[ Outline ] · Standard · Linear+ TTM Autograph Collecting 101

[gregorium]

Have you wondered how to go about collecting autographs through the mail but don’t know where to start? Here’s a little tutorial to help you get started.

Many athletes can be contacted care of their teams or agents. Keep in mind that retired athletes often act as scouts, coaches, consultants, general managers and presidents for your favourite organizations. Home address lists are also available online, but please, don’t drop in for tea. A little research can also cut down on the amount of mail that you get back marked Return To Sender (RTS). While many athletes or celebrities will sign for free, others will require that a fee be paid or a donation be made for their signatures. Don’t be shy to ask your fellow TCC members to share their experiences regarding TTM requests for certain players or celebrities.

Your letter should be concise and courteous. Everyone is busy these days, so keep your letter short and legible. Feel free to let them know that you have enjoyed their work. Using specifics adds sincerity to the letter, but be sure that you are using the right information. For example, “Mr. Cruise, I loved you in Top Gun” will probably be more successful than “Mr. Cruise, I loved you in Young Guns”. Some people prefer to receive hand-written letters over those that are word-processed. It gives the impression of being more sincere. Ask politely for their autograph and be sure to thank them for their time.

You may be sending to a multi-millionaire, but don’t forget, you are asking them for a favour, so you should not expect them to cover the cost of sending you an autograph. Always send a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and ensure that you have both sufficient postage and postage from the country you anticipate a response from. For example, if you live in the USA and are sending to Canada, you should have Canadian postage on your SASE and US postage on the request. You can purchase postage online from the postal services. International Reply Coupons (IRC) can be sent instead of the required foreign return postage. They are available from your local post office and can be exchanged for the minimum postage for an unregistered priority airmail letter. If you are sending oversized mail, you may need to include more than one IRC. Better yet, how about trading with another TCC member who lives in another country for the foreign postage you require? They are likely in the same boat as you regarding postage from your country. Remember, there is no obligation on the part of the athlete or celebrity to fulfill your request. Therefore, the easier you make it for them, the better your chances are at a successful return.

Keep in mind that there is no guarantee that your item will be returned, so don’t send anything that you cannot stand to lose. That one of a kind item may look great if it’s signed, but there is a risk of loss or damage, so you may be better off to wait for a public or private signing opportunity.

Be patient. Many of your requests will be returned to you within a few weeks or months, but it is not unheard of for a request to be returned years after it was sent.

Beware! Not every request will be successful. Some items may be returned unsigned, while others will feature facsimile, secretarial, stamped or auto-penned autographs. The best way to ensure authenticity is to have the item signed in person, but there are services out there that will authenticate a signature for a fee.

Most important of all, and I can’t stress this enough, is be polite. Always use your Please and Thank You’s. A little respect goes a long way and will help you build that TTM collection. Plus, being polite will also make your mother proud!

[JasonS]

Just a little hint here; don't try and reuse stamps that have been on an old envelope. I just had someone send me a SASE and they used stamps that they peeled off an old letter and stuck them on the return envelope. They were all rumpled and even had the cancelation marks on them. The post office wont accept those.