Making Money On Geocoins

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As more and more coins come out I've seen more and more people trying, and succeeding, in making money off them. Hey, there's nothing wrong with that, but it seems like more and more people/groups are going about it underhandedly. The biggest shock to me is limited edition coins. I can't speak for all mints, but I asked Coins and Pins if there's any extra charge for splitting a run between different metals and the answer was no, as long as the second metal doesn't cost more.

 

So why, when the vast majority of coins are some variation of antiqued metal (the most expensive as far as I know), is there any reason to charge $10 for a limited edition coin? Last I checked limited only means that very few exist, not that the item is over priced. Many of the $10 limited coins out there cost exactly the same to produce as the $6 normal version. In some cases people who buy them are being ripped off. Heck, the LE favorite of "shiny gold", or polished metal, is one of the cheapest metals you can use. This wouldn't bother me so much if the money went to a state organization, but padding an individuals pocket doesn't appeal to me.

 

And before I get flamed this isn't directed towards any certain group, and yes I know that the peach was a unique shape which costs extra (though Coins and Pins does that for free ).

 

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Bet some of you thought this would be about $2.60 shipping & "handling" for one coin, huh? I don't like that either, but it's not going to change so why bother talking about it?

[Thrasher22]

If the cost to make these "gold" or "silver" or whatnot coins is the same as others metals and still they charge you extra, maybe it's not a ripoff, but it's kinda strange and silly at least. But by buying these coins you only support it.

[+mcl143]

Vargseld? ™,

Right or wrong it is simple supply and demand and capitalism at its best. I would also suggest that these people are spending their valuable time and money getting these coins to the market. They should be reimbursed for their time. Time is valuable, so why not be compensated for it.

 

A coin is only worth what others will pay for it. Just like everything else in the world. If someone is willing to pay more, then charging more seems ok.

 

The flip side is that if a coin is too expensive the person will be sitting with a lot of coins and a hefty bill that others are not willing to help with.

 

Just my take on it.

[+Kilted Cacher]

I believe this topic would be better here.

[+HerrK & Friends]

Making Money On Geocoins

 

Not specially for the limited editions,

but if we speak about "making money" i must only look on ebay!

[+AtlantaGal]

Well my coin vendor does charge different prices for different metals... but it's not a several dollar difference per coin. It's more like 10-30 cents per coin. I believe some vendors DO charge more for custom dies, like the peach (your example).

 

In addition, there are other expenses like padded mailers and paypal fees that need to be accounted for somewhere. That somewhere is usually the coin price. I'm not disagreeing with you that some folks are making money with some of the coins being sold, however, I did want to point out that there may be a few things you didn't consider before posting what you said above.

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I would also suggest that these people are spending their valuable time and money getting these coins to the market.  They should be reimbursed for their time.  Time is valuable, so why not be compensated for it.

 

This is where I don't agree. I'm making a coin right now that will be sold and I plan on only charging what it really costs. Nothing more. I'm making it because I want to, and see absolutly no reason anyone should be paying me anything extra that will end up in my pockets. Call it my personal set of values, if you will, but I don't feel the need to validate the time I spent by making extra money.

 

In addition, there are other expenses like padded mailers and paypal fees that need to be accounted for somewhere. That somewhere is usually the coin price. I'm not disagreeing with you that some folks are making money with some of the coins being sold, however, I did want to point out that there may be a few things you didn't consider before posting what you said above.

 

True enough, but the paypal fees and mailers are something that costs the same whether it's a normal or limited edition. What I'm talking about is slapping an extra $2+ onto the coin just because it's limited, without any regard to how much it really costs.

 

If the cost to make these "gold" or "silver" or whatnot coins is the same as others metals and still they charge you extra, maybe it's not a ripoff, but it's kinda strange and silly at least. But by buying these coins you only support it.

 

The only $10 coin I've bought was LIGO, and that's because they're part of NY. I don't mind giving them a few extra bucks. You make a good point, though. It would seem that people don't mind shelling out more than they really should for something that's limited, which just keeps the process going.

