What consumers want is to trust the person they will be buying from. How then, can an antiques dealer use social media to build relationships with new customers? A social media strategist offers vintage sellers five tips.
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Tag Archives: behind the gavel
How eBay’s fraud protection plan boosts your sales (even if you don’t sell on eBay)
Columnist Wayne Jordan says eBay’s Fraud Protection Program is a response to the atmosphere of distrust – distrust that has existed in the art and antiques market for decades. Without trust, a loyal user base cannot be established, and without loyal customers a company cannot grow. He gives credit to eBay for making an effort to sort all of this out and claims the company’s efforts to control fraud help all online sellers. Read More +
Why don’t antiques dealers just cut prices and move old merch? Because we don’t like losing something once we own it
Wayne Jordan looks at the true cost of holding on to inventory too long and why it’s very common in the antiques trade: "Even when faced with compelling financial data (like inventory turns and profits) dealers still hold on to their beloved inventory. The essence of loss aversion is that simply owning something increases its value (to us). We don’t like losing something once we own it. Antiques dealers are also collectors, and they tend to get attached to the items the buy" Read More +
How to be the antiques dealer who knows something about art
Antiques dealers who have found that their large furniture items aren’t selling would do well to remember that most rooms have more wall space than floor space. The good news for antiques dealers is that they can profit handsomely from the every-day, run-of-the-mill unsigned art they find at estate sales, garage sales, and auctions. Columnist Wayne Jordan offers a primer on the two most important rules dealers should remember when selling art and how to select quality pieces that sell.
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Madison-Bouckville Antique Week planning for 2,000 vendors at 40th annual event
BOUCKVILLE, N.Y. – This year marks the 40th anniversary of Madison-Bouckville Antique Week, slated for Aug. 15-21 in Bouckville, a town located in central New York state, not far from Syracuse and Utica and right on State Route 20. The event will play host to over 2,000 dealers and vendors and is expected to attract 45,000 people or more to its many fields.
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Do you base your antiques inventory prices on value, cost or gut feelings?
Wayne Jordan has a "Home Alone" moment after reading a report claiming that artificially inflating prices for Kindle and iPad ebooks "creates value" for consumers. "I read that statement and screamed. Macaulay has nothing on me," he writes. Dealing in unique objects, antiques sellers may price inventory at the intersection of supply and demand. However, many use three pricing strategies: research, cost (amount paid) and "gut feeling" to move their merchandise. Jordan looks at the pros and cons and explains how all three can help sales.
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Five ways to finance your antiques business without a bank loan
Applying for a bank loan for your fledgling Antiques business is a quick and easy process: you fill out the loan application, and the bank says "No!" It’s sad but it’s true. Bankers just don’t understand the antiques trade. Behind the Gavel columnist Wayne Jordan shares five choices that small businesses sometimes use for quick cash. He sorts through the good, the bad, and the ugly of them to see what might make sense for your business.
You CAN get Gen Y to step foot in your shop: What antiques dealers can learn from junk mail – Part 2
In this follow up to his popular article What antiques dealers can learn from junk mail, columnist Wayne Jordan shares tips and tricks any dealer can use to spice up ad copy and boost store traffic.
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What antiques dealers can learn from junk mail
Antiques dealers and other small business owners can seldom afford to hire an agency to develop their ads. For this reason, small businesses ads are almost always poorly written and ineffective. Nevertheless, small businesses are still in need of effective advertising. By following a few simple guidelines, antique dealers can produce effective advertising copy that will have a positive effect on their sales. Read More +