Mc Members

Where did you get this information from?

I made this point previously when the limit of the butterfly coins was reduced from 3 to 2. The Mint realized that there would not be enough coins available for every MC member, so they had to reduce the amount allowed.
And that is why these coins sold out in 1 1/2 hours compared to 3 days last time for the bumblebee coin.
Plus many people have more than one MC membership; that would certainly add to the 10,000 total.

Any hints on what changes to the program CC-Ottawa?

I haven't been a MC member long as I'm a new coin collector, but really enjoy the free shipping more than anything.

No idea what changes are coming but just the fact that there is a survey suggests the RCM is looking at the program and will make some changes.

The main themes of my responses were, ship on time, ship first to MC (or at least to those that order first), and that MC should know about coins at least as soon as Canada Post employees.

The most valuable features of the program are free shipping and advance notice/priority ordering but dealing with Canada Post will get you that before MC members so there is something wrong with the program right now.

It does sound like they will be getting similar suggestions.

1. Orders should be shipped FIFO (first in, first out).

2. Advance notice should come to MC members before the release, not the day after. Also, the time when the website will be available for ordering would be helpful.

3. Suggested more transparency within MC. i.e. there currently appears to be two tiers - those that have reps and can phone order early and exceed quantity limitations; receive special offers, etc. and the Regular MC members. Suggested they either have one level or if they are going to differentiate, be upfront and publish the criteria for attaining the higher level of service.

Some other suggestions which apply to every customer:

1. Provide their customer service reps with consistent information to provide callers.

2. Coordinate the shipping notifications/order status on their website to be current and consistent.

3. Regarding subscriptions - either send the boxes with the first coins and charge a cancellation fee if cancelled before the final coin (or some earlier coin) is sent or at least send the boxes with the coins they originally advertise them to arrive with.

4. Suggested publishing an annual release schedule like the U.S. Mint - it would be great for customers to plan but maybe that would cause them to lose some earlier sales to those waiting for a later released coin.

For me the free shipping is the number one benefit coupled with being able to purchase before general release. I used to use Canada Post for free shipping but they don't always get the coins I want and sometimes were sold out.

Increase the purchase limit that's ok if you are a seller.
If you collect coins totally different.

I just completed my survey. I found it interesting to rate the various benefits of the Masters Club and to see how little I valued some of them.

Regarding suggestions for improvement, I entered much of what I included in my " RCM 2013 Resolutions" post back in January.

I'm glad the RCM is asking questions - I hope they receive consistent enough responses to put a good improvement plan in operation.



Couldn't disagree more. While I could support raising it some from its current level, raising it to $5,000 would mostly only benefit those who buy in quantity for resale purposes. The MC should be of benefit to collectors who purchase more than the average, not just resellers.

Making MC membership only eligible to those purchasing 5K would knock out many current MC members, myself included. Given that I only buy a few coins that I like, I'd never make that threshold unless I start buying exclusively to flip for profit. For myself, coin collecting is a rather expensive hobby especially when you don't have a high income.

Perhaps a multi-tiered system that's more transparent as Canuck1us suggested is a better route. Different tiers of status would have different benefits, much like the airplane miles programs adopt. Top tier members could have access to reps, free shipping, and advance coin notice. Second tier members could have later access to coins, free shipping. Third tier members could have free shipping and guaranteed access to at least one coin of the release. This would allow the top tier members access to coins first, but still reward the regular MC members with an opportunity to buy at list price.

You see what happened to the butterfly coin ... If I wasn't back home 60min after they put the coins online, I'd never be able to buy them at issue price even if I am a MC. 90 is ridiculous for a sell-out, or awaiting stock, whatsoever you call it. As long as the coins don't stay at least 3 days up for MC, the limit is too low in my opinion.