congrats folks

[predatorkj]

I honestly think the emphasis on prospecting here scares away many people - although I'm not a prospector it doesn't scare me too much . The vast majority of real collectors don't have a clue about half the guys brought up for discussion on this board - including me!

It may help to have one board for investors/prospectors/MiLB players and another for collectors/MLB players.

I think what kills us too is there are a ton of other members on the other sites and they are most likely sticking around there because they have a good little community.Its not like ours is better or worse but I guess they have the whole "If it ain't broke don't fix it" attitude.I mean...I don't go over to other sites and really talk to anyone because I get my fill here.Just about any question I want answered I can satisfy it here.

I suppose the only real way to attract those kinds of people is to get everyone somehow to feel the need to band together.Imagine if we had SCF and the other big sites all merged into one?More sponsers would surely follow and also the collective knowledge of the board would be unrivaled and nobody else could touch it.You may even get more companies trying to actively post and show their products or offer prizes for give aways and whatnot.

No no no no.That's the beauty of it.I am no big prospector but I pay attention and do a little homework from time to time.Now while I won't go out and spend mega amounts of money on unprovens...I always end up having at least a handful of chromes or autos of the guys who are hot.Some I missed the boat on like Longo and Price but by the time I got around to it...the buy in was way too high.Same thing with Gamel although I see a downswing coming for his stuff.

In any case I am able to scoop up cards of future stars and it costs me pretty much nothing since I am able to stay ahead of the collector hype.The prospector hype can get you too but the point is...if the prospectors are hyping something its not going to be as bad as if the whole hobby is in on it so you don't get the same prices.It allows you to stay a little bit ahead of the curve as it were.And I think more "collectors" could greatly benefit from this.It doesn't mean the prices won't spike but at least it saves you from paying $5-$10 for a base chrome when you could have picked up 20 of them for $10 a while back perhaps.


I just feel like it doesn't have to go away to allow people to come and feel comfortable.Besides...there are quite a few collectors on here who go after vintage, and just regular cards of established stars.We also have guys who specialize in 90's knowledge and we have some super player collectors that can share the knowledge of different variations for different sets as well as unlisted releases.The knowledge here with prospecting, vintage, inserts, and just general knowledge about any specific card out of any specific set, all combined make for one hell of a site.I mean this place is like an interactive beckett almanac, except it actually has answers for things not in the almanac.

So for me...its a little hard to beat that.But I am pretty sure there are a lot of collectors who feel the same way about their respective message boards so that's why they stick to them.When beckett broke up I was scared because....yeah I'd be able to get along without the boards but damn...I had learned so much ,I went from not knowing much of anything to knowing a lot more than the dealers and shop owners at some places, in a little under two years.I wanted to keep that going.Luckily I think we have and its odd and great at the same time how everyone banded together and actually stuck with it.Normally you see this but it never lasts.Well this has.Nothing is better than a bunch of like minded individuals that can stick together and help each other out.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

I'm not saying it should go away, I'm saying it should have its own board within this site. It makes sense as we're talking about different leagues, different players, different sets, etc.

I honestly think the emphasis on prospecting here scares away many people - although I'm not a prospector it doesn't scare me too much . The vast majority of real collectors don't have a clue about half the guys brought up for discussion on this board - including me!

It may help to have one board for investors/prospectors/MiLB players and another for collectors/MLB players.

I think what kills us too is there are a ton of other members on the other sites and they are most likely sticking around there because they have a good little community.Its not like ours is better or worse but I guess they have the whole "If it ain't broke don't fix it" attitude.I mean...I don't go over to other sites and really talk to anyone because I get my fill here.Just about any question I want answered I can satisfy it here.

I suppose the only real way to attract those kinds of people is to get everyone somehow to feel the need to band together.Imagine if we had SCF and the other big sites all merged into one?More sponsers would surely follow and also the collective knowledge of the board would be unrivaled and nobody else could touch it.You may even get more companies trying to actively post and show their products or offer prizes for give aways and whatnot.

No no no no.That's the beauty of it.I am no big prospector but I pay attention and do a little homework from time to time.Now while I won't go out and spend mega amounts of money on unprovens...I always end up having at least a handful of chromes or autos of the guys who are hot.Some I missed the boat on like Longo and Price but by the time I got around to it...the buy in was way too high.Same thing with Gamel although I see a downswing coming for his stuff.

In any case I am able to scoop up cards of future stars and it costs me pretty much nothing since I am able to stay ahead of the collector hype.The prospector hype can get you too but the point is...if the prospectors are hyping something its not going to be as bad as if the whole hobby is in on it so you don't get the same prices.It allows you to stay a little bit ahead of the curve as it were.And I think more "collectors" could greatly benefit from this.It doesn't mean the prices won't spike but at least it saves you from paying $5-$10 for a base chrome when you could have picked up 20 of them for $10 a while back perhaps.

