Discussion- thoughts on "What is your best price?"

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by ddddd, Feb 11, 2020.

  1. Southpawdon

    Southpawdon Member

    I have been doing card shows since 1992 and am always amazed by the question. Since I enjoy the bargaining process I do one of a few things. (Remember that I am talking about face to face which is vastly different from internet selling) First, depending upon how I read the person I might, for $100 item, say $120. I would hope that would lead to some conversation leading to a realization that the listed $100 was a bargain or at least reasonable. Next approach would be to throw the question back at them saying "What is your best offer". This can lead down many paths...hopefully one where a reasonable compromise is reached. After all, the goal is to make the sale at a price you can live with. Both of these approaches are fun and hopefully either engages the prospect or quickly identifies those with no true interest or those that want wholesale or less pricing. So, I have fun with the question and enjoy the banter...a sale makes it even more rewarding. Internet sales are tougher because you can never put on paper your intent or expressions, etc. Not sure what to do then, but I always try to get their offer first...first to say price loses!!!
     
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  3. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    Whenever someone asks for my best price, I just knock it down 5%. This shows that I’m willing to negotiate, but I’m not going to lowball MYSELF
     
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  4. nicholasz219

    nicholasz219 Well-Known Member

    This is a fun read. I never sell but I understand that people have to make a living while I on the other hand want to buy as many coins I can with the $ I have.

    I agree that simple courtesy and kindness make a difference. If I ask a question or make an offer and get a response that includes “that’s my best” I will at least accept or decline and usually include a note back like “could afford x but I get you got to make a living” and move on.

    I also like people who will negotiate out of the sheer fun of it because I was too shy when I was younger to ever ask. Now I try to not be a pest and I also know too that if I dig through a pick bin and find a pile of coins and the dealer offers me a nice price and then I see a single coin I like later, I will ask for a total and if he doesn’t budge on the nicer coin, I certainly let it go since I feel like he already cut me a break.

    If I’m a repeat customer, it feels good to hear “this is your friends/family discount” even if it is total BS because it makes me feel welcome. I just figure every dealer knows what they have in it and usually have their own code written somewhere on the coin to remind them of what they have in it. So if I get a friendly discount offer on the list price and especially if I like the dealer then I’m down to party. I do a lot of buying online on E, auctions and private sales. I look at a lot of coins and buy a lot but I miss seeing and talking to people in person so I’ll pay extra for a coin to make sure a dealer I like has a table at the show next year.

    One of my biggest pet peeves is the guy with no prices anywhere on the table. Like wtf. At that table I will generally buy nothing because now if I show interest in an item, suddenly he has to “take a look at it” which certainly feels like I’m about to get taken for a ride. I know essentially the same thing with the dealers who have a list price plus a code to remind them of their investment in the coin but at least I had the option of just paying list and not feeling like I was asking to be shafted because I was interested in a coin with no price tag.

    I’ve been pretty broke and collected at times and will always remember the kind folks who cut me a break when I was broke. Holding History, Civitas, Andy L, Curtis C and several others make it fun and doable.

    Some ebay people list stuff for crazy money so I’ll open at 1/2 just to see what the counter is. If it is reasonable I’ll adjust and work it out. If they stay locked on their ridiculous list then they can let it sit there for a decade.


    Lol sorry for rambling.
     
  5. ddddd

    ddddd Member

    With so many people on eBay, it seems like everyone runs into at least a few oddballs. The majority of people on eBay are fine, but some of the bad ones (even though it’s only a few) leave a sour taste.

