Some of them were great, but I wouldn't say they were all worth getting. Someone must have forgotten we have SACD and DVD-A now.
And the auction closed without a bid reaching the reserve price, which is clearly above $11,600 (around $45 per disc).
Not just that; odds are any bidders were dealers looking for a score. They could then do what this guy didn't: sell separately for a much higher profit. And no wonder, since most private bidders probably already have a lot of those, and having extras would just be a hassle. Second, there will be titles in there most collectors wouldn't want, not to mention some titles aren't worth having, which is common knowledge. Understandable, then, that the auction closed without hitting the reserve; not worth it. ED
Can someone please explain why eBay sellers begin bidding at less than the reserve? What's the point? If he's not accepting bids less than, say, $12,000, then make that the first bid. Why waste everyone's time?
Three reasons: the reserve bid isn't listed, or(just as likely)the bidders think the reserve, if they've figured out what it is, is a load of BS; and finally, they don't think it's worth the reserve, bid to make a statement, and maybe, after it's all over, get hold of the seller and try to knock his price down. With rare exceptions, this kind of bulk sale is tough to pull off; a DCC Gold collection might fly, and certain memorabilia in bulk will sell, but MFSL was just too erratic a label to blow a wad for some things you just probably don't want or will ever use. Were this a batch of MFSL sealed vinyl, I'd bet the response would have been much more impressive--and sincere. ED
An auction is an emotional process as much as a logical one. If the first bid was set at $12,000, potential buyers might be put off and not put in an opening bid. But in the heat of an auction, with half a dozen bidders trying to outdo each other, the high bid could easily exceed the reserve. You've just gotta get the process started. I see this all the time at work, where we do *very* high-priced auctions. The auctioneer will ask for an high opening bid, and never get it. He'll have to go down a long way before people will start bidding. Quite often, though, the final bid will be equal to or greater than the rejected high opening bid. In short, the opening bid is almost never the last word. But if you set the bar for the opening bid too high, you may never get as far as having an opening bid. And in the opposite of what Ed pointed out, if the auction doesn't meet reserve, the seller can contact those who did bid and maybe work something out. Ryan
Excellent point, Ryan; should have thought of that. Really comes down to how much the seller wants to unload the lot. It's also a safe bet that reserve was too high--at least for now. His presentation wasn't that great, either. Had that been me, I would have highlighted the best of that lot with nice photos, done anything to make it all look very appealing and worth the cost. One more thing: though BIN is rare with a lot this large, that BIN can be used as a kind of reserve price, to give everyone an indication of what the least is the seller will settle for. ED
Agreed. Show me some photos of all those tasty rare discs. And format the list better than just a big endless paragraph in a huge font. (I suspect someone could make real money teaching eBay sellers how to use HTML tables, or at least UL and LI tags.) Ryan
This has got me wondering. Were the seller to *intentionally* set a reserve that he knows won't be met, at the close of the auction he then could contact the high bidder and "work something out." In this case he saves eBay fees. Now of course, should his intentionally waay too high reserve actually be met, so much the better. But is it possible that reserve prices serve as mechanisms for sellers to avoid auction fees?
Well, according to eBay: So, technically, it's a no-no, and probably not in the seller's best interest as they can't get positive feedback. But I'm sure it happens. Ryan
What amazed me were this "expert's" valuation of the CDs. IOW, some were worth $100, others $75, etc. The CDs are worth ONLY what the market will bear, not what a price guide claims. (Price guides are just that...GUIDES...not the gospel written in stone.) And selling anything as a lot will virtually guarantee that the merchandise will sell for far less than parting them out individually. I actually have a lot of CDs I want to get rid of....mostly jazz, stuff I've had on half.com for almost two years that hasn't sold. I'm tempted to put them on eBay as a lot just to get them out of the house. If I can get a few bucks and someone else can enjoy them, so be it. But I'm not looking to make a killing.
