What's going on, everybody? Welcome back to Stacking Slabs. It's your hobby content alternative. I'm your host, Brett.

Flagship episode. This is the time of the week where we tackle a collector driven topic and explore the many different facets and how if we maybe get in the weeds on something a little bit, it can help everyone out.

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Alright. Let's dig into today's topic. I think this is a very interesting topic.

We're going to be talking about leverage, leverage in the deal making process, leverage from a buying perspective, leverage from a selling perspective. I gotta shout out first, my man, Michael, at roundtree thirteen cards.

Michael slid in the DMs a little while ago, and he just you could you know, when you're you catch someone in a moment where they either got done making a deal or they hit a wall on a current deal, Michael reached out to me, and he just sent me a bunch of stuff information, paragraph, situations, and he was just and, basically, his comment was, hey.

I think leverage is a really important topic when we're making deals. And, basically, I haven't heard anyone really go ham on it, and I think this would be a fun episode.

I'll say this. I can't tell you how much I enjoy that level of an engagement from the audience. Someone who is presenting a topic that is sound, presenting a topic that is evergreen, something that I have not explored.

And I knew the passion that was coming from Michael when he sent that, and I stashed it away. It it went on my parking lot of show topics, ideas, and concepts.

I'm in this continual content hamster wheel where there's every day of my life, every day of my existence is is promoting a new piece of content, formatting a piece of content, creating a piece of content, and many times, it's multiple pieces on top of all of that.

So I'm in this constant content, hamster wheel, and, you know, I would say I feel very fortunate, especially in the role I'm in.

I feel one of the skill sets that I have is able is the ability to, analyze the feelings, emotions, and belief of my audience and try to understand what topics matter and then go explore them in those episodes.

That is something I do each and every day, each and every week, each and every month. It's nonstop. But I'm not gonna lie. When I get the direct feedback from a collector that I appreciate and say, hey.

Here's something that you haven't thought of. It's like an assist. It's helping me out. And so that happened maybe a couple weeks ago. I've stashed it away, and today just seemed like a really good time to dig into it.

So we're gonna talk about leverage. Hopefully, what what I'm about to say resonates with you, and I'll also say if there's anything that you have on this topic, like, share it.

Share it. I am constantly trying to continue the conversation outside of these episodes. A great place where that goes down is the Patreon group when I post this stuff. I love the comments.

I love engaging in these topics. But I would just encourage you all, if something is left unsaid and you have experience in something that has helped you out in selling a car or buying a car, please share it. Alright. Let's get into it.

Every collector has been there. We've all been locked on that card. It might pop up in a story sale, spot it in a showcase if you're going to a show. You either message the seller or go up to the seller and say, is this one available?

Then they reply, not really looking to sell it right now. Boom. Just like that, the dynamic shifts. You're on defense. You've shown your hand. And whether they're aware of it or not, they've just taken control of the situation.

That's leverage. And in the hobby, it's everywhere. It can be subtle, psychological, and often unspoken. It's the invisible current that runs through each and every deal that we make.

Sometimes you hold it, sometimes you lose it, and sometimes you give it away without even realizing it. What I have learned the hard way is that leverage has less to do with the card and has more to do with the conversation around it.

The way we communicate, what we say, how we say it, and when we say it sets the entire tone for the in a negotiation. Words like, curious, available, or even silence carries a whole lot of weight.

We often think price determines a deal, but more often than not, it's the posture or positioning. I'm a marketing guy. When I'm engaged in these types of dialogues on stuff I'm seeking or stuff that's coming to me, I my antennas go up.

It's positioning, messaging, communication is, what I think about oftentimes in everything I do in life. So spotting it for me is, easy at times.

It's not always the easiest, though, especially when you're working with someone who is mindful of leverage in these situations. I think the person who frames the situation typically holds the leverage.

And when you're not intentional with your communication, you're you risk handing it over before the negotiation even begins. So in today's episode, I wanna pull back the curtain a little bit on leverage in the hobby.

We'll talk about how it's gained, how it's lost, how how smart collectors use it, those who really pay attention use it as a tool, not as a weapon, because we all understand leverage.