Edited November 29, 2005 by Vargseld? ™

[+Nomad and the Librarians]

It would seem that people don't mind shelling out more than they really should for something that's limited, which just keeps the process going.

It seems to me that this is an open market. No one forces anyone to buy a coin. Someone earlier made the point that if the price is too high, no one will buy the coin.

 

I recall a story many years ago about an apple seller in the depression. He only had one apple. When he was asked how he could survive with only one apple to sell, he said, "It costs a million dollars. I only need to sell one."

 

Prices rarely reflect the cost of creation. The government has all sorts of price controls to keep prices artificially high. When I was young, farmers dumped their milk into the sewers of my home town to protest the low prices. Finally the government stepped in to buy the excess milk and keep the prices high enough that dairy farmers could stay afloat.

 

If a coin is limited or perceived as limited, it has increased value because it is rare. Doesn't have anything to do with the cost of minting the coin. Has to do with scarcity.

 

I used to collect American coins. There are pennies that sell for hundreds of dollars. Some rare ones for more than $1000. They all cost the same to mint. Their value is in their scarcity, not in the cost of production.

 

I am not sure what you mean by "more than they really should." They should pay what the seller asks or what they can barter the seller down to, if they want to buy the coin. If the price is too high, they shouldn't buy the coin. Again, this is not a staple item. No one needs a geocoin, no matter how beautiful, to survive. The people who create these coins should be encouraged to keep doing so. They should charge all the traffic will bear.

[+Kealia]

I think everybody hit on what I would have said. While I don't agree with charging (for example) $6.00 for the regular run coins and $10.00 with the LE coins - it's the market that's driving/allowing people to do it.

 

For the coins that I've made (Santa Cruz, Canine, and a few groups TBD) this was not done.

 

The only way to see that it stops is if the buyers stop buyinig at those prices. A great example is somebody's recent personal coin (I can't recall who) that was posted as for sale at $9.00. Almost everybody in that thread complained about the price but ended thier post with "...I'll take two".

 

I know that the group I'm involved in has passed on a few coins recently because of the price. I think some of the collectors are afraid that if they don't buy one at that price, sombody else will and they will miss out. Currently, that's what happening....

 

For the record, I don't try to collect every metal of every coin and never will.

And I can't forsee a reason to mark up an LE coin by the extra dollars either, but I guess it comes down to supply and demand, right? The buyers need to take control if they want to see a change.

 

</rant>

 

Oh, and KC, not sure why you linked to the whining thread. I didn't see this a whine, just a topic for discussion.

[+Nazgul]

FWIW, a lot of major collectors aren't bothering with the not-so-special limited coins. There's still plenty of demand for them though, so they sell. Overall, the market is stil quite spastic.

 

It seems to me that they are often purchased just because people plan to try to acquire something they really want with them, or to sell them on eBay.

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Oh, and KC, not sure why you linked to the whining thread. I didn't see this a whine, just a topic for discussion.

Thanks, I was thinking the same thing but didn't want to be defending myself.

 

I guess it all does boil down to supply and demand. What I keep thinking, though, is that geocoins are not a world wide phenomenon. When you think about it there's really a very small collector base. How many non-geocachers are out there collecting geocoins? So all we're seeing in some cases is, to put it bluntly, geocachers purposly taking advantage of other geocachers, right from the start of a coin sale. The fact that something like that would happen is just suprising to me. I thought we were all one big loving community.

[+Ladybug Kids]

How many non-geocachers are out there collecting geocoins?

I do know that there are nongeocaching collectors picking up geocoins because I've been contacted by several about the Alaska and McKinley coins. Some collectors collect anything and everything from a state (like Alaska). Others collect just wooden nickels. Others collect any metal coin. With this forum and EBay being publicly accessible, anyone who has an interest can jump in and order coins. I expect that as more time goes by and the word gets out, more nongeocachers will be purchasing coins.