This Should Never Happen: Shocking Comic Sales on Whatnot

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

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[@TheGenXGeek]

WTAF??? Do people get caught up in emotion with a live auction? Pathetic!

[@TheComicVault]

What the heck’s going on there 😮

[@surfcitycomics672]

Shill bidding at its finest . Very Easily done on whatnot

[@CoachDale_TopNotchMuayThai]

People just get caught up in the moment. They want a book, the price is hiking up from bids, it’s a popular person selling on WhatNot, and folks just bud it up maybe cuz they want a dope book from a known seller ? Just my thought on it is all. It’s not so much the seller pushing the sale all the time, I think people just getting caught up in FOMO and in the moment and NEEDING the book 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@bukworm]

I for one LOVE people overpaying on Whatnot. Chances are if you're paying these crazy prices then you're a baby-investor snapping things up because NFTs are finally out of fashion. Less money in their pockets means they run out of money faster when the actual deals come up. I was in a room the other night (creeping for Vampirella variants) when a guy won an auction, then had to openly admit he just maxed out his credit card; the seller had to run the book again. Everyone snapping up only what they recognize in the movies is making the other markets so much softer for actual readers--I consider myself a collector second. I've been able to put together 1-29 of the original 67' Warren run of Vampi for under $600 (including her first appearance in a 3.5) just because she isn't appearing in any post-credit scenes...and it's heavenly.

[@eggplantcomics8336]

Haters gonna hate? Sounds like a great place to sell comics!!! Many buyers on whatnot aren’t collectors they just see something cool and bid till they win.

[@zolo120mil]

Great video Chris! People don’t shop around….they get caught up in bidding wars trying to win a $15 book. You MUST shop at 3-5 different stores or online sites to get a better picture of a books true value!! I’ve always wanted X-23 #1 Del’Otto variant but can’t find it at a affordable price, Drahcir’s comics said he found a nm copy at a flea market for $1 and got it graded that came back a 9.8….so yea shop around!

[@mikebutler3239]

If everyone had the same thing and no choices in the world the world would be boring and lame.i shop around for my thing as well that is y there is red box I haven't bought a DVD in a long time.

[@lerak8452]

I don't have WhatNot. I've seen these videos and then I've seen videos about people complaining no one is in the room and people are getting good deals. This looks like a majority of these are the same seller. Reason I ask is background is the same. I always question why this is. I'm wondering if it's friends bidding to drive up price. How many times does this happen?

[@MusicJunkiePlus]

That’s weird considering those aren’t rare books either

[@mikebutler3239]

Thanks your for your humming opinion it is important to me and all of the coime book community. Have not been on what not app since I seen a spiderman 2099 go for 130.00. sure there are good deals and some blow way out of price but buyers need to be more careful on there money how far there money go's for. But who I'm to say about someone else's hard earned cash I'm looking after my money because I got my money on mind and my mind on my money. ( snoop dog)

[@keithkovalic]

This is no one's fault but the buyer's. Call it FOMO, call it a lack of will-power, call it being new to the hobby....the fault lies, solely, on the person clicking the "bid" button. If there is a book you want, you find the value, set your bar for how much you are willing to spend, and then you stick to that number. There are no guns to anyone's heads making them bid these ridiculous amounts. I think a video of interviews with the people that paid these prices would be very interesting if only to ask them, on a one to ten scale, how high was their INSTANT buyer's remorse.

[@keithkovalic]

Do I recognize the desk of the Whatnot seller from some KZbin videos? 🤔🤔🤔

[@yolobro.]

These bidders obviously are not using gpanalysis 😂

[@uglyewok6715]

WhatNot has all the newbie millennials bidding like crazy.

[@redrighthandnet]

Can't rule out money laundering. Especially on the huge discrepency ones.

[@ghostfan100]

Covrprice shows Spider-man #195 for a VF FMV at $15.00.

[@kennynicely9676]

Look at the spacing on the right side of the Uncanny #244. Could be an error print 🤷‍♂️ That would explain the price.

[@fomoscomicsandpopculture]

Awesome video! 👍🏽

[@chef-mumbles1970]

caveat emptor

[@brizzight]

Crazy! I always look around to find the best value. People shopping on Whatnot are probably newer collectors.

