eBay is a complete failure

[Antique Hoosier]

Speaking from experience as an Auctioneer who has conducted many a LIVE auction, there are snipers at live auctions as well. Bidding can begin slowly... the bargain hunters bid gingerly... a few serious bidders ante up.... gets down to three bidders..... two bidders slugging it out....pause...going once...twice...all in???? Last second bidder flashes his card, hand, gestures to catch attention.... previous high bidder is befuddled, gasping... perhaps even WANTS to be outbid... hammer price...SOLD to "sniper". This is coming from experience as the Auctioneer, befuddled previous high bidder, AND sniper... because I have played all of the roles.

 

[Rapier]

I don't want anything bad enough to snipe. I like to win it manually either by bidding high early or making a game of it at the end. Hey, you win some, you lose some. The OP needs to just accept the reality of things.

FULLY agree, I have no issues losing ... may the best man win. But bidding an auction up to 300 euros until total silence ... followed by a 1$ increment as a snipe ... arrrrgh. Can you imagine how an auctioneer would treat some guy who added 1$ to an auction that made it up to 300$ in 7-8 bids in 10-25$ increments ;-) The guy would be ignored:

Auctioneer "we'll start the bidding at 100$"
Guy A "110$"
Guy B "130$"
Guy A "145$"
Guy C "180$"
Guy B "220$"
Lady D "250$"
Guy C "300$"
Dork omega (in peewee herman voice) "301$ !!!"
Auctioneer "The bid is 300, do I hear 350$ ?"

I love a good bidding war and respect the winner that outbids me, but I don't consider a 1$ increment a wining bid, nor a respectable win, it's a joke Why not bid earlier and actually have that bidding war instead of a last second joke. That's what frustrated me. I'm also not used to the concept of "max bid" though I have done silent auctions.

Again, mea culpa for not knowing what I was walking into or for treating it as a live auction as someone pointed out.

 

[erg923]

Something tells me you are not a business owner...

I suppose im commenting this because as someone who owns his own private practice (a business), I could give less than a s--t about the "gentlemenlyness" (whatever your definition of that is) of someones bidding method. That should not be an issue here, AT ALL!! One dollar more is one dollar more. Period. Its the highest bid. It wins. Thats a sellers bottom line. It always is. It always has been...since the the beggining of time. It should be that way. Its the whole foundation of running a (profitable) business.

As far as your assertion that they are using your bid to ride off of....Well yes, of course they are! Pretty darn smart if you ask me, and from my understanding, one the advantages of an silent auction of any sort. Remember, bidding $301 was a gamble for them too because they dont know what your highest bid max is. The fact that they took that risk at the last minute and it paid off (since your max was really 300) is frankly, from a consumer-business standpoint, very smart of them. Why would you look down on them for this unless its really just a manifestation of your anger over "losing?" Not losing the item. Just losing?

 

[strohman]

I only use a Snipe program when I can't be there to bid at the end of the auction. The truth is, many bidders set their max bid, then decide to bid more when the auction is in the final minutes and the bid increases. If I wait to bid until the final seconds, my max bid has a better chance of winning. But, just like many others said, if I list the highest max bid, the I'm the winner.

A lot of people complain about eBay, but it provides access to items that I might not find anywhere else. Because of this, I put up with the flaws of eBay!

 

[Rapier]

A lot of people complain about eBay, but it provides access to items that I might not find anywhere else. Because of this, I put up with the flaws of eBay!

Yeah ... multi-day sets was what I was looking for.

 

[Greggy_D]

OP....my 4 and 6 year old daughters are more mature about losing. Cry a little bit more.

It's Ebay's rules. Choose to play or not.

 

[Veritas II]

FULLY agree, I have no issues losing ... may the best man win. But bidding an auction up to 300 euros until total silence ... followed by a 1$ increment as a snipe ... arrrrgh.

I love a good bidding war and respect the winner that outbids me, but I don't consider a 1$ increment a wining bid, nor a respectable win, it's a joke

eBay proxy bid increments are preset. The sniper most likely did not enter a snipe bid $1.00 higher than your bid; his winning bid was one increment over yours. From eBay's page:"The incremental amount is predetermined based on the current high bid on the item. The following table shows the amount of bid increments.

