After 45 years of collecting, accumulating, hoarding, I have decided to sell some of my coins. (retiring in a few months) Since I have such a great respect for CoinTalk members, I am asking for advice on listing on ebay. What draws you most to an auction? What details encourage you to buy? Any help will be appreciated edited 7-6-07 Thank all of you for the input. I sorted through sets, boxes and about 4000 2x2s and finally decided on two nice Confederate bills. I got great pictures, decided on free shipping and low starting price. ...then, I remembered, in 1964 I got these 2 bills for a roll of circulated 1938D nickels at a local coin show. Got the roll at the bank where I worked at the time for 2 bucks. ...SO, hell, I just can't sell them. Sorry. But, guess I will sell all this other junk I've accumulated during the past 45 years!!! And save the coins for the grandkids! . Thanks!
djbuna: 1) no stupidity 3) CLEAR pictures; 4) pictures that can be enlarged. 5) realistic accurate grades. 6) no stupidity 7) clear descriptions 8) no stupidity 9) State if it is cleaned, what ever problems. 10) no stupidity 11) no stupidity
djbuna: 1 - Clear pictures of the coin, not the background or holder. 2 - Clear pictures that show honest color. Good luck for copper coins. 3 - Clear pictures that are full eBay size and preferably square. After that I look at the feedback and shipping costs. For a reference, look at nancye913 (eBay name). I have no idea how he takes his pictures, but they are sharp, clear and have true color. He often gets 2-3 times list value for the Lincolns he sells. Just as a for instance, I saw one of his 1909-S (F-15) Lincolns go for $230.
one thing that you have to make sure that you have to get a good deal on your coins is to have enough and good feedback if not eiather set a high reserve or sell somewhere else
I forgot: None of that old country doctor "Ah am just a simple soul who cain't grade coins" " So please look at this MS-63 silver dollar, that is really a g-4. and then pay me big bucks." That BS is annoying. Along with the deliberate (?) misspellings.
What happened to 2? (1) Good clear pictures. I skip every auction that I can not judge the coin. (2) A realistic grade. (3) A good return policy. (I.E. no 20% restocking fee) (4) Accepting paypal. That is all I will use. (5) Don't list every coin as a "rare key date". Good luck!
I still can not understand why people do not use the Coin Talk open forum to sell coins. It is free and just a click away for all members.
1) Quality pictures (use good light, macro, white balance correction) 2) NO HYPE. Just the truth. Seems like the fastest way to get bottom dollar on a sale is to have crummy pictures. Always mention specifically "this is the coin you will receive", and if the coins are slabbed, include a shot of the certificate. Might want to browse around e-bay and see what YOU like and dislike. Also, try reading some of the descriptions on Heritage (www.ha.com) and Teletrade (www.teletrade.com). They get top dollar for good stuff. Use similar verbiage and you might appeal to serious collectors.
the last guy who posted here i bought $600 worth of coins from him. so if you let me know i will make sure your great coin legacy continues. my advice is let me know and have good pictures and return policy . and reduced shipping helps
DJ...I dont know about how to seel on Ebay. But if you can sell them on here; and let us 1st crack at them. Well I think that would be great. I didnt know you could do that here. Another reason this forum is so cool.
I don't buy on Ebay any longer. When I did, good clear closeup photos of BOTH sides of the coin plus a professional presentation of them attracted me. Tell them exactly what you told us. You have been collecting 45 years and want to sell of part of your collection because you are retiring. A lot of Ebay sellers seem to underestimate the selling power of the truth. Selling a few here first to test the waters might be a good idea, as others have said. But frankly, you might get more from Ebay. Unexplicably, people on Ebay sometimes pay waaaaaayyyyyy more than a coin is worth.
I agree..... Good Clear Pictures Honesty No Hype....for example, do not repeat "MS67 Bought at Estate Sale" over and over with your caps lock on and in different colors. I hate that. Be reasonable with your shipping costs Give as many payment options as you're willing to accept Thats all I can think of that comes to mind. It would be a good idea to post your coins in the open forum here first. Just a suggestion.
If you try to charge more than is reasonably expected for shipping, I won't even look. If you look, lower shipping fees often result in higher sales prices anyway.
Thank all of you for the input. I sorted through sets, boxes and about 4000 2x2s and finally decided on two nice Confederate bills. I got great pictures, decided on free shipping and low starting price. ...then, I remembered, in 1964 I got these 2 bills for a roll of circulated 1938D nickels at a local coin show. Got the roll at the bank where I worked at the time for 2 bucks. ...SO, hell, I just can't sell them. Sorry. But, guess I will sell all this other junk I've accumulated during the past 45 years!!! And save the coins for the grandkids!
To answer that question, I'll say sometimes yes and sometimes no. There is always the cheapskate wanting to get it for next to nothing. Then there are those who want it, and need it, and understand the price is great; but then won't move their butts to buy it. In between the cracks once in a while is a serious buyer who just plain buys it with no haggle. Lastly there is the procrastinator who means to buy it but never does. All this slows down my incentive to post more stuff to sell or trade. Once in a while something does sell here. I guess the reason eBay works is because once a person wins an auction, it's hard to change their mind and back out. And I guess the reason Paypal works is it enables impulse buyers to get their fix immediately.
