Ebay URGENT advice needed

[Anonymous]

I am an ebay virgin and don't like it at all - hence I don't know how to use it!!!

However, there is an item (not wood related) that I desperately wish to purchase and it is quite expensive.

What can I do to win it?

I believe automatic bidding tools are availalble? If so how does one use 'em?

Are there any tips from you regulars? (philly?)

I have 18 hours left and it 9.30pm on Saturday 11 sept.

 

[Anonymous]

What i normally do is wait until the last 2 mins of the auction and put in a bid, auto bid is ok but you still gotta watch :lol: also most people bid in even numbers (eg £1) so i always bid £1.01 that penny could win it for you. Ebay is ok but when you look at an item look for the link for the sellers feedback to see if he or she is a good seller ( not too many - feedback ) i always avoid anyone with a 0 feedback. The auto bid works like this an item starts at say £1 so you know it's worth at least £12 so you place a bid for £10 . The price does not go straight to £10 until someone else starts bidding against you and then it goes up in increments until you win the item or are outbid. sorry if this is as clear as mud :lol:

 

[thomaskennedy]

Hi Tony,

When i buy things off ebay, i tend to put my max. bid in (does it automatically when you click place a bid) and then when it gets to the last hour or so i keep my eye on it and if it goes a "little" over my max price i tend to put another bid in!

'tis very exciting for the first time (well i found anyway )

Ta

Tom

 

[DaveL]

Hi Tony,

I have bought a few (~12) things from Ebay.

My first advice is know what it worth, not trying to teach you to suck eggs but its quite easy to get carried away. Be sure that what your bidding on is what you think you are getting. I bought a 24" rule for my combination square, its OK but the markings are only printed on not eched, nothing I can do as the listing did not say they were eched just that I have 3 squares, all of which have eched 12" rules.
Decide your absolute maximin bid.
Then auto bidding is very simple, you place a bid, but instead of just out bidding the current high bid you stick in the maximin you are prepared to go to. Ebay will then advance your bid by the allowed minimum increment each time you are out bid. Result is you ether get the goods or someone pays more than you want too for them.

Tip put in an odd value eg not £5 but £5.12 as lots of bids are for £5 or £10 pound values, if you have bid £5.12 and you are winning at £4 and someone bids £5 you will still win.

 

[Anonymous]

It's worth getting something called a sniper. The one I use can be found here:

http://www.lastminutebidder.com/

Basically you find an item that you are interested in, define it in the sniper, define your maximum price, tell it when to bid (for example, 30 seconds before the auction closes), and then let it do its thing.

That way people who might want to outbid you don't have a chance because the auction closes before they can click on the buttons.

The only problem is that they might also be using a sniper, in which case presumably the one with the highest sniping bid wins the princess.

Andrew

 

[woodshavings]

Apologies for sucking eggs but also look at the shipping costs when deciding your max bid. Sometimes these are very high compared to the value of the item. Also, I agree with Davel about making your bid an odd value. I usually add £0.01 to my bid value.
John

 

[Aragorn]

Well Tony - Ebay virgin here too - but if everyone else is adding £0.01 to their bid, I'd add £0.03 to mine just to be sure!!

 

[Mdotflorida]

Hi Tony

Sniping and watching the last minute bidding is all very well but just bidding that extra £5 because you've just been outbid is a recipe for paying more than the item is worth to you.

Deciding on your maximum price and then posting it at the last minute is a bit irrelevant. If it really is your top bid then post it and let Ebay bid up to it. The way Ebay works is that it will only use enough of your bid to keep you ahead. If someone else is willing to pay more then so be it.

I very rarely re-bid on an item. I work out what I am willing to pay including postage and bid it. Then see what happens.

For a new item, I usually bid a maximum of 70% of the price I can buy it from a retailer. I figure this saving justifies the risks and possible guarantee problems etc.

Jeff

 

[tx2man]

Yo ho ho Tony, :roll:

1, Check them there feedback scores/comments afore ye sail

2, Check the scurrilous cargo costs

3, Cast yer one eye over thee description maps, and send a
cabin boy round with any questions
4, Stand firm,man!,with yer max. bag o' shillings

5, Rest ye weary sea legs and wait for the cabin boy
to return with a message of woe or good tidings

Aye,aye Cap'n TX

 

[DaveL]

TX2man,

Have you stopped taking the dried frog pills again, you know what happens :shock: :wink:

 

[Anonymous]

Deciding on your maximum price and then posting it at the last minute is a bit irrelevant. If it really is your top bid then post it and let Ebay bid up to it. The way Ebay works is that it will only use enough of your bid to keep you ahead. If someone else is willing to pay more then so be it

I disagree. Setting your maximum bid is good - but why tell others what your max bid is ahead of time?

Let's say you see something which normally costs £30 in the shops. It's advertised as new, you decide you don't want to pay more than £20 on ebay.

Using your method you post your £20 bid 3 days before the auction ends. Now there happens to be someone else out there who is willing to pay £20, and they are using a sniper. They see your bid and think "what the heck", and put their max bid for the sniper at £20.51. You lose.

However, by keeping quiet and giving the item no apparent interest (no-one seems to be bidding high on this item), that other guy might decide he's safe with his top bid of £20, and wouldn't think to go above it.

