Summit On The Future Of Philately

APS posted a video on the Summit on the Future of Philately on their Facebook page so watched it today. I am glad APS shared pictures and video of this event which was also held with the official opening of APRL.

There was discussion about growing the hobby, growing organized philately, and shows.

As mentioned by a couple, there should be an action list, owner, dates, follow up but not sure how this will be done or communicated. I was surprised one thought meeting once a year was sufficient to have some super committee meet. I would think monthly as a minimum. Scott mentioned a $25,000 challenge but did not know the details behind this.

It was noted that shows have financial challenges as they dwindle. The dealers do a lot of business online so they do not need shows especially if they carrying the bulk of funding shows. My opinion is attendees and exhibitors need to foot more of the bill but then you need to have even more of a reason for people to attend. The show concept will evolve or they will there will be fewer as time goes on. As one person stated, shows need to be change (my word is rebranded to something like stampcon) and adapt to offer more diversity (more things of interest to more people than just a traditional collector or exhibitor). As was noted the majority visitors to the NPM are not collectors.

As several said, organized philately has to adapt to the people today and not expect to convert them to how they think and collect. We see the usual suggestion of getting philatelic material in front of non-philatelic people. The net is most collectors do not need APS but APS needs them. No one disagreed that the hobby itself is good thanks to the Internet. You get the usual suggestion to help collectors connect to each other. The APS could easily address that with its own discussion forum - not mentioned. There was no discussion of technology needed to reach these younger social media types. There was no mention of the APS web site and how the Internet really could be used. There was not much discussion on what stamp groups could do to grow membership other than vague ideas about more exposure to non-collectors.

I also still see some who have a view of collecting and somehow think they can convince them to mimic them rather than accept them as they are.

My summary is that some understand the challenges but not sure how to translate these into actions. I did not hear any real new ideas. I was surprised that some of the board that I agree with are not more assertive on getting more organized. The good news is that Scott English does not appear to have some set way on people need to collect.

Nice
As a new stamp collector this is interesting
The stamp world is bigger than I Thought

I don't get the 'more' part.

The sponsors (clubs, APS, ASDA) are subsidizing the shows today?

I thought that the shows were money-makers for the clubs et al.

Cheers,

/s/ ikeyPikey

The dealer participation is falling since there are fewer dealers willing to travel given expenses such as hotel, food, transportation, etc and table fees and buyers. New dealers are mostly selling through the internet as they do not need to a show to make a living. In a show budget, the dealer table fees pay a substantial part of a show expense (venue, security, catering. etc) while exhibitors pay for the jury expenses.

I believe the example discussed with Chicagopex that is looking at possibly doing a combined coin/stamp show to remain financially viable (not lose money).

APS makes money on the summer show and loses money on the winter show. I do not think a group wants to lose money on a show unless there are clear benefits.

Given the width and depth of internet access to stamps and covers, I'm surprised that stamp shows are still held.

Don

Don, Greetings:

I can see several reasons why stamp shows are still held:

- analog shopping can be fun (ask your wife or another available female);

- not everyone knows exactly what they want (dealers' boxes of covers are the browsing that predates browsers);

- lower-priced items may not be described in sufficient searchable detail on dealer websites;

- some people despise returning things by post;

- you'll get a better price if the dealer can see what you want to sell.

Some people like to get out of the house once in awhile, and will prefer a movie theater to streaming, a restaurant to delivery, or a forest to a potted plant.

So there are reasons for IRL shows; going forward, the trick will be paying for them.

Cheers,

/s/ ikeyPikey

I would encourage any dealer pondering these issues to read Rob Bernshtyn's "Value as a Service." Its basic point is that companies operating in a commoditized environment in which products are sold via Internet will have to differentiate themselves by offering distinct and quantifiable value, or be overcome by those who do. The customer will constantly ask, what value does this dealer offer me at a show that I cannot get via the Internet? If the answer is nothing, why go to a show?

Some of Ikey's points address this, but dealers probably will have to do more. Imagine the US dealer who offers in-person expert ID of Washington Franklins for $5 at their booth. Or the ability to create and store your want list and receive instant offers or alerts. Or emailed recommendations based on your past buys, personalized. The dealer will have to offer the stamps you want, when you want them, at the price you want, faster and more efficiently than someone else.

