If you pick up membership promotion brochures from clubs, or visit collecting club websites, you are confronted with all kinds of statements about why collectors should join this club or that one.

"A serious collector is an educated collector and you can become an educated collector by joining our club." "A great way to become 'connected' for buying, selling or trading." "To meet other collectors and develop friendships which can last a lifetime." "To gain knowledge on values, reproductions and how to care for my collection."

These are all very valid reasons to join a collecting club...and there are dozens more, we're sure. Some clubs do a tremendous job with membership services, offering newsletters and publications, mentoring programs, an educational website, annual convention, shows and auctions, price guides and research projects, resource libraries and archives, collector insurance programs, reproduction alerts, ethics guidelines for both collectors and dealers, member supply stores, annual membership collectors items and much more.

In reviewing what clubs offer and their various membership dues structures, it seems to us that membership in most clubs is a real bargain - a year's worth of service often for about the same price you would pay to go to a movie (with popcorn and drink), or a sports event or concert (and sometimes a lot less).

Another factor to consider is that for most clubs we are talking about a one year commitment. Membership dues is usually for 12 months. At that time you can either renew for another year or decide not to.

Even for a person who is just beginning and maybe only mildly interested in a collecting area, what better way to determine if you want to become more serious in that collecting area than having a year's worth of member services from the club supporting that collecting area to help you "weigh your decision"?

For the collector who may possibly be interested in four or five different collecting areas, we would strongly suggest consider joining the clubs which support each of these four or five collecting areas. OK, so maybe you're not that much of a joiner. It still is the most practical way of letting the collecting club sell you on which area to eventually collect more seriously through the simple technique of comparison shopping. Let the clubs sell you on collecting in their area.

Another option, without the obligation of actively paying membership, is to simply ask a collecting club you may be interested in to send you some information on their club and the collecting area they support.

This is the main thrust of the Association of Collecting Clubs' Join A Club program - offering opportunities for collectors to simply request information from a variety of different types of collecting clubs - probably some you've never heard of before.

Now, getting back to the original question, "Why join a collecting club?" Probably the best answer is because YOU want to. It has to be your decision. Like your collection, itself, it's a personal thing . You decide what to collect...what to buy...how to display it...and everything else connected with your collecting. Joining, or not joining, a collecting club is a part of this. Most collecting clubs exist to support and help collectors, and perform a good service for their collecting area. But they also have the obligation of convincing you that you should join their group as a member.