I've sold a few hundred things on ebay (privately - my dinky car collection that I've had since childhood). I have noted that the ones that win the bids tend to be those that bid in the last minute of the auction, I imagine using a sniper. Those people also give the appearance of being in business rather than casual.

One other thing whilst I'm about it, which is relevant to these forums. Very often new things are sold at a higher price than you could buy them for directly elsewhere. I imagine people get a bug about using ebay and feel committed to purchase. For example:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 17091&rd=1

Delivery: £6.50 each

Watch that go up in price. The final bid may well exceed this:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/default.asp?part=BJ50

Delivery: Free over £30

Andrew

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the quick advice guys

My only real problem is the age. I am bidding for an item that cost £2K nine years ago but doesn't really wear and should perform as good as new. How do you quantify age v price when the thing is unlikely to wear?

Currently it is at £330ish and I am happy to go a long way above this.

The reserve is not met yet which worries me as I don't know what it is :evil: THIS is why I don't use ebay

Ohh, I've been after one for several years and they are the preverbial rocking horse droppings unless you have deep pockets

I can't purchase a sniper in time and so will take Aragorns sage advice

P&P are not an issue as it is too big to post!!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Another question

What happens if no one reaches the reserve price?

 

[Mdotflorida]

I disagree. Setting your maximum bid is good - but why tell others what your max bid is ahead of time?


Andrew

Hi Andrew

How do you do this ? The only way someone else knows what your maximum bid is, is to exceed it.

Using your analogy of bidding my max of £20 3 days before the end. It is only going to display £20 if the previous high bid was £19.50 (or whatever the bid differential is in that price range). Even then a sniper seeing £20 does not know whether that is your high bid.

Tony if the item does not meet its reserve there is no obligation for the seller to sell the item. Similarly if they offer to sell under the reserve and you have changed your mind, there is no obligation on your part to buy. The auction will tell you when the reserve has been met.

Jeff

 

[Anonymous]

I can't purchase a sniper in time and so will take Aragorns sage advice

I'm a bit mystified by that statement. The Paragon sniper to which I refer is purchased online. As soon as your credit card has been debitted you are provided with an instant download link.

How do you do this ? The only way someone else knows what your maximum bid is, is to exceed it

Exactly. You are giving them 3 days to try and get to beat your £20.

I understand that if 2 people submit the same maximum bid then the first one takes precedence.

It's a bit like playing poker (not that I play poker, but you get my drift ). You keep your hand hidden until you strike.

One other possible useful piece of advice - setting a max bid of a round number like £20 isn't ideal. Set something like £20.51, that way if you go 50p over your maximum limit you can probably live with it. But if you loose out on £20 because someone else had set £20.01 you'd never know whether they just hit their max limit.

I know setting to bid slightly higher than your maximum limit sounds daft but you can feel a bit gutted when you lose something you really wanted when someone else gets it for what you believed was your top limit, and many times you'll go just beyond - and feel better if that other buyer has a sizably bigger top limit than you.

One other thing I've just thought of here.....

It isn't unknown for sellers to bid against their own item to force up the price, by setting up a phantom ebay account. They won't do that in the dying seconds of an auction because they don't have time to delete the bid and clearly don't want to win it themselves. But give them some time (and 3 days is a very long time!) and you'd be surprised at how your bid always gets up to your stated maximum!

Sellers can't see your maximum either. But they can bid against it to force you to your limit - and then delete their phantom bid.

Andrew

 

[Mdotflorida]

Hi Andrew

I pretty much understand your logic but I guess it all depends on whether your maximum is really your maximum or you are prepared to go a couple of quid extra to secure it.

Tony

One thing I would emphasise (I think TX said it in piratese !!), is that this sounds like a pretty expensive item so make sure you check out the seller as much as possible. Definitely be wary if they have negatives or a low rating.

Jeff

 

[Guest]

Andrew
I don't think it is possible to retract a bid. I once bid on an item then bought a better one.My maximum bid was £100 and I tried all ways to retract without success.Luckily someone bid higher so I wasn't left wit two dust extractors

 

[Anonymous]

It's over

I bid for a 10" deep space astonomical telescope. I've wanted one for about 6 years and made do with a smaller one which is great for planets but not galaxies and nebulae.

These don't come along secondhand very often and it went for £510 - £2k new

I was the top bidder at £500 until last 10 seconds and then I tried to put insurance and raised mine to £550 just in case. Someone bid £510 (I think a sniper) as I was raising mine and the system would not accept my bid

Lost it and I am gutted - no devastated ( I couldn't sleep last night I was so excited )

I now hate ebay even more than before I used it :twisted: A dutch auction - mrs T thinks that it should be made illegal

 

[Mdotflorida]

Really sorry you missed out Tony.

That was what I was trying to say. If you had bid your max of £550 it would have been under Ebay control. With 10 seconds to go it would still have shown £500 and the sniper would still have had no idea about your top bid. A good snipe is done just in time so there is not much chance for a retry if it fails.

Commiserations M8, hope something similar comes up again soon.

jeff

 

[woodshavings]

Thats really tough Tony ... I am sure you will keep looking though.