I am SO done with eBay auctions!

[PeBo]

Rant start...

 

6 auctions in 5 days!

3 lost when someone beat my bid within the normal course of the auction...no problem there, it's how things should work. I had a maximum I was willing to pay, if someone is willing to pay more - and is willing to compete for it - more power to ya!

But the last 3 were won (by $1) in the last 5-10 seconds (twice by folks who had not taken part in the bidding until those last seconds) on auctions that had had no activity in days. That is a sleazy chicken-sh*t way to win an auction. If you want something, risk raising the price by participating but paying $1 more in the last 5 seconds on a $100+ auction is simply ripping someone off (in 2 cases, I was sitting with my finger ready to click my new bid just in case, but didn't have enough time for it to register.

Now some may accuse me of whining, or being a sore loser (and yes, I could have had a higher max bid), but a REAL auction ends when bidding ends, not at a specific time...and ebay could easily implement this by adding an extra minute to the auction for the most recent bid in the last minute. That would at least ensure that no one loses an auction as a result of a less than ideal bandwidth speed (which is what happened to me twice). And since an additional minute would be added for every last bid, it would operate more like an actual auction (going once, going twice...).

Now it would be nice if community members would use the Marketplace sig in these forums to try to sell their wares before going the ebay route, but for some reason TI folks are less likely to do so (I often wish my hobby was an Atari 2600 - those peeps make so much use of Marketplace it makes me cry). But regardless, c'mon folks, if you want something being auctioned on ebay grow some balls and participate in the auction instead of sneaking in in the final seconds!

Two of the losses broke my heart when someone got em for $1 more than my max bid, after nearly a week of no activity by people who had no previous bids on the item.

Anyway I'm done...if it doesn't have a "Buy Now" or "Make an Offer" I'm not even looking anymore.

 

We desperately need an alternative to eBay for international buy and sell!

 

Rant over.

 

 

[+save2600]

As a buyer, that's exactly my experience. You have to babysit auctions and snipe* at the very last second if you really want something. So plan on paying lots of attention and keeping goofy hours. I normally don't have the time or patience to deal with such dynamics and miss out on a lot of things as a result, but them is the breaks.

 

People have talked about 3rd party sites that bid for you last minute or whatever, but I've never looked into them, nor inherently trust such a mechanism with all the info necessary to act on my behalf that way.

 

Bottom line: Buy It Now's and Make Offer's are vastly preferred over the regular auction style way of doing things.

 

Because I feel that way as a buyer, I rarely ever run auctions when I sell. They're just annoying anymore and the incentive used to be that you saved a lot of money running the risk/liability of an auction that didn't' sell for much because the seller fees were much lower. Now they're exactly the same at 10%, so WTF? May as well just list as BIN's/Make Offer's and be done with it. Any major dude can look up what things are "worth" based on previous sales - so there you go. Unless you truly don't know what something is worth or feel like you might be able to get a few more bucks for something, auctions are a waste of time IMO.

 

 

*my definition of "sniping" is when *you* place your max bid at the very last few seconds. Not using a 3rd party app to do it for you.

[spacecadet]

I agree about sniping. It's really annoying, but I admit to doing it myself sometimes because the system ensures that it's the only real way to win. I've tried putting in early bids that I thought at the time were the absolute maximum I was willing to pay, only to get sniped at the last minute by $1. In basically every case, I'd have had no problem kicking in an extra $2 to beat that snipe bid, but I didn't get the chance. So if I really want something, I try to snipe it myself now.

 

I also don't understand why Ebay doesn't do anything about this. You would think it would be in their best interests because the overall effect of extending auction times would be people spending more money (which means more fees for Ebay). I don't really see any advantage in having a hard timer on an auction. I do get that it might be annoying to see an auction get extended basically indefinitely because bids keep coming in, but at some point the bidding would stop, and that's the point when the auction really *should* be over. The person who wins should be the person willing to spend the most, not the person who figures out how to time their bid to the last second. If you have to go to bed before an auction ends because people keep bidding, then I guess that item wasn't really all that important to you.

 

But also, if people know that auctions will be extended if a last minute bid comes in, *they won't bid at the last minute*. It's a pretty simple deterrent to sniping. So I doubt most auctions would have to be extended anyway. People would bid more normally, and there wouldn't be this flurry of last minute activity because everyone would know that the timing doesn't really matter.

 

I do prefer BINs these days, although I do still bid on auctions. But I rarely win the sniping war. If 3 people are all trying to snipe, then the snipers end up competing against each other blindly, without any of them knowing what the other's bidding. I usually come out on the short end of the stick even when I do try to snipe. But sniping is still basically the only real hope in a lot of cases.

[+Ksarul]

Yahoo! Japan extends the auction every time their is a bid in the last 5 minutes of the auction. It doesn't stop sniping at all--but it does occasionally extend an auction by as much as half an hour. . .

 

On the eBay items I really want bad, I snipe too. Other times I just put the max that I am willing to pay and let it ride. Either way, I lose as often as I win.