[@thecomickeeper5127]

damn,this is crazy

[@State-uw8pu]

I'm mainly into GA and SA and do happy I've avoided this app. Ty for your time and info

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Thanks for watching!

[@State-uw8pu]

@@JernosComicsPopCulture Hey Chris have you ever bought books on the live auctioneers app? I'm not worried about anybody reading this and going there because prices are HIGH AF. A year or two ago some deals and now more than EBay and don't even start with the Third party shipping crap. When you look at the prices sold you need to add 20-30 % commission. Keep it real brother

[@jeffkeller9009]

Some FOMO for sure.

[@88discostu]

Hip hop variants go for crazy money on whatnot - once saw a mockingbird 1 hip hop variant ($5-10, $15 max on ebay) go for $70 lol. But same auction I got a Silk 1 hip hop for $25

[@ronaldbourgeois1255]

Silver age is vintage not 1980s 1990s.

[@comiccrazy3]

Ive seen MANY Sellers up-sell their books "This is a $100 book, folks, c'mon, lets go...." etc. (when in fact its a 9 dollar book on average) If you can prove gross misrepresentation then you can report the Seller. Other than that, Seller personality, etc can drive a book price. Chris, you should just DO YOU and STOP with all of these "expose'" videos "warning" the community- you call out the Buyers , its part of the game. You know this. You are King FOMO- Ive been watching your RANTS for years. I need more positive videos , man- this is just "old man yelling at clouds"

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

I will always appreciate honesty, so thank you for being honest. I have to ask though, "king FOMO?" Please explain. What part of FOMO makes me the king of it? As to what you said about what drives prices, of course I know it. I speak on it all the time. It doesn't mean that I shouldn't continue to educate buyers. Did I bad mouth the sellers? Did I say, "WHATNOT is ruining the hobby!!! Ban these sellers!" No. I actually hold the buyers accountable. Because NOBODY is forcing them to overpay on books. So again, I'm not "warning" the community, I'm educating buyers. "I need more positive videos." Hey, fair. But maybe those videos will be from another content creator if you don't find the positive variables in what I'm speaking on. That's like going to a PG Disney movie and saying, "Com' on Disney! I need more blood and gore!" Or listening to a rap song and saying, "come on Kendrick Lamar! I need more positivity and less curse words!" I don't find educating consumers within the market at hand as old man yelling at clouds. Demanding "positivity" from a KZbinr seems more like old man yelling at clouds, honestly. I really do want to know what you mean by King FOMO though. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

[@comiccrazy3]

@@JernosComicsPopCulture when you first started doing videos you would clue the community into what was hot and what we should and should not buy that was the fear of missing out get it now before it's gone. I've been watching your videos for a long time and I respect you for the time that you put in to educate us. There are just more rants than reviews, let's say. I used to love your haul videos your room tours and I miss the good vibes of your Channel. You have definitely made a mark in this community especially with the promotion of LCS and keeping the buyers informed I won't take that away from you and I still watch your videos.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

@@comiccrazy3 I appreciate your well written and honest reply. So, don't take my responses as being attacks. I'm simply challenging you to dive deep into your perception of me and what I do. For example, I have NEVER told anyone what they should or shouldn't buy. Not ONCE, ever. Go back and watch every single video I ever did. I've actually made statements saying that I am AGAINST KZbinrs who do that. I did do videos detailing possible good investments, but never once did I tell anyone to do anything. I provided real data, and often times expressed my own opinions on how I personally collect. I also have constantly spoken up AGAINST people buying books out of the fear or the emotional reactions due to "movie or tv speculation." So, I challange you to rethink what you've said, especially in your original comment. Especially to go so far to say I'm the "KING" of something I never stood behind. But with all of that being said, do you know why I stopped doing the top key books to invest in type videos? Because I realized how out of control people were with FOMO, and I just got tired of doing anything that might remotely look like what other KZbinrs were doing. Also, you having a problem with this video and then having a problem with people that hype of "FOMO" is a bit of a conundrum. Because it's videos like these that educate collectors how to not fall into FOMO and how to make wise, educated spending choices. I hope this puts some things into perspective.

[@randallrohr623]

This is why I stopped using Whatnot. It’s literally driven by fomo. I never once got an actual deal on it. No one has time to research or look up comps to make an informed purchase it’s all just “HURRY HURRY HURRY” lol.

