My first transaction

feldwebel · Joined: 28 Jul 2007 Posts: 21

Well, I just made my first transaction on the site as a seller. This was an international trade and I shipped from the U.K to the U.S. I am pleased to say that it went very smoothly!

As long as you pay the little extra for priority mail with tracking there is no problem. Some people do get concerned with dealing overseas but there really is no need. I was also delighted to get Bob`s mailshot in which he comments that he has not had one complaint. That is good news and should encourage those who have not yet dipped their toes in the water!

I just have a couple of other things to sell and then maybe I can do some buying - that`s what I enjoy the most!

Thanks Bob Wink

Combat Relics · Joined: 14 Jul 2007 Posts: 161

I have had nothing except exceptional experiences, with all of the collectors I have met from other nations.

Whether it is Poland, Italy, Russia, England or Sweden, They have all been reliable guys with a keen interest and a good eye.

Payment forms can be a bit expensive, considering various fees etc. Still, transacting can be pretty simple. Foreign buyers seem to be more tolerant of the cost of doing business.

I suggest that everybody doing a deal, should perform their tasks quickly, and keep good communication with their trading partners. Never delay doing your part. Not getting an item you paid for promptly is frustrating.

Always make sure the shipping information is correct. Package things securely and well protected from damage.

It has been my experience that in some nations there is some risk of loss while in transit. Some customers may wish an item shipped to a friend in a more stable nation than their own. This is not an indication of scamming, it is just them, minimizing the chance of being ripped off in transit.

Also I suggest using altavista's 'babelfish' translator or similar to compose and test messages to your foreign buyers in their language. If, when you reverse the translation back to English, you get a good translation, you make it easier for them to understand your meaning more accurately.

They try hard to express themselves in English, and they appreciate your efforts to be as accurate both in what you say, and how you try to interpret their meaning.

I really like dealing with guys from all over the world. I do not distrust them, and I believe people are basically honest. Still when I sell, I get paid before I ship to anybody I do not know very well.

nsfk · Joined: 17 Jul 2007 Posts: 6

Over the past few years I done more business with buyers outside the U.S. than in. Frankly, I find overseas collectors to be easier to deal with and, besides that, they are willing to pay top prices. I always get payment before I ship and have not had a problem.

On another note. I don't understand why so many sellers mark their prices as 'firm'. This only discourages trade offers and the chance to make a deal. I've seen several pieces that were of interest but the price was a little to high. I haven't made an offer because I don't want to step on their toes with their attitude. I can't help but think that in some cases they would reduce the price a little to make the sale. Too bad!

Combat Relics · Joined: 14 Jul 2007 Posts: 161

I am one of those sellers, who quotes a firm price. I can see your point.

I also see that you say that you prefer buyers who pay YOU top dollar.

I do the research, and I find out what things sell for. What they ACTUALLY sell for.

If people believe the price is WAY out of line they will not buy.

If they are just bloody cheapskates, they will not buy.

If they do not have the money, to seriously compete in this highly competitive field, they will not buy.

So who loses out here?

I may well lose a 'customer', but just how valuable is a customer, who believes a 60 year old rarity is a couple dollars too high?

If I start taking 'offers', that is it. I never get the price I want for an item again.

The above message infers that because a price is firm, there can be no dialog between a seller and a collector. Does any buyer benefit his chances of getting good connections, by not communicating at all with a seller?

If a seller sells too cheap, how long will he have anything desirable to offer? All his good stock will vanish, and all his buyers will be spending every waking minute trying to compete for what he has to offer.
So if you are the lucky one to buy him out, good. If not, it is a quick shot of bargains followed by him not having anything left. Then it is back to searching for other bargains that the 100,000 other nazi collectors have not found.

In the meantime, serious collectors have constantly been scooping up all the elite items that are of real interest, and they will not resell them for years if ever! After a few years of collecting cheap miscellaneous eagles and swastikas, the average Joe decides to collect SS or Paratrooper, or Afrikakorps, or Panzer. Can you hear his screams of rage at how expensive these things are? Why there ought to be a law! It is so unfair! This stuff is not worth that amount!...No?, then why are so many people asking those prices, and so many willing to pay them? Think about it.

The fact is that almost every body wants everything for the wal-mart price or less when they buy, and then when they sell they want the most the market will pay them. It is not about wishing, it is about the forces in the marketplace.

When buying it is 'Not an investment, I just love the stuff and it is so outlandishly high priced.'
When selling it is 'Well one sold on Collector's Guild for $5850 and mine is cleaner so I want $6850.'

People who think of investing as a budget related endeavor, can wish for the days when google, microsoft, or intel were penny stocks, but if you want to play, you have to pay the price of the ticket.

Wishing does not make it reality.

This is a competition to acquire the items. The uncommitted, poor, miserly, or timid fall by the wayside as the determined gather their trophies. There is no guarantee there will ever be another chance to get that Metz 1944 cuffband, or that double decal transitional navy helmet.

Bargain hunters, will end up with only those items they considered a 'good deal'. If they are satisfied with what they acquired, they will enjoy watching the values rise and finally understand what opportunities they missed.

The serious investor, will end up with the great pieces he was lucky enough to score before someone else grabbed it. The marginally higher price he wisely paid, will most often be surpassed in a year or two at most and the item is his, not still out there at an even higher price.

OKAY, a case in point. I passed on buying a near mint EREL white top Admiral's visored hat for $1200 a decade ago. My opinion that day, (as chairman of the moron of the month club), was that if I could not get the guy down a hundred bucks I would not buy it. Gee, was I not brilliant! I sure punished that greedy b*****d! Someone else bought it within an hour, and today, it is worth between $7500-$8500. In 10 years!

So everybody ends up with the results of their decision making process.

This is how it is folks. Like it or not. If you want bargains, find a vet. Do a hundred estate sales, a thousand flea market days, or spend 10,000 hours online searching for LOWER PRICES! After all is that NOT what it is all about?

Always remember Filet Mignon is NEVER ON THE DOLLAR MENU.

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