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Beckett News You Can Use - October 17, 2013 - Printable Version

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Beckett News You Can Use - October 17, 2013 - tkaplan - 10-17-2013

A Letter to our Members

We’d like to start this newsletter by saying, “THANK YOU” to everyone who visited beckett.com and participated in September’s Customer Appreciation Month. There were some very cool prizes given out with lots of bonus drawings. We had fun with the drawings and sending out prizes, and hope you did, too. If you want to see all of the winners, check out the full list here: http://www.beckett.com/forums/thread-1543328.html

The website performance continues to improve and we are getting closer to the end of our Organize indexing project. We’ve updated hardware and restructured the databases. We still have a bit more to do but hope you have been noticing the changes.

COMING SOON

There are several projects that are either in the middle or final stages of testing, and scheduled to be live on the website this year. These include:

1. COINS!
Everyone is familiar with the services on beckett.com and how Beckett’s products for trading cards are unmatched. Beginning in November, we will offer Beckett Total Coin Collector: the pricing (both raw and graded), organizing, buying, and trading, (and soon selling) of U.S. Coins. Keep an eye out for updates as we get closer to launching this feature. The coin pages will be integrated throughout the website. You will often see tabs that will toggle between cards and coins, or you may see both coins and cards integrated into the activity, such as on the Marketplace checkout and C2C Xchange.

Here is a screen shot of a Coin Item Detail page: (remember, this is still test data)

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0907_coins_zps98fcb31c.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0907_coins_zps98fcb31c.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_0907_coins_zps98fcb31c.png"/></a>

2. MATCHMAKER
Matchmaker is waiting on a few more indexing updates, and then this feature will be available on beckett.com. It is the Beckett tool that will match you to other traders and Marketplace dealers for the purpose of trading or buying the cards you need for your collection. Below is a screen shot of what it looks like in our testing environment. Please note that selling may not be available at the same time Matchmaker becomes available, but will be available with the C2C Xchange project (see “Coming Soon” #3).

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/Matchmaker-HiRes_20131018_zpsf83948d2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/Matchmaker-HiRes_20131018_zpsf83948d2.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Matchmaker-HiRes_20131018_zpsf83948d2.jpg"/></a>

3. C2C XCHANGE
C2C Xchange is a major enhancement to the way you will Buy, Sell and Trade on beckett.com. The Beckett C2C Xchange gives you the ability to sell to fellow collectors, showcase your collection and more.
The trade tools as you know them now will remain the same, but new C2C Xchange pages will be built to allow for a smooth C2C experience. There will be some changes in how you access the tools, so we will provide a special update with instructions and images to get everyone up to speed.

4. A project that is in the development phase: Make Offer
The Make Offer option is being developed for the Beckett Marketplace. This is an optional savings tool in which Marketplace Dealers can participate. If a customer is buying from a participating dealer, an offer can be sent to the dealer. The dealer can accept, reject, or counter-offer. This feature has not yet made it to the testing stage, but is on schedule for this year or early next year.

5. MARKETPLACE CHECKOUT
We have nearly finished with a major remodel on the Beckett Marketplace shopping cart and checkout. Not only will it streamline the process, but it will also include a new feature called Quantity Discount. Marketplace Dealers will have the option to provide an additional savings based upon a higher quantity purchase of a single card. For example, if you buy a smaller quantity, say 1 or 2 of a single card, you may simply see the regular price. If you buy a higher quantity and the dealer is offering a discount for that quantity, for example 15-20, then you will receive an additional discount for that card.

Here’s an example of the new cart:

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0909_MPCart_zps477141ae.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0909_MPCart_zps477141ae.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_0909_MPCart_zps477141ae.png"/></a>

6. SUBMIT DATA CORRECTION
If you happen to notice that a piece of information on a card isn’t quite accurate, soon you’ll be able to let Beckett’s Price Guide Analysts know directly from the Item Detail page. They will investigate and update any inaccurate information. Previously, this was all coordinated through our Customer Service Department. Soon you’ll just click the Submit Data Correction link, enter the details, and click Submit. It’s that easy!

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0910_submitdata_zpsb39c6a92.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0910_submitdata_zpsb39c6a92.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_0910_submitdata_zpsb39c6a92.png"/></a>


NEW FEATURES ON BECKETT.COM

1. PRICE CHANGE TICKER
A few months ago we added a price ticker to the Marketplace homepage which showed recent sales and the price of those cards. We have now added a price change ticker to the beckett.com homepage. This ticker shows the sport, card description, and an arrow to indicate whether the price went up or down. If you have an Online Price Guide subscription, you will also see the new price of the card.

