Why is it so hard to buy from some people?
Boosibri
Posts: 12,139 ✭✭✭✭✭
Me: Do you have any of X
Them: Why yes, we have a few, let me know if you are interested.
Me: Why yes, I would be interested in all. Can you please send me pricing?
Them:......
Me: Hey, friendly reminder, when you get a moment may I please have pricing on the items we discussed?
Them: .....
7
Comments
Yes, had the same happen to me.
POST NUBILA PHOEBUS / AFTER CLOUDS, SUN
Love for Music / Collector of Dreck
I think anyone who was serious about selling would have sent information and/or prices after the FIRST question, rather than the dense "Let me know if you are interested" line.
He just asked...he's probably interested.
That initial person was not the decision maker.
Or, they do not know what their inventory is or how much to let it go for... back to my first sentence.
Is Them a dealer or collector? Big difference.
Had you asked these people for prices before? If so, did anything come of it?
This type of response was actually quite common back during the numismatic boom days. I'm surprised it is still around given the current state of the hobby.
I hate waiting 10 days AFTER a check has cleared for a coin to ship. Why is that?
Serious specialist dealer not a collector. The items are esoteric so I asked if he had one available.
Regardless, I debate how many times to follow up before becoming a pain. He is the BEST source for the material.
Latin American Collection
Some people are just bad at replying-both buyers and sellers.
I’ve had it happen on both ends. Some of my favorites are ones that ask for a best price (they don’t counter your price; they just ask for a best price) and never reply after you give them a better price. And if you ask for their best counter, you still hear crickets.
I’ve also ran into people who can’t seem to come up with a price even after several days (and many of the ones that eventually do end up being way overpriced).
There are just some people out there that think your business is not important. Usually it’s best to just move on from people like that.
Yes I had the same exchange and got a response and bought 4 of 5 offered.
Latin American Collection
That is the buisness world. I have been trying to buy a hepa'd laminar flow hood from a large company - I fill out the quote form online and then of course nothing ever happens. How do these buisnesses survive - coins or other stuff, you have to reach out to customers.
Best, SH
I would indulge him.
My 1866 Philly Mint Set
I’m learning this is quite common with a lot of dealers. I think a lot of them are terrible business people and their passion for coins and knowledge is the only thing that keeps them afloat.
I run a small business and every single question gets answered and every single message gets a response even if it’s work out of our scope or that I’m not interested in or were too busy to take on.
I'm pretty sure this thread is not about me. At least I hope so! That said, and FWIW, I think a lot of retail buyers underestimate how little time many dealers have to "work" their retail inquiries. Many of us - at least the ones who are not in business to $#%&*$ you - are one or two man shops, not retail giants with salespeople on staff to handle any inquiry at any time. You might be surprised how much effort (or money) it takes to get our attention sometimes. Nothing personal. Just the facts.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
There's been a couple of times over the years where sellers wouldn't let me throw money at them.
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
Amazingly it sometimes can take that long before a check bounces. Seems ridiculous to me, but 10 days is the extra conservative advice I’ve been given by accounting at my office.
With today’s technology, one can basically set up an auto-reply to tell customers something like “we are busy at the moment but will get back to you as soon as possible” and then follow up in a day or two.
In general, how much time and effort does it really take to reply to a message asking for a price or availability of a coin? 5 minutes? If the public is not one’s source of business, then simply stop selling retail and do wholesale. Certainly don’t be one of those dealers that complains about lack of retail sales when one can’t be bothered to reply to a simple inquiry.
I had that happen once when I was buying a truck. When the first dealer asked why I bought it from someone besides them, they asked why I didn't buy from them. My response was, "Because they told me the price."
In this day and age I can't understand why banks can't keep up.
Great transactions with oih82w8, JasonGaming, Moose1913.
Me too.
LOL! I don't even have a website, much less a clue about sending automated "Not now, I'm busy!" replies. I guess the point is that the internet is made up of people and businesses of all sizes and types, and that the best way to build a great collection at fair prices is to "deal with it". Personally, as a collector and dealer, I'm willing to do whatever it takes and go wherever I have to go to buy the coins I want. I thought to follow that with "I wish I didn't have to work that hard", but the truth is that working hard at it is the fun part. I hope it never gets too easy!
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
I have had inquiries about coins for sale on the BST, go unanswered on several occasions.