You stopped reacting, and I think you can start navigating. Alright.

Leverage can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. So let's start with, like, what leverage means in the hobby. And I think leverage is our ability as collector to control or influence the terms of a deal.

There's factors there. It can be price, timing. It can be tone, but I think it's based on how you position yourself, how much desire the other party shows, or how you control the narrative.

It's really important when you're talking, when you're working, when you're having conversations about cards, you understand that there is a deal making component to the process that's going on, and there are ways to try to get more money or try to pay less money.

And so that's what I wanna dig into. Let's start here with maybe some power play scenarios.

Maybe Waze leverage shows up more subtly in deals. I always like to be, like, very specific and try to be, very direct with these scenarios because I think scenarios and leverage varies across a lot of different selling formats.

But maybe for this example, we will an easy one for me to think about because I see it every day, our story sales. Story sales on Instagram. If you're not on Instagram, it is when an individual posts a card that's for sale.

Now there's a couple different ways you see this. You see story sales without a price. Without a price, this creates a mystery. Right? Buyer feels like they're entering a negotiation if they see a card that they want.

You can have a story sale, which is much more preferred where there's a price. Right? We can say, hey. If you're gonna sell your cards, this isn't deal or no deal on Facebook.

Just put a price to it, man. In that situation, seller sets the tone. Buyer is reacting rather than initiating. So this is how we get into leverage, and I think leverage is in the framing.

It's who's asking versus who is telling. Framing is the psychological lens through which a deal is presented and interpreted. In every transaction, someone frames the situation first, and that act alone shapes the power dynamic.

This is, like, this is firing me up a little bit because this is really nerdy card stuff, but I think it's really important. So let's start here. Who's asking? When a buyer opens the conversation, they're signaling a few things.

They're signaling interest, desire, willingness to negotiate. Right? There's so many cards. And we see a card, and we need the card, so we reach out. A buyer might say, is this card available?

And the seller says and I've done this. Right? Especially when someone approaches me. Seller says, not really looking to move it right now. But what are you thinking? Or I'm open to offers if you got one.

Even though the card was posted in a story or it could be on a regular, you know, Instagram post. It is a form of soft advertising. The buyer becomes the chaser, and the seller now holds the leverage because they haven't set a price.

They haven't even confirmed the card is for sale, and they've put the burden on the buyer to make the first move. That framing gives the seller a the psycho psychological control.

Even if they're motivated to sell, they're now in a position to extract more value by playing off the buyer's curiosity and uncertainty. This is complex. Are you thinking about these things when you're interacting?

So that is the who's asking. Now the who's telling, this is when the seller leads the conversation. They define the framework of the deal, and it creates a sense of control and confidence.

A seller might say something to the effect of, you know, I've got a 02/2013, Calvin Johnson select gold out of 10, and I'm asking for 1,250 or best offer.

Now the seller has publicly named a price, framed the card as available, and signaled flexibility with the OBO.

In this case, the buyer has the information they need to determine if they wanna pursue. The power dynamic shifts closer to neutral or even towards the buyer, especially if comps are lower or the market is soft at that time.

The buyer might even wait to see if it gets relisted cheaper. But here's the trick. The seller still frame the situation. They initiated the value conversation. They're telling.

They're not asking. On this front, one other subtle note I'll I'll tell share with you that I often use in this scenario to try to try for for my advantage or for leverage is that something's happening when cards are for sale.

There is a desire by the seller to gain funds, and they could be gaining funds to go buy another card, take care of bills, whatever it happens. But when when you see cards for sale, there's a reason.

Right? A lot of us don't like to sell cards. We wish we could have cards. All of our cards never have to sell, but posting our cards, putting a price on them, and signals to me that whoever is listing this is in the middle of something.

And if you have that mindset, it might give you the ability to maybe get a better deal than what has been presented.

I think why all this matters. Framing doesn't just shape perception. It shapes the outcomes of these deals. The person who frames first gets to define what is reasonable.

The person who asks first often ends up justifying their position. This is why dealers at shows don't always price every card in their showcase even though I can't stand that.

