What Would ICG Need to Do to Win Over Your Business?
braddick
Posts: 23,967 ✭✭✭✭✭
I just read the full page CoinWorld ad for ICG and it struck me: It would appear the fundamentals are in place for ICG to be more successful than they currently are. What would ICG need to do to win you over? What would they need to do to earn your business?
peacockcoins
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Now if ICG were purchased by Heritage, that would be interesting...
Apropos of the coin posse/aka caca: "The longer he spoke of his honor, the tighter I held to my purse."
Chris
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
tom
peacockcoins
<< <i>When one of their Graders gives a Lincoln with slide marks and tics the grade of MS67 or a spotted/hairlined proof clad Kennedy the grade of PR70 DCAM, do you think that Grader knows the grade he is giving is crap and he's following the Company mandate, or is he truly thinking the coin fits the grade he's giving? >>
Either way, the blame is with ICG... they owe it to customers to either be honest and accurate, or hire honest and accurate graders. Failure of either is what's dropped them--I really think their grading of moderns has killed them.
Jeremy
Name brand graders
Better marketing
Grade guarantee (I believe it is currently their policy to review/correct a grade if wrong (and they agree it is wrong) but that doesn't do ME (me=consumer) much good if something was bought at PR70DCAM level but majority of dealers/graders really agree it is only PR69DCAM). If that is the case, it isn't worth it to me to send it in for the "correct" grade and I will keep it overgraded at PR70DCAM.......get that part? I will it overgraded at PR70DCAM.....that means I, and others, understand it is overgraded. Until they get out of this overgraded issue, they won't get a lot of the business.
Grade guarantee has to be $$$ compensated if wrong and admitted to be wrong.
Better incentives....they have to come in and WANT to take marketshare...they have to WANT to eat PCGS' lunch. If they are happy with the scraps left over, it won't happen
I've been told I tolerate fools poorly...that may explain things if I have a problem with you. Current ebay items - Nothing at the moment
David
If they do tghten up grading above 65, they may also need to change their insert, so that collectors can distinguish a new ICG from the ICG we have known. (Think of old green-bordered vs. new gold-bordered PCI slabs).
<< <i>I like that you can get the black inserts with their coins. I've never submitted to them but I did buy one cause I thought it looked cool.
Yeah, this makes the point, looks like ticks on the jaw and one on the lower collar. I don't think PCGS would give this a 66. They seem to be implying that since they feel it is 67, standards will change to fit their ideal, but they won't win, and shouldn't try. I too like the black (intercept, right?) insert.
Apropos of the coin posse/aka caca: "The longer he spoke of his honor, the tighter I held to my purse."
<< <i>Yeah, this makes the point, looks like ticks on the jaw and one on the lower collar. I don't think PCGS would give this a 66. >>
Yah, it's definitely not a 67, but I only paid 64 money for it so I was happy. Usually if you just figure 2 points lower when it's ICG you won't get hurt and sometimes you'll get surprised. Their holders are close to being my favorite.
Back their grades with $$$
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They need to find a nitch to beef up their reputation. Like become the undisputed graders of early copper or something. I think they did try some sort of alliance with NGE awhile back but that didn't seem to do anything but flood NGE's website with ICG coins. Hasn't SEGS tried something like this with full step nickels?
Jerry
They need to gain respect, plain and simple. Their product is frequently met with jeers and skepticism on the bourse, and it's very difficult, in my experience, to sell ICG graded coins. I agree with this assessment, posted above:
<< <i>If they do tghten up grading above 65, they may also need to change their insert, so that collectors can distinguish a new ICG from the ICG we have known. (Think of old green-bordered vs. new gold-bordered PCI slabs). >>
They really need to tighten up their grading above the 65 level, I agree. Perhaps a change in holder or label would signify a new, more conservative approach. I like a lot of what ICG does, and the way they handle submissions, through a third party, but it's their grading that counts. I talk to James Taylor whenever I see him at shows, and I think publishing a pop report would help somewhat. Publishing prices in the blue sheet was a positive step, but they need greater market acceptance. That is going to take more conservative grading and time. I am surprised to see they're still in the game, though.
Accurately and Consistently (as possible) grade ALL coins based on ANA standards.
(This is the hurdle that most of them will never dare cross...because to do so, they will not reap the benefit(s) of doing so until the market recognizes their consistency - witch could takes many years. This means that they would lose the steady income of those who play the "I'll send this to them to get my PR70DCAM".)
