ARGH!!! I am so SICK of all these d**m STAR DINGERS part 2!!!
bobbyw8469
Posts: 7,139 ✭✭✭
...Just picked up 3 more!!! Thanks alot ROSES4ANNE!!! The sad part is, they are sellers too!!! They sell raw cards for $3.00 for the 1st card, 50 cents for each additional card. I sell slabbed cards for $4 for the 1st card, 50 cents for each additional card. My question is this....WHAT IS THE DANG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO CHARGES!!!!! They are IDENTICAL!!!!!!!!! A slabbed card weighs more than a raw card!!!! We are both charging 50 cents extra, even though a raw card weighs next to nothing, and a slabbed card increases the weight substanially!!!!!
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Lou Gehrig Master Set
Non-Registry Collection
Game Used Cards Collection
Auctions are going for cheap prices right now, so I moved to BIN on all of my stuff.
eBay started out as a network for collectibles. Over the years, eBay has realized that there is more money to be made in consumer goods (a la Amazon) than collectibles, so their policies are aimed more towards jewelry/clothing/DVDs/etc. than they are sports cards, comic books, and the like. For example, take a look at the "item condition" descriptions they encourage you to use when listing an item (this is sort of a digression, but it gets to my point):
<< <i>Condition
Brand New
An item that has never been opened or removed from the manufacturer's sealing (if applicable). Item is in original shrink wrap (if applicable). See the seller's listing for full details.
Like New
An item that looks as if it was just taken out of shrink wrap. No visible wear, and all facets of the item are flawless and intact. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
Very Good
An item that is used but still in very good condition. No damage to the jewel case or item cover, no scuffs, scratches cracks, or holes. The cover art and liner notes are included. The VHS or DVD box is included. The video game instructions and box are included. The teeth of disk holder are undamaged. Minimal wear on the exterior of item. No skipping on CD/DVD. No fuzzy/snowy frames on VHS tape. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
Good
An item in used but good condition. May have minor damage to jewel case including scuffs or cracks, or to the item cover including scuffs, scratches, or cracks. The cover art and liner notes are included for a CD. VHS or DVD box is included. Video game instructions are included. No skipping on CD/DVD. No fuzzy/snowy frames on VHS tape. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
Acceptable
An item with obvious and significant wear but is still operational. May have tears or holes in VHS/DVD box. The video game instructions and box may not be included. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
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How exactly can you use any of those definitions to describe most collectibles, let alone cards? If you put "brand new," the card isn't really new because it isn't sealed. If you put "like new," only a mint to gem mint card would fit the bill. Then you need to resort to "very good" or lower, and "very good" in sports cards means something totally different than ebay's "very good."
So, back to DSRs, particularly shipping and handling charges. For consumer goods, most of the buyers are "casual consumers" that aren't as finicky as "collectors," so in my opinion (I don't have data to prove it), they are much less particular about shipping and handling charges on a DVD or a book. I believe that this is because, to a "casual consumer," they just want the DVD for the sake of watching the DVD. For a "collector," however, most collectors are always concerned with the bottom line valuewise; they always want to get a good deal and consider the "resale" value in the future, and therefore they are very sensitive to "extra" fees such as shipping and handling.
Basically, my point is that DSRs make more "sense" for consumer goods, but not as much sense for collectibles, but that the monkeys at eBay are moving in the consumer goods direction so they don't really care.
If anyone ever created an eBay equivalent for collectibles that made policies geared towards the collectibles market and attracted enough people to make it a viable endeavor, we would all be better off.
I just sent an oversized slab today with 2 cardboard pieces and delivery confirmation. Postage was $3.19 plus the cost of my bubble envelope (I bought a box at OfficeMax so they come to about $.40 each). So I still took a small loss but it is worth it to me as I don't want to lose my 20% discount in final value fees because of a few star dings. Card was originally listed at $125 put I changed it to $128 to compensate for the s/h.
Yesterday I sent a regular slabbed card and paid $2.68 for postage and DC. So charging $3 would have again been a small loss (especially when you consider eBay is now charging us for fees on our shipping). Card was sold for $125 so again it might not be an appropriate example.
I have never been one to complain about eBay fees since they do bring the marketplace together for us and should be compensated fairly. That said, I think 5-10% should be the max we pay.
The push towards "free shipping" (and its relation to DSRs) further shows eBay's direction towards consumer goods and apathy towards the realities of collectibles. "Free shipping" might work psychologically to convince someone to buy an item (although I have my doubts because I and many other people just factor it into the total cost), but it is easier to market consumer goods with free shipping than collectibles. If you sell a pair of shoes or a jacket for $75 to $100, free shipping only costs the seller a small percentage of the total cost, but when we talk about collectibles, most of the sales are probably less than $25, if not less than $10, and if you make a $10 sale with free shipping for a baseball card, the real cost of shipping will probably be at least $2.25, and once you factor in fees, it makes no sense to sell some of the items that sell for that little.
Now that you've blocked both of them, it should be smooth sailing from here. Keep on doing what you're doing.
-CDs Nuts, 1/20/14
*1956 Topps baseball- 97.4% complete, 7.24 GPA
*Clemente basic set: 85.0% complete, 7.89 GPA
<< <i>No, this stuff isn't gettin' to me. The grader of death, the beatings, Fleer’s quality control in the early 1980’s, the crack-and-resubmit game, that doesn't bother me a bit. Or this hobby, either. Having to wade through the over-priced buy-it-nows, ebay and paypal taking every dime of my profit, star dingers, and non-paying bidders. Nah, that doesn't bother me. But you know what does bother me? You know what makes me really sick to my stomach? Is watching you stuff your face with those hot dogs. Nobody, I mean NOBODY puts ketchup on a hot dog. >>
You just made my day punk
~WalterSobchak