VCoins Buyers Feedback

Since ancient coins aren't commodities like Happy Meals or Big Macs, it seems to me that even the most ethical and diligent dealers won't always know the best price for the coins that they buy and sell. How they deal with this gray area of pricing is probably more reflective of the dealer's personality than any other factor.

As Doug notes above, (1) no dealer wants to sell a coin for less than a reasonable customer would pay, and (2) no collector wants to pay more than the dealer would accept. Finding a balance between these two opposing forces is the key, and personally I have no issues with asking a dealer for a discount, and having a dealer list the coin for a (reasonably) aggressive initial price. In these cases I don't think this is a game being played by the dealer.

It's clear that some dealers set their initial prices ridiculously high, probably expecting the buyer to negotiate. Other dealers set their prices reasonably (relative to what they consider market prices) and are less likely to negotiate much, if at all. The former dealers are indeed playing a game with their prospective buyers, but the latter aren't, even if they're willing to negotiate. Due to the nature of the ancient coin market, it's doubtful this will ever change.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I agree. I consider Ancient coins as "luxury goods", ergo, they are not NEEDS, rather are WANTS. Pricing is in accordance to WANTS. I really do not "believe" in "discounts", per se. I look at ANY good that has an acceptable price. So, I research, probe, and offer a "price" that I feel is fair, that the Seller would find fair, and disposable cash that I am willing to part to satiate my WANT.

 

The point I wanted to make is that PayPal's policy doesn't really differ, except perhaps in instances where the seller made it clear in the listing that the buyer has to take full responsibility for parcels lost in transit (such as in the case of international shipping that comes with a higher level of risk).

Thank you. I am looking forward to your input.

You're most welcome. It is a great pleasure.

Thank you for your input. Much appreciated.

Shipping Time

The idea was not to say that dealers are 100% responsible for shipping time, but rather to give potential buyers an indication of how long it might take to be delivered. Although not always the case, buyers and dealers are too some extent responsible for shipping time on the back of the shipping company they choose.

With this in mind, I tend to agree with your take and will work it into the list of criteria. Since I am not able to edit that post, I will make the changes and post a fresh list so to speak.

"Did you pay for registered shipping? Is it an option at checkout?"

Perfect.

"Did you negotiate and receive a better price?"

"Is this a strike against dealers if they don't give a better price?" No, it was more to give an indication of a dealer's willingness to negotiate and flexibility on price, but I see where you are coming from.

I think it is best to remove that question altogether. Part of me feel that negotiation is an option and not a given - meaning that it should not count as a strike against a dealer for the reasons you mentioned. In addition, I feel a better price for one is not always a better price for someone else. In other words, it is too subjective to use as a fair measuring stick.

"how about how it was packaged?"

I will meet you half way on this one. The predominant concern should be whether it was packaged securely or not regardless of the material used and whether the address was handwritten or not. I feel the latter is too subjective and not really a fair measuring stick to use. E.g. some dealers send it in the form of letters with handwritten addresses. This is great, especially when it comes to international shipping, because it doesn't generate a lot of attention - which can be a good thing.

For this reason, I think it is best to go with: "Was it Securely Packaged? Yes/No."

Thank you. See my reply to Victor above.

Thank you. See my reply to Victor above.

"One of the dealers listed I've personally never had a problem with, but had burned someone on CT with an order, but it was on ebay. Since the offense was on ebay and not vcoins, would we mention on here?"

Personally I feel it is perfectly fine to give it a mention here and encourage you to do so.

 

Thank you again for all the input received this far. Much appreciated.

While I cannot please everybody, I am trying to keep it as balanced as possible. What follows is the updated list of criteria...

Name of Dealer (as listed at VCoins): Self-explanatory.

Coin(s) as Described/Listed: Yes/No.

Communication: Great/Bad/No Communication.

Shipping Time (how long did it take to get the package mailed): Same Day/Next Day/Two Days/Not Sure.

Was the shipment updated with Tracking Information? Yes/No.

Shipping and Handling Charges: Reasonable/Too High.

Did you pay for registered shipping? Is it an option at checkout? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Was it Securely Packaged? Yes/No.

Is this your first transaction with the Relevant Dealer? Yes/No.

Would you buy from the Relevant Dealer again? Yes/No.

Does the Dealer ship Internationally? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Additional Feedback: Optional. Please expand.

