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Stop Sniping!

chris.nall25
Enthusiast
I just recently started my eBay business and along with all the research I've been doing about buyer trends etc... I've noticed this idea of sniping and sniping services essentially nulling the point of an auction. Can we suggest eBay institute a system change if so where do we do that? My suggestion would be any bid placed within the last minute automatically extends the auction by 1 minute. This would allow the person willing to pay the most actually won the auction. Can you imagine going to a live auction where the auctioneer held a stop watch and whoever blurted out the loudest in the last 2 seconds won? No of course not, why should eBay be any different. eBay and sellers would make more money, The buyer who wants it the most gets it. Seems like a win win to me. What are your thoughts?
Message 1 of 265
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264 REPLIES 264

Stop Sniping!

Thanks komokwa,

Nice snipe.
I was sniped on mine and I still won.

I hate some other sites that extend the auction when a bid is placed in last 5 min. I bid with 6 min left in those, only to have others continue to bid in 1.oo increments time and time again untill they chew up my bid. Last one I did was extended for 6+ hrs, because of the auto 15 min extentions. I don't evenbother with those anymore, don't have that kind of time to waste wondering if I am going to get the item or not.
Message 76 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

I snipe and if I win I pay, if not I delete no regrets and move on to the next. I figure if they want it more than me, take it I'll find something else. I don't have time to sit around crying, "I would have bid 1 more time but........"
Message 77 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

I've been sniped on my snipe and lost the auction by one cent.
There I should have bid more ....but , I've also lost by the next highest increment and for that the high bidder could have had a max bid of $1000 ......who knows !


Who will save the river valley , that's my drinking water.! "Moxy Fruvous"
Message 78 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

I've been sniped on my snipe and lost the auction by one cent.

I've sniped and been outbid by six other people: five snipers, and the guy who was leading before any of us snipers bid.
Message 79 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

It doesn't matter a sniper is only going to win if they have the highest bid. I don't snipe with sniping software but on somethings I bid early and then when its time for it almost end I put in the max i am willing to pay if the bidding isn't already over my max. I do it in the last few seconds of the auction to stop myself from getting into that one more bid one more bid trying to win where I end up spending more on the items then what I determined I was willing to spend on it.

We all hate to lose, but only one winner is going to get the item. If there are 5 people bidding 4 of them are going to lose. As a buyer I have to decide what I am willing to spend and restrain myself from going over it emotionally. As a seller I hope for the emotional buyers who just gotta win.

I know I read somewhere on here about people sniping to get stuff cheap that they resell here on ebay. I don't see what the problem is with that, whats the difference where a person buys their items to resell, be it on ebay or the thrift store. Its easy to buy items on ebay and resell them and make a profit, even after paying the shipping costs. Just know your product and then look for ones for sale with lousy pictures and discriptions, often I pick things that I am the only bidder so no sniping required. I just bid what I am willing to pay for the item , I always plan on doubling my money at minimum so at the price that I can not double my money I stop bidding.

The best part of buying on ebay and then selling the item back on ebay is I don't have to leave my house to do it and with gas prices going up that part is nice. You can buy anywhere even ebay and sell it on ebay, if you know your items and pick up the deals when you see them on ebay.
Message 80 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

LOL!!! Hey OP, in case you're still hanging around, why try to compare eBay bidding to live auctions? It's really where you have a flaw in your misguided logic.

Sorry, but every bidder has the chance to place a winning bid during the time frame of the auction. And if they can't decide in that time how high to bid, why should they get more time?

And all auction extensions would do is make is easier for shillers to screw bidders. Then the sport bidders would have a field day.

Imagine OP, your auction ends in 1 minute and a bid comes in, BANG! One minute added. Now, one small group could sit and do this over and over, Whee!! this is fun! Now tell me, WHEN will your auction end? 5 more minutes? 45? 2 hours? Next day sometime?

And then of course they dont pay, and you get stuck with the fees. And yes, you could send out a second chance offer, but since it would LOOK like shilling was going on, who would accept it?

Yep, Auction Extensions: a solution to a non-existant problem. You DO know Yahoo had this option, right?
Just look how great ti did for them! LOL!!!!!!
Message 81 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

The OP may not be around to see this Red 89 , but for the rest of us , you and Kiln are bang on.


Who will save the river valley , that's my drinking water.! "Moxy Fruvous"
Message 82 of 265
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Stop Sniping!


One poster on another thread commented that "you CAN buy on ebay and resell on ebay IF you know what you are doing." I think "know what you are doing" translates into "knowing how to snipe". Yeah there might be the odd item where the seller has no clue as to the items true value or just doesn't care but I don't think there are that many clueless sellers on ebay.



I was the poster of that statement and it almost never has to do with sniping, although lately with the poopy performance of auctions... sometimes you get things for terribly below their worth with a last minute "no competition" bid... I'd rather there be sniping than NO bidders, as it often is now on the "new improved eBay".

Frankly I feel bad for a seller when I win on a sympathy or throwaway (meaning at that price, any fool would pick it up) bid. I feel a bit better when I get beaten in a last minute sniping battle or at least drove the price up to a fair level for a seller.

Patience is part of the equation, as is SMART BUYING (this applies EVERYWHERE), and knowing your market.

It's not a way to get rich, either quickly OR slowly, and anyone who tries to sell you that idea, also has some nice "oceanfront land" you'll love...

And, to be quite blunt, getting product at prices one can make a profit from on eBay is THE HARD WAY, regardless of your sourcing prowess...
Message 83 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

Sniping is no more a strategy than throwing a spitball is a strategy. It's an attempt to rig the outcome of something that has defined rules.

