Poll: Coin show with no coins, seminars and exhibits only
RedTiger
Posts: 5,608 ✭
How much interest do you have in attending an educational event without coins for sale?
As a plug, the California State Numismatic Association (CSNA) is holding one on Saturday, March 12th in Long Beach, CA, near the Long Beach airport, free admission, probably a small charge for parking, lunch available for $16, program details at the link.
/edit to add:
If the answer is "it depends on the topics," what kind of topics, which presenters, might get you to go just to learn, and not have any coins to buy or any place to sell. How much might you pay for certain classes? I understand the ANA has summer classes at cost, and also some classes at shows that are pay classes.
As a plug, the California State Numismatic Association (CSNA) is holding one on Saturday, March 12th in Long Beach, CA, near the Long Beach airport, free admission, probably a small charge for parking, lunch available for $16, program details at the link.
/edit to add:
If the answer is "it depends on the topics," what kind of topics, which presenters, might get you to go just to learn, and not have any coins to buy or any place to sell. How much might you pay for certain classes? I understand the ANA has summer classes at cost, and also some classes at shows that are pay classes.
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Comments
<< <i> "it depends on the topics" >>
That's not a choice in the poll?
<< <i>
<< <i> "it depends on the topics" >>
That's not a choice in the poll? >>
That's too easy an out, and can make the poll unworkable. If a person is in the middle then vote "3 stars" and explain which topics (at what cost) might get you to sign up.
IMHO the ideal structure would be 60-90 minute sessions, with two sessions running simultaneously. One group of sessions would be aimed at consumer education, the other aimed at in-depth numismatic education. That way there is incentive for both the new/casual collector and the more serious collector to attend.
Consumer track (couldn't do all of these in one day, so rotate them in different events):
1. All about TPGs
2. Doctored (AT, altered, counterfeit) coins
3. Economics of collecting
4. Investing vs. collecting and the biggest mistakes collectors make
5. Grading fundamentals
6. Numismatic terminology
7. Errors/varieties
8. Where/how to buy
9. Creating a focused collection (series, type, theme, etc.)
Numismatic education track would cover different series, types of currency, etc. and would have an endless number of possible topics. You wouldn't necessarily need experts to present, there are enough books to adapt content from (but get permission, of course).
Getting enough of a turnout to make it viable could be tough, since many hobbyists just aren't that dedicated to learning (sadly). It would take every shop in the area to plug the event with their customers along with every area club. And if there was a way to reach the people who buy coins from TV, wow, that would be a true public service.
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
<< <i>I can not speak highly enough of the ANA Summer Seminar but it's a week-long commitment. A one-day event could be more attractive and definitely more affordable.
IMHO the ideal structure would be 60-90 minute sessions, with two sessions running simultaneously. One group of sessions would be aimed at consumer education, the other aimed at in-depth numismatic education. That way there is incentive for both the new/casual collector and the more serious collector to attend.
Consumer track (couldn't do all of these in one day, so rotate them in different events):
1. All about TPGs
2. Doctored (AT, altered, counterfeit) coins
3. Economics of collecting
4. Investing vs. collecting and the biggest mistakes collectors make
5. Grading fundamentals
6. Numismatic terminology
7. Errors/varieties
8. Where/how to buy
9. Creating a focused collection (series, type, theme, etc.)
Numismatic education track would cover different series, types of currency, etc. and would have an endless number of possible topics. You wouldn't necessarily need experts to present, there are enough books to adapt content from (but get permission, of course).
Getting enough of a turnout to make it viable could be tough, since many hobbyists just aren't that dedicated to learning (sadly). It would take every shop in the area to plug the event with their customers along with every area club. And if there was a way to reach the people who buy coins from TV, wow, that would be a true public service.
Some great ideas there. However, with 28 votes in, approximately 75% express little to no interest in attending an education only kind of event. I am not surprised. I believe I am the only one to mention the meetings/seminars in my Long Beach report, and my show report got little interest. The two meetings I looked into at the Long Beach show had six people at the silver dollar club, and one person at the so-called-dollar club, and that's with a full bourse in addition to the free meetings/seminars.
When the summer ANA was here in Los Angeles, the top rate free presentations drew 20 to 25 people. That's with some top people, doing the presentations at no charge. My conclusion is the coin collectors are not very interested in seminars. My local club in El Segundo no longer has a program or education segment during meetings. Folks prefer more time for chit-chat, or snacking, or viewing the auction and raffle lots, vs. sitting through the average presentation.
What is more sobering about the voting, is that this forum skews towards smart collectors, who are probably much more likely to appreciate educational events than the novice, or the not-so-smart collectors.
The more choices of activities at the show the better.
