Doing myself a disservice ?

[pricha]

I have sold a few gold coins on eBay over time. As an honest seller I like to take really good close up photos of  the coins that obviously will expose every tiny flaw. I noticed that like for like coins from other sellers with awful photos more than often seem to raise higher prices than mine. I'm i doing myself out of money by taking decent photos ?  It seems unfair so from now on I'll just take a basic front and reverse shot. 

Edited July 14, 2022 by pricha

[LawrenceChard]

18 minutes ago, pricha said:

I have sold a few gold coins on eBay over time. As an honest seller I like to take really good close up photos of  the coins that obviously will expose every tiny flaw. I noticed that like for like coins from other sellers with awful photos more than often seem to raise higher prices than mine. I'm i doing myself out of money by taking decent photos ?  It seems unfair so from now on I'll just take a basic front and reverse shot. 

You are probably right!

Don't forget to mention that they are exceedingly rare, very unique, stunning, solid gold (even if they are), a great investment which will double or triple in value. You will sound like a real ebay pro!

😎

[fiveshotdon]

If the photos aren't clear you will probably get more chancers willing to take a risk to get a perfect coin if they can't see the flaws. However you run the risk of getting into disputes if you're taking bad photos to hide flaws, you're better off taking a decent photo and waiting for a buyer that is happy with the coin as it is with all its flaws.

Also sell on here instead of eBay.

[fiveshotdon]

I would add to that though sometimes I will photograph a coin and it looks terrible but it looks much better to the eye, so I would say try to get a photo that is as good a representation of what the buyer will get when he opens the package. You don't have to light the coin up and zoom in to show every flaw that you can't see with a naked eye.

[James32]

Always be transparent with condition, if it's a banger say so, if it's very good to excellent then again say so.

Personally I stay away from stuff with blurry pics and a description that say check pictures for condition 🙃 

Had a discussion recently with a member on here that thanked me for stating condition 😳 apparently that's not the common practice?😂

Like @fiveshotdon says you only need to describe/show the reality of what the buyer will receive.. not zoomed in on one of NASA's telescopes. 

And finally, package well for all eventualities, are packages are likely getting knocked about a fair amount during delivery 😀 

[GoldStatue]

12 minutes ago, James32 said:

Always be transparent with condition, if it's a banger say so, if it's very good to excellent then again say so.

The trouble is ebay is a bit of a jungle, if a seller on there is mentioning condition they are usually overstating it.

There's just a bit of luck as to the price you get for your coins on ebay, I've listed items that were identical to previous sold listings and got no where near the same price, it's just the risk you take.

I've seen listings where the seller has put up stock images of the bullion silver coins they were selling instead of pictures of the actual item and they sold.

[James32]

7 minutes ago, GoldStatue said:

The trouble is ebay is a bit of a jungle, if a seller on there is mentioning condition they are usually overstating it.

There's just a bit of luck as to the price you get for your coins on ebay, I've listed items that were identical to previous sold listings and got no where near the same price, it's just the risk you take.

I've seen listings where the seller has put up stock images of the bullion silver coins they were selling instead of pictures of the actual item and they sold.

Very true and excellent points, I guess I'm just advising the OP to never sacrifice morals "irrespective"of what others may do.

 

[pricha]

Interesting points. I do agree I like to show the coin as best as possible so not to get any problems after.  The OTT descriptions is definitely true and seems to push up prices. 

[LawrenceChard]

46 minutes ago, GoldStatue said:

The trouble is ebay is a bit of a jungle, if a seller on there is mentioning condition they are usually overstating it.

There's just a bit of luck as to the price you get for your coins on ebay, I've listed items that were identical to previous sold listings and got no where near the same price, it's just the risk you take.

I've seen listings where the seller has put up stock images of the bullion silver coins they were selling instead of pictures of the actual item and they sold.

A lot of them claim to be using "stock images, but what they mean is they have stolen / borrowed someone else's high quality copyright photos.

On ebay "stock images" is always a euphemism!

😎

 

[pricha]

Just got a positive feedback from a buy "" very nice coin , far better condition than anticipated ""  making a tiny dent not visible to the naked eye look like a creater on the moon was probably not the best idea 😄 

[Pete]

It is easy to take and upload a decent high quality photo using a smartphone.
If selling an expensive gold coin, for example, you should feel more comfortable having basically a "fingerprint" of the coin you are selling.
In the event a scam buyer returns a coin for a refund, or makes a claim as 'not as described', you can check what is returned against what you sold in case of substitution.
 

[Scootermuppet]

I can see the messages now...