"I'll take them all" could lead the dealer to believe that he has more work to do looking into the coins before letting them go. After all, you want them all, so there must be something about them the dealer doesn't know. A possibility, anyway.
Keeper of the VAM Catalog • Professional Coin Imaging • Prime Number Set • World Coins in Early America • British Trade Dollars • Variety Attribution
If someone says they will take all of what I have, I'd stop and reflect what am I missing here....
Or, the person doing the email doesn't do the pricing.....
bob
as a seller, I get tired of questions like - how many grams of gold in your $5 indian?
I am able to quote a price quickly.
They might be nervous that you know something that they don't about the item. Maybe doing some studying/searching before they give you an answer.
"A dog breaks your heart only one time and that is when they pass on". Unknown
XYZ drive me crazy
Whatchoo talkin about Willis?
"A dog breaks your heart only one time and that is when they pass on". Unknown
Brucy?
Trying to figure out why xyz makes you crazy.
"A dog breaks your heart only one time and that is when they pass on". Unknown
Have you ever gone to a coin show and ask to see a coin in the dealer's display case and he wouldn't show it to you because "You can't afford it!"? This happened to me a couple of times when I was younger and I knew that I could afford the coin. When I see these dealers now I don't bother to even look in their cases.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
I had a dealer at a coin show who wouldn't give me a price on a coin because he said he paid too much for it.
DPOTD-3
'Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery'
CU #3245 B.N.A. #428
Don
Sounds like an honest dealer. Many would try to bury their customer in that coin. I hate when dealers have coins in their display case at coin shows that aren't for sale unless they are marked as such.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
This is simply a polite version of, "You can't afford it."
See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
Of course not about you!!!
Latin American Collection
Never judge a book by it’s cover.
I was at Long Beach and a buyer pulled out a wad of cash, must have had at least $10k on him to buy some Morgan’s. Buyer looked like he was homeless and hadn’t changed his raggedy clothes in a week or showered in days. Apparently the buyer is a well known fellow who’s very eccentric and odd.
I once had a 2 year, one sided email discussion pleading for a price of some things that were "for sale" from a prominent dealer that I suspect is the subject of this thread.
Eventually, I did get the deal done, but the lack of communication was frustrating. Some people do not need the money.
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
yeah, i have had this happen to me. however, real business professionals are always closing.
FWIW, I have been more than a few times responded to a request for a price with something other than a price. I would only say "You can't afford it" to someone I know, and only if I know he CAN afford it but I'm confident that he won't like the price. Or I might say "It's a consignment coin" to signal that I know the price is too high. Or I might say "It's not for you" if I don't think the coin is good enough for the customer. There's always a logic to it, it's going to depend on who's asking, and it's always meant to be respectful. That said, many dealers aren't as careful about choosing their words as I am.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
I love dealers who think they are mind readers. LOL. Quote him a price and let him make up his own mind.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
And I love collectors who have no clue what it's like being a dealer.
(Three of them, so you can't ignore them. 
)
Seriously, we all do the same thing every day in similar situations, most of which have nothing to do with coins. We all tailor our responses based on whom we're talking to, the situation, private information that we may or may not be willing to share, and so on. And for those of you who always give the simplest, most honest and most direct answer to everyone who asks you a question, tell us, how's that going for you? (If you're not sure, ask one of your exes.)
P.S. - As a dealer, you can't ignore the fact that quoting certain prices on certain coins to certain people can create bad impressions and/or bad feelings if you're not really careful about it.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
Refusing to quote a prices on coins that you have displayed for sale is almost always guaranteed to "create bad impressions and/or bad feelings."
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
In that case, here's a tip to the newbies at coin shows: If a dealer tells you a coin is too expensive, you can ask him to tell you the price anyway. And if he says a coin is "not for you", ask him why. And just as an aside, if the ever order a meal off the menu and the waitress says "I think you'd like the chicken better", don't assume that she's an obnoxious mind-reader.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
What if you see something on the menu that's listed at "market price" and you ask what the price is and the server says "You can afford it."? The bottom line for me is if a dealer is at a coin show has a coin in his display case and he won't quote me a price I will be far less likely to return to his table in the future.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
And it sounds like that result might suit both you and the dealer. Win win!
I take you you both will not consummate a deal anytime in the near future?
@PerryHall @MrEureka
Not if he refuses to quote me a price. LOL.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire