in the middle than a profile with a photo and nothing else.
How they write
Read one of their listings the way you would read a text from a stranger. Clear, specific, and a bit plain is a good sign. Pressure, urgency, or a push to move the chat elsewhere is not.
If their profile and their messages do not sound like the same person, slow down.
When to walk
Rushing the handover, asking for payment details before you have agreed terms, or refusing to meet in a public place are enough on their own. You do not need a second reason.
Decline the offer, leave a note if you want, and keep your listing up. A skipped deal is cheaper than a bad one.