[@mi_comix_closet6528]

Hey Chris, I’ve been getting some great deals on Whatnot, but I don’t get to caught up in the bidding. I have in my mind what I will pay and stop there. Sometimes I’ll get nice books for cheap because I’m the only bidder. Good to have you back!! 👍🏻♥️

[@Caseshells123]

What not is a joke

[@eggplantcomics8336]

On your next show just list everything as a buy it now. You clearly don’t like auctions.

[@tykay8030]

I watched an uncanny 145 go for 112$ on whatnot 2 weeks ago. That's like a 15 dollar book. I know that stream that you used people always bid it up on their stream.

[@marclapuma]

That seller is making a killing, which seller is that 🧐🤘

[@snowblindcomics7051]

I quit whanot about a year ago. I couldnt believe what bids where going for on common books. Something stinks on that site.

[@Mikah234]

Buyers have to do the hunting. If they want to live just for what not.. then it's on them. Crazy! I'm always looking for the deals. But I also pass on what not..never have bought from there. And no plans to. Just my personal preference to stay away from what not. Not for me. :)

[@popculturecan-d7885]

It's either fake sales or inexperienced buyers I'm going to say it's the latter of the two

[@Joeh1154]

Chris, you called it alright. Look like some serious buyer FOMO going on at Whatnot. I suppose if you're in the moment, you might not listen to the voices in your head telling you it's too expensive. Me? I'm a cheap f**ker and I look for best prices and condition always. I've let so many books go by because they were either too high priced or the condition just wasn't there. Not just online but at my LCS. You never know where you'll find a solid book at a great price. This is on the buyers who pulls the trigger too soon. Maybe even have buyers remorse down the road. Still, we can't blame the platform where these sales occur. Keep the hobby going people. Best to all.

[@FlakAttack56]

The sellers who spin the wheel or do duck races are like the carnival barkers. I ignore them. I’ve bought some lower priced books on Whatnot. I always have a pricing site open on another screen to understand pricing, and for raw books I will look at lower grade pricing instead of buying into the hype. I have gotten some steals in the dollar auctions, and I know when the bidding gets too high. Last night on a stream I saw 3-4 buyers continually purchase books at prices that were completely out of whack, such as a $50 raw value that I stopped bidding on at $25 that ended up selling for $150! I avoid streams that have more than 40 participants, because the odds of someone overbidding is high. Dollar auctions are sometimes great when there are less than 20 people in the room. It is hard to effectively check comparative pricing when auctions are 20 seconds, and that is no doubt a strategy to sell at higher prices. I’ve probably bought 100 books on Whatnot, and I only feel like I paid market price on maybe 10 percent of them. On eBay I’ve been burned many times by less than honest descriptions. Just be disciplined and don’t let uneducated bidders take you to places you shouldn’t go. Most of the BIN stores are market priced or higher, and I’ve never bought anything from those. Lastly, I do like the Whatnot auctions where the sellers do close up video of the books and edges. That’s definitely better than just looking at still shots.

[@kevinhurt5331]

You can also get stuff insanely cheap too the sellers that do dollar starts are basically playing Russian roulette. It’s also easier to see condition through video there’s a good and bad about whatnot. Example I got a Batman spawn 1:250 for 70 bucks on whatnot. I wanted that book but held out till I found one reasonably priced.

[@Comicbook-dw4vv]

Its the reputation of ebay being the wild west. I have all my books only on ebay and buy only on ebay and have had great luck

[@iskoiskoisko]

It's definitely FOMO and getting caught up in the bidding war. I admit I have been caught in it as well in the beginning, but I've learned my lesson.. lol. Some auctions have it from 20-30 seconds where the bidders have no time to do research on e-bay or even look into the condition of the book thoroughly, but FOMO will get the best of them. We can usually see this with streamers that have huge followings, that any book they put in (even at a $1 start) will sell. These streamers can afford to put a big boy book to start at a $1 for 30 seconds and can still reach it's FMV (if not more) at the end of the auction. To be fair, it is still a great platform to get some awesome deals. One advantage I could say is that you could directly chat with the seller to get deals or have them bundle a group of items for a lower price. I've gotten great deals on slabs and run fillers because of this. One thing that I stopped doing was trust a seller's grading on raw books. It's easy for a seller to throw a "mint" or "near mint" statement during the auction and it is anything but when you receive it. I now only bid on raw books if the seller shows the condition in full detail, especially if it's a pricy book. I appreciate the sellers that give a conservative grading on raw books.

