Coin selling

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by AirborneReams, Oct 5, 2020.

  1. DANIEL HENRIQUEZ

    DANIEL HENRIQUEZ Active Member

    I have sold coins on Ebay and also to local dealers and they both have one thing in common, the coin's actual value will NEVER be paid. In regards to dealers, they will typically pay up to 60% of its value as he plans to sell to someone later and needs room to haggle and for profit.

    On the other hand, Ebay is a different animal altogether as it is a discount site, not a retail site. This has been misconstrued over the years to some sellers as I have seen coins listed well above their value through NGC or PCGS or even Greysheets. Not sure if these sellers do not actually know coins or they expect stupid people to bid or buy their coins, either way though, not very credible and very ignorant.

    So, to those selling or those buying, find a coin, find its value and set an amount you are comfortable with and stick to it as emotion will make you pay more or lose money. Stay clear of these idiots with sky high prices to as the coin will never rise to this price. This is evident from Rick Tomaska on TV as he routinely shows sellers on Ebay with coins listed as Buy it Now with outrageous prices that are false and pure lies hoping to artificially raise the value of a coin for their personal gain. This is unethical and dishonest so, beware of them too. Good luck.
     
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  3. Lehigh96

    Lehigh96 Toning Enthusiast

    Whenever I see people soliciting advice like this I get very concerned for them. If you read the responses in this thread, you will see that some people are saying that E-Bay is a retail site and that people who buy on eBay pay more than they should while others say that eBay is discount site and you will never realize the true value of your coins. Basically, they have diametrically opposed positions.

    So who is right? Before accepting advice on the internet, it is always best to inquire about the credentials of those giving you advice. For your question, it would important for you to know if the people giving you advice actually sell coins on eBay. And if they do, what is there overall feedback score, yearly sales, and method of sale?

    Since I am the one pointing this out, it is now incumbent upon me to provide the information I've said you should ask for. My eBay name is Lehigh96, feedback (1407), over 350 total transactions (last 12 months), and have sold over $10K (last 12 months). I have an eBay store and all my listings are BIN or Best Offer.

    The absolute number one thing you must do in order to maximize sales is provide outstanding photographs. Not adequate, not good, but OUTSTANDING photos. Your photos need to be better than almost everyone else so that when a potential buyer is scrolling through all the coins on eBay, yours catches their eye. That said, they also need to be ACCURATE. Your photos need to accurately represent the actual appearance of the coin. If they don't, your photos will basically be considered glam shots and you will experience high return rates and decreased repeat business. If you don't have the ability to take outstanding photos, you will not be able to achieve the full value of your coins.

    My other piece of advice is to always list your coins with BIN (Buy it now). If you have to list your coin in an auction format, never list it without a reserve. In order to successfully use no reserve auctions, you need to have a huge follower/subscriber base.
     
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  4. steve westermeier

    steve westermeier Cancer sucks!

    You, Aksully, have done what I just recently started doing because of health issues. My situation is almost identical to yours. For me, it's pretty damn hard to do, mentally. Decades of collecting then having to depart with them. But, ya gotta do what ya gotta do! Good luck to you.
     
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  5. serafino

    serafino Well-Known Member

    Excellent post from an experienced seller.
     
  6. DANIEL HENRIQUEZ

    DANIEL HENRIQUEZ Active Member

    Yes, I have researched your Ebay account and you are doing exactly what I stated most Sellers on Ebay do, price their coins ABOVE what a listed price is. Example is your *1957-D Franklin Half Dollar PCGS MS66 (Rainbow Toning)* which is listed by PCGS as valued at $85 yet, you have at $200. Again, Ebay has been and is presently a "discount auction" site and those browsing the site seek deals, not steals like you and others list.

    In regards to you FEEDBACK score, selling and not having complaints is well and good but, this does not mean you are selling correctly or reasonably.

    As I stated prior, do you expect stupid people to Buy your coins or do you NOT know coins at all? Please advise.
     
  7. wxcoin

    wxcoin Getting no respect since I was a baby

    That's a pretty ignorant response to @Lehigh96. As many collectors know, rainbow coins bring premiums from those who collect toned coins. The price guides are meaningless to them. Look at price guides for slabbed monster toned Franklins. Auction prices can easily go one or two orders of magnitude above price guide.
     
