Stop Sniping!

[chris.nall25]

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?

[kilnntime]

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-)

That is the best way not to spend more than you intended on an auction. If you sit and watch them you start bidding on emotion and not on logic.

[kilnntime]

Someone said somewhere something about buying things on ebay and reselling them on ebay and how people shouldnt do that,lol. I think its a great thing to do, if you can find a bargain and flip it, thats great. Its like getting your merchandise delivered to you instead of having to go out and hunt it , dig thru piles at thrift stores and yardsales. Its pretty easy to find bargains on ebay that even when the shipping is added in that you can still double your money flipping it. if you get lucky you can find things you can triple and quadruple your money on.

[raytealmarisam]

Wow snipping can help buyers and sellers it's a two way race track.
Always bid $3.00 higher than you want too and sometimes it works out...Good Luck Ebay Customers



Thanks raytealmarisam

[imakesugar]

I usually go through my favorites list and look for something I want. I will bid a low bid. I like to get a first bid in case there is a tie. Then according to ebay

This gets the listing on my Bidding list. I watch it on my bidding list. Ocasionally I will add small bids in between to get rid of the bidders who are just looking for a deal. They will fall by the way side!

i nibble at some "proxy" Bids until it gets higher than I want to pay, or I know how high it is going to go. If it goes higher at that point than I want to go then I just ignore it, and quite bidding!

I decide how much a widget is worth by the time bidding is going on! I add up the shipping and figure out the total I want to go with the widget.

The last ten minutes I will research the Seller to see IF I want to buy from them..How high is their feedback? any Doughnuts? Why? ( Sometimes they are from unreasonable buyers, or the Seller has ben working on their problems and the doughnuts are old.) What are their TOS's? Do they sound agreeable and fair, or ???! I read the ALL the description again to see if there is anything I missed that might make me not want the item OR not want to deal with the Seller.

I check the bidders! Does it look like any Shill bidding going on? What percentage of bids does each bidder have with this person? What is this bidder usually bidding on? I then look at feedback of the Seller to see if there is a connection between the Seller and the Bidders! Has the bidder left any feedback with the Seller before? Dos it look like a regular customer? Or Shill bidding?

Having decided the most I want to Pay, I will bid in the last few seconds the highest Price I AM WILLING TO PAY! If I win, I win If I lose, I lose I am satisfied with whatever the outcome is.

Snipers lose when they are ONLY trying to go up in increments instead of BIDDING the highest they want to pay! In the end Even If I determine an Item is worth $50. and bid that amount then I still will get it only for the increment higher than the highest LAST bidder! Not necessarily the highest bid I place!

I don't have any regrets then no matter what the price is because I have figured out ahead what i can afford to pay. Pam.

[the_right_stuff99]

Snipers lose when they are ONLY trying to go up in increments instead of BIDDING the highest they want to pay!

[facepalm] Snipers don't go up in increments. They only bid once. That's part of the definition of eBay sniping.

[luvlylola01]

I like the snipe thing, it,s fun and I have a few times even paid a little more than I should have just cause I wanted the danged thing. Or to win. In any event all of these auctions have a end time. They can't go on forever. Maybe you should list longer if you think it might get you
get a few cents more.
Anyway been gone for near a year due to a bad illness. I'm back and happy to see some of you are still here. It doesn't look like too much has changed. lol

[komokwa]

welcome back Lola !

[luvlylola01]

Aww thank you!

[falconsportspack]

I even sniped a Buy It Now last year. :^O

It was something I wanted, & was at a reasonable price & shipping. I saw it when it had had about 40 seconds left. I quickly read the description, checked sellers feedback & confirmed at 4 seconds before it ended.

[northeast_chileman]

I'll never understand the controversy over this. Even eBay policy states it won't investigate the issue, http://pages.ebay.com/help/buy/report-trading.html....

Some examples of what we won't investigate
We don't investigate simple misunderstandings, members who won't communicate, and personal disputes between members. Here are some examples:

Someone outbid me at the last minute. Placing a high bid in the closing seconds of an auction-style listing is called "sniping" within the eBay community. Sniping is part of the eBay experience, and all bids placed before a listing ends are valid, even if they're placed one second before the listing ends. Learn how to avoid being outbid.

[northeast_chileman]

speaking of sniping..... 100

[komokwa]

hey there Northeast ...long time no see !
Hope you're well .

i was lookin, but the phone rang , and business before sniping!!

Good one !!!

[northeast_chileman]

Thank-you for your well wishes. Hope your business doing well!

[old_man_arthur]

Why?

[northeast_chileman]

just in case, as a bidder, you want to see a "nibbler" that sniping may prevent,