How to use Google Ads to Buy & Sell Silver

Most questions I receive relate to the sale of personal silver (flatware and hollowware). Questioners often want to know the market value of what they own and they want to know where to go to sell it. Some questioners want to know where to buy "estate" (used) silver items, mostly to fill in an existing set of flatware.

We have allowed Google to place ads on this site if the ads relate to silver. Unfortunately, many irrelevant ads pop up that relate to things like industrial silver, coins, retirement planning, etc. If you wish to look at more relevant ads, it is suggested that you use the "Sterling Silver Web Search" tool in the upper part of the right column on this screen.

For example, suppose you are interested in selling your sterling flatware. Type "sell sterling silver" in the box and click on "Search". A new page will pop up. Look at the ads at the top and side of the new page. You may find some that are useful to you.

Wanted: Frank Whiting Princess Ingrid

A blog reader has asked for help in locating anyone who wants to sell some "Princess Ingrid" by Frank Whiting. If you fit this mold, click on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column and send us an email.

About the Ads on Our Blog Site

We receive questions occasionally regarding the Google ads displayed on this site. There are two primary reasons we display ads:

• We receive a small amount of revenue from Google whenever someone clicks on an ad. This helps fund our various information projects such as this blog.
• The ads provide a service for some readers, mostly those looking to buy or sell sterling pieces.

Here are a few points to help understand the ad process:

• We have very little control over the selection of ads presented by Google. However, Google does try to present ads relevant to the content of the blog.
• We don't endorse any advertiser.
• A click on an ad won't result in harm to your computer or "spam" to be generated based on the click itself. However, once you get to the advertiser's site, you are on your own in that regard.

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Buying and selling silver flatware: An antique show example

I visited the Scott Antique Market this past weekend. This is a huge show held monthly in Atlanta and I sometimes go because I know I'll see eight or ten dealers in various types of silver. As a result of this visit, I wrote two articles that might be if interest to some.

I interviewed two dealers in silver plate flatware regarding their business:

• Silver plate flatware price: Validation from two dealers

I also looked at the way some dealers are pricing and selling sterling flatware:

• Prices of sterling silver at antique shows: A recent example

If you are thinking about buying or selling silver flatware, one or both of these articles might be of interest.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Selling Your Silver: A Guide to Finding a Buyer and Getting a Good Price

I receive tons of questions from people wanting to know how to sell their silver, especially since the world commodity silver price has skyrocketed. So, I've written a 28-page booklet that provides information about the process. For anyone interested, it can be downloaded here for a small fee: Selling Your Silver: A Guide to Finding a Buyer and Getting a Good Price. I think you have to sign up for a free membership at the publisher's site.

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Why can't I sell my sterling silver for higher than scrap value?

The wild commodity silver market has triggered many questions to me from blog readers who are thinking about selling their sterling flatware and hollowware pieces. Many have questioned why they could not get a better price. We've been watching sales on eBay lately and it seems that many sellers don't even get the scrap value for their sterling. Here's an article we wrote recently:

• Why can't I sell my sterling for higher than scrap value?

As a reminder, we don't think folks should ever sell their sterling unless they really need the money. In general, the price received will always be disappointing, especially if the seller expected to get somewhere close to retail or close to the prices charged by companies like Replacements, Ltd. We think the value of sterling as a personal family heirloom is much greater that its value on the used market and it should be handed down through generations.

If you must sell, be patient. Get offers from several buyers and try to find the buyer who wants sterling for personal use. Such a buyer often is willing to pay more.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Who Will Buy Sterling Silver for Scrap Value - Update Regarding Refineries

I've posted a few articles regarding selling sterling for scrap but most were written when the commodity price of silver was much lower than it is now. Since the price of silver has increased dramatically during the past year or two (2010-2011), I've gained new insight and experience regarding selling silver for scrap.

It appears that the best price for your scrap silver will be obtained from a business that actually does the refining. It is not unusual to find a refinery who will pay 90% of the world spot price for silver. There is a catch - many of these refineries only do business with other businesses and do not offer their services to retail customers. So, you may have to search around to find a refinery to work with you.

You should also be aware that you will have to trust the refinery to do the right thing. Once they refine your sterling, they will produce some sort of report regarding the weight and purity of the items you handed over to them. They should tell you:

• The weight before refining
• The weight after refining
• The purity of the silver

If you disagree with their assessment, it may be too late to do anything about it - it's already been melted!

Here are some things to remember:

• Sterling is 92.5% silver content by weight.
• Knives and similar "hollow handle" pieces are about 15% sterling by weight (this is just an educated guess).
• Some pieces, such as candlesticks, may contain cement "weighting" material inside - sterling content may be relatively small.
• Silver plate pieces have very little silver content.