[@michaelreyes5298]

Was up Dude. I got a??? Do you have a video showing how to press a foil comic book?if not can you make one please.i know doesn't have to do with this video. I just wondering. keep up the good work 😊

[@jc_comicstuff]

do you ever wonder if there's friends of sellers in auctions bidding up books?

[@matthewglassmaker4494]

They are lying. They will say a book sells for hundreds when in reality 9nly some moron did and they hang the price on that. When their are multiple lower sales and listing on other sites. You are so right. The buyers are so uneducated on whatnot. I spend hours on auctions in whatnot looking for books. And I find, I can find what I'm looking for cheaper elsewhere. I don't want to paint them all same with that brush. Their are auctioneers I trust and provide accurate info up-front. But you still can't predict the FOMO and the gambling I win nature of the bidders in the room.

[@mikehaggs7721]

They bugging out here , I learned my lesson going back and forth with people trying to outbid . Not worth it !

[@eedub5911]

People don’t shop around they get caught up on the moment when I started collecting again I watched a lot of videos because things have changed I got Key Collector app I studied it to see what it was good for I emailed them with questions I then found the Hip Comic app it is another place to buy comics that are auctioned off and eBay and I compare prices now I’m learning Go Collect and Cover Price so I can at least know what a book is going for before overpaying I can’t get into the FOMO a couple of dollars I’m good with but what you’ve shown i would be fighting mad and have to reevaluate myself for getting caught up and wasting my money like that

[@customedge1]

hey, one is born every minute, right?

[@waltcee]

This is ridiculous!!! whatnot is ruining not just the market but the real collectivity or our comics... for them it's about sell, sell, sell, that is their main point of it all. Thanks for pointing this out but also it's our responsibility as collectors/buyers to do our research and make sure we are not overpaying, regardless I think whatnot should take a look at this and make sellers accountable so they are not steeling from people that don't know the market. They should have a max bid set amount so no one over pays for this comics... yes something like that.

[@theClubberLang]

Something about whatnot, I don't go on there I'd rather just go to the store myself and pick it up for much less

[@christopherjohnson4276]

It's all about the rush. Don't get got, people.

[@bryanmorgan6109]

Some people like to bid and win , never mind the cost , it ain't the book they are buying, it's the rush u get from winning

[@comicbookcomrades9271]

man and those even completed ebay sales, meaning those books could have went for cheaper. my first thought was that people were throwing in shill bids (like what happens on e-bay alot during auctions) but who knows. i guess i need to start selling my books on whatnot and retire lol

[@Jay-qv8hq]

Deals can be had on whatnot but so much trash to sift through. the b.s. whatnot variants and exclusives that the influencers create a false value and generated scarcity drive me nuts . Future Dollar bin fodder.

[@TheGenXGeek]

On second thought... money laundering.

[@randallrohr623]

These the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. Do you even know what money laundering is lol. Do you know how long that would take and how easy that would be to track?

[@shawnmccann9762]

How do buy without knowing what fmv for a book is or at least close to fmv and go in with a pre-set amount ur going to spend on said book? That's insane!

[@Markus465]

A fool and his money are soon parted.

[@christiantolliver4042]

Im waiting for the post titled “I’m not kidding I will drill a hole in this hulk 181”

[@BrooklynAvenue]

Here are some of the tips you need for Whatnot. Do not trust their grading on raw books. Always be willing to accept that your 9.8 will actually be a 9.2 Avoid gambling. Mystery pulls can be fixed. I've watched the 'big prize' go last pull on several of them while by pure odds, they ought to go somewhere near the middle. What a coincidence, right? If you can't see the books being pulled (they are taken from a comic box) always consider that fraud may be going on. Listen to what sellers say about their books. Make sure they say something specific about the book. A grade, the flaws on the book. Sellers who tell you that the book is "clean" are telling you NOTHING. I can rip a cover in half on a new book, the book is still 'clean.'. Clean = NOTHING. The more a seller insists his books are 'clean' the more I know he's full of shit. Whenever sellers tell you "I can't believe how low this is, you are all sleeping, they are always full of shit." If the book were that good, they wouldn't need to auction it. If they don't like the prices they are getting they can stop listing the books. Finally, the fact that a seller has been around years means nothing in of itself. There are many con men who have been around for years. Being 'around for years' does not make you trustworthy. If someone has to insist that they are trustworthy, then maybe they aren't. I know one older Canadian dealer on Whatnot who always overprices and overgrades his shit books. He's been around decades.

