After procrastinating for a year on getting Miggy’s signature, I finally got it done. Another awesome addition to the rookie case. Thanks, Matt!
SPORTS CARD INVESTORS! Be Careful Who GRADES Your CARDS
Be careful who you grade your sports cards with.
It seems like every month a new card grading company comes on the market.
HGA took the market by storm with the color matching slabs.
CSG comes out with $8 submissions.
I believe this to be a good thing. Anything that gives sports card collectors or investors more options I am all for.
However, outside of the cost to grade a card, there are a few things you should consider before deciding who to grade your next card submission.
Today I will be giving you 5 things to consider before selecting your next card grading company.
Again, these are just my own thoughts to give you some things to think about. Always do what’s best for you and your collection.
#1 – First, let’s talk about selling online.
If you like to get cards graded and sell them online this segment will be for you.
In the autograph industry we have certain authentications that are not accepted on certain platforms such as eBay. You cannot sell items with those authentications on their website.
The autograph industry is riddled with fake autographs and fake COAs and there are items with certain COAs that you can’t sell on eBay.
eBay is always taking steps to protect their customers and to make sure they are getting authentic items.
They have done this recently with shoes.
Authenticators verify the box, sizing labels, soles, stitching, logos, heel tabs, laces, everything about the shoe and then place an authentication tag on it.
Will they at some point ban these non-traditional card graders?
The traditional ones being PSA, BGS, SGC. I see CSG becoming part of that group simply because of their parent company CGC is well known in the comic book grading industry and is already accepted by eBay.
What will you do if eBay bans certain graders from there platform and you have all these cards graded by companies not on the approved list?
Something to consider.
#2 – Let’s talk about consistent grading.
We all want cards to be graded as they should be. Consistent and fair.
This comes down to having graders who know what they are doing. Who have seen a million cards of all types. Know what to look for. Have a great feel for card grading.
I am not saying PSA has the best graders in the world nor am I saying that a new company has the worst graders. Each will have their faults and make mistakes.
What I am saying is when you choose to spend your hard-earned money on a grading company, something to consider is how good are the graders? Is their reputation consistent? Are they fair? Is their brand worthy of me sending them my cards?
I do understand that some of us are just collectors and don’t care about selling our cards right now. We want the best looking or the most affordable slab.
But at some point you might consider selling some.
I am all about giving you options. When you go to sell your cards, reputation and branding matters. Deciding which of the grading card companies meet those expectations for you is an important step in deciding who to send your cards to.
#3 Let’s talk about slab design.
I believe this to be a very important part of choosing who you want to grade your cards. After all, you have to look at the slabs and they should be aesthetically pleasing as possible.
Fortunately, in 2021 we have a ton of options that suit all sorts of tastes.
You have your traditional slabs like PSA and SGC, then you have your new and flashy slabs like HGA.
This is one you will have to go with your gut on. Who cares what someone in some card forum says about grading card ABC slab design. If you like the slab design then go for it. You will be very happy with your collection when you enjoy looking at not just the cards but also the slabs they are in.
#4 Security and authenticity of the slab is paramount now, probably more than ever.
When there is big money to be made fraud always follows it.
How easily can this grading card company’s slab be cracked or faked?
No company is immune to this as we saw with BGS just a few months ago where they had some apparent fake slabs pop up with some very expensive cards in them.
How ahead of the curve is your grading card company? Do they take this serious? What sort of measures are they taking to prevent this? All things to consider when choosing a grading card company.
#5 Will this grading card company be in business in 10-20 years?
Running a business is TOUGH sledding. Especially one that requires you to provide your expertise and have top notch customer service. You have to hire knowledgeable graders and be consistent with your grading. On top of that, you have to build a brand and build a following.
I can name dozens of autograph companies that were here one day and gone the next.