  8. Lehigh96

    Lehigh96 Toning Enthusiast

    It is apparent from your post that you are unaware that coins with rainbow toning drive premiums that can often be multiples of price guide. I started a discussion on this topic a decade ago, and the discussions still continue, though nobody has posted in that thread since May of this year. Perhaps you should peruse the thread linked below and gain a little knowledge on the subject.

    The Toning Premium Thread Part 2

    Regarding my pricing, I list my coins at retail (not exorbitant) prices and include a "best offer" option on almost every listing. If a potential buyer thinks my list price is too high, they have the option to submit what they think a fair offer is for that coin. Furthermore, the majority of my listings are raw Jefferson Nickels listed under $25. I don't misrepresent grades and I provide high quality photographs of every single coin, including those worth only a few dollars, and I provide a 14 day unconditional return policy.

    You seem to think that the feedback issue is related to price, it isn't. If someone agrees to your price, then by definition the price is reasonable. Feedback scores relate to the professionalism of the seller. People who have negatives on their feedback score typically engage in bait and switch techniques such as using stock photos or photo magic to make problem coins appear to be problem free. The feedback score also judges if your shipping costs are reasonable and how fast your ship your items. I have had one negative feedback in 20 years on eBay and that was from a guy who was unhappy that his Mercury Dime didn't grade at PCGS because it had album slide marks even though I stated clearly in the listing that the coin had album slide marks.

    As I stated prior, people need to understand the credibility of the poster when reading internet posts. You just accused me of not knowing coins at all, yet I have been a member of this forum for 12 years, started hundreds of threads, made over 10K posts, have several top ten NGC registry sets, and sell over $10K in coins each year on eBay. Lets go to the scoreboard, you have less than 100 posts and have not even offered your eBay credentials.
     
  9. ddddd

    ddddd Member

    @Lehigh96 and I have disagreed on certain topics, but we agree on a lot. He is one of the more experienced posters and definitely knows his coins. His initial post provided great advice and I'd recommend everyone to read it carefully. And as mentioned, when toning enters the equation, price guide values tend to be smashed.

    eBay has its pros and cons, but following a few basic steps will often help you: good customer service, solid photos, and knowing the market of what you are selling.
     
  10. Jersey magic man

    Jersey magic man Supporter! Supporter

    I can’t get to most coin shows (when there are coin shows) So I have to depend on eBay for many of my purchases. I realize that I am probably paying more than “ book” value for them. However for me it is a hobby and if I can find something I like I don’t really care if it will not sell for what I paid for it. Also, I typically collect error notes, and there isn’t a good up to date price reference for this segment of the market anyway.
     
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  11. wxcoin

    wxcoin Getting no respect since I was a baby

    There have been a couple non toned coins that I willingly paid over price guide. These coins were exceptional for their grades and very well struck. For example, I paid over price guide for a 1925-D Lincoln that was exceptionally well struck. Most Lincoln's in this decade lack details due to worn dies.
     
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  12. ddddd

    ddddd Member

    There are cases even with non-toned coins, like you just demonstrated. It can also happen when there is a large jump in price guide between grades (where one would pay over guide for a strong example in the grade right before that large price jump).
     
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  13. DANIEL HENRIQUEZ

    DANIEL HENRIQUEZ Active Member

    You seem to believe my response to Lehigh96 is harsh, however, their prices are way to high and NOT at all close to price guides. I understand some collect "rainbow" coins and they may bring premiums in some cases but, the coin I exampled is Graded and ALL these characteristics were taken in consideration and a value set. That said, although price guides are merely a guide, the values set are according to auctions and prices paid meaning, they are truer than what they may THINK themselves. You can't just value a coin at what you believe its worth with just being "rainbow". Sorry but, you and Lehigh96 are wrong and should re-educate yourselves about coins, grading, values and the Sheldon scale.
     
  14. DANIEL HENRIQUEZ

    DANIEL HENRIQUEZ Active Member

    Yes, I see you are upset and wrote a book in response. Oh well, my evaluation of your Ebay site and items for sale was "spot on" despite you and other's belief it was harsh or incorrect. Regardless of what you may think of a coin and its value, you can't just make another value up (well above price guides) and state this is its worth now. As I browsed your Ebay site, I didn't just pick 1 or 2 coins, on the contrary, I picked ALL Graded coins and they are ALLL above what the price guides value them according to condition, rarity and population including what auctions have sold them for. Of course you know this as this is why you chose to sell as Buy It Now or Make an Offer as you already know they will sell for less and you refuse this option. Your choice but, YOUR price doesn't raise the value of ANY of these coins and I state again, "do you expect stupid people to buy or do you really not know coins"?