If you want to pursue a relationship with a refinery, submit one or two small batches for refining first. Look at the results and see if they agree with your estimate. Understand any deviations. Once you feel comfortable with a business, you can submit larger batches of sterling for melt down.

You'll see some ads at the top of the screen. Scroll right and you'll probably see several ads from refineries. Google attempts to display ads from businesses in your general location.

You might also try searching. In the Google search box on the right of this screen, enter "silver gold refinery refining". You might add the name of your city to the search. After you click the "Search" button, a new window will pop up. Check out the ads at the top and the right of the new window.

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Case Study & Warning: Selling scrap silver to a refiner

I wrote this article on May 22, 2011. So far, it is Number One on the Hit Parade of articles! It received 600% more "hits" on the first day than the next most popular article I ever wrote.

     Case Study & Warning: Selling scrap silver to a refiner

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Appraising the Value of Your Sterling Silver

Many of the questions we receive relate to the value of a set of silver someone has, either sterling or silver plate. We've recently written a series of three articles on the appraising process. Two of the them focus on professional appraisers while the third discusses a cheaper approach. Here's a link to the third article if you're interested:

- Cheap approach to appraising your sterling flatware

In the article you will find links to the earlier two articles. The focus is on sterling but the discussion could apply to silver plate as well.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Selling Sterling Silver? Don't Be Lazy!

Shop around for the best price!

Here's a concrete example of why this is true.

Last week, we purchased a set of sterling flatware from an individual. The seller was someone we had bought from in the past so we felt comfortable talking with each other about the silver business in general.

Her set contained a little more than 1800 grams of sterling. At that time, commodity silver was selling for around $16.00 per Troy ounce. That meant that her set had a silver content value of about $850.00. If she sold the set to a silver scrap dealer, the worst offer she should have gotten should have been around $450.00. The first such dealer she visited offered her $248.00!

So, if you are trying to sell your silver, invest some time in finding the buyer who will pay you the most. For more hints regarding selling, click on "Selling" under "Labels" in the right column. You may have to scroll the page down a bit.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Finding Actual Sales on eBay

We receive comments such as this frequently, "My sterling flatware set must be worth $XYZ.00 because I've seen it listed on eBay for this amount." Listing on eBay and actually selling are two different things.

To develop a true picture of what's selling on eBay, you should examine actual completed sales. Here's how to do this (you may have to sign in to eBay):

• On many eBay screens, you will see a link to "Advanced Search". Click on this.
• Enter your search keywords.
• Check the box that says, "Completed listings".
• Check the box that says, "Include Store inventory".
• Click the "Search" button.

You will see a list of completed listings in the past two weeks that met your keyword criteria. The listings you will want to examine are those that have a little box with the word "Sold" beside them. Review these specific listings to see what was being sold and compare them with what you are considering selling. Examine the selling price.

This will help you determine the true value of your set, at least on eBay.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

An Ad for Our Ads

In the right column of this blog you can find ads placed there automatically by Google. You only see two but there are actually ten. You can access the others with the up and down arrows. Ads also appear near the very bottom of the screen.

Google tries to place ads that relate to the content of the blog. If you are displaying the entire blog, you can count on the fact to 80% or more of the ads will relate to silver somehow. Many will be for sellers of sterling silver. If you are looking to buy, click on these ads to check out what's available and at what price. If you are looking to sell, click on the same ads and look for information regarding how to sell to the advertiser.

If you are displaying only a single blog entry, the ads may vary quite a bit. For example, if the article you are displaying talks about knives, you may see an ad for a seller of Bowie knives! So, for the best ad content, make sure you are displaying the entire blog.

Google also provides a search tool in the right column. Searching from this blog has some predefined search criteria relating to silver. You'll find more ads among the displayed search results, also silver related.

We encourage you to check out these ads if you are looking for anything related to silver.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

"Still in Sealed Plastic Sleeve"

We are often asked variations of this question by people interested in selling, "I have some sterling flatware pieces still new in their unopened plastic sleeves. Can I get a higher price for these pieces?" Believe it or not, my answer is, "Yes, but not nearly as much as you think!"

We can't explain it but the marketplace seems to lump all "used" pieces together, even those pieces still in plastic. Maybe it's like the "driving the car off the showroom floor" devaluation syndrome. Here are some other possibilities for the phenomenon:

• Buyers don't trust sellers - maybe the bags have been resealed, not a difficult task


• Poor storage causes damage - abrasions, bends and dents can develop from rough handling during storage even though the pieces are in plastic


• Not all plastic bags remain 100% airtight - we have seen tarnish on pieces that look to be in original sealed bags

So, don't automatically expect to get prices near retail for your sealed pieces. Sorry!