[@Smitty1x]

Finally saw someone comment on this. I hate when I go into someones what not auction and the seller is constantly saying “you got that book for a steal” or “you guys are sleeping on this book” when they just sold a 1$ book for 10$

[@BrooklynAvenue]

@@Smitty1x Yes. The reality is that some of the books may well list at the price they claim, but not all books fly off the shelf the second you put them up for sale. There are three speeds at which books sell: Hot books, book that will sit for days and books that have value, but will take months to sell. A copy of Amazing Spider-Man 268 may be worth X amount, but every dealer knows this book does not fly off the shelf, they know that in a 30 second auction with 8 people in the room that no one may want it. Again, if it were so hot, why auction it off when you could list it at FMV and see it fly off your store shelf?!

[@melw2100]

I see the same thing happen at live auctions and collectibles. So if they want to pay it let them pay it.

[@TheCouncilOfComics]

Sooo...Start selling on what not....got you 👍lol

[@Smitty1x]

*what not sellers* “wow what a steal you got there”

[@steelbat54]

If you know what you are going after on this auction app and you don’t check going prices beforehand it’s your own fault if you pay triple the value or more. eBay is s great resource for this and should be your current “Overstreet “ price guide.

[@FlakAttack56]

Exactly!

[@omarnagi3489]

Very good analysis! I noticed this very early on when I started buying on the app. I never trust what the seller is saying a book is worth (usually twice the going rate, as if the recent downturn isn’t happening). I always have eBay and covrprice open when I am in Whatnot, and it has prevented me from making some big mistakes.

[@jeff0247598]

Whatnot is a cool way to browse and buy comics. If the collector is prone to "impulse" buying and maybe is a bit competetive, Whatnot may not be the app for them. They will get caught up in the "a couple more dollars won't hurt" moment and keep clicking that bid button!! When you see a book you want, set your limit in your mind, when the exceeds that number, oh well....move on.

[@ComicsAreEscapism]

Whatnot is driven by FOMO and that's why it sucks. I buy and sell on eBay only.

[@x11bravo]

I'm not allowed to shop for our Veteran's books because I make dumb decisions. But I have a cute little asian who's wicked smart with finances and acquisitions. Ever since I accidentally pre-ordered 7 copies of NHOTL #1 at cover price, my purchasing privileges have been revoked 😆. But this content is ALWAYS worth putting on the watchlist for her to reference in the future. We have many from you in there that we have found helpful in the past and we appreciate you, Chris. Thanks for taking the time, Sir. -Battle66delta

[@joshscomics01]

As someone who uses WhatNot. I know going in what I'm looking for and what I'm willing to spend. Some people just bid away. But also some sellers sell low grades way too high or ask for way too much.

[@BiggRuss]

I realized this the 2nd time I was on WhatNot. I uninstalled it soon after and haven't looked back since. No dis to anyone using the app as a seller or buyer but I don't need it.

[@dlv0187]

This makes me want to sell on whatnot! Hahahaha....people need to do research before bidding. I don't feel bad for them though.

[@jesselynch1928]

Oh man I had to make sure it was not me. Whew!

[@spinetickspressing]

I stopped buying books on Whatnot for this exact reason. I prefer Mercari. Also many sellers don't list the information on each book so that you can do comparison research before the item comes up for sale. I think all items are listed prior to the start of a Whatnot session, I got sick and tired of the generic listings.

[@bkruger3277]

ASM 195 -The 2nd appearance of black cat is the direct version that is way more rare in 1979.. im not saying that its a $200 book but it is more rare.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Late 70s direct editions do not ever command a higher value. They were only about 10% of the market at that time, but scarcity doesn't always equate to higher demand.