Sniping deters a percentage of bidders who really would like to have the item and who are even willing to pay a little more to win it. But after several episodes of having the rug pulled out by perceived trickery or some special little app, those "real" bidders throw their hands up and go elsewhere.

I truly believe that the "professional snipers" do not really want the item for themselves. They just want to frustrate the other bidders and win it with the hope of reselling the item at a profit. It's a bully tactic and over the long term results in overall lower bid activity.



You gotta be kidding me...

"Professional snipers" (if there is such a thing) WANT the item, they know exactly how much they are willing to pay, and no more - if that turns out to be the winning bid, so be it, if not, they move on and don't whine about it.

"frustrated bidders" should go shop Overstock or something, then they get what they want - if you don't like auctions, and sometimes winning, sometimes losing, shop ELSEWHERE.

EVERY transaction is a "game" - the way it's played on eBay has a set of "rules", and it was a very successful site (still is, relatively) until they decided to make the rulebook so thick it could pass for a Congressional Budget Proposal...

Sniping is how it works, either figure it out, or go elsewere - it's the absolute LEAST of the "problems" present with doing "business" on eBay...
Message 84 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

Oh, and Joe, you should be WISHING for snipers, but with those .99 auctions ending with one bid, you prolly already are well on your way to figuring that out...

I'm guessing you came to the boards for some clue as to what is going on with lousy auction outcomes... instead you didn't like what you heard, and decided to pad your BBL...

Welcome to the "new improved eBay", at least you might have learned a little something from the boards... you may not be cut out for eBay...
Message 85 of 265
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Stop Sniping!



Okay you are right it doesnt Null the point of an auction completely but it also doesnt allow the market to dictate the price of an item that was my point in saying it nulls the point of an auction.


It is apparent I'm outnumbered in this debate. And we are just going to have to agree to disagree on this one. I have a problem with items being sold at artifically low prices because people are bidding using sniping software, I think the market should dictate the price of an item not peoples ability to place a bid faster than the next guy.




Actually, the system in place works excellently when all parties use it as instructed.

It's best to look at eBay as a sealed-bid format. You do not know how much other people are bidding, they do not know how much you are bidding, only each knows their own bid.

So bid like you only have one shot. That's how this system works. Note that this system, when used as designed, carries with it the dual virtues of insuring fair market value for the item for both the seller and the buyer; thus conveniently offering the maximum protection and stability of value to both parties.

Your duty as a bidder is only to offer the maximum value you think the item is worth to you. Your task is to bid honestly. When you do this, you will most often fall into one of two categories:

1. You're the winner. Yay and hoorah. The item is yours.

2. You're the second-place bidder, in which case (and this is important) you are acting as validator for the high bid (you agree, plus or minus one increment, that yes, the item is worth that figure).



When you bid in any other way, especially by bidding low and waiting for a chance to re-bid, you are not only harming your chances of winning but you are also working to gum up the works of a system that normally works quite well.

The existing system is, by far, the most efficient and fair means of conducting an online 24/7 auction website, and it is most fair to both the buyer and the seller.

It is not the job of the system to change in order to accomodate you. It is your job to accomodate the system in place, by placing fair and honest bids before the end time. Failure to do this, which I note is how eBay instructs you to properly bid, is nobody's fault but your own.

Now you know better, and you should have some idea of why the system is in place the way it is.

This also makes the market very fluid, and it can respond quickly to changes in supply and demand that any other system cannot.

It's flexible. It's honest. It's fair market value. It's loaded with checks and balances for buyer and seller.

Why would you want to tamper with that? Because a small number of people never bothered to read?

That seems a silly way to run a business.
Photobucket


- If You Can Read This, You Are Now A Mammalian Thrall Of The Beloved Emperor Comrade Raptor And Ruled Completely By His Awesome Hypnopowers.

Message 86 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

Ahhhhhh.....
The board at it's best !

An elloquent opinion there Mr.Lizard .


Who will save the river valley , that's my drinking water.! "Moxy Fruvous"
Message 87 of 265
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Stop Sniping!


If you think that's rude, crude, non-professional and bullying, wait until some of the regulars have at you.

And I'm not joking either.
.


Since this was posted.....I'm just not seeing the regulars get out of line.
It's all solid info , well presented.....

surprise !;-)


Who will save the river valley , that's my drinking water.! "Moxy Fruvous"
Message 88 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

You can have sniping in an auction where people are actually present. Live auction, internet auction.. it is a part of it. Always has been. If I have to leave here, and still want to bid, I set an amount,
sometimes I win, sometimes not, but at least I had a chance. The name "sniping" sounds terrible, but the practice really isn't. It is
a long standing part of any auction. I have done it in the past, and expect I will do it in the future.
Message 89 of 265
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Stop Sniping!

kali-the-pup
Thrill-Seeker
I snipe, or proxy bid, on virtually every auction that interests me, and let me tell you why...

If I see something that interests me, I figure out what that widget is worth to me. Once I have determined my maximum interest, in that widget, I place my bid. I do not revisit the auction, nor do I ever revise that original bid, I simply wait to see if I have won or lost. I do not get caught up in watching or the emotion of the auction.

If I win... It's happy dance time, as I bid for a deal... not the retail price. If I lose... better luck next time.

And, yes, more often than not... I am buying lots on eBay to breakdown and very successfully resell on eBay.

B-)
Message 90 of 265
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