Coin Shows And Shops Vs The Internet?

I buy my share of coins online but there is nothing like going to a show or to a local coin shop. The shows are amazing as it's all right in front of you. The process of building a relationship with some of the shows sellers is awesome. The shows I go to locally here have much of the same sellers each time and it makes for a fun day. My local coin shop owner is awesome and always fun to shoot the bull with while I'm perusing. Don't get me wrong, online has its place too, especially when I'm in withdrawals :) But I'd do the shows and stores first anytime and all the time....

Kind of a social thing for some folks I guess.

I've done my fair share of drinking in the past, but I never cared much for bars. I'm like George Thorogood - I drink alone.

And I collect coins alone...

Haha..

Here's an alternate viewpoint for you, scottk, just a datapoint & not a judgement because you get to buy from whoever the heck you please.

I've been teaching coin photography - and how to judge online images - here for almost ten years. The most important lesson to be learned is that even the best images harbor deception. All images. I can talk myself blue in the face trying to describe all the possible permutations of slightly-off pixels but it's a durn sight better to see what problem coins look like in the palm of your hand and under your lens.

For you, wishing to shop only online, it's going to take a while to see enough coins to see what problems actually look like. Find a dealer at a show with a bunch of Morgans. Strike up a conversation with the guy and see what he has for "bad" coins. If he has an overdipped Morgan, hold it in your hand and study each face for a few seconds and you'll never be deceived again.

Darn near impossible to photograph, and I only see one in here every few years.

I just don't want the Internet to narrow your horizons rather than broaden them. Numismatics doesn't have to be a solitary avocation.

Speaking from the dealer end of the hobby I have noticed a marked change over the last forty years. I started as a vest pocket dealer taking tables at shows locally and regionally. Then I was offered a chance in a busy LCS, before starting my own shop.I had a bricks and mortar shop for years. Sure there were ups and downs but mostly it was a very demanding but enjoyable way to make a living. Then along came the Internet and ebay . This has totally transformed the hobby and the business. Changed it forever in a mostly positive way in my opinion. I would opine that there are way more collectors today than ever before, but most just sit at home and bid or buy from their computer or mobile device. We sell way more expensive coins on line these days than I could ever have imagined in my bricks and mortar shop of years past. Today you have a world wide audience with less travel and related shop expenses not to mention employees. Just a different way of doing the same business.
All that said We still attend lots of coin shows and visit as many shops in different cities as we can when on the road. I encourage all in our great hobby, to support your local shops ,attend a coin show when you can, and continue to buy off the Internet as well. Today the hobby of numismatics offers diversity like never in the past.

SPP I got smart mine loves coin shows more than me ......... 52nd Las Vegas Show starts tomorrow she is already packed including an extra magnifying glass!

I like doing a little of both. I like the big online retailers because some of them have very good customer service. APMEX for example has a return policy like you would not believe and has often sent me extra coins or more coins based on my word alone--no photos or wordy explanation necessary. I do enjoy one particular coin shop local to me because 1) you can haggle on the prices, and 2) see the coins right up close and get first hand notice of anything new that may be in the shop that you didn't see last time.

I personally don't trust ebay at all. Not the company, but the people who sell on there. The real deals are few and far between these days and it's easy enough for someone to make multiple accounts to bid up their own item in an attempt to make more money.

Notice how I start the last paragraph off with "I personally" and that's because it's the way I feel about it. You feel differently and that's fine and others feel differently and that's fine too. If we all felt the same way then there would be only one way to shop.

Good luck.

In my area of the world the closer LCS to me are not very friendly, or are a bit condescending so I don't shop them very often at all. I am of the older generation (I will be 60 my next birthday), however my hubby and I bought our first computer the day Radio Shack got their first one for over $4,000 back in the 90's lol so I am very computer savvy as they say so shopping online is something I am comfortable doing. I do shop ebay from time to time but only with trusted high volume sellers but my point is I LOVE going to coin shows. I even got to go to my first FUN show in Orlando this year and had a BLAST~!! We also do not have many coin shows local each year but I mark my calendar months in advance. And of course I have my "favorite" dealer and look forward to catching up with him and looking at all the coins. Especially the ones I will never own and sometimes seeing coins that spark a new interest in a new area to expand what I collect. So if you have never attended one and get the chance to I HIGHLY suggest it.

Yes, comradery is one reason people talk about and ssuperddave mentioned the problem with photos (do we all not know that one so-so girl that takes amazing Facebook selfies?). Also I am surprised no one mentioned the deals. I can buy bullion and a lot of stuff cheaper online but if you like tokens you have junk bins, dealers that get to know you will take trades and cut deals in other ways too. It is not all coins either. If you like cards, military or even jewelry there is so much going on at a collector show.