Collectors and investors, however, have one thing in common: their appreciation for gold coins.  To understand the draw, let’s look at the history of gold coins in the United States.

The History of the Gold Coin

Foreign coins were once legal tender in the United States. While under the control of Great Britain, early American colonists used both gold and silver as legal tender, also known as known as a bimetallic system. Coin shortages, however, created a need for different types of commodity money. Natives and colonists, for example, often used tobacco, beaver skins and wampum (small beads made from shells) as currency when dealing with each other.

But hard coin was still necessary when dealing with foreign merchants. Foreign gold coins in circulation at the time included the English guineas, gold ducats from the Netherlands, and the Spanish gold doubloon.

That was the case until 1792. Shortly after the United States government was formed, Congress passed The Mint Act, which established the United States Mint and made the United States dollar the country’s standard unit of money. The Mint also began striking U.S. coins, which were required to be made up of certain amounts of gold, silver or copper.

Unfortunately, a shortage in silver and gold at the time didn’t make the transition from foreign currency to a U.S.-based one easy. As a workaround, the government allowed Spanish coins to still be legally recognized—until Californian Gold Rush of 1848.

That influx of gold eventually paved the way to the Coinage Act of 1857, which officially demonetized all forms of foreign currency. Going forward, only gold coins produced in Philadelphia, Dahlonega, New Orleans and San Francisco would be legal tender in the United States.

Coin Collecting Begins

“If a date could ever be chosen for the explosive beginning of popular coin collecting in America, May 25, 1857 would be a likely candidate,” CoinWeek’s David Thomason Alexander explains in 10 Great Moments That Shaped American Coin Collecting. That was the year the copper-nickel Flying Eagle cent was introduced to replace the pure copper large cent. Although it was unpopular, news of the large cent’s demise lead to an interest in finding and saving the coin.

Nowadays, coins are collected based on all sorts of values, including rarity, design, metal type, denominations, date of issue and mintmarks.

Did you know there are more than 400 American Numismatic Association (ANA) member coin clubs across the country? Coin clubs allow people to discuss the history of coins and currency, as well as the role they play in society.

Collecting vs. Investing

Collector and bullion coins are both commodities that aren’t meant for circulation as payment for goods. But while collector coins are valued for their rarity and condition, bullion coins like gold are usually valued for their metal content.

Since bullion coins are a lower value investment, they are a good option for small and first time investors. If you decide to buy gold coins, make sure to buy them from a reputable dealer, like Manhattan Gold and Silver.

Our catalog of gold bullion coins features unique designs from mints all around the world. The gold coins we have available for sale include:

• American Buffalo
• Gold American Eagle
• Australian Kangaroo
• Austrian Philharmonic
• Gold Maple Leaf (Canada)
• Gold Krugerrand (South Africa)
• Gold Britannia (U.K.)

Bullion coins are available in sizes ranging from 1/10 ounce to 1 ounce–so you can choose how much or how little you want to invest in physical gold.

Happy investing (or collecting)!

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Use customer-friendly language

If your business requires a returns policy with lots of exclusions or fine print, that’s perfectly fine. However, you’ll want to avoid spelling out those exclusions in a punitive tone. Instead, use positive language that considers the customer’s point of view and makes them feel like their purchase is appreciated and protected, rather than threatened.

Give enough time

Shorter return periods can create a counterproductive sense of urgency. If you give customers a longer period of time to return something, they’re less likely to experience this pressure.

Cover replacement costs where you can

If your margins are enough to allow for it, or if the return meets certain requirements, keep your customers from paying additional return costs – like restocking or shipping fees. Showing that you are willing to cover those expenses can improve a customer’s confidence in their purchase decision.

The running theme here is: don’t penalize the customer who needs to return something. Most people check the return policy before committing to an expensive purchase, like jewelry. If it looks like they could be “punished” by the hassle created by your returns policy, there’s a greater chance they’ll look elsewhere.

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Branding

Pop-up shops are temporary and modular – so you can present your products to a new audience without going through the expensive process of opening a permanent store. For example, consumers visit the Diamond District to shop for jewelry. If you can’t afford a Manhattan lease long-term, a pop-up shop in the Diamond District can be a great way to introduce your jewelry brand to an audience that’s interested. Similarly, you can open a pop-up shop to coincide with an area’s busy season or a large event to maximize your exposure with limited financial risk.
   

Sales

A well-executed pop-up shop helps you market your products while making sales at the same time. The temporary nature of a pop-up creates a sense of urgency among consumers to “buy now” while they can. You can also influence future sales by testing new styles, designs, or other offerings to gauge future demand.

Unfortunately, a pop-up shop is not without challenges. Location and creativity are important. You need to select area that has enough foot traffic from your target customers, and you need to grab their attention by creating an engaging or exclusive experience. If you can pull it off, a pop-up shop has great potential to reenergize your business.

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• 2200K-3000K – yellow range (usually advertised as “soft white” or “warm white”)
• 3500K-4100K – bright white range (usually advertised as “white” or “cool white”)
• 5000K-6500K – blue-white range (usually advertised as “daylight”)

The “best” color temperature really depends on what is being illuminated. Lower color temperatures look “warmer” and can be used to make an area feel more relaxing or inviting for shoppers – or to accentuate the tones of yellow or orange gems and gold jewelry. Since medium color temperatures are more in the neutral/white range, they’re a good choice for general-purpose lighting. The blueish-white temperature range is great for drawing attention to intricate details or imparting a dynamic energy to special displays.