Check the pictures below. They are all of the same fork in what seems to be the original sealed plastic sleeve.

It's hard to tell from the pictures because of the sleeve itself but you can see tiny specks of tarnish at the base of the tines.

Tarnish is really obvious around the words, "Gorham Sterling".

Tarnish is not a serious problem and this fork will polish out to be beautiful. But, technically, it will no longer be "new".

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

eBay Reviews and Guides

Have you had trouble finding the information you need regarding sterling flatware? Here's another source of information:

eBay Reviews and Guides

I suggest entering "sterling flatware" in the keyword search field as a starting search. You can refine your search once you see the type of information available. You''ll probably be more interested in Guides than Reviews. Most of these were written by people who have knowledge about a specific subject. For example, you can find Guides that discuss these topics related to sterling:

• Cleaning
• Buying
• Selling
• Identifying
• Specific manufacturers
• Silver purity
• Setting the table

Be aware that some Guides may not be completely accurate or the author may have a particular bias so don't assume that you have the best answer. On the other hand, this is a good place to go for additional information.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

What's My Sterling Worth? - Revisited

The hottest general topic on this blog, based on web pages actually viewed and search terms used in Google and other search engines, is some variation on the theme, "How do I sell my sterling flatware and how much is it worth?" Last year, we decided to test the waters and secured real quotes, in writing, from three different reputable businesses that buy and sell used sterling flatware - a very large dealer, a large dealer and a small dealer.

We've seen these businesses sell on eBay and we've seen web sites and catalogs of theirs outside of eBay. We've seen their ads pop up in the Google ads in the right column and at the bottom of this blog.

We told them we had a set of Gorham Chantilly in excellent condition with no monograms that we wanted to sell. The 56 pieces in this fictitious set were:

• Eight place-size forks, 7.5 inches long
• Eight place-size knives, 9.25 inches long
• Eight salad forks
• Eight teaspoons
• Eight iced tea spoons
• Eight oval soup spoons
• One gravy ladle
• One sugar spoon
• Two serving tablespoons
• One pierced serving tablespoon
• One cold meat fork
• One cake/pie server
• One flat master butter knife

The three quotes we received to purchase our set ranged from $872.00 to $938.00, a difference of $66.00, or 7%. For the highest quote, the average price per piece was $16.75.

So, if you had a set like this in excellent condition, you could expect to get at least $938.00 for it. All three dealers included in the wording of their quotes a caveat that if the set was not in excellent condition according to their guidelines, the price would be less.

We should insert a note here to say that at the time these quotes were generated, commodity silver was around $20.00 per Troy ounce. Today, it's in the $14.25 ballpark. This may affect negatively a price quote we might obtain today but probably not terribly much. If we're selling to a scrap dealer, the commodity price drop would have a more significant impact.

What was the retail price of this set? Prices from multiple retailers were well over $5,000.

So, what's this set worth? It all depends on who's buying and who's selling! If you use the retail price as your benchmark, you may be disappointed in what you are actually able to sell your set for. On the other hand, if you can find an end-user buyer who will want your set for personal use, you can probably get more than what the dealers offered. Consignment shops, craigslist.org and eBay are three possible channels that come to mind to try to reach this end-user buyer.

As always, comments and emails on this subject are welcome.

FYI for any techies interested: We are able to tell what pages have been viewed and what search terms were used by accessing a web tool called "Google Analytics".

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

New Information on Silver Plate Value

We may have done owners of silver plated pieces a disservice! In our post, "Do Used Silverplate Pieces Have Any Value", we implied that they had very little value. Well, we were not totally accurate.

Yesterday, we were talking with a silver appraiser regarding two candelabra pieces. The smaller candelabra was made of sterling and the larger more elaborate piece was silver plated. The appraiser valued the silver plated piece at about three times the value of the sterling piece. His reasons:

• The silver plated piece was made by a well-known English manufacturer; it had a very nice design and was in excellent condition
• The sterling piece was plainer, its design was of the 1960's (not very distinctive) and just not as nice looking

So, we stand corrected. Silver plated pieces of high quality and nice design can be valuable.

By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "View My Complete Profile" in the right column.

