Comiclink 4 4

[Will_K]

This topic has far more activity than I would've anticipated.

[MAR1979]

On 3/21/2024 at 10:04 AM, D Parker said:

A bit of serendipity had two pages from the same issue of Daredevil auctioned within a couple weeks of each other. Since I consigned the one with Comiclink, I was very interested in seeing where the one at Heritage finished.

• Daredevil #213, page 7, Heritage Weekly Auction ending 3/20/2024: $3,120
• Daredevil #213, page 8, Comiclink Featured Auction ending 3/6/2024: $5,650

The two pages seem comparable to me - page 7 is a much better action page, but there's something to be said for the DD/Kingpin interaction on page 8.

As I was only auctioning the one page, there's no way I would get any sort of favorable terms at Heritage, and I assume it would have been dumped in a weekly auction. To match the net amount I received from Comiclink, it would have had to sell for $7,062.50 at Heritage. No way to know for sure, but I think that's unlikely.

I'm very happy to have consigned to Comiclink and think they have their place. That said, improvements are always welcome, and you never know when someone is going to sneak up on you (MyComicShop is poised to each their lunch if enough eyeballs shift to their auctions). It's much easier to maintain an audience than to try and win them back after they've left.

IMHO the Kingpin page is far more desirable and classic. Surprised it did not go higher

Edited March 22 by MAR1979

[KirbyCollector]

On 3/21/2024 at 7:33 PM, Will_K said:

This topic has far more activity than I would've anticipated.

Some great information provided about negotiating HA's commission, something I hope benefits many going forward. I sometimes think we hide too much information from ourselves b/c we believe we are gaining some edge, when in reality we are all playing against the house in the same casino. Sharing tips helps all of us win.

[jjonahjameson11]

On 3/22/2024 at 9:46 AM, KirbyCollector said:

Some great information provided about negotiating HA's commission, something I hope benefits many going forward. I sometimes think we hide too much information from ourselves b/c we believe we are gaining some edge, when in reality we are all playing against the house in the same casino. Sharing tips helps all of us win.

It’s unfortunate that some of the most well-known dealers/collectors are unwilling to share this information with others, and I really don’t understand this sort of behaviour.

 

[Lucky Baru]

On 3/21/2024 at 5:32 PM, Xatari said:

I definitely know many in the hobby have adapted to the system in place.  That said, the fact that you have to place a legally binding bid to track an item is archaic when a basic item tracker can be implemented. We can go back and forth on workarounds, but that is truly what they are... workarounds to a lazy and inadequate platform creating a subpar experience for the end user.  This shows up in the disparity between CLink hammer prices and Heritage hammer prices.  

Also, these auction shareholders should want to get as many people watching and engaged as possible.  It's the reason emotional bidding happens at Heritage and can run up auctions well beyond what most would consider market value.  Heritage sends me text reminders on my phone when an auction I have tracked is about to come up.  Heck, even Comic Connect reps actually call me on the phone and remind me an auction is taking place later in the day.  For the prices of some of these pieces, those types of things are differentiators.  It signals to me these platforms have worked to earn my business if I decide to sell a piece.  

I wouldn't be able to pinpoint the annual figure of missed opportunity as I don't have insider knowledge to Comic Link's internal conversations, but I am part of a relatively large group of collectors (20+).  I won't speak for my fellow group members, but the consensus in our conversations tends to be Comic Link is the place to buy and Heritage is the place to sell.  Our group is primarily consistent collectors with few pieces selling and lots of buying, but there are times when pieces need to be sold to fund other acquisitions.  I know the general amount of money spent by the typical collector in our crew, so when it does come time to sell, I can say with confidence that it would be a substantial miss for Comic Link given our small sample size alone.

It provokes a smile to observe the threads that spring forth here, each a chorus of disapproval aimed at Comic Link’s website, as perceived by the posters.  Granted, their disdain for the site is evident. Yet, the irony lies in the fact that these very individuals, despite their grievances, remain active users, persistently engaging in auctions and transactions.
 