Color rendering index is an indicator of how accurate colors will look under the light, as well as how well subtle variations in color shades are represented. A CRI of 100 represents the maximum value and the most faithful representation of colors. Most fluorescent lights have a CRI between 50 and 70, so they are not well suited for displays. Most LED light bulbs (and some CFL bulbs) fall in the 80-90 range, which appears as perfectly accurate to all but the most eagle-eyed individuals.

The post How to Display your Jewelry in the Best Light appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

• Using handmade signs – Unless you put a lot of effort into their design, handwritten signs diminish a shop’s professionalism.
• Showing price tags – Price tags poking out here and there can ruin the immersion of the display. Unless you’re advertising discounts, remove price tags so people can experience the beauty of the jewelry.
• Forgetting to clean – Dirty windows lower the appeal of your display, merchandise, and brand perception.
• Ignoring the rule of odds – Using an odd number of objects better divides the space and creates more visual interest for viewers.

We created the infographic below filled with tips and guidelines to help you maximize the impact of your window displays. We can’t wait to see what the Diamond District creates for the upcoming holiday season!

The post Brainstorming Tips for Creating Eye-Catching Window Displays appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

Stone Setting Services: Handling a customer’s gemstones comes with inherent risks you should be prepared for. What should happen if you lose the stone? Will you be liable if the customer’s stone breaks? What if the stone breaks because it was flawed?

Jewelry Repairs: Should you offer the option to buy repair services with each piece of jewelry you sell, or offer repairs for free? What if the jewelry is extremely damaged, or inadvertently caused by another jeweler who worked on the piece?

Start thinking of issues now so you can create policies to address them when they arise. But remember: they don’t need to be iron clad. Certain customers or situations will require flexibility for the best outcome. If the policies you set don’t seem to be the best fit for your business and your customers, consider revising them.

The post Customer Policies Every Jeweler Needs to Think About appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

When you decide to put your company on social media, do it with specific goals in mind. Having a branded social media page for its own sake won’t have any benefit for your business. Do you want to use social media to increase brand awareness? What about establishing your brand as an authority on industry-specific knowledge? Take cues from how other successful companies run their social media pages, or research social media strategy to come up with goals that fit your business.

Again, it’s not necessary for you to personally handle your company’s social media posts – but you should be involved in the strategy behind those efforts if you really want to see some benefit from social media.

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Some specialty fashion stores in the US and Australia have introduced a “fitting fee” for browsing, which is refunded in full if the customer makes a purchase. However, charging a cover fee to enter the store doesn’t fit with all business models, or the image you want to project to shoppers. Instead, think about what you can give customers that they can’t get online.

Emphasize benefits such as free/discounted cleaning or resizing for purchases, and the expertise available only at your store. Consider adding other sales incentives such as price-match guarantees, simplified return policies, or additional services. You can also try to curate your inventory to include more unique items that can’t be easily found online. By going that extra mile, you can convince a showrooming shopper that best deal is coming from you.

The post What to do with ‘Showrooming’ Jewelry Shoppers appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

Instagram

Take good photos

Since Instagram is an image-based site, quality photos of your products are a must. Overall, it’s important to consider staging – you want to showcase your jewelry. Showcasing your product would be when you photograph it in use, in a unique setting, or showing examples of how it can be used. For example, don’t just share a photo of your necklace on a table. Instead, share a photo of it paired with a seasonal shirt or paired with a ring you have available. For more photography tips, you can check out our infographic on jewelry photography to help improve your technique.

Write good descriptions

Use the caption space to create a description that will entice your customers to buy. Don’t just include details about alloys or dimensions. Tell a story by talking about what makes the piece special, how it was inspired, and how it’s meant to be worn.

Use Hashtags

Hashtags (e.g. #fallfashionjewelry) allow you to “tag” your photos with categories and frequently searched terms. Generally, you want to use descriptive words that are relevant to your product photo. You can also create a hashtag unique to your brand (e.g. #mgsrefining) to help fans follow your products.

Have fun

As with maintaining a business presence on other social media channels, you do not need to make every single post about an item listing. Showing off your latest products is important, but users may be turned off by constant self-promotion. Engage your fans by showing your fun side with behind-the-scenes photos of your workbench or lifestyle content.

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In appearance, palladium jewelry looks similar to platinum, silver, and white-gold jewelry. It’s not just value and rarity that sets palladium apart from those metals – palladium jewelry functions differently. Compared to other jewelry metals, palladium has numerous advantages that appeal to discerning customers. For example, platinum is a very strong metal, but it easily develops a permanent patina of scratch marks. Because platinum is so hard, the scratches usually can’t be polished out. While some consider this feature to be a hallmark of the jewelry’s character, those who desire pristine looking pieces will be disappointed. Palladium, however, is more malleable so any scratches can be more easily polished out.

Because of its uniqueness and multiple advantages, it can be well worth the effort to expand your shop’s palladium offerings. Our infographic below has palladium’s strongest selling points to help you guide prospective customers.

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