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 | Grading and Certifying Stamps
| Don't leave your stamp sales to chance. Have them professionally graded and certified by a reputable grading service.
Why is grading critical for your stamp sales:
- Stamp grading is complicated and time consuming for novices and experts.
- Novices and investors bid more confidently and frequently on certified stamps.
Professional grading services rate the overall condition and appearance of your stamps. Here are the factors they consider when grading:
- Overall Stamp Preservation (PSE scale up to 100)
- Used (note creases, other distractions/damage, cancellation issues)
- Unused (judge overall preservation of stamp)
- Centering
- Alpha grading scale (poor to gem/perfect)
- Numeric grading scale (PSE scale up to 100)
- Gum Condition (only a consideration for unused stamps)
- Hinged or Unhinged
- Original Gum amount remaining (from "no gum remaining" to "full original Gum remaining")
- Regummed (not original)
- Color/Eye Appeal
For more information on stamp grading and certification, visit:
http://www.psestamp.com/components.chtml
http://www.mcphilatelics.com/education/stampterms/stampterms.html
http://www.atoyholic.com/features/feat62.htm
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Choose the Right Stamps Category
Serious collectors are particular. They expect property to be catalogued correctly. Don't jeopardize your success by carelessly categorizing your items.
Take note of these important category-selection tips:
- Use "Other" Stamps categories sparingly. eBay research indicates that items listed in "Other" Stamps categories obtain lower conversion rates than in targeted Stamps categories.
- Leverage eBay's "List in 2 Categories" feature to simplify category selection. eBay research indicates that it can increase bidding and price by 15% and 18%*, respectively. Learn more.
Consider the drawbacks of improperly selecting your categories. Miscataloging...
- Diminishes credibility with serious collectors.
- Limits your items' qualified audience.
- Encourages unsatisfactory transactions and poor feedback.
Reach the right collectors the first time. Be precise with your category selection and realize results.
* This represents an average based on data from February 2002 transactions. No representation is made that a seller's final price or conversion rate of a specific item will increase by the average percentages noted above.
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Value It: Include Estimates in Your Stamp Listings
There's an easy way to make your next stamp listing look more professional? Include an item estimate in the description!
A precise estimate lends authenticity to your stamps and credibility to your business.
Consider the benefits of estimating your items:
- Fair estimates build trust between buyers and sellers. Buyers search out sellers who properly value their objects.
Tip: Couple your estimate with a money-back guarantee to give it added weight.
- Good estimates protect no-reserve auction listings. Enthusiasts bid to win, causing items to meet and exceed their fair market value.
- Credible estimates help establish markets and increase an item's cache. Create a buzz, and enthusiasts will bid higher and more frequently.
Tip: Properly describe and photograph your item to give your estimate greater credibility. What else? Include your business phone.
- Solid estimates quickly attract an item's target market for faster sales. Collectors appreciate estimates as they save research time and reduce confusion.
Become a market maker and a customer favorite. Include an educated estimate in your next stamp listing!
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 | wmlangs (2473), William S. Langs
Leveraging Specialty Techniques
| When you're selling rare, unusual items, it pays to be an innovator. That's stamp PowerSeller William Langs' trademark.
Since 1998, Bill Langs has sold a variety of specialty stamps on eBay, from errors and varieties to proofs and essays. The approach distinguishes him from other sellers, but also requires him to develop unique merchandising strategies to attract new collectors and establish the value of his items.
That's fine with Bill: "I like innovating," he says. "I look at ways to improve everything."
An idea of his that has caught on: Including scanned certificates of authenticity in listings. His scans even can be enlarged so that the grader's comments are visible. Thanks to this advance, serious collectors and novices can really verify that a legitimate company, such as The Philatelic Foundation, has graded the stamp.
Bill also has been a longtime proponent of educating his buyers about his market niche. And, though his descriptions are brief ("You want it to be straightforward," he says), they always pinpoint the item's distinguishing feature, so novices know why it's significant or valuable.
"People don't know what these things are," explains Langs. "We've really tried to educate people about what a proof is, what an essay is."
Bill is also careful to include the catalog prices for his items in his listing titles. The upside: his lower Buy It Now price sits directly opposite the higher catalog price on category index pages. His clear, specific Store categories also are worth noting. They provide direction for specialist collectors and beginners and also underscore his diverse approach.
In the end, educating new collectors about his market only helps his business. "When this stuff starts disappearing," he says, "we will start to see some real movement in pricing."
Until then, it's a buyer's market, according to Bill: "A lot of my material is rarer than the issued stamps, yet it sells for less," he says. "Only in this country does that happen."
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Must use Buy It Now and PayPal.