Consignment Shops for Selling

I happened to be in a nice consignment shop today and was impressed with their display of sterling pieces. I don't know why I have not mentioned this approach to selling sterling before. So, if you are looking to sell something, this might be worth trying. Here are some points that come to mind (my opinions only):

• I think selling a complete set might be better than selling odd pieces.
• Find a shop that deals in high end items, such as nice antiques. It should have a good assortment of sterling pieces for sale.
• Be reasonable in your pricing. Do your homework before going to the shop.
• Make sure you can remove your sterling from the shop after a reasonable time.
• Polish your sterling!

I probably would not go to a consignment shop to hunt for pieces to fill in an existing set but if I was in the market for a complete set, I might search there.

I'd be interested in hearing about your experience with such shops. Add a comment or send us an email.

By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "View My Complete Profile" in the right column.

New Links to Current Commodity Silver Price

We receive lots of questions about the market price of pure silver. So, we've added a couple of new features.

Firstly, in the right column of the screen, you will see a small graph containing the current day's pricing of commodity silver. This chart is provided by http://www.kitco.com/.

Secondly, we've added new links to "Our Favorite Links" in the right column of the screen. Clicking on "NYMEX Commodity Silver Prices" will take you to a web page of the New York Mercantile Exchange that displays more information about silver prices. The "Quotes" in the lower right of that screen gives you a snapshot of recent quote activity.

FYI, today, May 29, 2009, the ending price was $15.60 per Troy ounce. That means that the scrap value of a Chantilly place fork in terms of silver content is just under $25.00 today. If you had to sell your fork to a scrap dealer, you could probably get between $13.00 and $15.00 for it.

We also have added a link to a "Precious Metal Calculator". There are several calculators out there but we like this one because of its simplicity. Here are the items to be input:

• Enter the weight in grams
• Select "grams" as the units
• Select ".925 Silver" as the metal
• Enter "-40" in as the markup/discount
• Click "Calculate Value"

The displayed value is a rough idea of what a scrap dealer would be willing to pay you for your sterling.

By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "View My Complete Profile" in the right column.

Selling Sterling for Scrap: Concrete Example

We have received lots of questions about selling sterling flatware for scrap value. We have responded with conjectures about how this might happen and how much you would receive.

In order to give readers more concrete information, we decided to actually sell some for scrap. We had some sterling flatware pieces that were bent or otherwise badly damaged. We sent them to a mail order buyer who advertises daily on their web site what they will pay.

The buyer received our pieces, called us to confirm the purchase price and paid us the same day via PayPal. The price we received was about 65% of the current spot price for silver. That seemed reasonable to us because the buyer has to make a profit. We paid the postage to send the pieces.

If you have specific questions, email us. We don't endorse any buyers but this one did follow through as he said he would.

Click on any picture to see a larger version. By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "Email Silver Jim" in the right column.

Finding Buyers for Your Sterling Flatware

We receive lots of questions and comments regarding locating a buyer for sterling flatware. We'll try to be unbiased in our response - we buy sterling flatware ourselves.

First, we recommend that you read our other posts related to selling flatware. In the right sidebar on this screen, click on the Label, "Selling". This will cause all the articles related to selling to be displayed together.

To get to some heavy-duty volume buyers:

• In the right column of this blog, enter "selling silver" in the Sterling Silver Web Search box and click the "Search" button.
• A new window will appear. Click on the ads you see at the top and on the right side of the new window.

Generally, these ad clicks will take you to people who buy scrap silver.

Now, here are some suggestions for locating other types of buyers:

• Send an email to us describing what you have. Click on "Email Silver Jim" in the right sidebar of this screen to access our email address. You didn't think we really would be unbiased, did you?
• We've mentioned eBay and craigslist.org in earlier posts. They are both good options and the latter option is free. Just be aware that scammers prey on craigslist sellers a lot.
• Try your local jewelry stores. If they won't buy it, maybe they can refer you to someone.
• In larger cities, you might find specialty stores that buy and sell used sterling pieces. In Atlanta, for example, we found businesses like this in the Yellow Pages under the heading, "Silverware".
• Search the ads on this blog for buyers. In the right sidebar are ten ads that directly relate to silver. Near the very bottom of this screen are roughly twenty similar ads. Most ads are for buyers, sellers or related products such as polish. You have to scroll through the ads to see them all.
• When scanning the ads, remember that sellers probably are also buyers. Contact them and ask how to sell to them. Some have this information posted on their web sites. We see ads frequently from at least three large companies that buy and sell. If you want more details about them, send an email to us. Google changes the ads every time you visit this blog, so check the ads every time.

We always welcome emails if you have specific questions.

By clicking on "Comments/Questions" below, you can see posted comments and add your own questions and comments. Or, you can send us an email by clicking on "View My Complete Profile" in the right column.