I just feel like it doesn't have to go away to allow people to come and feel comfortable.Besides...there are quite a few collectors on here who go after vintage, and just regular cards of established stars.We also have guys who specialize in 90's knowledge and we have some super player collectors that can share the knowledge of different variations for different sets as well as unlisted releases.The knowledge here with prospecting, vintage, inserts, and just general knowledge about any specific card out of any specific set, all combined make for one hell of a site.I mean this place is like an interactive beckett almanac, except it actually has answers for things not in the almanac.

So for me...its a little hard to beat that.But I am pretty sure there are a lot of collectors who feel the same way about their respective message boards so that's why they stick to them.When beckett broke up I was scared because....yeah I'd be able to get along without the boards but damn...I had learned so much ,I went from not knowing much of anything to knowing a lot more than the dealers and shop owners at some places, in a little under two years.I wanted to keep that going.Luckily I think we have and its odd and great at the same time how everyone banded together and actually stuck with it.Normally you see this but it never lasts.Well this has.Nothing is better than a bunch of like minded individuals that can stick together and help each other out.

 

[cgilmo]

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

 

[Ty Hope]

Well, this site does have me, so in case you needed any more proof of us being #1...

:lol:

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

Dividing the site is necessary when not doing so inhibits growth, I was just saying that having everything all in one board scares away many non-prospectors. Most people do not like the mix except for the people here.

I thought part of the theme to this thread was to find ways to increase growth.

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

 

[G $MONEY$]

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

Yes thak you!!!! I dont like the boards that divide up all the traffic. One of the other boards that i lurk on has each sport divided into like 5 or 6 categories. They will have say Baseball, then Hobby talk, show and tell, league discussion, buy/sell, trade, box breaks etc all seperate.

 

[Invest4thefuture]

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

Yes thak you!!!! I dont like the boards that divide up all the traffic. One of the other boards that i lurk on has each sport divided into like 5 or 6 categories. They will have say Baseball, then Hobby talk, show and tell, league discussion, buy/sell, trade, box breaks etc all seperate.

Agreed, and that's why I hate most sites... there's no reason to have trading and buy/sell separated lol...

 

[predatorkj]

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

Yes thak you!!!! I dont like the boards that divide up all the traffic. One of the other boards that i lurk on has each sport divided into like 5 or 6 categories. They will have say Baseball, then Hobby talk, show and tell, league discussion, buy/sell, trade, box breaks etc all seperate.

Yeah..that turns me away too.I like everything consolidated.It makes it easier than flipping from forum to forum.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

Which is why the folks that stay on those boards stay on those boards. Those folks know what content they like, can see it, get to it easily without interruption and perhaps most importantly worry less about different collecting/investing agendas.

It just often seems here investing and collecting are combined to further the interests of investing. This is great in its own unique way, but it caters to a specific group of people and keeps many pure collectors away.

Its just worth it to think about these things once in a while if you enjoy the hobby.

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

Yes thak you!!!! I dont like the boards that divide up all the traffic. One of the other boards that i lurk on has each sport divided into like 5 or 6 categories. They will have say Baseball, then Hobby talk, show and tell, league discussion, buy/sell, trade, box breaks etc all seperate.

 

[predatorkj]

Which is why the folks that stay on those boards stay on those boards. Those folks know what content they like, can see it, get to it easily without interruption and perhaps most importantly worry less about different collecting/investing agendas.

It just often seems here investing and collecting are combined to further the interests of investing. This is great in its own unique way, but it caters to a specific group of people and keeps many pure collectors away.

Its just worth it to think about these things once in a while if you enjoy the hobby.

prospecting is never going to have its own special board. Dividing traffic unnessessarily kills way too many sites. We have the topic icon, that should be plenty. See the P and don't like prospects? Skip the thread.

Yes thak you!!!! I dont like the boards that divide up all the traffic. One of the other boards that i lurk on has each sport divided into like 5 or 6 categories. They will have say Baseball, then Hobby talk, show and tell, league discussion, buy/sell, trade, box breaks etc all seperate.

Well then I'd leave the fault on their side of the court for that if that is what is truly keeping them away.Anyone can go anywhere and talk cards.And I think its safe to say there is enough of a collecting base here to accomodate them for whatever type of collecting they enjoy.Just look at the 90's insert thread.This place used to be nothing but high end pulls and prospects.Now its taken on all different shapes and forms.This board is like water.It flows where it wants to.