[@Furyshinobi]

Do you think we, the educated folks, have a responsibility to inform buyers who are overpaying for a book in a WhatNot stream where the seller is over-hyping their product?

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

I only think so if a seller is giving false information. Let people bid what they bid. If they want to overspend, that's on them.

[@bgssmartin2]

Yes, some of this fomo is on the buyers but I disagree with your view that the sellers are free of any wrong doing. At least half of the sellers I watch in their shows are saying "This is an 80 dollar book all day" or "This is a steal at 50" " So and so is getting a steal" and when I check ebay the booslks are 30 to 40% lower than what they are hyping the book. You as a seller should be responsible for knowing the current value of the books or whatever it is you are selling. One seller who lives in a cave in Canada does this quite often. I am partially guilty of falling for his used car sales tactics when he put up the third appearance of miles and said it was an 80 dollar book. There was 20 seconds left and I didn't do my usual checking on ebay. I usually check sold listing as the auction is going. I won the auction but then found out the book is worth 10 to 15 maybe. I sent a cancelation request which cave Canada guy declined with no answer to my question why he is saying a book is worth 8x more than what it is actually worth. Second cancelation request was the same. So yes i didn't check but the sellers should be held accountable for outright lying about a books value. Plus whatnot has the ability to list your books individually. It really isn't 100% the buyers fault if the seller just has Auction 256 books listed in their list with no details of each book. How am I supposed to be able to check values of books that only the seller knows is coming and only have 30 or 20 seconds before its auction is over. That limited time coupled with the used car salesmen like Canada cave dweller contribute and should be factored in when blaming the over priced sales happening on the app. Something else. Because I requested a cancelation of the sale I was unable to leave a review of the transaction. That is wrong. If you lie about the value of a book then a buyer should be able to leave a review and be able cancel the sale. Now if you put up a book and don't say anything regarding how much the book is worth and it sells higher? Then yes it is the buyers fault. I think it should be mandatory in Whatnot for sellers to list each book in their auction list. There should also be the option to ignore or hide sellers since I still see the Canadian cave car salesman shows all the time.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Respectfully, you're taking my words out of context. I was solely speaking to the sellers that i was watching and took these screenshots from. My statement of the sellers being in the wrong was not a general statement. Obviously, there are many sellers that bully their audience, guilt them into bidding, shame them for not, lead with false information, etc. But the sellers of this specific sale were not doing anything of that nature.

[@gorgeousgeorge5173]

I left Whatnot, the biddling was slab prices for mid grade raw books. A smart buyer would look for start-up sellers with no crowds.

[@gorgeousgeorge5173]

I went back to my LCS a few months ago. No shipping charges, as Canadian no exchange rates. I left after watching Wolverine 88 NM go for over $200 raw. Whatnot offers the same dopamine hit gambling sites do. I'm glad I quit.

[@rhmidwestcomics]

Amazing video!!! 👏👏👏 Couldn't agree more. Buyers have to stop the out of control bidding.

[@dieabolicr2119]

Does shill bidding factor into any of these sales? I know in the past you would see this on Ebay as sellers were trying to push the amounts higher by having friends bid with no intention of a sale being made. I had a few times where I lost an auction just to have the seller come back almost immediately and offer me a straight sale as long as I paid my high bid amount. Of course I never took the offer. A high bid is an if I have to situation not an I want situation, lol.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Shill bidding exists, but I think people too often jump to this conclusion just to blame something other than what something is. In this situation, watching it live, I don't think there was shill bidding going on.

[@jthomascruz4890]

I don't see anything egregious or that remarkable about this. That is the nature of live auctions, for every example that you show that a particular book goes for a much higher price than its counter part on eBay there are at least five examples where the book goes well below market value. Sometimes people get into bidding wars without knowing the market value of the book they are bidding on. It works both ways.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

But that's my point. It's not egregious, it's just flat out stupid, because those people bidding these books up could take a few seconds to get the books much cheaper by a few clicks of a botton.