Current Price --- Bid Increment
$0.01 - $0.99 -- $0.05
$1.00 - $4.99 -- $0.25
$5.00 - $24.99 -- $0.50
$25.00 - $99.99 -- $1.00
$100.00 - $249.99 -- $2.50
$250.00 - $499.99 -- $5.00
$500.00 - $999.99 -- $10.00
$1000.00 - $2499.99 -- $25.00
$2500.00 - $4999.99 -- $50.00
$5000.00 and up -- $100.00"

So in your example, the sniper may have entered a maximum bid of $10,000, yet the proxy system only increased one predetermined increment over your maximum bid of $300. (Based on this hypothetical, the winning bid would have been $305, not $301.) Had the current high-bidder entered a maximum bid of $1,500, the sniper would have won with a final bid of $1,525, even though the high bid was only showing $300 seconds before the close of the auction. That is just the nature of proxy bidding.

Why not bid earlier and actually have that bidding war instead of a last second joke. That's what frustrated me. I'm also not used to the concept of "max bid" though I have done silent auctions.

That is the precise reason people use sniper services - to avoid emotional bidding wars. The proxy bidding system, if used correctly by all members, would eliminate the need for these wars; however, as you noted, they still can happen. Entering only one bid - the maximum I am willing to pay - is the only way to shop on eBay. It makes no difference if that bid is entered seconds after the auction is posted or seconds before it ends. The proxy system will work its magic and I will either win or lose the auction depending on my maximum bid. The reason people snipe is to avoid having bidders peck away at the max bid early, mostly due to emotional bidding, thus driving the selling price up. Sellers love bidding wars; buyers, not so much.

 

[erg923]

The above scenario is also likely, more likley than mine actually. I was thinking that too, but was having a hard time of thinking how to explain that in words. Good work!

 

[WoodfordReserve-Neat]

The seller has the option to enable sniper protection which will add extra time to the auction if a bid is cast at like the last thirty seconds or so. If the seller does not wish to enable sniper protection it is their loss as the person who was outbid at the last second might have wished to add a few dollars more. But like the others said just take a little time to consider what the maximum amount of money you are willing to spend on the item and then simply enter that amount up front. If someone else is willing to spend more, good on them.

I love to see two snipers with padded bids hit the 5 second trigger...dang that's exciting to watch... from 10.00 to 250.00 in 5 seconds after a 7 day run. More fun than a 100.00 ho.

 

[Rapier]

OP....my 4 and 6 year old daughters are more mature about losing. Cry a little bit more.

It's Ebay's rules. Choose to play or not.

Thank you for your insight, I believe I've already made the statement that it is my choice and my fault. I also believe I stated it was irritating, not quite saddening enough to cry, but thanks for the comment.

 

[CharlieTN]

I have no beef with sniping programs. They are totally working within the system setup by Ebay. Part of the reason I don't bid on much on Ebay.

I do prefer the way that Gunbroker does it. The continue to extend the time by 15 minute incriments until no bids are placed. Sort of an "all in and all done." This helps the seller to get the maximum for the item and gives ample time for those who are truly interested to bid up to the max they are willing to pay.

It honestly surprises me that Ebay doesn't switch to this. They would get more in fees as the bids could likely go higher on lots of items, especially since many bidders get attached to an item once they bid on it.

Charlie

 

[LiveOak]

The seller has the option to enable sniper protection which will add extra time to the auction if a bid is cast at like the last thirty seconds or so. If the seller does not wish to enable sniper protection it is their loss as the person who was outbid at the last second might have wished to add a few dollars more. But like the others said just take a little time to consider what the maximum amount of money you are willing to spend on the item and then simply enter that amount up front. If someone else is willing to spend more, good on them.

I did not know that!

 

[global_dev]

i am a huge fan of the sniping action on some not all of the auctions..
sometimes I don't want to show my cards after an early bid and I don't want to sit around watching...

it depends on the item, as i might toss in a high bid early and see what the reaction is... however it means nothing if a snipe is waiting

 

[Veritas II]

i am a huge fan of the sniping action on some not all of the auctions..
sometimes I don't want to show my cards after an early bid and I don't want to sit around watching...

it depends on the item, as i might toss in a high bid early and see what the reaction is... however it means nothing if a snipe is waiting

I sometimes do the same thing. If I see an item that interests me, especially if it is early in the listing, I set a snipe bid and forget about it. I do not add the item to my watch list. When the auction ends, my bid may not have been placed because it was lower than the current high bid and was, therefore, not competitive. Sometimes I win; more often I do not. These bids are only for things I don't care if I lose. If there is a "must have" item, I will watch it before setting my bid. In that case, I will most likely pay more than what I want to, but thus is the nature of auctions.

 

[bdev]

I knew this guy years ago that collected old action figures from the 1960's. They didn't call them action figures back then but you get the idea.
This guy was loaded and money was no object when bidding on ebay. Boxes for action figures are sometimes more valuable than the figures themselves so when a rare box came up on ebay, he would put a bid in for 500 bucks even though the box was only worth about 50 bucks.
He knew he was not going to loose the auction no matter how many bids were placed and he was prepared to pay over the boxes worth just to get it.

