Facebook fans can now follow women on Marketplace, in a scary new trend that has left many afraid to advertise their favorite products online.
The trend follows the disturbing Marketplace ‘dating tactic’ in which men used the popular buyer/seller platform to ‘hook up’ with young women or request photos of them, with many admitting that it helps them fulfill specific fantasies.
There has been an increase in the number of women complaining about unwanted attention from men on the platform; The most common problem is being asked to send photos showing them wearing the items for sale.
Other women have been offered extra money for items if they ‘smell a certain way’ or have had men ask them if they sell lingerie once they have arrived at the agreed upon location to buy something unrelated.
But the new trend that sees men “follow” women on Marketplace and receive notifications every time they post is even more disturbing to some.
A woman found a list of men who followed her Marketplace listings. She notifies you every time she posts something for sale.
This is especially the case for those women who only sell clothing on the platform, something that the men who follow them would not be interested in.
Users can choose not to allow people to follow their activity on the Marketplace; however, it is enabled automatically.
One woman expressed concern about the tracking feature when she realized that half a dozen men had signed up to receive notifications about her store.
The woman sold jumpsuits and found “mostly married” men lurking on her profile after one asked to “see the suit in action.”
She responded with a laughing emoji and said no, but the man didn’t seem to take the hint.
‘I can pay for a photo if it’s not too much. If you are open to [it],’ he said.
Another man commented on a post about a leather strapless top.
She tried to start a conversation about how she had too many clothes and how easy it was with so many good brands available. She gave short and concise answers, but he continued:
‘Do you have any favorites?
‘Whatever looks good, huh?
‘Do you like tops, dresses or sets?’
Melbourne’s Cheyenne Skye put a pair of black Doc Martins on the shelf, hoping to win $200 for a nose job.
People were shocked by the messages the young woman received, especially from the man who wanted to see her in overalls.
‘Not to mention that most men who message have wives/girlfriends/kids. It really blows my mind,” she said.
Most agreed that it was “disgusting” that so many men were in the “creeping market” at home.
“It’s their fetish, they like to talk about it and ask for photos and all that shit,” one woman criticized.
“They’re laughing while they’re talking to you. I wouldn’t even respond unless they paid you.”
Others shared their own experiences on Marketplace.
“My partner posted his car on Marketplace and it had a male message saying ‘your car looks like a condom, I like it, I’ve saved it for me and only me, nice condom,'” one woman said.
“I sold clothes to this guy and when he picked them up he asked me if I had lingerie for sale,” one woman said.
“I was trying to sell my formal dress and someone asked me if it came with the dress,” said another.
And it’s not just men who stumble upon direct messages from women in the virtual shopping space.
‘I wore a lace bodysuit and a lot of guys asked me for a photo wearing it! And then a woman asked me questions and then proceeded to send me a picture of her vagina saying that monkeys usually give her rashes,’ one woman complained.
A handful admitted that they had accepted cash in exchange for photographs and some had even taken to selling cheap clothes for money to desperate men.
‘My friend had a message like this about a dress. “She said yes just as a joke, and he ended up paying her $1,000 for just photos wearing clothes (PG content) and she didn’t even show her face,” said another.
“Some weird guy paid me $200 for an old pair of leather boots I posted that I had never worn, but I don’t think he knew that,” said another.
“I buy cheap shoes at Kmart and sell them to kids; I have to get around these streets,” added a third.
Other women said the stories made them not want to use Marketplace, while others urged people to capture the offensive messages and send them to the user’s wife or girlfriend.
It’s not the first time women have had difficulties on Marketplace and many told FEMAIL they felt men were using it like they would on Onlyfans or a dating app.
Cheyenne Skye from Melbourne, put a pair of black Doc Martins on the shelf in the hope of winning $200 for a nose job.
Instead, he was given the opportunity to “win” $200 without having to get rid of the shoes.
“Turns out you can sell your shoes on Marketplace without actually selling them and still make money,” he said on TikTok.
“This person messaged me saying, ‘Hey, this might sound a little weird, but if I paid you $50 on the spot, could you meet me at a park or something and let me lick the soles of your boots?’ Totally weird, but I’ll do it. “I’ll really pay you for it,” she said.
He then increased the offer to $100 when she didn’t respond.
And he wasn’t the only one interested in licking shoes.
The woman (left) was selling jeans purchased less than a year ago. At this point, she wasn’t sure if the man was wasting her time or not, but she kept sending him messages asking when the jeans could be delivered or picked up.
“Test two: ‘It may be a little strange, but can I lick your boots when you’re wearing them?'” he said.
He added that one of the men had asked him to dirty his shoes and offered to pay him more per lick.
She thought it was funny as she cleaned them up before posting them online.
She then asked if she should consider the lucrative offers and people appeared on board, urging her to “do it but do it safely.”
The woman assumed the man was buying the pair of jeans for his girlfriend or to take it apart, but something didn’t seem quite right. Feeling uncomfortable, the man offered an explanation as long as there was “no judgment” on his part.
The woman said she was curious to know why he was so interested in zippers, but she didn’t want to be rude and ask. In response, the man said: ‘I love YKK zippers on women’s jeans. I hope you are well’ (in the photo: the man’s message)
‘$50??!! $200 at least for the traumatic experience,” one woman wrote.
Another young woman, 26 years old, received a message from a man about his zipper fetish.
The Sydney woman was selling a pair of wide-leg Abrand jeans that no longer fit and was curious as to why a man was interested in purchasing a pair of women’s trousers.
Alarm bells started ringing when the man asked about the zipper on the jeans and offered to pay more money.
He also asked her if she was interested in selling other pairs of old jeans with the same zipper for “a high price.”
‘Can you send me a photo of the zip of those if possible? “I’ll be happy to pay whatever you want if you want more for them,” the man wrote with two smiley face emojis, then added, “On the metal zipper there are letters stamped there.”
The zipper was marked with the letters “YKK” on the metal, which is the most common type of zipper used around the world.
A young woman felt very scared after receiving messages from men on Facebook marketplace, where she was trying to sell monkeys.
Another man desperately tried to hold a conversation.
The woman assumed the man was buying the pair of jeans for his girlfriend or to take it apart, but something didn’t seem quite right.
At this point, she wasn’t sure if the man was wasting her time or not, but he kept sending her messages asking when the jeans could be shipped or picked up.
Feeling uncomfortable, the man offered an explanation as long as there was “no judgment” on his part.
“I guess you’re curious why the zipper, I hope there’s no lawsuit,” the man wrote.
The woman was curious but “didn’t want to be rude and ask” because “it’s none of her business.”
In response, the man said: ‘I love YKK zippers on women’s jeans. I hope you are good.’