$#%@ Ebay Auction Snipers...

[HaRuMaN]

Grrr....  for like 3 days I've had the high bid on an auction for a working chassis for 25"  Wells Gardner Monitor.  With one minute to go bids start coming in faster than I can freakin up my bids....  I'm so pissed off right now I can't stand it.

[ChadTower]

Use esnipe.

[quarterback]

Or just bid the maximum amount that you're willing to pay 

Not that I do that.  In fact, I always place my bid at ~4sec left, but if you really feel like you lost out and you were willing to pay more than the final bid, then the solution is easy.  Bid higher, earlier.

[Chris]

I never bid on an auction more than once.  I figure out how much I'm willing to pay, usually add on a bit (because if you're willing to pay $25, are you willing to let it go at $25.50?), and make the bid.  If someone else gets the item, it's not because they sniped me, it's because they paid more than I was willing to.

--Chris

[pointdablame]

I always giggle a bit when people complain about snipers.

It doesn't matter... the highest bid ALWAYS wins. End of story.

[Q*Bert_OP]

I always giggle a bit when people complain about snipers.

It doesn't matter... the highest bid ALWAYS wins. 

Do you mean me?

[monkeybomb]

But bidding early changes what people are willing to pay.

If an item is at .01 and everyone snipes it is simply a true silent auction. 

If the same item were bid on early, people see the bids it begins to look more like a price.  They look at the item and realize that they must bid higher than the amount posted.  This may be higher than what they would have bid in a silent auction but now they have a different perspective on the item.  They might very well bid more than they would have.

So early bidders piss off snipers because they can raise prices.

And snipers piss off early bidders because they refuse to reveal their bid until it is to late.

The "amount you are willing to pay method" tends to get me sniped.  But sniping tends to get me stuff, even though I set my price the day I see the item.  And that is ussually the day something is listed.

[Chris]

The "amount you are willing to pay method" tends to get me sniped.

[Sephroth57]

the failsafe method is this, use one of the sniper sites (i used one a while ago gave 5 free snipes, and it worked great)  snipe AND your highest amount you will pay combined = the best youre gonna get

[Chris]

Personally, I liked the way the old SurplusAuctions used to work.  Auctions had an ending time, but if there was activity in the last 5 minutes, the auction would continue until there was no activity for five full minutes.  No sniping there...

I see sniping as a "necessary evil", and I do engane in it occasionally even though I don't prefer it.  Thus, I don't use a snipe site.  However, that eSnipe has what looks like a really cool feature where you can bid on several of the same kind of item and it will automatically cancel the other auctions in a group if you win one of them.  That's nifty.

--Chris

[fredster]

Yeah, they can't snipe if you bid you high dollar in the last minute.

If you lose it then, you'd lose it anyway. 

I never bid early, it's pointless.

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Auctions had an ending time, but if there was activity in the last 5 minutes, the auction would continue until there was no activity for five full minutes.  No sniping there...

That's great! I wish eBay was like that, since, in essence, that is exactly how real live auctions work. (ie: the announcer gives several chances to up the bid before gaveling to a close)

mrC

[ChadTower]

Assuming everyone has the rules available to them at the start, the rules become almost irrelevant.  They are the same for everyone so everyone should know what to expect and how to handle it to get what they want.

[missioncontrol]

Personally, I liked the way the old SurplusAuctions used to work.

[Shape D.]

I never bid on an auction more than once.  I figure out how much I'm willing to pay, usually add on a bit (because if you're willing to pay $25, are you willing to let it go at $25.50?), and make the bid.  If someone else gets the item, it's not because they sniped me, it's because they paid more than I was willing to.

Thats typically what I do, I almost lost an auction yesterday though. I got it AT my max bid. $32

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6186506637

another 50 cents and I wouldn't have it

[ChadTower]

Nice subtle brag.   

[Shape D.]

Nice subtle brag.   

Oh, that was subtle?

No if I was bragging I would have put this on there too.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6186489403

[SirPoonga]

Auctions had an ending time, but if there was activity in the last 5 minutes, the auction would continue until there was no activity for five full minutes.  No sniping there...

That's great! I wish eBay was like that, since, in essence, that is exactly how real live auctions work. (ie: the announcer gives several chances to up the bid before gaveling to a close)

mrC

That's how ubid.com works.  There's a grace period at the end based on activity.