    A few of my worst included:
    -a guy who bought an after market mint set (basically a year set of coins in a generic holder) and then sent it back without even opening the envelope since it looked fake to him/couldn’t have come from the Mint (even though I never said it was an official US Mint set)...after this I started writing in my listings that such and such is “not an official product from the US Mint but a set of US coins put together by a private party”

    -someone bought a graded foreign coin that I listed as a pattern (that part I should not have done-I realized afterwards)...he then had me try to prove it was actually a pattern. I sent him several sources that I found but he wasn’t happy with that. In the end we settled on it being a fantasy piece and he opened a case to return it...I learned that I should have just told him to return it right away and not have bothered trying to prove anything

    -I sold a 1/10 Oz gold coin...over a month after it was delivered, the person started a chargeback...PayPal at first took the money from my account and said the buyer won the case...after some complaining, they refunded the money to me as a “one time courtesy”

    -I sold a common date 1960s Proof Franklin in a defunct holder...the winning buyer bid it up to $100 (2x-3x more than I expected...I was anticipating a premium for the holder, but didn’t see it going that high)....after receiving it, he starts complaining that the coin does not have enough cameo to it...I explained that the listing didn’t mention cameo and just said it was a Franklin in an old holder...(note: that date even in cameo didn’t cost $100, it would have to be DCAM and graded as such)....he went on to leave negative feedback but didn’t return the coin (so I guess it was a win as I made something on it at the expense of one negative)
     
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  6. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    I've seen items where the accepted offer was a tenth of the original asking price. Some sellers have a really different idea of how BIN pricing is supposed to work, I guess.
     
  7. halfcent1793

    halfcent1793 Well-Known Member

    Yes. I buy or pass based on what I think the coin is worth, whatever the dealer's best price may be. I try to get the coin for as good a price as I can, but I don't care to haggle.
     
  8. Maxfli

    Maxfli Well-Known Member

    It's not just coins. It's pretty much everything bought and sold online.

    I've dealt with this a lot selling wristwatches on watch forums. When someone asks for my "best price", I never give them a number, and instead reply along the lines of, "If you're asking if I'll negotiate, make an offer and we'll see."

    Why? Because...
    Those who ask for your best price are often just tire kickers and bargain hunters, and I don't like having my time wasted. By keeping the ball in the other person's court and insisting they make an offer, I quickly find out who's seriously interested and who's just trolling. And for what it's worth, in my experience the vast majority of "best price" people never return with an offer.
     
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  9. Lehigh96

    Lehigh96 Toning Enthusiast

    This is dead on, but I prefer to placate the tire kickers in order to avoid pissing off one of the crazies. So I never actually give them my best price, but I do give them a price.
     
    imrich likes this.
  10. TypeCoin971793

    TypeCoin971793 Just a random guy on the internet

    Unfortunately eBay forces 14 days. I prefer 7 days.

    One of my favorites was a buyer inquiring about a super rare medieval coin I had for sale. He asked for paperwork for authenticity purposes. I asked what kind. He just said paperwork. I pointed him to where I bought it, the Auction house who sold it, the collection it came from, the photographed provenance, but he wanted something physical to go with the coin. He passed, and to this day I still have no idea what he wanted.

    And there are the eBay trolls who scour new listings and make lowball offers on everything and hope something sticks. Scum from the bottom of the dung heap...
     
  11. ddddd

    ddddd Member

    One of the things I recommend is to look at the feedback those people leave for other sellers (on eBay). It’s not foolproof, but it can give some information. For example, if I see the person leaves positive feedback for others, I’ll reply (either with a slightly better price or asking them to make the offer). On the other hand, if I see the person tends to leave neutral or negative feedback, I might just block them and not reply (or reply that I unfortunately can’t lower the price).
     
  12. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    That's what auto-reject thresholds are for!

    I don't do enough business selling on eBay for it to become a problem, so I leave all offers open. Sometimes I find them amusing. (On a batch of 40% Kennedy halves, at a point when they were going for maybe 4.5x FV, I had someone offer me 2x, saying "I can get these all day for 60-70 cents each". I declined, with the note "I'll buy all you can sell me at $1 each". Never heard back from her.)
     
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  13. rte

    rte Well-Known Member

    I usually respond with the listing is still early yet and I have a few more people looking.
    Your more than welcome to make your best offer.

    If I'm looking at a used car, I'll ask if the price is negotiable?
    What the known issues are?
    Then what's the best price?
    But that's usually in person.
     