When the market accepts them as consistent and accurate grader...then the coins in their holders will "hold" there resale value...just as PCGS, NGC, ANACS respectively.
I've seen too many ICG slabs which were a point short
of the PCGS equivalent. Perhaps they can change the
slab design or color to reflect the new standards.
Please check out my eBay auctions!
My WLH Short Set Registry Collection
They DO have "name brand graders" already.
Self Indulgence | Holey Coins | Flickr Photostream
For me... they need to be consistent and most important have a $$$ backed guarantee.
NoEbayAuctionsForNow
Which is funny, because below that grade, ICG is as consistent and conservative as anyone out there. When I search for AU-58s for potential inclusion in my type set, ICG 58s are almost always among the nicest ones out there and truly fit the description for the grade.
back up their grades. If Accugrade came out with a new holder, new graders,
strong grading that was agreed on by 95% of the dealers out there, and a
policy to buy back misgraded coins that worked, I'd start buying Accugrade.
As it is, any company that gives away PR70's like candy will not get my business.
-YN Currently Collecting & Researching Colonial World Coins, Especially Spanish Coins, With a Great Interest in WWII Militaria.
My Ebay!
K S
obvious mistakes like those mentioned previously aside, until ICG is judged as grading consistently to the PCGS standard, they are doomed to an "also ran" classification.
al h.
Forum AdministratorPSA & PSA/DNA ForumModerator@collectors.com | p 800.325.1121 | PSAcard.com
<< <i>Start a great message board and pay a moderator vast sums of money. >>
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Plus its always bugged me that their head guy, whose name escapes me, wears that little beanie all the time. I remember when I was a kid I was sitting with my grandmother when some guy walked by in a hat like that. Grandma told me that guys who where hats like that are 'wise-guys', and to this day I believe it. So who the heck wants some wise-guy grading their coins?
Not me, I tell you.
<< <i>Totally change their standards. In fact, I've always felt there was room at the top end for an extremely conservative grading company (ECGC?) and not one more that overgrades everything and has squat for credibility.
Plus its always bugged me that their head guy, whose name escapes me, wears that little beanie all the time. I remember when I was a kid I was sitting with my grandmother when some guy walked by in a hat like that. Grandma told me that guys who where hats like that are 'wise-guys', and to this day I believe it. So who the heck wants some wise-guy grading their coins?
Not me, I tell you. >>
It's a white golfing hat, not a beanie. You are talking about James Taylor and James is an extremely nice man.
<< <i>It's a white golfing hat, not a beanie. You are talking about James Taylor and James is an extremely nice man. >>
I stand corrected. Its a "white golfing hat".
Forum AdministratorPSA & PSA/DNA ForumModerator@collectors.com | p 800.325.1121 | PSAcard.com
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Just because they don't grade the huge number of coins like the equally and deservingly respected PCGS or NGC doesn't mean they have a problem with me. It's not a popularity contest to me! Many collectors and dealers probably don't know that to remain independent they do not allow any ownership by mega coin dealers (or any coin dealers for that fact) like NGC & PCGS do. So, they don't get that enormous boost of coin supply to grade that is provided by the mega dealers/owners. All submitted coins to ICG go to a third party first so the graders have no idea who the submitter is and there is "no pressure to perform." Three different graders look at the same coin. All this is guaranteed and warranted in their contract. That's strong independent protection. I really appreciate the way they operate and their ethics. What do they need? Better marketing/advertising to explain what I just told you by reading the warranty. Their advertising lacks the very reasoning I explained. They could probably use a respected "spokesman" known in the coin community but that could be too costly.
<< <i>as someone who has NO slab bias whatosever, i'd say that technically, the icg slab is siginficantly poorer quality then the other 3. they seem to scuff & scratch very easily, & when i look at coins stuck in their plastic, i'd swear the plastic is not clear & distorts the appearance of the coin. so IF i collected coins in slabs, they would have to really improve the poor quality of their holders.
K S >>
I've also noted that the quality of the plastic in their holders seems sub-par when compared to other brands. There always seem to be slight mars that won't polish out no matter how hard one tries.
1) Changing to a new slab. ANY type will do.....
2) Market the change.
3) With the new marketing campaign, introduce new tighter grding standards.
It's that simple..... Really......
Companies like this need to change their perception out in the market. They'll NEVER do it keeping their same slab. Heck, just change the color.....