# Clarification on Marketplace Rules
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234
**Category:** About This Message Board
**Created:** [September 19, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234 "2013-09-19T15:34:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/1 "2013-09-19T15:34:44Z")
Is it o.k. for someone to become a member _just_ to sell things in the marketplace? Can an advertiser use the Marketplace instead of buying advertising space on the SDMB?
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### Author:  [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/2 "2013-09-19T19:33:45Z")
Yes, if the became a Member only to list things, there’s nothing against it – provided it’s not a huge number of ads.
We have been aware that we have people that only post in Marketplace and nowhere else. That’s not against the rules unless you’re doing this a lot.
And there’s a world of difference between an advertiser and someone posting in Marketplace. I don’t think we would be allowing that – for that matter, if someone had the type of business that would find advertising useful here I can’t imagine that they would go penny-ante in Marketplace. Can you cite an example?
Thanks.
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### Author:  [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/3 "2013-09-19T19:38:26Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#):
>
> Yes, if the became a Member only to list things, there’s nothing against it – provided it’s not a huge number of ads.
>
> We have been aware that we have people that only post in Marketplace and nowhere else. That’s not against the rules unless you’re doing this a lot.
>
> And there’s a world of difference between an advertiser and someone posting in Marketplace. I don’t think we would be allowing that – for that matter, if someone had the type of business that would find advertising useful here I can’t imagine that they would go penny-ante in Marketplace. Can you cite an example?
>
> Thanks.
There is a person posting in Marketplace right now who only posts there, all posts are about items sold at a particular auction house, and his homepage is this same auction house.
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### Author:  [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/4 "2013-09-19T19:43:17Z")
> [@TubaDiva](#):
>
> Yes, if the became a Member only to list things, there’s nothing against it – provided it’s not a huge number of ads.
>
> We have been aware that we have people that only post in Marketplace and nowhere else. That’s not against the rules unless you’re doing this a lot.
What would be “a huge number,” or “a lot”? Is “a lot” bigger than “a huge number,” or smaller?
This seems like a pretty nebulous set of criteria, a bit like those Internet Service Providers who used to cut off “heavy users,” but who also never told them what the limitations of their usage actually were. “You’ll know, because when you exceed the limits we’ll cut you off.”
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### Author:  [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/5 "2013-09-19T20:05:31Z")
Presumably [this guy](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=702631)…who’s posted (gasp) 4 (count 'em _four_) marketplace posts in roughly the last year.
He’s hardly spamming.
And at least this guy isn’t using those idiotic smilies that show up on the main index.
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### Author:  [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/6 "2013-09-19T21:03:26Z")
If The Powers That Be decide that what this business is doing isn’t spam, that’s fine with me. I was just curious as to what the dividing line was.
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### Author:  [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)
#### Post date: [September 19, 2013, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarification-on-marketplace-rules/669234/7 "2013-09-19T21:32:45Z")
Fair enough. I just wanted to link to the guy and make a comment about how very much I hate those stupid smilies that show up on the main index. 😉