At the larger shows that have club meetings/presentations, it is great as I can spend most of the time at the actual coin show looking at coins that interest me and talking with other collectors and dealers with similar interests. Then, when one of the meetings/presentations fits what I collect I can take that hour or so and attend. At the Los Angeles ANA show a couple years ago I thought that work out pretty well and was able to go to two meetings like that and learned quite a bit and made some great contacts with other collectors with similar interests. Of course, without the big ANA coin show there too, I wouldn't have went to downtown L.A. just for those meetings. Similarly, a trip to Long Beach is too far for me to travel for one presentation which may interest me. If there were a show at the same time, I could much more easily justify the trip as I could spend a few hours there as well. It may be different if I lived in Long Beach and didn't have to travel far... but that isn't the case.
But yeah, even at the big shows where such presentations are available, the meetings aren't very well attended. I think the ones I attended at the L.A. ANA show had around 10 people at each. I think part of the reason for the lack of attendance is the lack of information on such meetings making it to the average collector on the bourse floor. I think if the meetings were better advertised and it was clear that they were free to attend and that new members were encouraged, you may have more people showing up. I know I was hesitant to go to the first couple of presentations as I wasn't sure if I had to be a member of the groups or not.
Michael Kittle Rare Coins --- 1908-S Indian Head Cent Grading Set --- No. 1 1909 Mint Set --- Kittlecoins on Facebook --- Long Beach Table 448
I've been a member of coin cllubs off and on since the early 1970s. The clubs that succeeded were the ones that had a small bourse or a at least a club auction connected with them. The clubs that did not survive, for the most part, were the clubs that offered little or no chance for member to add to their collections. The exceptions were clubs like the Boston Numismatic Society and the New Jersey Numismatic Society which were composed almost totally of very advanced collectors.
<< <i>...
even at the big shows where such presentations are available, the meetings aren't very well attended. I think the ones I attended at the L.A. ANA show had around 10 people at each. I think part of the reason for the lack of attendance is the lack of information on such meetings making it to the average collector on the bourse floor. I think if the meetings were better advertised and it was clear that they were free to attend and that new members were encouraged, you may have more people showing up. I know I was hesitant to go to the first couple of presentations as I wasn't sure if I had to be a member of the groups or not. >>
I appreciate your response. I think the poll results reflect a realistic level of interest. The numbers might be a tad lower than what I expected, but not by much. It looks like the CSNA program schedule is unlikely to attract a big crowd. If it were easier for me to get to, I would be highly likely to go because I enjoy presentations, and enjoy learning, even if the topic may not be in a primary area of interest. I almost always come away with some interesting nuggets of information, or stories, or trivia.
As far as publicity, I think there is plenty of information about the free meetings and seminars. These are coin collectors--they have an eye for detail and a thirst for knowledge (maybe I am idealizing, but I think that at least the smart collectors do). The information is not hidden. At Long Beach, the meeting schedule was posted in a prominent place at the entrance. When there was a paper program, the schedule was there. Each meeting room is clearly marked with a large placard with the name of the club and the time of the meeting. Anyone that had trouble finding a room could ask any security person or booth person where to go. Every meeting was clearly and slowly announced three times over the public address system, half an hour before, ten minutes before and then at the start time. I think more than that would be get to the annoyance level, and result in push back, not more attendance.
I understand about the time crunch and that seems to get worse each year. However, many show attendees are already in for five hours or much more when counting time to get to the show. So an extra 30 minutes for a seminar does not add that much overall burden if a person wants to learn and can plan for it.
I received a personal message suggesting that the real level of interest might be even lower than the poll results, because the subject line is drawing those that place a high value on education. I would tend to agree, that other forums, other groups of collectors, might poll even lower for an education only event. The other two forums that I visit are the precious metals forum and the world & ancient forum. For world coins, the topic selection becomes that much more difficult. For the precious metals crowd, maybe a big name gold newsletter writer or conservative political speaker might draw a big crowd, but any numismatic presentations would likely poll near zero for folks primarily interested in bullion.
As I often write, there is no "right" or "wrong" answer, no right or wrong way to go about the hobby.
/edited for typos
Michael Kittle Rare Coins --- 1908-S Indian Head Cent Grading Set --- No. 1 1909 Mint Set --- Kittlecoins on Facebook --- Long Beach Table 448
<< <i>I also just noticed that the date of this event March 12 is also the date of the Buena Park coin show... so yeah, even if collectors found a few of the topics of interest, the local coin show which is one of the bigger local SoCal shows might be a bigger draw. Didn't they used to have this event combined with the Arcadia coin show??? I was checking my calendar and it seems that show isn't happening in the Spring. That's a bummer as that was an alright show too. >>
Wow that is a mistake. The organizers of the CSNA event may be looking at an egg. Dealers that might attend or exhibit are going to go to the show to sell and earn money. A few collectors might have gone to both the show and the seminars, had the two venues been convenient to each other, but they are not that close. With so many shows, it is difficult to choose a date without any conflicts, but the organizers could definitely have done better, either by picking a different date or a venue closer to the Buena Park show.
There are probably a few CSNA members somewhere on the forum, but I don't think any have chimed in on this thread.