eBay

crxtreasures · ‎01-08-2018

For those of you who read our previous post about authenticating autographs through Beckett, we have an update. We ended up sending in 8 items and sadly only 2 of them were deemed authentic. This was quite surprising because we really thought they were legit. The issue now is what to do about the items that were not authenticated. How can we list these and accurately describe them to a potential buyer who may be interested in the item simply for the item itself and not the signature? Saying right out that Beckett did not find them authentic does not seem a wise idea. Any help on how to do an accurate description of these unauthenticated items would be greatly appreciated.

a_c_green · ‎01-08-2018

I will cheerfully admit that I know nothing about authentication services such as the outfit we're discussing here, but at the end of the day, doesn't it just boil down to someone's opinion about what they're looking at, compared with other examples of the same thing? What are the odds that if you sent them in a second time, you'd get a different answer back?

How about if you found another authentication service: how confident are you that they'd come back with the same opinions?

I know that once you have an authentication, you can go ahead and list it while citing them as the authority for its authenticity, but if you're not successful, would you give up, or try a different authenticator instead?

crxtreasures · ‎01-08-2018

They'll probably end up on Craig's list. We can write a description that says, "If you want this for the autographs, it's NOT for you. If you want this to buy to try to resell it on eBay as legit, it's NOT for you. If you want this because you simply want it to add to your collection, or if you want it to be able to lie to your friends and say they're real, then it IS for you." We did end up losing a bit of money on this deal, but at least we know. Hopefully the sale of the authenticated items will bring in enough to at least break even. We hope that other people who find themselves in this situation turn to these boards. I think we've determined that there is definitely a risk involved in authenticating autographs. As with many other things, it's up to you to determine if the benefits outweigh the risks.

sockmonkeydave · ‎01-08-2018

@crxtreasures

I think that is the best route, cash in hand.

too many chances for it to go south here.

crxtreasures · ‎01-08-2018

I had the exact same thought. We thought all the signatures looked very real. What did Beckett do to determine that they weren't? How many examples were they working with? Is it possible they just didn't have enough examples to check? Would another company give us a different answer? There's unfortunately no way to know. The cost to send them in for a "second opinion" is just too great. I guess we try to sell locally to a buyer who knows the whole story and wants the item anyway because they just don't care.

loveyourimagination49 · ‎01-08-2018

Have you put a picture up on Reddit? The Music community boards here. They could give options as to if it was real enough to have it authenticated or not.

Everyone has options. Just be sure the best option is right for you.

gone_4_good · ‎01-08-2018

Authentication services aren't really worth much

http://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/autograph-fakery-two-firms-monopolize-a-lucrative-business-6395264

crxtreasures · ‎01-08-2018

Too late for these; we already paid to have them checked. In the future though, we could definitely do that. Thanks for the tip!

lookng2015 · ‎01-08-2018

Right. Not like authenticators never get it wrong.

"If a product doesn't sell, raise the price" - Reese Palley
"If it sold FAST, it was priced too low" - also Reese Palley

castlemagicmemories · ‎01-08-2018

Probably not a good idea to list them on Ebay, then.

d-k_treasures · ‎01-09-2018

Toss them into a local auction.

_____________________________
"Nothing is obvious to the oblivious"

coolections · ‎01-09-2018

@crxtreasures wrote:
Saying right out that Beckett did not find them authentic does not seem a wise idea.

What is not a wise idea is to lie to your future buyers about the autographs. Sorry you got taken when you purchased them. It has been said over 80% of Ebay autographs are fake. Throw them in the trash.

kds99 · ‎01-09-2018

There is an excellent chance that if only even one buyer complains to ebay you will receive a policy violation notice from ebay on each item listed. Your ebay days will be over.

cashnstash · ‎01-10-2018

Pay no attention to what the "authenticators" say. You do not need any formal training to be an "Authenticator"... anyone can call themselves an authenticator. I've been collecting autographs for near on 20 years and the best way to authenticate any autograph is through due diligence. Do your homework, ask questions, compare signatures, ensure the seller has a return policy as what you see on an item may look suspicious in real life.

The greatest disservice these "Authentic Authenticators" do is to place their sticker or stamp on to the item. This devalues the item as it defaces the originality of the item (all serious collectors know this). If any item I am interested in has been defaced it is passed over.