[@RobertWeir]

I actually messaged some of the buyers to try to let them know they were paying way too much . This was happening every week on this particular stream . And they’re not “influencers “ btw these are NOWHERE NEAR the most egregious examples .. the silver age books were ridiculous , and I was able to find THE SAME BOOK , I mean literally the SAME book with the exact same wear etc had been bought on eBay in the weeks before the whatnot sale

[@jeff0247598]

I had the strangest thing happen during my second of only 3 Whatnot auctions that I've done. I sold a Spider-Man book worth about $30 and during interacting with the people in the room commenting, one of the buyers that was buying a lot of my books shot the bid up to $200!! I told him I believe he made a mistake and just to cancel the purchase and I'll rerun the book. He told me "he likes to help out the little guys" in comics because I only had about 20 people in my auction at its peak. It was like a donation and I told him he was very kind but did not need to do that. He insisted and I took it! Just a strange feeling.

[@mikebutler3239]

That is what the buyer wanted so I would take it too.

[@clgcomics]

Chris, love your videos and your perspective. I get what you are saying but that isn’t the norm for most sellers. I sell on Whatnot. I have almost 2k folllowrs and most of my books sell for 25% to 60% of FMV. Due to that, if a buyers a little over on a book, it just makes up a little for all the losses. Now I am not saying it’s ok to just screw people over and a lot of times I will throw in some extras, but that happens rarely to most sellers Did you stop selling on Whatnot? Has this not happened to you? I would love to hear your response.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Thanks for the comment. And yes, I know that this is NOT the norm. I could easily make a multiple videos showing off the opposite, where solid books sell for under value. That happens to me more often than not. I'm constantly losing money in Whatnot sales.

[@jabezcreed]

Even just the excitement of a live claim sale on Instagram will drive high prices. The seller gets excited and doesn't want to risk losing the book to go check price guides and eBay.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Definitely. Did you mean to say the "buyer" gets excited?

[@jabezcreed]

@@JernosComicsPopCulture Haha, I did mean buyer!

[@justanothercollector43]

So funny seeing this community being taken advantage of by the same people they put on pedestals. Even funnier when people want to talk crap about entities like whatnot but because they are scared to burn the bridge they have to suck up with the same breathe they about to shit on em with lol . There’s another channel where the guys talking about not being paid or whatever n shady practices but then goes about saying he’d love to work with em again if they had em lol. Shouts out to whatnot and the affiliated KZbinrs who found such an easy community to take advantage of

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Just to clarify, this seller wasn't a KZbinr, and "influencer," or anyone with a known name. They were an online store that had an average following. And the seller wasn't hyping these books up or using shady tactics to get people to bid up the books. So trying to blame the sellers or the platform doesn't correlate to this specific situation. This is all on the buyers.

[@garymoviefan4294]

Just goes to show, people don't do enough research and end up throwing money away. Just got a VF/NM copy of X-Men 244 for $30 shipping included from an Ebay auction btw. Glad to see you back Chris!

[@markleneker9923]

✔️ YOURSELVES. Exactly.

[@State-uw8pu]

I take it these books were sold by popular people. A raw Xmen 244 for 174? That book should never sell raw for over 80. Insane😂. You are very passionate about comics and honest. I just finished my Xmen 1-20 this week started in 1983.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

These sellers, according to my knowledge, do not have KZbin channels and are strictly sellers.

[@FuriousGeorge_]

I always find it shocking when people get into bidding wars for filler or comics you can find on Ebay for way cheaper. Honestly if WN sales were tracked I think a lot of books would go down. While you usually see this in the bigger shows the smaller streamers typically sell for under fmv if they're running low start auctions IMO

[@comicbookninja5268]

So it's better to sell on WhatNot. Got it!!

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

lol. I can make a ton of videos of the opposite happening, and sellers losing money.

[@ampersand085]

people pay what they like, for whatever reason they like. It's not my business, and I definitely won't stick my head into it and make a condescending video thinking buyers need educating.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

Thanks for sharing your opinion on what you won't do. What I won't do, is make a condescending comment to someone just because they might have a different perspective on things.

[@ampersand085]

@@JernosComicsPopCulture good to know, what you won't do, thank you. I didn't think the reply was condescending considering the tone of the video. It's good to have a differing opinion in the comments than ones that keep agreeing with you no?