It lets them feel out the buyer first. If you ask, you tip your hand. If you tell, you're holding the cards figuratively and literally.

The key, takeaway here is in any hobby deal who speaks first and how is more powerful than probably we all realize as collectors. And you you, I guess, are you the one asking for permission or the one offering a proposition?

Framing is the first battle in the leverage game, and most of the time, it's over in a sentence. So that's the story sale example. We got really in the weeds here. I feel like this conversation could go on forever.

Okay. Let's talk about the scenario of being, like, deal dealer behavior at shows. This one, I'm less in tuned to because I don't go to many shows. I just it's not easy for me at this point.

It's just hard. But I've been to plenty of shows, so I'll just talk from experience. So dealer behavior at shows that it's saying stuff like, okay. It's in the showcase, but they're saying that one's not really for sale.

That signals scarcity and raises the perceived value. There is rotating inventory display, and this creates kind of this curation, is in place to help generate curiosity.

It's silence after you name a price. Have you ever noticed that? Have you ever made a a deal? And you it's or you're you're in the process of making deal.

You give an offer, and there's silence. This is what we call a power move. It makes the buyer uncomfortable enough to perhaps re revise the offer. I think silence isn't awkward in negotiations.

It's strategic. It creates a vacuum in a way. And when someone emotionally is invested in a card, they'll often rush to fill the vacuum with concessions, and that's what the individual with the power position wants.

When a buyer makes an offer and the seller goes silent, the buyer's brain starts spinning. I've been there before. It's like you're asking yourself, is this too low of an offer? Did I offend them? Are they about to walk away?

The best thing we can do as the offer initiators are not get emotionally tied to the situation with the seller or the card itself. You got it this is the the there's no feelings involved in this, and I we want there to be.

But if the less you make your feelings involved and the more matter of fact and direct you are, the better things are for you. You don't want to trigger that anxiety.

The anxiety pushes the buyer to regain control often by sweetening the deal without even being asked. You see this go down in a card show, someone saying, like, would you take $400 for this $500 card?

And the seller says nothing, just looks at the buyer, maybe nods slightly, maybe frowns, silence, stretches, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten seconds pass by.

Then the buyer starts to panic. It's more of a mental thing. I mean, I could probably do $4. 50 if that helps. Boom. The seller just made $50 because of a facial expression. That goes down all the time.

Leverage, man. It's powerful. This happens in the DMs. Right? Buyer says post a card or seller post a card. Buyer says, any chance you'd take $3. 75 for a $450 card? No response for an hour or a day. You just get set on red.

Buyer follows up. Totally understand. If not, could you do $4. 25 if that's better? In both those cases, silence creates leverage by avoiding commitment, creating doubt, and forcing the buyer to reengage emotionally.

And I think this works because humans hate uncertainty. In deals, silence feels like rejection even when it isn't.

Most people are wired to avoid that tension, especially if they really, really want the card. Silence puts pressure on the buyer without the seller having to even say say a word.

So what are we supposed to do if we're the buyer? I think we resist the urge to speak first. Your offer stands until countered. That should be your your number one rule. Don't speak first.

Let the seller say something. Be confident in your research. If your offer is fair, always let them come back to you no matter how bad you need the card. Use your own silence if you need to. If they don't reply, don't chase.

Sometimes the person who stays quiet as the longest wins. I think the key takeaway there is silence is is isn't nothing. It's everything. It's a way of saying, I hold the cards. You tell me what you're willing to do.

There are verbal tactics, right, that have been used, and it's stuff like I've had a lot of interest in this one, whether it's true or not. How many times have you heard I have a lot of interest in this one?

Some individuals might say, that builds urgency, or I I should up my offer, or I should get offer a strong offer. I always take it as whenever I read that, I just I don't believe it, especially if I see it twice.

Even if I'm wrong, I come from the place of skepticism. You know? It's like it's just doesn't it's it's especially on, like, cards that are worth thousands of dollars.

I just have a really hard time believing that you as the seller in that moment posted the card and all of a sudden have a line of people, waiting to you know, with strong offers.