"Ahh yes, that coin you sold me on eBay... I had Jeeves pop it under the old SEM, and there's a 3 micron abrasion just in from the rim at 3 o'clock...

 

... could one have a refund old chap...?" 🧐

[TheShinyStuff]

You should keep acting in the manner that you are. It is the correct way to do it. Don't become another ebay cliche.

You are obviously happy with the prices realised or you wouldn't sell in this way. 

There is also the very real possibility that the 'lesser' coins realising better prices are not genuine sales - you also (I presume, I don't use ebay) would be unaware of any subsequent issues with sales like these.

In short, be the seller you'd like to buy from!

[TeaTime]

I have to admit that i have taken close-up photos of coins (that look minty with the naked eye) to be listed on Ebay - and they look like they've been used as a dart board. Cue a slightly less  'personal' picture ! It's a balancing act of being as honest as possible without putting people off and with competing with the plethora of chancers using Ebay (i've never had a coin returned in 20 years of sporadic selling - yet)

It's a balancing act - are you prepared to potentially forsake a couple of quid on the sale for less chance of a return or bad feedback.. Which reminds me of why i rarely sell on Ebay anymore; waiting for the feedback before i consider the money as mine. And some buyers who never leave it 🙄

[GoldStatue]

1 hour ago, TeaTime said:

It's a balancing act - are you prepared to potentially forsake a couple of quid on the sale for less chance of a return or bad feedback.. Which reminds me of why i rarely sell on Ebay anymore; waiting for the feedback before i consider the money as mine. And some buyers who never leave it 🙄

That can be frustrating on ebay, when you sell something at a very good price for the buyer and they don't leave you positive feedback.

 

[Abyss]

Selling on eBay / Facebook groups or TSF with high quality photos, weighted on scales with calliper and your handle name with a date is always the best way to establish trust your a genuine seller and distance yourself from other sellers.

Reduce the possibility of a dispute every seller wants to try and avoid at all costs.

[modofantasma]

On 14/07/2022 at 15:27, pricha said:

 

I agree. My phone that can take pretty good photos but it makes each coin look like it's been kicked down the road 😂

[pricha]

I stopped worrying about feedback ages ago.. it's certainly less than 50% . Given that I post immediately in secure packaging along with good photos i just put it down to lazy people who can't be bothered.  Only ever have one query.  One guy questioned a worn coin was slightly underweight.  He's other sovereigns were 8 grams or slightly more 😅 .  I said I'd be more worried about those. 

[flyingveepixie]

When I briefly considered the possibility of trading PMs on ebay there were a couple of things that bothered me about selling sovs or Brits on there before I completely lost confidence in it as a platform :

1. was the possiblity of scam buyers raising a dispute for whatever reason and returning a subsitute or fake as described above by @Pete

2. The only time I listed a silver Brit as an experiment (and ended up selling for less than I paid for it😟)  I had to cancel the listing and relist a couple of days later as a potential buyer wouldn't stop pestering me about coming to collect in person, which given the possible implications of future more covert visits in the middle of the night would be the last thing I wanted when selling PMs.  I hadn't offered personal collection for it as an option but this guy just wouldn't give it up so I had to cancel the listing and block him..

There were a couple of other issues which put me off at the time too but I've forgotten what they were...🧐

Edited July 19, 2022 by flyingveepixie

[Pete]

3 hours ago, flyingveepixie said:

When I briefly considered the possibility of trading PMs on ebay there were a couple of things that bothered me about selling sovs or Brits on there before I completely lost confidence in it as a platform :

1. was the possiblity of scam buyers raising a dispute for whatever reason and returning a subsitute or fake as described above by @Pete

2. The only time I listed a silver Brit as an experiment (and ended up selling for less than I paid for it😟)  I had to cancel the listing and relist a couple of days later as a potential buyer wouldn't stop pestering me about coming to collect in person, which given the possible implications of future more covert visits in the middle of the night would be the last thing I wanted when selling PMs.  I hadn't offered personal collection for it as an option but this guy just wouldn't give it up so I had to cancel the listing and block him..

There were a couple of other issues which put me off at the time too but I've forgotten what they were...🧐

I had a boxed gold proof Britannia listed on eBay once and the winner never paid so I had to go through the wait process which was always in his favour. I also had a special seller offer of £1 fees so I lost the opportunity of this until fortunately I got another seller offer a month later.
I listed the same gold coin again and the same buyer appeared to I decided to block him / her from bidding.
Nothing shown from eBay against this buyer so sellers are unaware as this doesn't show in feedback.
I was lucky obtaining another eBay seller offer otherwise 10% + would have been in their pockets through no fault of mine.