Ebay description of the Week

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I love ebay descriptions of bank notes. Here is my pick of the week:



"It is completely original, not pressed, with fresh paper and near perfect corners. The note is virtually uncirculated, except that it has three significant vertical folds. "

Aaah, priceless.

Such creativity and upselling - Im impressed!

Try to factor THAT sale into the Charlton pricing !

OleDon

OleDon

Ture, very sad but true - there would certainly be a full-time position available for hallway monitor / the grading police for such things...

Try to factor THAT sale into the Charlton pricing !

OleDon

Don, I must admit, after just wading through the misery of the Pricing Panel thread for the last 20 minutes, and then reading your above remark, I honestly and truly did burst out in laughter. I don't know if it was my timing or what, but that was FUNNY! Bravo!

Brent - if there is a way to patch that over to thread on the pricing panel that would a good illustration of the dangers of eBay pricing without applying  a lot of discretion.

OleDon

Consider it done, Don.

I'll copy that quote to the Pricing Panel thread, and say that you will be adding some comments later.

There is nothing at all uniquely "eBay" in this sellers description. Any venue can produce a vendor presenting his note as such.  A telephone, a catalogue, a show, a B&M store.

I wonder what all the B&M phone pitches and over the counter pitches sound like, many are worse because they don't have to write them down as evidence. What you get to see online is the equivalent of an official transcript of the "pitch" which is a lot more then can be said for other venues.

An interesting exchange though I must say and somewhat surprising.

Troy

True, any venue can produce such a description but they usually don't whereas on Ebay it is the norm as opposed to the exception. Is that the ignorant selling to the ignorant or a subtle embellishment by a knowlegeable seller? I do not know.
I consider it much along the lines of "please view the excellent scans provided and grade the note yourself" Certainly that takes the onus off of the seller but you cannot accurately grade a note from a scan on a monitor. That doesn't mean the above statement is wrong or unethical, simply odd.

My understanding gained from a large group of buyers of varying tastes and skill levels is that they like full disclosures of any work done to the best of the sellers ability to detect same, the sellers interpretation of the grade and overall impressions of the note and a suggestion to grade according to your own standards. Cheap notes of under $100 or at that level people generally dont expect as much effort invested into the description as they do on a $1000 or $5000 note. I can tell you that the online disclosures are generally far better than those in B&M dealer price lists which generally only have a price and grade.

Marrying the approach above to an all expenses paid refund policy creates a sense of increased comfort.

Also shipping on an approval basis, before payment has been received, also is a good approach used for existing clients in many cases.

The most important thing is to listen to your clients and improve and adapt as they request.

You may see a higher instance of inaccuracy or false information on eBay because the barriers to entry are less than they are in the B&M world. Anyone can set up shop with a computer and a banknote. Furthermore you have "one off" sellers simply looking to dump what they just found and are trying to sound like they know what they are talking about.

The problem raised here exists in all markets to one degree or another and I have a list of B&M dealers who sell a whole lot slicker than the description from the seller referenced here.  In fact I have had a very major dealer attempt to sell a forged signature on a heaviliy restored, very high end note 1) not telling me the signatures were forged and 2) the piece was heavily restored.  Naturally both details were discovered with the help of a highly trusted advisor and not purchased.

Then there are the B&M's who rely on the little old ladies (widows) finding their yellow page ads to bring in their paper money finds and inheritance so they can "accidentially mistake" a Queen Mary 1924 $5 for a 1935 $2 and not lose any sleep over it when they pay 50% of book based on a 1935 $2 price.  

The buy side industry ethics are even more, how shall I put this, "interesting" than the sell side ethics, this point cannot be stressed enough.

I would strongly suggest that picking on eBay sellers probably will not serve the B&M industry's best interests and attending to the more important outstanding matters in the other thread would be more useful.

Respect on this matter is a perfect mirror, you get what you give.

Troy

My turn to whine What a ridiculous idea,that because of one ebay description,sellers should be discounted from the Pricing Panel.

Ole Don has become the second individual to suggest a positive move towards solutions.Troy being the first.

With that said,PLEASE CLOSE THIS THREAD.
Reason-I find this forum totally redundant.

Main Entry: re·dun·dant
Pronunciation: -d&nt
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin redundant-, redundans, present participle of redundare to overflow -- more at REDOUND
1 a : exceeding what is necessary or normal

Oh it pains me so to type this but I agree with TheMoneyMan.
The level of kink exhibited by a lot of B&M "reputable dealers"  or "old schoolers" as I prefer to call them is incredible. And that the fish they hook keep coming back to them for more is an interesting psychological phenomenon.
As I am somewhat active in both areas I simply feel that when it comes to Ebay, sellers should hold themselves to a higher standard than that of the traditional venues. Accurate grading and  a solid refund policy do much to temper the perception that all ebay sellers are inherently dishonest-the majority aren't. A lot of them seem somewhat ignorant but what business doesn't have its fair share of that?
Regardless, I just thought it was an amusing description and as this forum seems a touch "serious" I figured a little levity wouldn't hurt.  Apparently this is a serious place though.

The best experiences and highest credibility and trust I place in Dealers and Sellers are those with the full refund policies and open minded diplomacy to deal with unsatifactory issues. Especially with high ticket notes.
I would think the last thing a dealer would want to sell out on is their integrity, reputation, and trust with a customer. Kudos to those sellers that maintain this type of policy. Im sure its not easy with the rainbow of buyers that are out there.