But then you have this line of people, and you're still saying, I've got a bunch of offers. Like, that operation just seems crazy to me.

Just testing the waters is another one. Position seller is in control even when they come across as maybe more eager. Those are some things that I just I don't know. Those are scenarios I think we all go through.

I think it's important to talk about why buyers give up leverage. It happens when o you open up the conversation. You say, is this card available? Signals the desire, but seller knows you want it.

Maybe a better approach is curious if you're open opening to move this one. If not, no rush. I always find that's a better way even if it's not getting the deal done today or in that moment.

You're better up positioning yourself in the long run. One one way that we give up leverage is offering a price first. You might overshoot what the seller would have asked. You remove their need and defined expectations.

Emotional transparency. This is my grail. Been looking for this forever. When you say that, you're done. You're done. You've lost all leverage. Yeah. So I just I there there's also leverage, I think, that we can't control.

So we don't I don't want people to listen to this and overthink, like, the way they talk to people. Sometimes you can't control, and that's when you got pricing data, everyone's got card ladder, or you should.

If you're not using card ladder, what are you doing? Official data provider stacking slabs. Go go subscribe. But card ladder, right, price guides, public comps, real time data, empowers and undermines any negotiation.

Seller can point to last sale, especially if it was high. Buyer can leverage dips in the market, but only if the seller respects the comps.

You've got auction clocks. When a card is active in auction, sale sellers can say watch the auction. Leverage shifts to time scarcity and fear of missing out. There's ways, I think, to cope with the loss of leverage.

I don't know. There's a lot here, and I don't know. I'm more of a mindset of, like, moving on. I think, you know, you hear it's a forever car, which is mental justification for giving in.

I've done this. I've overpaid big time because I see a card that just fits and checks every box, and sometimes that's okay. And you just gotta, like, be okay with it.

It helps override the discomfort of feeling like you lost leverage. I just made a deal where I lost leverage, but I didn't care. And I paid more than anyone probably paid for a specific card, but I needed the card.

And so that's where, like, sometimes, you know, emotion, you just you just lean into it. I think what's important is just maybe the ethics behind leverage and the fine line we need to walk and how to play the game fairly.

And I think if you play the game fairly, you you're gonna build trust, which helps in the deal making process. Transparency as leverage is always important.

I do this. This is what I paid. Here's what I'm looking for. Especially, when it's a when I am the seller who needs funds for something else, it helps build credibility. I think honesty can be influenced when you have a good reputation.

You wanna let buyers feel like they've won. Sellers who understand psychology often often price to allow a little wiggle room. Everybody leaves happy when both sides feel like they got value.

It's important to read the room even if it's digitally, knowing when to push back and when to pull back. There's been so many times where I have said no to a deal, and then, you know, a few months later, I I I thought, you know what?

I should've taken that. And it's part of it. It's part of learning. It's part of growth. I think emotional intelligence is the ultimate skill or ultimate leverage skill.

Knowing how to manage your emotions, knowing why the emotions are coming from, knowing when to use your emotions, having that in control will make you an awesome buyer, an awesome seller, and someone who deeply understands leverage in these situations.

There's a lot of ground covered, to be honest with you. There's probably, like, an opportunity for a part two of this episode. I don't know if I'm gonna do it right away, but I have a lot more to say on this topic.

So I wanna shout out Michael at round treat thirteen cards for presenting it, giving making my life easier this week by just teeing up a topic for me to dig into, but we'll leave you here.

I think leverage is always in the room. I think every message, every offer, every card pulled out of the showcase, it's a little bit of a dance, man.

And whether you know it or not, someone is always leading. The better you understand the flow of leverage, the more comfortable and confident you'll feel when you're collecting.

Because this hobby, as much as we wanna make it about it, isn't just about price tags. It's about presence, poise, and how you show up. What do you think about leverage? Was this topic helpful? Are you pulling anything away from it?

Let me know. Post about it. Tag me at stacking slabs on Instagram and everywhere else. Appreciate y'all tuning in and supporting stacking slabs. More content coming each and every day from this feed. We'll talk to you soon.