Let me know your thoughts. Thanks.​

 

Great thanks for all the work you are putting into this, I am sure it will help our fellow collectors make an informed decision on future buys.

 

You're most welcome. It is a great pleasure to serve the community.

P.S. Hopefully it will not end up in dog fights.

 

Well I think you fine tuned it enough for everyone to utilise it.

 

Can admin edit my second post in this thread to show the updated list? Otherwise I am sure many of us will take and run with the outdated one. Thanks.

 

Interesting thread, but I am unsure of what we are all talking about. Some kind of poll somewhere (here I suppose, but few will ever see it after it is posted). While I am NOT VCoins I have a store hosted there so my opinions may be suspect, but I am also hesitant to comment as some may think I have something to do with them and have some ability to effect changes (which I do not).

Most of these poll questions are flawed and open to abuse (which is why I cant imagine they would ever be implemented anywhere). A current and recent thread (maybe the one giving rise to this one? I dont know, I dont have the time or interest to check) outlined how one transaction gave rise to concerns (well founded, honest and well meaning) but turns out the dealer passed away. I dont see how this thread can accommodate such a sad turn of events.

VCoins was originally founded to be a safe place outside Ebay (and thus NOT the Ebay model), vetted and known dealers, a place where sellers and buyers could come together. True, it is not he same VCoins it started as, but the base model is there. I have always been of the frame of mind that if one complains here (or anywhere else) but doesnt contact VCoins, no changes can ever made made. If they dont know of your concerns or comments, they cannot implement changes to the system. One must be involved.

 

Why was the Forvm coin so much to ship? It is usually like $5.

 

I was puzzled too and pointed out that where I live isn't really international for a US shipper, but apparently I was charged an international cost (and then some?)? Next time I'll be more diligent about questioning this. Maybe I've forgotten some of the details of the transaction and discussion. Whatever. If I see any other coins I want in the Forvm shop I'll be sure to work out a better shipping rate.

 

Shipping to VENUS can be a bit expensive...

 

What does it take to sell on VCoins today besides some coins, pictures, and a Paypal account? If the answer is "nothing," then the phrase "vetted and known" hardly applies anymore.

 

Name of Dealer: Ancient Imports.

Coin(s) as Described/Listed: Yes

Communication: Great

Shipping Time (the time it took to arrive): Items ship quickly in my experience.

Shipping and Handling Charges:Reasonable.

Received Shipment via Registered Mail?: Not Sure.

Is this your first transaction with the Relevant Dealer? No

Did you negotiate and receive a better price? No.

Would you buy from the Relevant Dealer again?: Yes

Does the Dealer ship Internationally?:Not Sure.

Additional Feedback: Ancient imports is my go to on Vcoins and I've never had an issue with an order. Also for what it's worth the owner seems like a nice guy the few times I've corresponded with him. This is also a Vcoins charter member which I believe means they were around back when the standards of business at Vcoins were much higher than they seem to be now.

 

Really the only review of Vcoins dealers I am concerned about is:

1. Did you receive the coin you ordered?
2. Was it accurately described and pictured?
3. Was it shipped in a reasonable amount of time?
4. Would you buy from this dealer again? If not why?

 

Ken, I value your opinion, but you come over as bias.

This is not a poll. It is a means to provide objective feedback pertaining to transactions at VCoins.

Yes, it is helpful to contact VCoins when a problem arises with a transaction, but this doesn't take one iota away from the usefulness of feedback. There is no reason why buyers should burn themselves first.

In addition, I fail to see why a dealer who passed on would worry about feedback here or elsewhere.

Thank you. Most of that is included in the updated list of criteria that I've posted earlier yesterday. If yours works for you, then run with it. The other criteria on my list might not be useful to you, but others might find it useful.

Here is the updated list again:

Name of Dealer (as listed at VCoins): Self-explanatory.

Coin(s) as Described/Listed: Yes/No.

Communication: Great/Bad/No Communication.

Shipping Time (how long did it take to get the package mailed): Same Day/Next Day/Two Days/Not Sure.

Was the shipment updated with Tracking Information? Yes/No.

Shipping and Handling Charges: Reasonable/Too High.

Did you pay for registered shipping? Is it an option at checkout? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Was it Securely Packaged? Yes/No.

Is this your first transaction with the Relevant Dealer? Yes/No.

Would you buy from the Relevant Dealer again? Yes/No.