Perhaps there’s a touch of shrewdness to Josh and his company after all?

[tth2]

On 3/22/2024 at 7:33 AM, Will_K said:

This topic has far more activity than I would've anticipated.

A thread to complain about Clink?  I'd say that it hasn't even scratched the surface yet! 

[KirbyCollector]

On 3/22/2024 at 10:01 AM, Lucky Baru said:

It provokes a smile to observe the threads that spring forth here, each a chorus of disapproval aimed at Comic Link’s website, as perceived by the posters.  Granted, their disdain for the site is evident. Yet, the irony lies in the fact that these very individuals, despite their grievances, remain active users, persistently engaging in auctions and transactions.
 

Perhaps there’s a touch of shrewdness to Josh and his company after all?

If "shrewdness" means "losing market share," then I'd say Josh is killing it

Edited March 22 by KirbyCollector

[Lucky Baru]

On 3/22/2024 at 9:22 AM, KirbyCollector said:

If "shrewdness" means "losing market share," then I'd say Josh is killing it

Please provide your insider data showing their loss of market share, and the time period it occurred.

Edited March 22 by Lucky Baru

[jjonahjameson11]

On 3/22/2024 at 10:01 AM, Lucky Baru said:

It provokes a smile to observe the threads that spring forth here, each a chorus of disapproval aimed at Comic Link’s website, as perceived by the posters.  Granted, their disdain for the site is evident. Yet, the irony lies in the fact that these very individuals, despite their grievances, remain active users, persistently engaging in auctions and transactions.
 

Perhaps there’s a touch of shrewdness to Josh and his company after all?

What are you talking about?  The decrease in OA consignments for clinks featured auctions or the lack of discussion/lack of excitement on these boards leading up to/ during their featured auctions?

for me personally, I stopped selling with them back in 2016 because I was tired of losing money/leaving too much money on the table with them.  Additionally, after having a 30 minute phone call with Doug explaining the challenges/opportunities to improve their site went nowhere (evidenced to this day, 8 years later) I cannot comprehend why folks consign artwork with them, especially on pieces $10K+, which would generally do better on HA.

 

[Xatari]

My insider knowledge is simply this, I have personally missed over 10 pieces this year on which I would have likely been a bidder had stronger reminders been in place. When auction houses are after my money, “the squeaky wheel gets the grease”. 

Josh’s brilliance? Could be, but I think it’s not big picture thinking. Clink generates a higher bid count for their pieces because they refuse to have a tracking system so as users have mentioned they manually track by placing a bid. In the end, if you are truly interested in research on this matter, you may hypothesize how many bids are viable contenders for the piece vs how many are simply voyeurs.  

[Lucky Baru]

On 3/22/2024 at 9:39 AM, jjonahjameson11 said:

What are you talking about?  The decrease in OA consignments for clinks featured auctions or the lack of discussion/lack of excitement on these boards leading up to/ during their featured auctions?

for me personally, I stopped selling with them back in 2016 because I was tired of losing money/leaving too much money on the table with them.  Additionally, after having a 30 minute phone call with Doug explaining the challenges/opportunities to improve their site went nowhere (evidenced to this day, 8 years later) I cannot comprehend why folks consign artwork with them, especially on pieces $10K+, which would generally do better on HA.

 

You compare Comic Link to HA.  Does Comic Link or any other auction house do that?  I’ve no idea.  I’m not an employee of any of them.

In the entire time, I’ve been purchasing items through Comic Link, HA, ComicConnect, Russ Cochran, etc., I’ve never attempted to place one at this level or that one, nor assumed that one was trying to ascend or descend to the other’s level (whatever that might be in your opinion).  I’ve noticed the amounts I get charged to purchase and sell.  I’ve noticed how quickly they ship, how well they pack items, and the type of customer service I receive.  Other than that, I don’t care.  I don’t run them, nor do I seek to do so.

[Sean I]

Lucky Baru does have your numbers on the point that for as much as you all cluck most of you still use it.  At least the Nerdcrawler guy puts up an effort rather than this endless armchair retreading.