    As for your Feedback, you first used this a credibility gauge whereas all I was trying to inform you was this meant nothing as to value of coins or your honesty to the same. This merely meant the transaction was congenial and OK between 2 parties. I also sell on Ebay and have 100% Feedback but, this means nothing except both side are cordial and agreeable.

    Sorry you feel the way you do but, I have seen many sell as you do on Ebay and attempt to raise the value of coins to their benefit and its is NOT honest and definitely not ethical. Either way, you and others do what you want and sell how you believe you can or should as I can only state, the fact you may not sell as much as expected could be due to your pricing. Good luck and please don't respond as you sound worse and embarrass yourself more each time.
     
  15. wxcoin

    wxcoin Getting no respect since I was a baby

    Why not set a value for a nicely toned rainbow coin that you think is fair? The Sheldon scale has less weight in this instance. Everything isn't one size fits all. Most experienced collectors realize this. If Lehigh96 doesn't have interest for a particular coin he's selling then he can adjust the price. If you don't like his prices then don't shop there. Nobody is putting a gun to your head to buy from him. I think you are the one needing an education here.
     
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  16. ddddd

    ddddd Member

    Agreed.
    It is important to understand that guides are simply a reference loosely based on sales. And even then they tend to be some sort of average. An $80 guide value rarely means 10 coins all sold for $80. It could easily represent the following string of sales: 50+75+100+200+65+65+60+50+75+60 = 800 .... 800/10 = $80. Some of those lower amounts would be average or below average coins while the high amounts would represent the eye appealing examples.
     
  17. Lehigh96

    Lehigh96 Toning Enthusiast

    I am not upset just because some guy on the internet who is a slave to price guides thinks he knows it all. The other people and I think your critique is incorrect because it is, and I have developed a credible reputation on this forum as a core member for over a decade. You on the other hand have less than 100 posts. You claim you picked all my graded coins. Well lets see how that works out. The only coin I listed today was a 1963-D Franklin Half Dollar NGC MS66 CAC for $450, now lets look at the price guides:

    NGC Price Guide: $625
    PCGS Price Guide: $450
    CDN Retail (CAC): $455

    What happened? I thought that ALLL of my graded coins were above the price guide value. This is what happens when you lie to people, you get caught. The very fact that you deny the existence of toning premiums proves what a numismatic neophyte you really are. I provided a link for you to learn about toning premiums and it looks like you just decided to stick your head back in the sand.

    How would we know what your feedback is, you refuse to even offer your eBay name to the members of this forum. Furthermore, I used feedback as a gauge of credibility only in so far as it proves that you actually sell coins on eBay. Someone with less than 100 feedback isn't someone the OP should be taking advice from about the pitfalls of selling on eBay.

    I list my coins at full retail value and then provide a best offer option for people to negotiate what they believe is a fair price. That is called capitalism. Do you get upset when you go to a department store and the tag says $100, but they mark down the item to $75? Of course not, but when a coin seller does that, you think it is unethical? You're ridiculous and trust me, the only one who has embarrassed themselves in this thread is you.
     
  18. Michael K

    Michael K Well-Known Member

    EBay is not a discount site. It is an auction site.
    Sometimes you may get something at a discount, other times you may pay fair value or above fair value.
     
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  19. AirborneReams

    AirborneReams Supporter! Supporter

    Yes I’m starting to see that.. I do get some nice return on some coins but then some not so much..
     
  20. AirborneReams

    AirborneReams Supporter! Supporter

    Is this a free place to sign up? I checked out Heritage Auctions but seemed like a long process and the return for money would take a lot longer then anything else I could find.
     
  21. Derek2200

    Derek2200 Well-Known Member

    Super toners can bring 3-4 times MV or even much more (especially if CAC).

    I have been selling on eBay for 25 years not to mention from my table on bourse at shows. Each venue has its pluses and minuses.

    I have done primarily retail on eBay with some discounted specials plus numerous auctions. Not a wholesaler or somebody liquidating their material.

    If selling on the bay one needs to analyze and breakout their eBay selling expense - Fees - both fixed and variable, PayPal, shipping. Then your in a position for calculating markup necessary profitably operate there.
     
    Last edited: Oct 10, 2020
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