Afterthought: offering (or partnering with) escrow service could be one idea to make an independent commission facilitation service be self sustaining. Platforms take small service cuts for that. I have no idea when costs start to make sense, but the next question is what scale would it need to start. Yeah, this is small scale, but commissions worth thousands are a big deal to the parties involved.
Reputations are important when word gets around fast in a small fandom. But that has 2 edges when simple rumors have power. And, identities don't always stay constant here. :)
Afterthought: offering (or partnering with) escrow service could be one idea to make an independent commission facilitation service be self sustaining. Platforms take small service cuts for that. I have no idea when costs start to make sense, but the next question is what scale would it need to start. Yeah, this is small scale, but commissions worth thousands are a big deal to the parties involved.
Reputations are important when word gets around fast in a small fandom. But that has 2 edges when simple rumors have power. And, identities don't always stay constant here. :)