[Rick2you2]

I’m willing to accept a mediocre site if the prices at auction tend to lower, as they are.

[Dr. Balls]

On 3/22/2024 at 9:21 AM, Sean I said:

Lucky Baru does have your numbers on the point that for as much as you all cluck most of you still use it.  At least the Nerdcrawler guy puts up an effort rather than this endless armchair retreading.

[PhilipB2k17]

On 3/21/2024 at 7:48 AM, KirbyCollector said:

The inside track comes from years of posts here, conversations at cons and shows-- and CL itself, whose personnel I have spoken with in person. They know their site is old, they know what Heritage does, and they know how much it would cost to upgrade it all. They know collectors are gravitating to Heritage but they chose not to make improvements on their own product because, to paraphrase Doug, "We don't want to, CL works fine as it is."

Which is why they went out and partnered with Steve Borok to try and lure in better consignments? 

[Xatari]

On 3/22/2024 at 8:21 AM, Sean I said:

Lucky Baru does have your numbers on the point that for as much as you all cluck most of you still use it.  At least the Nerdcrawler guy puts up an effort rather than this endless armchair retreading.

I think one can use an application and still want more from it. I never said I won’t buy on Clink. Quite the contrary. I buy from them. I would just never sell big ticket items with them. 

I want Comic Link to do well. I want competition in the market to elevate the experience for us all. The difference I see with Comic Link vs their competition is their ownership refuses to listen and act on end user feedback. 

[MAR1979]

On 3/22/2024 at 2:12 PM, PhilipB2k17 said:

Which is why they went out and partnered with Steve Borok to try and lure in better consignments? 

Not clear on how that relates to near quarter century old code that makes up basis of their website. Or has the discussion changed ?

PS I've reason to suspect Boracks time at CLink will run no longer than 24 months maximum in total.

Edited March 22 by MAR1979

[tth2]

On 3/22/2024 at 11:21 PM, Sean I said:

Lucky Baru does have your numbers on the point that for as much as you all cluck most of you still use it.  At least the Nerdcrawler guy puts up an effort rather than this endless armchair retreading.

So long as some people continue to consign to Clink for whatever reason (e.g., lower fees), then bidders will have no choice but to continue to monitor auctions there if they're after those pieces. 

As we've seen with much smaller comic/OA auction sites like Hake's or Goldin, consignments might never completely dry up, but they might start falling short of the critical mass necessary to be a really attractive auction venue.  In the case of Hake's or Goldin, without their sugar daddies making or coercing their buddies to make (relatively) big ticket consignments, maybe their comic/OA auction business really would be dead. 

As a longtime player in the comic hobby, Clink will probably always have a presence and can do well within its segment of the market. There's nothing wrong with occupying the lower end segments of an industry so long as you understand that that's your segment and run your business accordingly.  Being Motel 8 or Best Western and occupying the lower end of the hospitality market is fine so long as you understand your clientele and set your opex/capex accordingly.  It's when you're Motel 8 but think you're Hyatt that you get into trouble.  So I would say that Clink's lack of investment in its infrastructure indicates that they understand their segment very well, are happy to operate in it and don't aspire to be something more than they are.

[vodou]

On 3/23/2024 at 1:49 AM, tth2 said:

Being Motel 8 or Best Western and occupying the lower end of the hospitality market is fine so long as you understand your clientele and set your opex/capex accordingly. 

..."by the hour" rates...

[Rick2you2]

On 3/23/2024 at 6:45 AM, vodou said:

..."by the hour" rates...

If the differential represents the net recovery to the seller, after accounting for the reduced fees and charges of HA v. CLINK, plus $1.00, I would put up with the lesser auction “quality” and pocket the difference. In other words, people buy at Walmart and Costco instead of Macy’s. I have also found interesting odd pieces on CLINK, as compared to HA, so I confess I like it. 

Does Comic Connect figure into this too? I haven’t found much there over the years; not sure why.