Does bidding early send the wrong message?

So let me see if I understand. Let's say that you see an item you want, but you and only 1 other person in the world wants it. Yeah, I know, this one (a turkey I couldn't unload even after I lowered the price):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150210707166&ssPageName=STRK:MEUS:IT&ih=005

So you see this album (I even lowered the price to get some interest but, no), and it's what you've been looking for for years. You even tell a used record seller in your town that you're looking for it. "Oh Boy, Lionel Richie!!! I think I'll pay $10 for it." you say to yourself. Meanwhile this other guy who reminds you of the Festrunk brothers sees that you bid on this record. So he chips away at your bid, by making the minimum bid increases for a while, but after he's still bidding at $4.99, he says to himself, "Oh heck, I'm going to bid $10.01 on this record, and that's all." He does, and ebay congratulates him as being the high bidder. You'll let him win it for 1¢ over your bid? What if the dealer in town is the bidder instead? He wins it, waits a few weeks then calls you to say he's got a primo copy that you've just gotta see? You go to his shop and salivate over that great LP then take it for the dealer's $30 asking price.

Not far fetched, it happens all the time.

 

I guess you don't understand what I'm saying.

I think of eBay the same as I do Amazon--or Target--just a place to buy things. I don't care about beating somebody else for the best price. The whole "auction" mechanism is an inconvenience and frankly bores me. I just place my bid, "set it and forget it." If I don't get it on eBay, I'll get it somewhere else. Spending a few bucks more just means one less trip to Starbucks. No biggie. It'll even help my waistline.

I gotta give you credit, though--your post made me laugh!

 

$1 is just another step ! It mean that sniper may put his maximum bid as high as $100 but $51 were enough to win. So don't be sorry about missed opportunity

Andrew

 

Actually, you can win by just a penny (and I have at least twice) if you are lucky. Here's how it works.

Let's say that a rare, desirable item is sitting at $100.05 as the high bid with less than a minute before it will close. IF (this is a big IF) your high bidder is a creature of habit and you've done your homework and studied all of the other early bidders' bidding history, you can get a pretty good idea of what their top bids on the item you want to snipe away might be. If the bidder in this instance has a CONSISTENT history of bidding even amounts — say, $150.00 — then you know that his high bid on this item will, more than likely, be an even amount. And, again, if you know your competing bidder, you will know how often he wins the auctions he competes in, and by how much; you'll also know how many times he has lost, and by how much.

Since he has done you the favor of showing his hand early, you can guess at how much he is willing to pay for this item. In this instance, I would have had my snipe bid set at $150.01. He will be outbid by a penny. The reason for this is that his proxy is already preset, and in my example, with just seconds to go he will be sitting there watching it and thinking to himself that he won another one for $49.95 less than he was willing to pay. The sniper's bid, OTOH, is seen at ebay as being against the current $100.05 bid, but actually resets the high proxy to $150.01, so, from there, the original bidder's $150 proxy is spent, and the sniper's new, higher proxy prevails.

Of course, the variable is that there is another sniper out there who has consistently won auctions by setting the snipe at an amount that even he himself thinks is crazy. I once ran across a guy like this. I had set my snipe at $399 for a CD that usually sells for around $275 (Think DCC Cole CD). I don't know what he had actually set, but he won it for $404.

 

Studying all of the earlier bidders' bidding history? Dude, you have way too much time on your hands!

Wait a minute, I see from you're profile that you are retired . . . now it's all beginning to make sense!

 

I admire folks who can put in a bid a week in advance and forget about it. I used to try that but I would start out saying $25 is my maximum. Then as soon as the bidding hit $25.50 I couldn't bear to lose over $0.50 so I would think, maybe I'll go $30, then $35. By the end of the week the only winner was the seller! Now I have my maximum and I wait till the last minute to play it. If the bidding is already over that amount I make a last minute decision whether to try a larger number but at least it's a 1-time gamble, not a daily one.

 

Some folks get waaaaay into the eBay thing. Some people even set alarms at work and at home, so they don't miss an eBay "opportunity." All the power to them.

If I really want something (which is about the only circumstance under which I buy from eBay) I find out how much the item has been selling for lately and add $20, or even $50, depending on the anticipated final price. I place my bid and wait for the email. Life is too short. eBay will suck you in - like a casino

 

I hardly ever put in a bid at the last second and somehow I have managed to win 100s of auctions, most at pretty good prices.

 

I agree. I learned not to get caught up in an auction and have patience. why ? cause another always comes along and almost always I get it dirt cheap or a lot cheaper than I would have in past auctions.

one thing about ebay, there will always be another. maybe you might have to wait a while but you will find another and you will eventually win for less money. thats been my expereince.

besdies, amazon is your friend too.

 

BTW: I like to bid early as sometimes I forget to bid and lose the game completely. also, a min bid is good too (to remind you also) cause sometimes the cd slips away from ebayers. sometimes you wind up winning it very cheap cause no on bids. has happened to me a few times, its cool when that happens.

 

In a time when shill bidding goes rampant and unpunished on Ebay, placing an early high bid is risking a financial disaster.
A high percentage of sellers have accounts under different names, and boy, they will take you for all you`re worth.
If I plan to bid, I will do it at the last second.

 

while this is true....

some like me are cheap and poor and won't bid higher than we can afford.

I bid market value. not how much I need to win it.

 

Well put, in a few words, this is the way shill bidding works!

 

yeah call me crazy but I never put in more than the thing is actually worth.

 

From a seller's standpoint, I love early bidders. Please, by all means - bid early and bid often - let's drive that price up...

From a buyer's standpoint - if you REALLY want an item, I can't see any reason in the world why you wouldn't snipe. Not only that, but I love that adrenaline rush of bidding at the last second and winning an item I really wanted.

And if someone out-snipes me, I don't get upset about it - they either were willing to pay more, or they simply out-guessed me that time. But nothing immoral, unethical, or dishonest about it. It's simply how the game is played.

 

The trouble, especially with the CD medium is defining what an item is worth. I always have an idea of what I am willing to pay and put my bid in. Win or lose, Cest la vie!!

 

I completely agree.

I agree wholeheartedly. It's a matter of desire and resources. I've been outbid by the best!

 

Sorry 'bout that Rick, I didn't know it was you....

 

I pretty much know the going rate for most cds that I want and if I don't I research it till I do.

 

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That's the same way I feel about it. I'm not going to waste my time trying to save a nickel, life is to short.

 

No problem...really!

 

I know I said this before, but I simply cannot understand this. eBay to me is like going to Target--and I don't get a rush from going to Target, believe me.

Then again, I don't like college football, either, so what do I know . . .

 

I used to always bid late- last 20 seconds but lost a lot. Now I started to bid much earlier and haven't lost any so far. I just put down my max price and leave it. If anyone goes over it then I just forget about it. To me that is the price I am willing to pay for it so it doesn't matter.

However bidding last seconds and guessing what other bidders will put in is more risky IMHO. I have seen auctions go from $20 to $500 in the last 10secs.

I never bid even amounts and have also won a few acutions by pennies.

Mind you it is thrill of the chase and all that if you bid in the last few seconds.

 

You make a good point, making a decision as to what you will pay for something within a 10 second time frame is pretty dangerous. I mean you make up your mind but then you start thinking, aggh I just should put a little more, etc etc etc.