[ebay]160242636891[/ebay] There will be a good deal more stuff to follow in the coming weeks. I'm doing a "write down" of my collection.
I've beat around the bush about this before, but I'll come right out and say it: Not mentioning that the tape is cut is misleading to buyers.
well, technically its still sealed, and factory at that, but I agree, the side flap tape being cut should be mentioned-its good buisness.
Yep. For AFA-graded items, if you don't tell them the tape is cut, people will often assume it's not cut. You might get a higher price for it by omitting that information, but you also might get an angry buyer who leaves you a negative or starts a paypal dispute with you. It's not worth the risk, and as Malach said, it's just good business to disclose something like that which you know people care about and which they may not be able to figure out on their own. Also, on another topic, I think the opened-box Jazzes and Mirages were graded really inconsistently. Some get 80s, some get 85s, and I've seen two get 90s. They all look pretty much the same to me. I am getting pretty frustrated with AFA recently. I would consider switching to CSG, but they don't seem to fetch the same prices as AFA-graded stuff, and I mainly grade for resell.
I think if he was trying to mislead buyers, he whouldnt take such clear pics of the sides. If the buyer cant tell buy his big, bright, clear pics of the the sides that the tape is cut then the buyer needs to have his eyes checked. IMO of course
Maybe but CSG will list the figure FTS (factory tape sealed), SOC (sealed on card), or even MIB (mint in box sealed contents). That itself whould negate the risk of a buyer feeling mislead by the listing.
Right. That's one of the reasons I'm interested in using them. However, as I said above, I'm worried that the prices my graded stuff will fetch will be lower.
I don't know if he was trying to mislead buyers or not. I just think that the end result of omitting that information is misleading. You're right--it's not too hard to spot in the pictures. But it's common practice to tell people in your description that it's not sealed, especially if it's an AFA graded item. The presumption buyers have is that AFA graded items are sealed. Some novices don't even know that AFA will grade toys with cut tape and sealed contents. At the very least, it should be in there for the novices who don't even know AFA grades cut-tape items. Furthermore, the description has an otherwise good description of the problems or lack thereof with the box condition. It's one thing to say "I'm selling this toy. Look at the pictures if you want details." It's another thing to give an otherwise good description of the box condition and leave out an important detail like cut tape. When a buyer sees a seemingly full description of the condition, they are justified in relying on that and assuming there are no significant omissions. Again, I have no idea whether it was omitted to be intentionally misleading or not. I just think that the result of the omission is misleading. Just my 2 cents.
I agree it should be noted in the description. I also think it is the Buyers responsibility to ask questions, so they know exactly what they are bidding on. Does anyone know if AFA has always graded cut-tape/sealed contents toys? Or is it something they adjusted after being in business a couple years? I have acheived good sales numbers utilizing both companies services. With good clear pics, excellent feedback, and a good sales reputation, I think the final sales figures will be very close. About this Jazz.......I have a feeling that if there wasn't 150 Jazz's at AFA for them to compare, this would have been an 85.