  14. KSorbo

    KSorbo Well-Known Member

    When a dealer quotes a price I come back with a counter if the quoted price isn’t too far out of the ballpark. If it’s way out of line I politely pass. I’ve never thought to ask “what is your best price?”. Since the dealer just gave me a price, it’s up to me to take it, leave it or come back with my own offer. In any case being respectful and courteous is key, and most dealers I’ve talked with have seemed okay.
     
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  15. Derek2200

    Derek2200 Well-Known Member

    On eBay I tell them it’s priced as marked unless bin / make offer.

    At a show I have cost and MV code on back of holder / slab. If they try haggle good comeback say “that’s the lowest consignor will go.” Or “that’s my best just $5 over cost.” Or just quote them a high price and let them talk u down to what u will sell it for. Then in their own ignorant way they see themselves as winners.

    Frankly I hate cheapo hagglers. They are bad news, a blight. I consider them bums. They are trying cheat me out of hard earned profit. Do they haggle at Walmart check out counter? No Do they argue with waiter at restaurant over price of menu item - no.

    Frankly I think a lot of them clueless on how price coins so haggling their inept way of doing business. I consider them the mollusks of the show circuit. When they quote sheet I might say “so what that’s wholesale get outta here.”
     
    Last edited: Feb 15, 2020
  16. imrich

    imrich Supporter! Supporter

    I personally have determined that REASONABLE negotiation will tell much, and I'm always open to same. My standard for REASONABLE is less than 5% from a "comped" market price, based on actual sales. If the offered price is within 5% of average sold prices, it shouldn't be insulting, but many only want negotiating when they are the buyer.

    I'm no longer an eBay negotiator, as it appears the general attitude is one of absolute resolution, with no flexibility. However, if an item has been discounted from previous pricing, there may be latitude. Because of my relatively expensive purchases, I generally only "deal" with well established dealers, usually B&M with large inventories, where Gold classic coins may be under-graded.

    Large volume dealers may be accepting of an offer on multiple items that have been in inventory for an extended period, of abnormally exceptional quality,with fair pricing, but unsold because of an unstable market.

    I will try to find multiple certified items that are graded below the current standard. An example of same is a classic Gold coin with flawless fields, lustrous, with minimal "device" bag marks in prominent locations. Especially when an earlier date, with a preferred mint mark for the coin type, having a lower uncirculated grade.

    I will watch until the dealer has acquired some new material of exceptional quality, offered at a fair market price for a lesser quality coin. I will then make a "lot" price on multiple extraordinary quality items, along with an older date, inventory coin having fair presentation with an exceptionally desirable mint mark.

    2 days ago I made an offer on a $5 and $10 under-graded Gold classic coin having MS61 and MS62 grading that should have been nearly Gem grade, along with a Type II $20 MS62 desirable mint-mark coin, having virtually no prominent bag marks, and even lustrous fields.

    I made an offer of ~97% fair market list price for the lot, with an order to purchase the $5 and $10 undergraded coins at listed price, regardless of consideration. I now have 3 additional coins on order for my collection. I've dealt with the seller for years, and they know I'll return as their inventory changes.

    The "process" may be time intensive, but an ultimately very "rewarding" win-win experience that can be applied to any coins, with patience/perseverance.

    JMHO
     
    Last edited: Feb 15, 2020
  17. ldhair

    ldhair Clean Supporter

    I don't ask "What's your best price"
    Most of my dealings are face to face. Returning coins is a pain and a waste of everyone's time.

    In person I ask to see the coin and decide if I even want to hear the price. That takes me less than a minute. If not, I hand the coin back and thank the dealer for showing it to me. If I want the coin, I ask "What do you need for this". I never counter the offer. It takes me 5 seconds to decide. I reach for my wallet or hand the coin back and thank the dealer.

    There have been times that further research has changed my mind and I'll go back and see if the dealer still has the coin.

    No need to waste each others time.
     
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