Will some of these card grading companies fail? Absolutely. Who will it be? Time will tell. But how bad would you feel knowing you got a bunch of cards graded by one company and then went to sell them in 10-20 years and they were no longer in business. How would that affect your card’s value?
All things to consider when you send in your next card grading submission. Again, always do what is best for you, your collection, and your budget and trust your instincts.
Leave a comment
Comments will be approved before showing up.
Customer Reviews
Overall rating: 4.9 / 5 from 4968 reviews.
Thanks to Power Sports Memorabilia and to Dennis Rodman for the cool auto....
The autographs turned out better than I could have imagined. Was a pleasant experience from sending to receiving back the items. You have a customer for life.
Nice big autograph!
Great autograph on this giant 2XL jersey
Power Sports was very helpful. They will answer any questions throughout the process of getting your Autograph. And they packed very well when they ship it back to you.
Another great looking signature added to my team signed helmet. It is great to get notifications throughout the process and using UPS is great to protect my items.
Nice autograph signed by former NY Mets great. Thanks Matt Powers and his team for this signing event.
Amazing customer service
Very straight forward process and the item lived up to expectations!
I’ve been holding on to this hat forever!! Finally got the opportunity to get it signed NBA legend Alex English.. Courtesy of Powers Sports!
Everything went smooth from ordering the autograph to receiving my item promptly and Natalie was very helpful and responsive with the questions I had.
Again, PSM did a great job!
Nice autograph by Roger Clemens himself. Thank you Matt Powers and his team for this signing event.
Nice autograph by Cal Ripken Jr. Thank you Matt Powers and his team for this signing event.
Nice autograph. Thank you Matt Powers and his team for this signing event.
Another perfect autograph on my 3000 hit baseball. Always a great experience! Thanks again.
I've had this card since the age of 12. Never had the opportunity until now to get his RC signed. Thanks Matt for making this happen!!
Once again, Matt and his team delivered a smooth, professional experience in obtaining a Dustin Pedroia autograph (with authentication) to a book already containing a number of Red Sox greats’ signatures. I recommend Powers Spirts Memorabilia highly.
Great experience. Card was just as described. Excited to have this added to the collection.
Frank Thomas 1990 Topps Signed Baseball Rookie Card #414B Auto Graded Beckett 10
The COA was placed exactly where I wanted it and it turned out great. Always an easy experience.
An excellent experience with the team. The ball turned out perfectly. Easy to ship the ball in and it returned after signing without an issue.
Great place to do business with. Thank you!
Fernando Tatis Jr 2019 Topps Baseball Rookie Card RC #410 Graded PSA 9 MINT
😍 such a nice autograph! Thank you!
Thank you for another awesome autograph!
Mr. Powers delivered on my request for this Cal Ripken jr. autograph. It was a nice size clean and perfect signature better than I expected. Mr. Powers team is quick to respond with any concerns you may have and keeps you posted on your item. I will absolutely be getting more signatures through them to finish my collection. I highly recommend Powers Sports to anyone that has any doubts. I use to do send ins with Steiner sports until he sold, to me Powers picked up where they left off and I couldnt be happier. Thank you
Great experience as usual! I’ll definitely be getting more autographs in the future!!
As good as it gets
Smooth transaction
The process was smooth and easy as always.
Awesome!
The color match ink auto looks great! Thanks!
A fantastic addition to the set. Bosh's autograph really pops on this one. Thanks!
This might be the only autograph of this card that has his whole auto on it. Great addition to the collection!
The COA wasn't close to where I asked for it to be placed. I'm not sure how this was missed but it was a bummer when I saw that.
This came back amazing! The autograph was very clean! Thanks!
This completes my set of sketch cards. It's been fun doing this.
This was just the COA. Thanks!
It's awesome to get this one back! Another added to the Collection.
Great job by Powers Sports once again! They were able to secure a great signature from Andy Reid on my trading card, using the exact type pen and the exact location that I requested. Accuracy and quality are their top priority!
Your Cart
Your cart is empty.