E-BAY STRATEGY

[paplinker]

Well,Newer to E-bay, I just lost on some of nocones grips on ebay with a 4 second left bid.i thought they used GBs format with extending time after a bid. Seems like a better way to me. I would have bid higher earlier but wanted to take it one bid at a time.How does anyone here use ebay bidding wisely? Any help for future would be appreciated .Im very sure i would have bid more. Seems like the lister also loses out on more bidding by at least one more person.Does everyone else know their limit they will be willing to bid but me, before auction end? Im a little turned off by ebay right now. maybe sad too.

 

[Black_Talon]

1) Decide what your absolute maximum buying price will be.

2) Wait to bid until just before the auction ends.

This keeps you from getting into a bidding war with the newbs. And if you get outbid, oh well, that was the max amount that you were willing to pay anyway.

 

[madmikeb]

Black Talon nailed my ebay strategy completely. When you bid early you just drive the price up.

 

[BaldEagle1313]

If someone outbid you with 4 seconds left they were probably usiing a proxy bidding program. It's called bid sniping.

EBay does NOT use the same "15 minute rule" that GB does.

Black_Talon and madmikeb hit the nail right on the head.

 

[handejector]

Google "auction sniper".
A sniper is a service that will place your bid in the last few seconds for a few cents. You can program a bid tonite that will be placed in the last few seconds of an auction ending Saturday or any other day.
You don't have to sit there waiting for an auction to end.

auctionsniper<dot>com is a good one.

 

[handejector]

Another strategy for success-

Bid early.
Bid often.
Bid High.
Bid Again!

 

[BaldEagle1313]

Another strategy for success-

Bid early.
Bid often.
Bid High.
Bid Again!

Says the man selling stuff at auction...

KIDDING!

 

[jkc]

I don't know that there is any magic strategy for winning eBay auctions --- there are some outfits that will "snipe" bids for you, i.e., place last second bids incrementally higher than the about to be closed bids --- but when all is said and done, you should establish a price/bid above which you are not willing to pay, and figure that if you lose the auction, you avoided paying too much. I've seen instances in which competitive bidders work themselves into some sort of bidding frenzy, and the "winner" becomes a "loser" after bidding more than the item is worth. That said, if you're bidding on antiques, collectibles, other rarities, who's to say what something's "worth"? I once paid the long dollar on a Gunbroker auction to insure that I "won" an extremely rare (out of limited production, new-in-box rifle) much desired (by me) item, about which price was not, for me, the ultimate issue. But generally, eBay items are like buses --- one just left, but another will be along shortly...

 

[bushmaster1313]

Bid on stuff coming up for sale when normal people are doing worthwhile stuff.

Bid what you are willing to pay and forget about it.

 

[65kaiser]

1) Decide what your absolute maximum buying price will be.

2) Wait to bid until just before the auction ends.

This keeps you from getting into a bidding war with the newbs. And if you get outbid, oh well, that was the max amount that you were willing to pay anyway.

I agree completely I never used any sniping programs and have been very successful on E-bay. I never bid until the last ten seconds and on many occasions my bid has gone in at the last second or 2.

 

[paplinker]

Thanks, i will take everything into consideration. it still means that i will need a predetermined number before auction end.this means a lower number for sure as last minute changes of your mind are not available. It still seems the best prices for a product are not brought by this policy. also bid early and bid high did not get plinker the worm. LOL I guess i have to learn to snipe?,3 Second bid or other. Seems like a lot of work to get an honest chance at a item.I have gotten some great things here and GB without feeling abused...I may be venting a little. I would assume Im not the first here to get a 4 seconder. live and learn i guess.Tomorrow is a new day.

 

[arjay]

Got sniped the other day on a set of 1st generation python grips.Thought I had em for 160 lol

 

[fat tom]

I would assume Im not the first here to get a 4 seconder.

Happens to me about twice a week! But then,sometimes I'm the one placing that last second winner.
f.t.

 

[paplinker]

Have you ever gone to a ballgame and you told your boys that we will not be paying 4 dollars for a hotdog. thats more than i want to pay only to get there and i end up paying it for all of us because of last minute i really want that hotdog. E-bay doesnt get that. How many times at a gunshow have you decided that a gun wasnt worth the price only to think on it while walking and you go back for it because now you will take it but a hour ago it was too much money. at 5pm grips were worth one number to me but at 9pm my number got 25% higher but i only have 3 seconds left..darn E-bay does not get that...sorry Im still venting. Im kind of picky and those alves got my attention.

 

[Florida Guy]

If someone outbid you with 4 seconds left they were probably usiing a proxy bidding program. It's called bid sniping.

Bidding programs are unnecessary if you have a reliable internet connection.
I've won ebay auctions with a bid with only 1 second remaining.
I'll admit, that was pure luck, but was exciting too.
I've won a few others with less than 5 seconds to go.
Depends on how badly you want the item.
As a general rule, the later you bid, the better.

 

[Florida Guy]

Have you ever gone to a ballgame and you told your boys that we will not be paying 4 dollars for a hotdog. thats more than i want to pay only to get there and i end up paying it for all of us because of last minute i really want that hotdog. E-bay doesnt get that. How many times at a gunshow have you decided that a gun wasnt worth the price only to think on it while walking and you go back for it because now you will take it but a hour ago it was too much money. at 5pm grips were worth one number to me but at 9pm my number got 25% higher but i only have 3 seconds left..darn E-bay does not get that...sorry Im still venting. Im kind of picky and those alves got my attention.

I don't like popcorn bidding on GB. It just extends the auction past its scheduled closing time, and bids the price higher.
This is good for the seller, but not the buyer.
I wish GB did away with it and copy ebay.

 

[sigp220.45]

I use a sniping program. You can do the same thing manually, but you have to be sitting at your computer when the auction ends to do it.

If you just put in a bid early on in the auction, all you do is give somebody a chance to nibble away at it and drive your final price up.

 

[Fkimble]

My strategy is to bid with 20-30 seconds left but I bid high enough that if someone elses tries to jump in at the last second with a slightly higher bid, I will still be higher. I usually double or triple the minimum bid plus a penny. Doesn't work if the other guy "really" wants it and ups the bid a good amount.

 

[DeadAye]

They wore me out - Now I pretty much stick to the *Buy It Now* stuff.
Otherwise I bid what I think the whatever is worth to me sometime in the last hour, or minutes if I remember to be here then.

 

[handejector]

Some of you guys just aren't getting how convenient the sniper programs make bidding.
You can see an item that will end a week from now at 3:30 am, and place a bid now with the sniper. The sniper doesn't place your bid till about 7 seconds before it ends.
So, your bid can be placed at the very end of an auction while you are at a wedding or funeral, asleep in bed, or taking a shower.
Why sit there waiting?