[Keatah]

Now some may accuse me of whining, or being a sore loser (and yes, I could have had a higher max bid), but a REAL auction ends when bidding ends, not at a specific time...and ebay could easily implement this by adding an extra minute to the auction for the most recent bid in the last minute. That would at least ensure that no one loses an auction as a result of a less than ideal bandwidth speed (which is what happened to me twice). And since an additional minute would be added for every last bid, it would operate more like an actual auction (going once, going twice...).

 

https://www.esnipe.com/

 

Yes that would help negate such services.. Every time a bid comes in, the auction is extended till no more come. I do see a problem with it though, there could be increments of $0.01 on a $500 item, could go on for hours or days.

 

Maybe they'd have to limit it or specify percentage increments. A $500 item would have to be bid-up by like $10 to prevent a micro-increment run-on.. And what about bidding bots? Either way, it would result in higher final numbers, that's beneficial to the seller and ebay. So why have they not done that?

 

I find myself, more and more these days, avoiding auctions. Don't want to waste time tracking something that may or may not go through. I prefer buy-it-now or best-offer. Oftentimes if an item is sitting there for months, a seller will sometimes take a lower price if you ask them. Just to get rid of it. 50/50 I guess.

Edited March 1, 2017 by Keatah

[palmheads]

Trademe in NZ does the extend thing when trying to snipe (extra minute I think).

[+OLD CS1]

I felt the same burn several years ago. Then I came across myibidder and said "phuq it, if I have to play the game then I will." There is even an extension for Firefox which adds a "Snipe this item" icon to the item.

 

I try to take a fair and intuitive approach to its use. I look at what a reasonable price would be for an item, how many bids have already been placed, how high the bid price has become, and so on. After a while it becomes easy to tell an item which is going to sell normally for a reasonable price, one that is going to sell for way too much, and one that a bunch of people are waiting to jump on. I hate I have to do it this way but, sadly, it is that game you sometimes have to play and often the only way to ensure that you can get something at a reasonable price.

 

Like some others, I much prefer "buy it now" or BIN items, or even ones with "best offer." But sometimes you have to get down into the mud with the rest of the pigs.

[+KaeruYojimbo]

I've adopted a new mindset when it come to eBay. I now look at it as a chance to get a better deal than I would get at a store or show. If I see an item I want I'll place a max bid that's reasonable and that I won't regret paying, and then ignore the auction until it ends. Sometimes I get the item for a fair price. Sometimes I lose out because a couple of snipers got into a bidding war and pushed the price higher than I would've paid anyway (and keep in mind that just because the winning sale price was only a dollar more than your max bid, the winner's max bid might have been a lot higher, but they only have to pay the minimum amount over your bid there are no other bids).

[Mulletino]

I'll place a courtesy bid then wait to see how the price goes, if it's still within my limit i'll try a snipe at the end (if i remember).

[Omega-TI]

I will admit one thing I DO love about Ebay, the BIN's on electronic parts from China. If you are patient and willing to wait at least three weeks, you can get stuff delivered to your door far cheaper than the gas would cost to go to a place like Rip Shock.

[Keatah]

I courtesy bid? All that does is raise interest in an item. Could even be an alert to another bidder to keep their eyes open..

[matthew180]

eBay does not have "going going gone". It has pissed me off for years, and like others have mentioned, it amazes me that they still refuse to offer such a model. You have to be prepared for that, or use snipe software. It is too bad they are still the largest online auction, because they are certainly NOT the best. And they make a LOT of money to boot.

[LASooner]

I figure with stuff like old computer equipment, I don't really NEED it, so if I lose so be it. Sometimes I forget I bid and end up winning with a ridiculously low bid (ie. a pristine Amiga 1000 for $350 with monitor), but I had been chasing one of those leather TI dust covers for months and kept having it sniped from me. I did finally get one. I say try to change your mentality about Ebay. it's not worth the stress.

[+Vorticon]

Definitely irritating if you let it. I have decided moons ago that I won't play that game. I just put in my max bid and forget about it. In the end, there is nothing on Ebay that I truly NEED, only WANT, and there is always another item just like the one I lost that will eventually come up...

[spacecadet]

I figure with stuff like old computer equipment, I don't really NEED it, so if I lose so be it. Sometimes I forget I bid and end up winning with a ridiculously low bid (ie. a pristine Amiga 1000 for $350 with monitor),

 

So you're the guy who got my Amiga

[LASooner]

If you live in Grass Valley, yes. And you can't have it back

[+jedimatt42]

Please tell ebay to take measures to kill sniping. Low bid prices cuts into their take too. Ebay is constantly asking for feedback. If they hear it enough, they will likely take steps to make a change.

 

Here is a horrible article from ebay regarding sniping: http://www.ebay.com/gds/Ebay-Avoid-Snipers-/10000000006165486/g.html

 

Their current stance is very weak. They say themselves that sniping is against the rules. But also that they are not likely to enforce it. It should be a security violation. Sniping apps require you to give your password out. Ebay could invalidate any account that snipes on the premise of sharing your password. All they have to do is send out a message saying that is what they will do.

 

They could also earn more money if they paid one human being to investigate mechanisms to block sniping services. They are a technology company. They only make money if you buy stuff. Tell them what it takes to keep you as a customer.