Does the Dealer ship Internationally? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Additional Feedback: Optional. Please expand.

 

I received a coin today so I think if everybody gets disciplined and posts at a the time they get the coin it will work.
Name of Dealer (as listed at VCoins): Den of Antiquity.

Coin(s) as Described/Listed: Yes.

Communication: Great.

Shipping Time (how long did it take to get the package mailed): Same Day.

Was the shipment updated with Tracking Information? Yes.

Shipping and Handling Charges: Reasonable. 10 pounds.

Did you pay for registered shipping? Is it an option at checkout? Yes, but it was delivered without signature, but in 10 days, tracked and insured from London.

Was it Securely Packaged? Yes.

Is this your first transaction with the Relevant Dealer? Yes.

Would you buy from the Relevant Dealer again? Yes.

Does the Dealer ship Internationally? Yes.

Additional Feedback: I did get a discount, but requested registered and insured, but only got insured and tracked but one of the fastest delivery times I have ever received.

 

I have been thinking about the questionnaire and do not like it. Most of the answers don't matter. What does matter is
1) Was the coin as described?
and
2) Did it arrive (without very long delay)?

The questions have too much worry about a day or two in shipping time. You might have your coins for decades! If you make decisions based on getting a coin two or three days earlier, you don't care enough about which coins you get.

I think one useful question would be
"How did the picture compare to the coin?"
As we have proven on this forum, pictures can be misleading. The last coin i got in the mail was actually a bit better than the picture (which did not quite capture the metallic nature of the silver). You might get answers like "Just like the coin" or "Scratches on the coin were not visible in the picture" or "The coin is slightly better than the picture." "The coin was much darker than the photo."

Those responses can help decide was a coin is like, which is what I want to know before I order it.

Question 1: How did the picture compare to the coin?
Question 2: Did it arrive without problems?

The rest of the proposed questions don't matter.

 

Thank you for the feedback. Much appreciated.

What you mention is already covered in the updated list of criteria in some form or another. E.g. "Coin(s) as Described/Listed" covers both text and pictures/photos/images. "Was it Securely Packaged?" covers potential damage. And "Additional Feedback" leaves the door wide open to include any other details the buyer deems important.

E.g. if the coin was damaged in transit, I have the option to do the following:

Was it Securely Packaged?: No.
Additional Feedback: The coin arrived dinged-up. It came loose in an envelope without additional protection whatsoever.

In addition, the seller has little to no control over a parcel after handing it over to the shipping or mailing company. In the discussion above you will see that we've come to the conclusion that a seller cannot be blamed for a slow arrival, provided that he/she mailed it out promptly and used the correct service as per the listing.

While you might not agree, a day or two can make a huge difference when it comes to mailing out a parcel. Furthermore, the idea is to encourage sellers to be at their best when it comes to sending parcels in a timely manner. I accept that this will be more important to some buyers than others, but the consensus was to include it.

Furthermore, as I've noted in another post above, if yours works for you, then run with it. The other criteria on my list might not be useful to you, but others might find it useful. I am sure some folks will choose your list, some folks will choose mine and some will come up with their own lists altogether.

In addition, while the use of a uniform list of criteria has its advantages, I will be the last one to force mine onto anyone. However, I am of the opinion that I've balanced mine substantially based on the feedback received - it is not entirely of my own making and I am happy for it to be so.

With the above in mind, I am going to stand by the updated list - the last one posted. Here it is again:

Name of Dealer (as listed at VCoins): Self-explanatory.

Coin(s) as Described/Listed: Yes/No.

Communication: Great/Bad/No Communication.

Shipping Time (how long did it take to get the package mailed): Same Day/Next Day/Two Days/Not Sure.

Was the shipment updated with Tracking Information? Yes/No.

Shipping and Handling Charges: Reasonable/Too High.

Did you pay for registered shipping? Is it an option at checkout? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Was it Securely Packaged? Yes/No.

Is this your first transaction with the Relevant Dealer? Yes/No.

Would you buy from the Relevant Dealer again? Yes/No.

Does the Dealer ship Internationally? Yes/No/Not Sure.

Additional Feedback: Optional. Please expand.

 

I've had countless transactions with Forvm, never overcharged for shipping. Joe is excellent if there's any problems. I think this must have been some kind of mistake that he would have handled if it was brought to his attention. I actually think he would still make it right if you emailed him.