Pin Values ...

[Counselor]

I have what is perhaps a silly, question... How does one go about determining the value of a pin? Is there a resource online besides eBay where you can see the $ value of a pin? my daughter and I would like to start doing a bit more trading but we are afraid to make offers for fear that we are not making fair 1:1 trade suggestions ... We also see pins up for auction and wonder how high we should bid for what pin is actually worth ... thanks for helping us out.

- I did look at the PinPics trade tutorial and learned a bunch but that did not give me a way to accurately determine value so that maybe when we are in WDW we can trade more than HM's with people...

 

[starry_solo]

No resource other than EBay sold listings

 

[Tbird]

That's really a tough question, there are allot of variables that go into it. If it's a movie pin then how hot is the movie at the time can drive the price of the pin (for instance the movie Frozen) but remember that as the movie gets older and people lose interest in the movie then they will also lose interest in the pins so they will go down in value.
When it comes to Limited edition pins then normally the lower the edition size the more value the pin will have but it also depends on how popular the pin is too. Event pins are also normally more valuable then rack pins also but the same goes for them on how popular they are also.

It's really a hard thing to figure out sometimes on how much pins are valued. I normally look at Ebay for what pins have sold for (not what people are asking for a pin but what they have already sold for). I also look at the trades/wants ratio, but I take that with a grain of salt. Some people may not want the pin anymore but forget to take it off of their wants list so the trades/wants ratio really isn't correct. I also consider how popular the character might be at the time too.
That's just how I do it but that's not saying the way I do it is correct either. Another thing to remember also is a pin that you may consider a very valuable pin may not be as valuable to the other person so just try and use your best judgment. Most people won't take offence if they don't think the trade offer is fair, they will just simply say no thank you.

I hope this helps.

 

[Counselor]

Both responses are totally helpful and appreciated! I am just so new to collecting and now trading that I am often reticent to make trade offers because i want to make a fair offer and not offend. I guess I just need to jump in the water and tread water for a bit to see what happens

 

[Tbird]

I'll give you a example, your pin "Pin 54385 DisneyShopping.com - May Flowers Mystery 4 Pin Box Set (Ariel & Eric Only)" that you have on your signature. That pin is a very valuable pin. It's low limited edition, it's trades/wants ratio is very high (a lot of people wanting it compared to how many people are trading it) and it has Ariel in it and she is very popular. I didn't look at Ebay but just looking at the other things you can tell it is a valuable pin.

 

[Counselor]

I'll give you a example, your pin "Pin 54385 DisneyShopping.com - May Flowers Mystery 4 Pin Box Set (Ariel & Eric Only)" that you have on your signature. That pin is a very valuable pin. It's low limited edition, it's trades/wants ratio is very high (a lot of people wanting it compared to how many people are trading it) and it has Ariel in it and she is very popular. I didn't look at Ebay but just looking at the other things you can tell it is a valuable pin.

Thanks for this, and this is a perfect example ... When I go to the trade section and select "what could I offer", it comes back with a Great Mouse Detective Pin that has a high LE and is not something I see people clamoring for and a few other things that I just do not on the surface see as fair offers. This is especially confusing when I have WAY more desirable things in my trades/ wants. As a result I do not send in a request, mainly because i do not want to low ball, nor do I want a bad rep among traders for low balling... Like I said before, I guess I just gotta "do it". What is the worse that can happen ...

Edit: I jumped ... Trade Request sent

 

[MerlinEmrys]

Thanks for this, and this is a perfect example ... When I go to the trade section and select "what could I offer", it comes back with a Great Mouse Detective Pin that has a high LE and is not something I see people clamoring for and a few other things that I just do not on the surface see as fair offers. This is especially confusing when I have WAY more desirable things in my trades/ wants. As a result I do not send in a request, mainly because i do not want to low ball, nor do I want a bad rep among traders for low balling... Like I said before, I guess I just gotta "do it". What is the worse that can happen ...

Edit: I jumped ... Trade Request sent

The pinpics trade requests is a little sticky when you start getting into the higher end pins. It's so hard to iron something out because you're right, you don't want to lowball someone, and you usually end up just getting a "no." I always try to follow up with "I'm happy to trade multiple pins" or offer a counter. But some of the best trades I've managed on Pinpics have been from me contacting the person one-on-on, not through trade requests. People are 9 time out of 10 more likely to respond and work out a larger trade that way.

But yes, sometimes you just have to take the leap and send out a trade you know is a "no" and work from there, only because there's really no fluid way to work it out otherwise.

Best of luck to you!

~Merlin

 

[Tbird]

Like Merlin said, a good way is to contact them through email directly or if they are on here then PM them. If you do get a no answer from a pinpics request then send them back a reply and ask them if they would be willing to look at your other traders to see if they can find anything else to trade for the pin.

 

[Counselor]

I sort of did that through the trade piece... I said i had other traders they were welcome to look at... Thanks again for the tutelage


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