I listed an Auction format...it has a Best Offer Tab ...huh, what?

[crowell_artcollection]

Hi, I just noticed this;

I listed an Item, with Auction format

...and it has a Best Offer, Make offer Tab below the starting bid...

...huh, what?

is this something NEW?  or is this a software error.

see my listing link;

https://www.ebay.com/itm/263926415500

[emerald40]

Not a glitch.

There are other threads referring to it.

And I agree.  Kind of defeats the purpose of an auction.

[labs118]

Was announced almost a year ago 
See below link.
Also if your using Quick listing tool try to see if upper right hand corner lets you switch to Advanced form.
Have heard some say if advanced form is used they might not add the Best offer to your auctions.
Also if a bid is placed the make offer does go away.
It's said they do this if they believe your item is priced to high !!!

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Announcements/UPDATED-eBay-is-Helping-Boost-Conversion-with-Best-Offer...

[lex-talon]

Are you using the quick listing tool? That might be the cause.

[ted_200]

It's said they do this if they believe your item is priced to high !!!

Ack!

On a piece of art?  Wow.

Have heard some say if advanced form is used they might not add the Best offer to your auctions.

Yes, based on what I've read, OP might be able to remove it using a different listing tool. 

[7606dennis]

Unfortunately, it appears that eBay has instituted an ill-advised scheme to put the BO option in auction format listings.  I would suggest extreme caution be used in accepting any offers made outside of the bidding process as it could, depending upon one's state, result in legal complications.  I suggest checking the laws governing auctions in one's state to be on the safe side.

I've already noticed a couple of threads about offers being voided once a bid is placed on the item.  This is as it should be, since until a bid is placed the listing is neither an auction nor fixed price listing.  However, once a bid is placed it becomes an auction and the laws governing auctions apply.  If an offer has been made, but not yet accepted, if a bid is placed the offer becomes null and void in order to keep the seller from running into the issue of being accused of not conducting an auction in good faith.

While there is nothing wrong with accepting an offer before a bid has been placed, once an item receives a bid which voids the offer there is little doubt that the person making the offer will be somewhat unhappy.

[ted_200]

Not only that, it just defies logic and common sense.

An auction with a $25 start price is already soliciting offers, and it's saying we won't accept any offers under $25.  There is no reason for sellers to have to deal with any offer under $25, and there is no reason for buyers to offer more than $25 (which they could do by bidding, and still might win the item for $25).  That just reduces it to a complicated and ambiguous Buy It Now at $25, which the seller would have presumably listed it as if that's what he actually wanted. 

[coolections]

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@ted_200 wrote:

An auction with a $25 start price is already soliciting offers, and it's saying we won't accept any offers under $25. 

---

@ted_200

Unless it is like 60% of Ebay auctions as of today with a starting bid at, or above the price in which the auction normally ends. For those 60% of Ebay auctions it makes perfect since for a buyer to make an offer lower than the starting price.  Unfortunately those 60 % of sellers who do that ruined auctions for Ebay. Part of the test should be what an auction is and how to run one. In your example the item will end with no bids and the reason why seller come here blaming Ebay and crying that no one sees their auctions and no one every bids on their auctions.

[coolections]

Follow up reply:

The other 40% of auction sellers that know how to run auctions and start at a low price. Receiving a good offer $200 above the normal selling price of say $150 can allow the seller to automatically accept the offer. The seller does not have to worry about the auction ending at say $80 or so. The new best offer Ebay is allowing at auction can work both ways and is good for both the seller and buyer.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

Of course there’s a reason for buyers to make a higher best offer. It’s to cut out competition and snag it early for a price. Like they have been offering for years and asking auction sellers for BIN prices

[nobody*s_perfect]

That makes sense to me, but eBay's announcement from last October seemed to anticipate that the offers would be for LESS than the opening bid price: "we found this feature drives higher sales conversion, especially in cases when the starting bid or fixed price is set higher than the recommended price".

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

We have discussed his several times and nobody here seems to agree on how it should be used. If long term users like us don’t understand how does EBay expect newbies to understand?

[nobody*s_perfect]

I guess it's not really necessary to understand how eBay thinks it should be used: Members who want a bargain will offer less than the opening bid price, and members who want a faster deal will offer more.  Sellers who are only willing to consider offers above the opening bid price can set their auto-decline accordingly.

[ittybitnot]

 Members who want a bargain will offer less than the opening bid price, and members who want a faster deal will offer more.

If I recall correctly, offers CANNOT be made for more than the opening bid price on auctions. So, if you have a starting bid of $25, nobody can come along and offer you $200.  Offers must be below the $25.

[nobody*s_perfect]

You are not recalling correctly.  On other threads about this phenomenon, sellers have described getting offers well above the opening auction bid.