Or some other quantifiable value. What would it be for you?

I can see several reasons why online has advantages over shows

   -   Time convenience, a hobbyist can dictate when he/she wants to spend the time working on their collection
   -   The ability to peruse offerings without jockeying around a dealer table
   -   No travel costs
   -   Not having to pay for 'just looking' or the opportunity to buy something (i.e. shows which are only bourses but they still charge admission fees)
   -   Greater selection
   -   Greater opportunity to do research before pulling the purchasing trigger
   -   Having all your tools and collection at hand to verify what you want and need
   -   Not having to make dialysis arrangements in a foreign city (LOL, Obviously not a consideration for many folks but I can tell you that this is a huge logistical headache!)

I have a number of thoughts on the Summit on the Future of Philately but am hoping that Scott will weigh in with his perspective. I will say that I think this was something that should have happened about 10-15 years ago.
Don

I actually attended my first show about 6 weeks ago and I loved it. Yes, I could have found every stamp I bought at the show on the internet instead, and most likely for less money. But there's nothing like searching through piles and piles of stamps in person and taking them home with you that day. It's also nice to get face-to-face interaction with dealers and other collectors, since I know no other collectors personally offline. Unfortunately the nearest shows to me are a 2-hour drive, but I'll be attending more shows in the future when possible.

Shows should always be important but they need to be more diversified in terms of appeal. If someone says let's go to NOJEX and was not involved in the hobby I would not know what to think.

Has the APS done any research/survey on the people/audiences they want to reach? That might be a useful first step to give them a good understanding of what different audiences (collectors, new collectors, non-collectors)might find appealing and engaging.

Unfortunate to hear from angore's post that they are not jumping all over technology as a way of reaching more people.

I like the idea of combining with coin shows, at least for smaller, local/regional shows. Financial considerations aside, there's also a lot of crossover between stamp and coin collectors. I'm mostly a stamp collector, of course, but I do have a small coin and currency collection. Many other stamp and coin collectors do the same. In my case I like to have a few banknotes, coins and other ephemera to augment a particular country or area I'm collecting.

The internet; i.e. ebay; is not the ultimate solution that some people think it is. Getting e-mail alerts from dealers regarding stuff they have that may be of interest to me also is not a panacea (cjpalermo's idea; not too bad, but......).

I serve on three boards of non-profits and another 5 or 6 committees and councils associated with same + alerts from publications in the same field. I'm on three different e-mail list serves associated with this volunteer work. I get several daily investment alerts; all free; saving some $300 in subscription fees for three investment newsletters I used to get. I lead international adventure travel trips for a local group and get daily e-mails from vendors and Trip Advisor related sites.

My delete finger already is working overtime. Why would I want to add a bunch of e-mails from stamp dealers to this mix? It's bad enough that I'm starting to get more unsolicited regular mail from dealers who apparently buy lists of names. I know APS doesn't sell its list, but..... My point is simple. I review auction catalogs on line when I want; print catalogs that I get when I want; and visit the APS Stamp Store when I want. I have no wish to go chasing "holy philatelic grails" on ebay.

Hi Steve,
I agree the internet is not a 'ultimate solution'; it is simply an evolution. For good or bad, it is basically the next generation postal system (delivering information when and where people want it). I view the internet the same way I view self-driving cars; while some of us might not like it there is no denying it. (As a car collector and a member of the Studebaker Drivers Club, I am no fan of a self-driving car. A huge part of the enjoyment, in my opinion, is driving antique cars. But in 20-25 years the roads will be filled with self-driving cars, it is inevitable.)

So while our hobby might not like the internet; we should not resist embracing what is certainly a critical aspect of the future.
Don

Don: I do use the internet as I noted. But like everything, internet usage should be done in moderation. I haven't sent in a mail bid to an auction all year, except one that is a mail-only auction. I don't see much reason to keep auction print catalogs; unless there is something really special; because the lots are on line.

But, my main collecting specialty (Portuguese colonies) is esoteric enough that the net actually serves little purpose for adding to those collections.

I suspect a number of collectors will come from cross over hobbies such as someone interest in certain topics (all things birds, etc). They may or may not expand their interests,