Can Someone Tell Me Why My Mercury Dimes Aren't Of Interest?

Original Poster

I don't think that the problem you are having as far as lack of sales is about what you are doing, or not doing. I think the main reason is that ebay itself is not an 'easy' score.

It's rare that I browse through ebay coin listings these days. Unless I am looking for something out of the ordinary I rarely find any coins that strike my interest, since most are priced way beyond my budget. Aside from the 1921 Mercury dimes, I can find almost any I need much cheaper at a local shop for less than $2.00 each. NO, I can't always find AU's at that price, but sometimes I can.

Now I'm not saying that nobody buys through ebay anymore; just that most offers get timed out. This goes for all sorts of items too; not just coins. I see too many items starting bids way too high to even bother with, and I think most of it is because of all the free listings. If free listings were cut down to just a few a month it would eliminate most of the overpriced offers.

There are many people who don't have alternate places to buy their needs, so ebay still is an important sales place. It just might take several times trying different things, but you will finally attract the right buyer.

There's nothing wrong with Mercury dimes. This is one of the most popular series of U.S. coins. Many original rolls from the mid-thirties on, were saved, and the market remains glutted with BU specimens, now seventy years after their issue dates. This glut tends to depress book values, methinks. Choice BU Mercs can be gotten cheaply at shows. So, why pay the freight for common coins on ebay?

There are many closet collectors out there who live in a bubble, so to speak. They are the ones who buy these more common coins. They rarely network with other collectors at shows, clubs or even online. From what I've seen, these collectors are more likely to buy in the auction mode and tend to shy away from the BIN sales. I'd venture that this group is your prime sales target. A friend of mine has been selling BU Lincolns to these buyers for years, being very successful as a "power seller" on ebay.

Collectors will pay a premium for sharp, split bands, so good, reverse pics would likely result in sales of choice or better BU specimens. While some collectors may disdain the hype-writing on 2x2's or even slabbed coins, savvy collectors will look past the packaging and buy the coin.

Just Carl offered some good advice, Hammbone. Best wishes with your sales ... It's a learning process, and missteps are inevitable.