I wonder if it would be appropriate to name dealers we have had good experiences with?
No naming of dealers you've had a questionable or bad experience with.
In other words-NO SLAMMING

Would an admin or moderator reply to this,if it's acceptable with stringent rules,it would certainly be helpful to the community and the dealer.

A caveat could be posted that there is in no way a recommendation of any dealer listed,and past transactions are no guarentee of future dealings.

No ebay dealers/sellers as the ebay thread was closed?

That would be an interesting feature. As a humble contribution, I would just like to say that I have purchased notes from the above two Dealers and have had positive experiences with both, would definately be a repeat customer. Constructive candidness with productive critisism perhaps... Nice idea.
As I mentioned not too long ago, this is a great hobby, I love it, but sometime due to the dollar investment invovled - these collectable become just that - an investment also. Therefore, as much as I want to have fun all the time abit of cautious consideration as a hobbyist, investor, and consumer is warranted.
I think in this light all the above is well worth consideration.

My turn to whine What a ridiculous idea,that because of one ebay description,sellers should be discounted from the Pricing Panel.

Ole Don has become the second individual to suggest a positive move towards solutions.Troy being the first.

With that said,PLEASE CLOSE THIS THREAD.
Reason-I find this forum totally redundant....

LOL, you ARE kidding, aren't you, since you are the one who said that a decision to close the thread about the pricing panel should not be made based on the opinions of only a few people?

That's why your plea to "PLEASE CLOSE THIS THREAD.  Reason-I find this forum totally redundant" must have been made tongue-in-cheek, right?  I suspect so, but it can be hard to tell at times whether posts are meant to be humourous or serious .

Actually, the subject of this thread is worded broadly enough so that it can continue to be of interest: "Ebay description of the week".  This should allow for us to see a new eBay description each week that has tickled someone's fancy somehow.

Both ends of the spectrum could (and should) be covered - the exceptionally good eBay descriptions that other sellers should follow, and the exceptionally bad descriptions that double us up with laughter.

There ARE eBay sellers who do really good, honest jobs with the descriptions and scans of their items, so these should be mentioned too.  But I fear that since the bad descriptions are more plentiful, and are more fun to read and laugh at, the "bad" descriptions will far outnumber any "good" ones posted here...

Sure whynot,

To augment it I will also start a thread about the best B&M pitch or show pitch of the week and we can all laugh at that too. I could even upload sound files to a site for you to hear how they sell, sell, sell. I can also present the most overgraded B&M note of the week or month.

I am afraid though some of you may be crying, not from laughter though, whiich would not be the intended outcome.

Whoever said the online market doesn't need a champion I believe is wrong. This thread was evidence in itself of that.  It is worthwhile and important to have someone step up and 1) remind the B&M world they have a tons of issues of their own (and to beat respect out of them if necessary ) 2) play a role in setting higher standards for online sellers  3) explain and educate others on the nature of the online market (some of which either don't have a PC or can't find the power button).

I hope the point has been taken by participating dealers and moderators(?) and we can work the other thread to a successful conclusion.

Troy.

LOL, you ARE kidding, aren't you, since you are the one who said that a decision to close the thread about the pricing panel should not be made based on the opinions of only a few people?

I thought it rather obvious,what with the "wink" and all.
But you're right,it is difficult to decipher humour from sarcasam,or serious tones.

Related to the idea of posting good/bad descriptions,I think that may morph into "slam fests".

I would like to stick to my original idea,praise for exeptional experiences with dealers/sellers,as a service to the community.
Whether ebay sellers would be acceptable is still in doubt.

I await the decision of the moderators.
Certainly wouldn't want  the community to have a HISSY fit

Sounds interesting however how is this different from the eBay feedback system?

Troy.

Troy,

Hello,and thanks for all your thoughtful posts,here,and on the "OTHER" thread

I suppose it is no different from the ebay feedback system.
Just more convienant,a one stop shopping center if you will.
I realize many dealers,sellers,may not be included in this,but what the h ;Dll as they say,can't hurt.
Or can it?

More importantly,it creates a positive atmosphere,a place to look up a seller you may be thinking of dealing with,or just a place to give praise to whom it is due.

Four horribly off-topic posts were just removed from this thread. Kindly stay at least somewhat close to the topic of this thread please. If one guy decides to jump off the cliff, don't all be lemmings and herd yourselves off the cliff after him.

Thanks!

Four horribly off-topic posts were just removed from this thread. Kindly stay at least somewhat close to the topic of this thread please. If one guy decides to jump off the cliff, don't all be lemmings and herd yourselves off the cliff after him.

Thanks!

Yeah there is so much activity on this board I'm surprised the you guys can handle the bandwidth useage. So many users and so many posts about very important issues. Have to toe the line and God forbid one should stay off topic. Oh the confusion it would cause!

Your generous dose of sarcasm is thoroughly appreciated.

Your generous dose of sarcasm is thoroughly appreciated.

I would say your post is quite off topic Sir!  

Your generous dose of sarcasm is thoroughly appreciated.  
I would say your post is quite off topic Sir!  

Looks like you've become a victim of your own doing Brent.Ignorance is NO excuse,or so I've heard.YOU MUST READ THE RULES.

Please remove the post,or you know what happens!

Just having fun at your expense Brent