Dear fellow Dealer, As Im sure you have heard, Ebay has appointed 5 certifiying & grading services as the only one permitted to be advertised on Ebay by name. Most of you were NOT involved in this descision & may not even be aware of all or any of the new regulations imposed on selling coins. Most of you know someone who has been afectied by this ,i.e. SEGS (Larry Briggs),SGS Master Distributor (Abon Coins), & ASA accugrade ,Inc. (Melbourn ,Florida) & many more. There was a recent PNG/ICTA Grading survay that many of you were'nt involved in. Ebay has used this survey to determine the "Fab Five" of Ebay. Given the knowledge,variety of geography , & experiance represented by the 650 dealers on Information Networks,Inc, it is only fair to include all of you in a similar survey. Here is a list of the top selling companies (by volume) on Ebay prior to the new coin listing guidelines , & their ownership of the Ebay marketplace- NGC------------------36.78% PCGS---------------- 34.97% SGS------------------- 7.92% ANACS----------------5.10% ICG--------------------2.45% PCI--------------------3.20% NTC-------------------- .75% SEGS------------------.23% ACG---------------------.12% ACCGS-----------------.12% HCGS-------------------.06% We ask that you would rank the companies in the following catagories from #1 (The company you feel stands head & shoulders against the competition) to #11 (The company whose standards are the least acceptable). We are trying to complie a more accurate picture of how these companies are compare to each other.We feel it is important to poll you , because you (the dealer) see more graded coins than anyone else in the world. We would appreciate your response by 11/14/07. This will give us the time to calculate the data, & publish the results by the end of November- Thanks for your time Larry L. Bence (THEN THE SURVEY FOLLOWS) Accuracy of modern coin garding from 1956 to date- Consistency of grading- Authentication Guarantee- Marketplace acceptance & availability of pricing for the service a fair value- Client services offered by snail mail & the internet- Marketability via online auction,live auction,ect.- Accuracy of grading precious metal bars,rounds,ect.- Ability to detect altered repaired,damaged,cleaned or counterfit coins- Accuracy of all attributions including color,surface,varieties, & mint errors- Quality & security of the companies certified-coin holder.(sonically sealed,tamper proof hologram,watermarked anti-counterfit lables) Most raesonable cost for certification services provided- Approximate number of coins you (the dealer) have owned by each company- What company do you feel you get the best value for your dollars from? (who has the best grades & sevices for your dollar spent) (You are suppsed to choose from the companies listed at the upper portion of this Email)---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It then goes on with his return Email Phone # the 3 people you can contact & the snail mail address- Boo- hoo- He must be hurtin- I found this to be quite amusing -- I wonder how shocked he will be when he gets all the bad reviews he is not hoping for. In addition the last question in the survey I find the most amusing - So who gives you the highest grades on your coins for the lowest cost - (anyone can call a turd & diamond for a buck) If anyone wants the address & would like to print this off & send it to him (even though it was ment for dealers) PM me & Ill provide you with the address- Im sure he will be PO'd that the public got ahold of this but I had a friend forward it to me since he knows how much I just LOVE SGS-
SGS scored that high? It shows Abon / SGS higher than ANACS and ICG. Is that a typo ? Only a fool would equate the grade on an SGS slab to value. Gag gift perhaps? A recent Coin World editorial ststes the so very true: PCGS and NGC have NEVER graded a 1970 Kennedy Half as MS-70, yet SGS and Abon will sell you rolls of them. Now , thats what I call value !!!
Here is a list of the top selling companies (by volume) on Ebay prior to the new coin listing guidelines , & their ownership of the Ebay marketplace HE JUST SELLS MORE CRAP THAN THEM
Two things I pick up on that survey. First, the sales percentages only total 91.7. I wonder why the rest were not included. And secondly, where is NNC (most notably), GEC, ANI, etc.? It seems to me that he left out his most direct competition. I wonder why.
I think the greysheet has an interesting statistic that I've seen. It reports the % of estimated value that a sight unseen coin fetches for several grading companies. I feel this is a reflection of the dealer/collector "confidence" in the grading standards of a given company. While the greysheet method for coming up with that value would have to be evaluated, I think it is a very useful piece of information.
My mistake...too early in morning I guess, I read it as top ranked #3 by the other dealers. oops !! Does anybody know if GEC is a self slabber, Sullys Coins?
Well, I'm really insulted that "BSGS" wasn't included-- our very own CT grading service, as has appeared on several earlier threads. How unfair! :goofer:
I'd be interested in knowing where he came up with those percentages, as I don't think Ebay tracks that. I'd bet money it's a load of you know what. Thats because SGS will grade literally ANY coin, unlike the reputable grading services. When you grade and slab ordinary pocket change, it's bound to be easier to sell more than most others. Volume doesn't always mean better. Guy~
Seems Mr. Bence may have lost his niche as it were. Before the new rules he managed to locate nearly 8% of the ebay coin buying population that was either woefully uneducated or just plain stupid (sorry if that offends anyone). Now assuming that this survey was sent to all "legitimate" dealers I do indeed think he will be disappointed. Conversely, his slabbing and selling methods already show him to be a "snake in the grass" in my opinion. So what might his ulterior motive be? Has he just radomly chosen dealers like budgood that are legit or has he maybe taken the time to do a little research and email a ton of "garbage dealers" as well? We know he's not the only one - possibly just the worst. Just some food for thought folks. You all KNOW how much I love SGS/Abon.
can I have a copy of it to reply to > I routinely buy and sell coins lol If a ag coin can be whizzed and called an MS70, I can be called a dealer lol
This message was sent out on the dealer to dealer teletype known as COIN-NET - you have to be a member & also have at least 2 dealer references to even get accepted to the site among other requirements- As you said & I agree Im pretty sure he will be disappointed-
Thanks for clearing that up budgood. Now I'm REALLY interested (not that I wasn't before). It's obvious that I don't like what SGS/Abon does nor do I trust them. Assuming that all dealers got the same message could this be a desperation move? If so I'd love to hear how it blows up in his face! His letter states that he would apprciate responses by 11/14/07 so they can "publish" the results. Two questions arise here. Where will these results be published and will the dealers questioned be able to get direct access to the results and who responded. Perhaps dealers should ask that question before responding. Let him dig the hole a little deeper.
JUst becuase you sell more dosn't mean it's better. Asking for dealers to rate him is only going to hurt him.