 

--

I used to have a friend who constantly yelled at his Amiga saying 'the computer cheated!' when it beat him at the game. The computer just played within the rules. He just didn't like the rules and moved on to another game.

Ebay needs to become the game you will play next.

--

 

-M@

[Asmusr]

Perhaps there's something I have misunderstood, but if you are willing to pay max $100 for an item and you set this as your max bid, why would you get upset that someone snipes it for $101 when you were not willing to pay that much?

[Gentlegamer]

Don't be mad because you don't know how to use ebay.

 

You should always bid your max in the last few seconds.

[Gentlegamer]

 

People have talked about 3rd party sites that bid for you last minute or whatever, but I've never looked into them, nor inherently trust such a mechanism with all the info necessary to act on my behalf that way.

 

I use such a site and it works 100% of the time. By bidding my max in the last 3 seconds I probably win 90% of the time, for well under my max bid.

[Gentlegamer]

Please tell ebay to take measures to kill sniping. Low bid prices cuts into their take too. Ebay is constantly asking for feedback. If they hear it enough, they will likely take steps to make a change.

 

Are you insane? ebay has mostly turned into overpriced BINs that sit unsold for months.

 

Auctions with no reserve is the true measure of "market value" and the best bidding tactic is max bid in the last few seconds; don't bid against the number on the screen or leave your bid with time to be bettered by $1 and lose the auction.

Edited March 2, 2017 by Gentlegamer

[+jedimatt42]

People are willing to pay more, just not willing to commit to it up front.

 

If ebay followed one of the social norms for auctions (which it might but we've lost sight) then it would be less ruffling.

 

The reality is it is setting a new norm. E-bay's answer to sniping is their proxy bidding model. Which to use successfully, you just have to dig deep and really admit what you are willing to pay. People just don't want to do that. I don't really want to do that. This system would work fine if you could only bid once, and the high bid wasn't revealed until after sale. But doing that would also drive prices up. And then E-bay would lose more customers.

 

The fever of a bidding war at the end if it were allowed to play out ( by extending the time with each new bid ), would be satisfying to the human aspects, and remove the advantage that sniping holds when bidders don't use the e-bay proxy bidding, without having to change much else.

 

There is just a pervasive emotional barrier to using the system as designed. At least in my case.

 

-M@

[PeBo]

Perhaps there's something I have misunderstood, but if you are willing to pay max $100 for an item and you set this as your max bid, why would you get upset that someone snipes it for $101 when you were not willing to pay that much?

 

My issue is that for days there was no activity (on one of the items I remained the only bid for a full week), then I sat watching the auction for the last 10 minutes...with a new bid ready to go in case someone tried sniping...at the 5 second mark there it was, I clicked increase bid immediately, but by the time it registered with eBay, it was too late.

 

Yes, I could have started with a higher maximum bid, but after a week long auction, where no one else bid but me right up until the 5-10 second mark, should it not be fair to assume no one else was interested in the item, so that a higher maximum bid was not necessary?

 

And if my maximum bid is $100, one can be sure I would happily have gone to $101 (or $102 or even $120).

 

Bottom line is that sniping is against the eBay rules, and they do nothing about it. They call themselves an online auction house, but auctions end while there is still active bidding.

 

Both of these truths earn my ire! And to those who say "this is the way to use ebay" sorry, no, I won't play such a sleazy game, and will simply stick to other online markets. If I miss out on things I want, so be it. I shouldn;t have to jump through hoop to buy something, and I have no problem competing with others for an item, as long as there is an actual competition.

 

I simply think we'd all be better off with an alternative to eBay.

[+save2600]

We desperately need an alternative to eBay for international buy and sell!

 

 

 

Cheaper and better alternative to eBay - absolutely! But good luck reaching such a massive and diverse audience as eBay has cultivated throughout the years.

 

As for the international aspect - no way. The one thing I've come to learn and love about dealing internationally through eBay, is their Global Shipping Program. I was super hesitant at first after hearing the horror stories about the way items get repackaged, etc. but as a buyer and seller, have had absolutely ZERO problems or issues with it at all. And I've sold some extremely fragile things that way. Compared to the old way of dealing internationally - yes, even Canada but Europe especially - was such a nightmare due to all the scams. People claiming they didn't receive things, only to have PayPal reverse charges and the seller being out their money AND product. Only way I'll deal internationally anymore is through the GSP. As far as I'm concerned, no negatives and has made honest traders out of people.

[Keatah]

It would be trivial for ebay sysops to extend an auction if there is last second bidding. That's a fact. But I have no doubt that ebay have conducted many cost analysis and found it wouldn't make good business sense. That's an assumption.

 

I also believe that if you don't snipe, you're likely to place a higher bid earlier on. And that drives up the prices. Drives them up for increased final value fees. More profit.

 

I would rather avoid a long drawn out bidding war early on, and come in at the end with smaller bang, just enough to win the war.

 

---

 

And if don't win at the ending via sniping, that's ok too. I'll take pleasure in raising the price for the buyer. AND it will help create higher prices for when I go to sell similar things. Yup.

Edited March 2, 2017 by Keatah