You visit a coin show and see something you want to buy. It could be a penny, quarter, half or even a dollar. You’re new to collecting coins, but this coin in its protective holder looks interesting.
You ask the dealer if you can look at the coin. He takes it out of his case and lets you get a closer look. Maybe he realizes you are new to collecting and even offers to let you use his loupe to look even more closely at the coin.
Now, you are really interested in the coin and ask, “How much?”
The dealer responds, “One fifty.”
In your newness, you immediately think to yourself, “Wow, that’s a great price for me to start my collection. I can afford $1.50 and continue shopping with other dealers at the show.”
STOP!
What if the dealer really means $150.00?
Dealers have a tendency to speak in numerical shorthand when discussing prices. His “One fifty” could be as you thought, $1.50, or it could be $150.00. Of course, what he meant – either $1.50 or $150.00 – really depends on the coin, the coin’s rarity and its market value.
If you are new to collecting or new to collecting this particular type of coin, you can wisely ask for clarification when you are unsure about the decimal point in the dealer’s price.
As another example, some dealers also use their numerical shorthand for larger numbers. For example, “three” could be $3.00 or $300.00.
This numerical shorthand seems to be a consistent foible among coin dealers. In a way, this shorthand is similar to the acronyms used within corporations. If you are “in the know,” then the acronyms are a quick and easy way to communicate. Similarly, if you are “in the know” with coin collecting values, you easily understand the dealers’ numerical shorthand.
But as within corporate speech patterns, coin dealers forget that people not as familiar with coins and coin values will not readily understand their numerical shorthand.
One way to gain clarification is to ask simply. You can explain that you are not knowledgeable about this particular coin and need to know is “one fifty” a dollar fifty or one hundred fifty dollars.
Or, you can smile at the dealer and simply ask, “Where’s the decimal point in that one fifty?”
Either way, asking for clarification prevents the embarassment of handing over $1.50 to buy the coin when the price is actually $150.00. Of course, the dealer won’t hesitate to let you know the real price at that point.