2. PRODUCT RELEASE CALENDAR
We recently updated the beckett.com homepage and included a Product Release Calendar. This calendar will show products releasing each month and on which day. You can move from month to month and change between a weekly view and a monthly view. Here’s October’s calendar:

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0910_productreleasecalendar_zps580daf29.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_0910_productreleasecalendar_zps580daf29.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_0910_productreleasecalendar_zps580daf29.png"/></a>


NEW PRICING ON BECKETT.COM

BASEBALL

2013 Pinnacle Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Pinnacle&sport=185223

2013 Topps Chipz Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Topps+Chipz&tmm=extended

2013 Panini Cooperstown Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Panini+Cooperstown

2013 Topps Tier One Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Topps+Tier+One&sport=185223

2013 Panini Prizm Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013%20Panini%20Prizm&sport=185223&tmm=exact

2013 Topps Heritage Minors Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?tmm=extended&brand=512085&term=2013%20-2011

2013 Topps Chrome Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+topps+chrome&brand=223468

BASKETBALL

2013 Bowman Chrome Baseball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Bowman+Chrome+&sport=185223&brand=223565

2012-13 Elite Series Basketball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2012-13+Elite+Series&brand=535686

2012-13 Panini Innovation Basketball
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2012-13+Innovation

FOOTBALL

2013 Topps Platinum Football
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Topps+Platinum&sport=185224&brand=493228

2013 Panini Prominence Football
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Panini+Prominence

2013 Certified Football
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Certified+&sport=185224

2013 Topps Mini Football
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Topps+Mini&sport=185224&brand=522058

HOCKEY

2012-13 Panini Prime Hockey
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2012-13+Panini+Prime&sport=185225&brand=522451

2013-14 ITG Decades 90’s Hockey
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013-14%20ITG%20Decades&tmm=extended

2013-14 Panini Prizm Hockey
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013-14+Panini+Prizm

RACING

2013 Press Pass Showcase Racing
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Press+Pass+Showcase+&sport=186450

MMA

2013 Finest UFC
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+finest&sport=475770

MTG

2013 Magic the Gathering Theros
http://www.beckett.com/search/?term=2013+Magic+the+Gathering+Theros

BECKETT 101

Did you know this about beckett.com?

1. Expand/Collapse.
There are several areas on beckett.com where you can collapse or expand a section in order to get a better view of other areas of the page.

Organize
a. Expands and collapses the list of collections making the left-navigation section shorter and able to access the Add Collection, Add Folder, Manage Collections, and View Your Profile buttons easier.
b. Expands and collapses the entire left-navigation section. This will expand the columns within the collection you are viewing. So if there are long item descriptions, collapsing the left-navigation section would provide more room for the item description field.
c. Expands and collapses the Collection Statistics. If you do not need to see quantities for your collection, collapse the statistics to bring the grid higher up on the page.

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1537_expandcollapse_zps97ff455b.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1537_expandcollapse_zps97ff455b.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_1537_expandcollapse_zps97ff455b.png"/></a>

Marketplace Search Results – using 2010 Topps as a search example.
a.You can view and select multiple items from the left-navigation links.
If you see “Show More” then it means there are more options to choose from. For example, the default will be to show 10 players if you are searching for 2010 Topps, but if you click Show More, then it will show ALL possible players. Click Show Only 10 to reduce the number of options back to 10.
b. If you click the “Select Multiple” button, then you can view ALL possible players (sticking with the player example), select multiple players, and then click Select Filters. The search results you see will be 2010 Topps and filtered to show only those players which you selected.

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1537_showselect_zpsfb36fa95.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1537_showselect_zpsfb36fa95.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_1537_showselect_zpsfb36fa95.png"/></a>

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1538_selectfilter_zps0bff3135.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1538_selectfilter_zps0bff3135.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_1538_selectfilter_zps0bff3135.png"/></a>

2. Recent Price Changes and Where to Find Them

a. On the homepage, we have the new Price Guide ticker mentioned above.

b. Detail pages – When viewing a player or set detail page, you will see a section showing the 10 most recent price changes.

For example:

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1538_recentprice_zps138a624f.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1538_recentprice_zps138a624f.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_1538_recentprice_zps138a624f.png"/></a>

On an item detail page, it will show you an up or down arrow if the price of the card has changed within the past 30 days. If there is no arrow, then pricing has not changed over that time.

For example:

<a href="http://s1313.photobucket.com/user/tkaplan3/media/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1539_realtimepricing_zpsba20f0fd.png.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1313.photobucket.com/albums/t556/tkaplan3/10-18-2013/2013-10-17_1539_realtimepricing_zpsba20f0fd.png" border="0" alt=" photo 2013-10-17_1539_realtimepricing_zpsba20f0fd.png"/></a>

c. New page next year – What’s Happening
This will be THE place to go to see what is happening with Online Price Guides, Beckett Grading Services, and the Beckett Marketplace. Within the page there will be a Recent Price Changes zone, a Newly Priced Products zone, and an Upcoming Product Pricing zone. Keep an eye out next year for more information about this all-inclusive page.

We’ve got a lot of exciting new features for you that will be available before the end of the year. Keep an eye on beckett.com, Beckett’s Facebook page, and Twitter for sneak peeks at pages and details of these projects.

Thanks for collecting with Beckett!
The Beckett Team


RE: Beckett News You Can Use - October 17, 2013 - Phillies_Joe - 10-18-2013

Awesome stuff....can't wait. As always, thanks for the excellent news-letter.


RE: Beckett News You Can Use - October 17, 2013 - JRMdawg311 - 10-19-2013

Thanks for the letter. Looks like some good stuff on the horizon! I like the product release calendar but how about a "pricing" release addition to the calendar. There may be too many variables involved to dial down an exact pricing for some products but it would be nice to have a heads up for those who pay for OPG and run a business.
Thanks for all your hard work!