I've been buying and selling on eBay for years and although it has its faults, its the best game in town........for me at least.

 

[Mike'sWorld]

Entering only one bid - the maximum I am willing to pay - is the only way to shop on eBay - Veritas II

I'm not trying to start an argument here, but I fail to see why this system is so difficult to understand.

My bid, whether early or sniped, is always the maximum I am willing to pay.

If I am outbid, even by one dollar, then someone is willing to pay more than my max. Why should I be angry or sad about this?

I have bought many items on Ebay for far below market value. Most were based on a risk I took buying with poor pictures, poor descriptions, etc. I'd like to think I have developed a good feel for who is an honest seller.

I love Ebay and feel it provides me a marketplace for buying items I would never see in a lifetime of shopping in antique and junk shops.

 

[drews50]

I love Ebay and feel it provides me a marketplace for buying items I would never see in a lifetime of shopping in antique and junk shops.

Ditto that sentiment. I live in Oklahoma. Without eBay I would have a Mach3 and maybe a slim. eBay allows me to shop nation wide and internationally.

 

[rajagra]

But bidding an auction up to 300 euros until total silence ... followed by a 1$ increment as a snipe ... arrrrgh.

That can only happen if the current price when the sniper sniped was far below 300 (by at least one bid increment.) For example if your max bid was 300 but the current price was only 250. The sniper thinks to himself "I think this item is worth 300, but the previous bidder might have done too. I'll add on one more to cover this eventuality." The sniper isn't riding your max bid, he doesn't know what it is. He is just being smart. His bid is allowed because it is 51 more than the current price. Being only 1 over your max bid isn't cause for preventing his bid.

I've often outbid the previous bidder by 1p this way. But I nowadays add a bit more to keep ahead of other snipers too.

 

[Mr. Scruffy]

Thank you for your insight, I believe I've already made the statement that it is my choice and my fault. I also believe I stated it was irritating, not quite saddening enough to cry, but thanks for the comment.

A very mature response. Well done, sir.

 

[ouch]

1. Even if I put my max in early, someone adds 50cents at the last second thanks to a snipy proggie. All they've done is ride my bid to its value.

Unless you've stumbled across an extraordinarily unlikely set of circumstances, what you are saying is untrue. In fact, you have no idea whatsoever how much the winner bid, only that he bid more than you did.

If your bid was $16.00 and somebody else put in a last minute bid of $16.50, either manually or by sniper program, he would win the item for $16.50. But he would also win the item for $16.50 if his bid was $20, $200, or $2,000. Neither you nor he have a hand in the matter- eBay automatically awards the item to the highest bidder by an amount equal to the minimum increment over the next highest bid.

2. Live auctions have a progression in bidding, the highest bidder occurs when that progression ends. I am not sure how this is a ridiculous sugestion and it seems to work very well on more serious auction sites with items of consistently higher value: bidding ends after 1 hour with no further bids.

You're overlooking one simple thing- there's a big difference between a typical live auction where there may only be a few dozen participants and an auction that is open to the entire freaking world. In the case of the former, it's perfectly understandable to have an auctioneer say "Going once, going twice, could someone please nudge the lady with the hearing aid and the old man who's snoring....... Sold!". In the case of the latter, eBay is well justified in having a hard close. If I'm a buyer, I want to know if I win or not by a specific time so that I can plan my next attempt to buy. The seller likewise wants finality.

3. I was not trying to snag a blade for cheap, most of the bids were priced quite fairly as was my max entered.

All of the bids, barring shills, are fair. Only one is sufficient to win. There's nothing personal involved- if the winning bid went to the nicest guy, I'd win every time.

4. Learning the "ebay game" is a common complaint that I am now aware of and has taken many serious markets off of ebay, seems others have issues with it too.

Any auction, or sale of any type for that matter, is a game. People list things on eBay because of the enormous market open to them for a very low fee, and their rules are really simple. If they want to take their business elsewhere, they are free to do so.

And last but no least, yeah, I was pissed. I am used to "real" auctions and the game of incremental bidding to get your items and secure the sale. Outbidding people for 12 hours until noone bids for the last hour, then 6 seconds before close a meaningless increase in$ ... irritating ....

It wasn't a meaningless increase- it was the only one that mattered. Everyone gets pissed when they lose, but they have to remember that they always had the option to offer more money when they hit the "enter bid" button, but chose not to.