But, like any auction,  you learn how it works and you take advantage of the situation to give oyu the best possible price.  In case of ebay I usually bid like this.  If there are no bids on an item I bid minimum bid, just because someone has to make the first bid.  That way if someone else bids I get a notice form ebay which tells me someone else is looking at getting the item.  Then I set up a snipe at auctionstealer.com the day the auction ends.  I put in the maximum amount I want to spend.  This way if I am the winning bidder I get the best possible price.  Because if you outbid someone early that person will rethink their maximum bid, and usually find an excuse to bid more, hence driving up the price.

to me there's two perfect types of auctions.  Silent auctions, that's a waiting game, hopefully you outbid other people, but you won't know until it ends.  Or live auction type thing where the auctioneer gives chances for final bid.  This is exciting for the bidders to see the action, and tends to get mor emoney as people get into the action than a silent auction does.

[AlanS17]

I see completely eye-to-eye with SP. This is how I handle most of my auctions, too. I used to use uBid alot before they started setting reserves on everything, essentially making it a retail outlet.

Even if I have the high bid going into the last few seconds, I'll snipe myself if I'm willing to pay more and think I might get outbid. There's really no sense in tipping your cards before the hand is over.

Say whatever you want about bidding once at your maximum. If it really is a deal, then SOMEONE SOMEWHERE will find a reason to rationalize outbidding you, even at the cost of reason.

If you bid on something the first day and actually win it at that price, it's because nobody else even wanted it. Ebayers have a way of bidding stuff up unless you take that chance away from them by sniping.

[gprime]

Personally, I liked the way the old SurplusAuctions used to work.  Auctions had an ending time, but if there was activity in the last 5 minutes, the auction would continue until there was no activity for five full minutes.  No sniping there...

I see sniping as a "necessary evil", and I do engane in it occasionally even though I don't prefer it.  Thus, I don't use a snipe site.  However, that eSnipe has what looks like a really cool feature where you can bid on several of the same kind of item and it will automatically cancel the other auctions in a group if you win one of them.  That's nifty.

--Chris

eBay actually did use to have this. I remember bidding during the last couple of seconds and then I go and look, and its back up to a minute. I wonder why they got rid of it ..

[markrvp]

Sniping is great for buyers.  Sellers are protected by reserve pricing.  The problem is when people who aren't Ebay savvy put in their max bid early without an Esnipe service.  People will keep putting in bids until they are the highest bidder or realize the first bidder wanted it more and they quit.  Either way, the price has been driven up more than the theoretical minimum you could actually win it for.  I've seen auctions on photography backgrounds go for more than $100 over what they were worth because in the last 2 minutes a couple of novices go nuts over  trying to "win." 

[quarterback]

Sniping is great for buyers.

[ChadTower]

Sniping is great for buyers.

[TheTick]

Yeah, they can't snipe if you bid you high dollar in the last minute.

If you lose it then, you'd lose it anyway.

[Sephroth57]

i dont know of anyone who would end their auction early if only 1 person bids before the last day. its a known fact the last 12 hours of the auction get more bids than anything else

[ChadTower]

i dont know of anyone who would end their auction early if only 1 person bids before the last day. its a known fact the last 12 hours of the auction get more bids than anything else

Dude, it happens all the time.

[Dartful Dodger]

i dont know of anyone who would end their auction early if only 1 person bids before the last day. its a known fact the last 12 hours of the auction get more bids than anything else

Dude, it happens all the time.

I've seen several items pulled a day before the auction ended. They had zero bids and I thought I'd be getting a great deal.

Now if I want something and it has zero bids on it, I'll bid the minimum.

[DarkKobold]

Ugh, I hate all this anti-snipe talk. I like sniping, for this simple scenario. Lets say you want a warlords cocktail. You are willing to spend $500.

Early bidder Richard Weed wants to spend 300....ish.

Now, First option, you bid early, full amount.
Richard bids his 300, and finds that he lost. So he bids 10 more. And then another 10 more. And a final 20 more, in a vain attempt to beat your final bid.  You spend 341.00

Now, second option, you bid with a snipe at the end.
Richard thought he was winning with 300, and then boom, loses in the last second for 301.00.

Now, with your first option, That Dick Weed cost you an extra 40 bucks, because he thought he had a chance to win the item. I'll stick to sniping, thanks.

[markrvp]

Ugh, I hate all this anti-snipe talk. I like sniping, for this simple scenario. Lets say you want a warlords cocktail. You are willing to spend $500.

Early bidder Richard Weed wants to spend 300....ish.

Now, First option, you bid early, full amount.
Richard bids his 300, and finds that he lost. So he bids 10 more. And then another 10 more. And a final 20 more, in a vain attempt to beat your final bid.

[Avery]

Assuming everyone has the rules available to them at the start....

And you have e-bay access from work....  That's the kicker for a lot of people.

[HaRuMaN]

I want to beat ebay snipers with a trout...  ah well, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, I guess.