I am a confirmed sniper... C.E. and I have out sniped one another on a few
occasions. We've talked afterwards, and while there is usually
disappointment, there is never hard feelings because that's the way it has
to be done if you're a serious collector on eBay.
The main reason I snipe is that you can absolutely get items for less money
if you snipe. I 100% guarantee it. The reason is that the theory of proxy
bidding is not the reality. Most people do not really bid their maximum on
first bid. I learned this early on when I first started on eBay. Let's say
you bid $50 for a game one week before the auction ends. Then, one day
before the auction ends, somebody bids $51. You think, well what does $2
matter? So you bid again. Then the other person does the same. I have
seen this time and time again on eBay.
This is an old trick of auctions. Proxy bidding is not a service for the
buyer (unless you have unlimited funds and very limited time). It is a
service to the seller and to the auction house. That is how they drive the
price up beyond what you would normally pay for an item. Their goal is to
get you in a bidding war...ideally to where it becomes a matter of
principle, and you will have the item at any cost. Most people don't get
into this mentality, but all it takes is two people to drive the price up
and get more money for the seller and therefore the auction house as well.
If you are a buyer, it is in your best interest to snipe. It is the
greatest buyer advantage eBay has over a traditional auction...a set time
limit. There is no auctioneer who will keep the auction going until he is
sure all people are done bidding. It requires more effort on the part of a
sniper (you can't just bid and walk away), but you will get the item for
less, and you are assured of either getting the item or at the very least
only having to bid your true maximum.
Hugh
-----Original Message-----
From: Jim Leonard [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Tuesday, August 28, 2001 5:36 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: [SWCollect] Sniping
"Stephen S. Lee" wrote:
>
> On Fri, 24 Aug 2001, Jim Leonard wrote:
> [snip]
> > 1. Why do you snipe when you can just enter in a maximum and walk away?
>
> * If you bid early, and you bid primarily on game software, bidding early
> says loud and clear, "look! cool stuff!" (I actually find some of the
> stuff I get by searching for certain early-bidders. It's actually a
> good way of finding things.)
Why is this an issue? Is it because you "draw attention to yourself?"
If so, why is that a bad thing?
> * If you have only so much money to spend, and want multiple items, you're
> better off waiting as long as you can. For example, you have $100 to
> spend; there are 10 games that you want; on each, you're willing to pay
> as much as $20. You can't bid $20 on all of them right away, as you
> could be driven above your limit. It's better to wait on these as long
> as you can, and see how the first auctions go before you decide what to
> do with the later ones.
But that isn't sniping -- that's just waiting a while before bidding
your maximum. I'm talking about intentionally waiting until seconds
before the auction.
> * Bidding early has a tendency to get you into a bidding war with newbies
> (who have a tendency to pay too much). If you don't tip your hand you
> minimize this risk from those people with low ratings who are willing to
> pay WAY over value.
In my experience, these people rarely pay up and, being the second
bidder, I get the item anyway. And using proxy bidding the way it was
meant to work means that you *don't* get into bidding wars.
> * Bidding early puts you at risk of ye olde bid-and-retract trick.
> eBay has moved to reduce the viability of this trick, but it's still
> something to keep in mind.
Huh? What's that? I'm unfamiliar with that practice...?
BTW, thanks for the detailed responses. I still haven't been given an
acceptable proof for the legitimacy of sniping, but I appreciate the
willingness to help me understand why people do it.
I'll reiterate that sniping doesn't really bother me from the *auction*
standpoint -- when I bid my maximum, most of the time I see people
bidding at the last few seconds and losing because the proxy bids me
closer to my maximum by a buck or two. What bothers me is *why* people
do it. I guess I'd need a degree in psychology to try to understand...
--
http://www.MobyGames.com/
The world's most comprehensive gaming database project.
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