Online Discussion Groups ... Priceless

It’s a big event and the room is full. Wall to wall, elbow to elbow, so many people engaging in so much chatter, and there you are … no invitation and the sudden realization that you might just be in way over your head. Party? No-o-o-o... You have just entered the world of online sales.

It’s now been well over a decade since my first online sale, but I still remember how overwhelming it all seemed. I’d invest my money then invest my time – hours upon hours of research, sometimes only to find I’d be lucky to get my money back. I was a fairly quick study, but the lessons were many and the resources few. My biggest lesson: Online discussion groups can be priceless.

Fast forward many years and hundreds of sales and my days are now rich with a variety of resources, including a rather extensive library. But my most treasured resources are the acquaintances and friends who, like me, live in a world that revolves around antiques, collectibles and online sales.

Authors, appraisers, collectors and sellers fill auction houses or chat rooms, sharing stories and knowledge. For each of us, there are items that may forever remain a mystery, as we’ve come to realize that years of experience aren’t accompanied by a guarantee of knowledge. So we share tips about packing, photographing, and more. We look at photos for auctions we’ll never attend to save friends from the pitfalls or point out the finds. One person’s blind spot is another person’s focus. Thankfully, with so many people engaging in so much chatter in online discussion groups, we no longer need to feel as though we're in over our heads, and that, my friends, is priceless.