[@tonyheart9306]

@@ampersand085 The video's intent is a clear breakdown of buyer reaction within a market. There was no intent of being condescending in anything that was discussed in the video. I always approach critical thinking in such a way that all sides of any argument can be pondered, respectfully. Sometimes though, buyers DO need to be educated. I've been on the other end of that. Saying so is not a condescending thing at base. But the video covers multiple reasons for why individuals will overpay to such extremes for comic books.

[@ampersand085]

@@tonyheart9306 thank you. I do feel most buyers are generally educated enough to figure these things out on their own. Just look at the chorus of approving comments here, if you need any sort of reaffirmation. If they don't, they will surely enough find that out on their own sooner or later. If buyers want to purchase in high due to a lack of impulse control or whatever other reasons it's their perogative. The current market needs all the support it can get don't you think?

[@DocLowe]

You definitely have to understand what you’re looking at when you get on Whatnot. It’s easy to get caught up in a sellers hype, or seeing a bunch of people throwing money around. That being said, I’ve got some straight STEALS on whatnot too. Hulk 340 SS 9.6 for $250 and the kickstarter Spawn 1 9.8 for $90. People just need to have a limit and stick to it when they go in there, and don’t let FOMO get the best of you. Great video my man!

[@ricw5262]

As a seller on Whatnot what I can say is that I see a lot of this in the bigger sellers all the time. It seems to be that folks want their names on the screen of the big sellers and are willing to far overpay for a book. Smaller sellers, like myself, have a hard time getting $10 on a $20 key book. I think we are not seeing buyers overpaying just for the book, it is like virtual clout chasing in a lot of cases.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

I hear you. This wasn't a huge seller though, and wasn't someone that is in the public eye.

[@larrysmith7301]

Fascinating information and you are correct, buyers' fault.

[@mannythehobgoblincollector9403]

I wonder if adrenaline wore off and buyers checked FMV and cancelled transaction. WhatNot free since it's exception. I think what did it for me was aggressive sellers yelling at us for not bidding on overpriced/overgraded books. The word of mouth also has been horrible. I still remember when Very Gary sold two Moon Knight books for $35. I picked up both for $5 that same day. Be well, Chris!

[@papakencomicsandmore3585]

My biggest gripe on the app is when people do mystery pulls and duck races and all that other staff and people get filler books for premium prices. I have bought books like that myself where I was trying to get a grail book or a cool blind pull. Its so frustrating because you have to spend so much money to win bug books most of the time.

[@BrooklynAvenue]

People are addicted to gambling. All the mystery pulls and duck races ought to be taken down as illegal gambling.

[@vinniwhitlock7080]

Hey Chris, it’s been a while… I 💯 agree with you the more people get burned on non tracked platforms and find out that what they purchased could have been bought at roughly 1/3 the price new/old collector money will slow down and if people are in the market for a book, any book always check around with prices…rich and poor alike should always look for the comparable deal 🤘🤘🤘

[@ronaldbourgeois1255]

Have seen some ASM #200 -250 at my store for $30.00 each after they charge #260-294 $20.00 each Canadian.

[@justanothercollector43]

Didn’t Nerdy Girl get caught bidding up her boyfriends auctions? Yeah I wouldn’t trust a whatnot auction or values 😂

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

I've never heard about this. If there is evidence, I'd love to see it. If not, then I'd chaulk it up to more rhetoric that cannot be backed up by any fact or proof. Also, most of the shadiest and slimy sellers on Whatnot are not people with known names.

[@markjohnson9437]

And you wonder why people bring out the pitch forks. Yep, it's definitely the buyers FOMO that's causing these over pays. Nothing to do with the sellers unethical selling practices. Just ignore that part Chris and hide behind your disclosure that you won't point fingers.... And then only point the finger at the buyer.

[@ajridesandmore5632]

Quick question Jerno! On those examples after the first one, how many of those actually had bids or buyers? They pictures don’t show a bid so was just curious if they all sold at those prices or the seller Simple’s had bad starting prices and no bidders.

[@JernosComicsPopCulture]

All of them were bid on and sold. All of them had multiple bidders. I took screen shots of the final second of the auction, which shows the actual sold price.

[@consciouswynneconcepts]

Wow very interesting video. I am getting ready to launch my own WhatNot channel so this info will definitely help me. Looks like buyers need to start doing more research before pulling the trigger. Hopefully these aren't fake sales to create the illusion of spiking values.