Am I a dick?

[bob]

eBay watchers sometimes piss me off.
In the past, I have ended auctions early when there is 24 hours left when if are no bids, but a bunch of "watchers" lurking out there.
I don't know why they get under my skin, but they do. And it doesn't seem to be all the time, it generally depends on what I am selling at the moment.

Anyway, if I do this...am I a dick?

(cue the obligatory, one word posts, "Yes")

[Keranu]

Yes...

you are.

(j/k)

[Samurai Ghost]

Well it seems that on eBay people tend to bid at the last minute, so I usually don't end up bidding until at least an hour before the auction end, even if I know it's something I want. So if you are trying to sell something it's probably in your best interest to keep it up until its over, especially if you have a lot of people watching it. I've seen auctions for game stuff jump $200 in a matter of seconds as an auction is ending.

[bob]

Well it seems that on eBay people tend to bid at the last minute, so I usually don't end up bidding until at least an hour before the auction end, even if I know it's something I want. So if you are trying to sell something it's probably in your best interest to keep it up until its over, especially if you have a lot of people watching it. I've seen auctions for game stuff jump $200 in a matter of seconds as an auction is ending.

And I fully get that, but for gods sake, SOMEBODY put a bid in!

[roflmao]

A lot of times my watch list is filled up with stuff I have no intention of bidding on.  I just want to see what something ends up selling for (or not selling for).  I would assume I'm not the only one who watches stuff with no intention of bidding, so whenever I list something on ebay, I take the number of watchers with a grain of salt.  It's not uncommon for something to sit until the final 24 hours without any bids, and then have them all come in in the last couple of hours.

When you close an auction early, do you still have to pay fees to ebay?

[nectarsis]

Maybe not a dick, but def WAY to impatient.

[Nazi NecroPhile]

A lot of times my watch list is fill up with stuff I have no intention of bidding on.  I just want to see what something ends up selling for (or not selling for).

I do that too.  Sometimes I'm just curious to see where it'll end or want to link someone to the auction later.

[bob]

A lot of times my watch list is fill up with stuff I have no intention of bidding on.  I just want to see what something ends up selling for (or not selling for).  I would assume I'm not the only one who watches stuff with no intention of bidding, so whenever I list something on ebay, I take the number of watchers with a grain of salt.  It's not uncommon for something to sit until the final 24 hours without any bits, and then have them all come in in the last couple of hours.

When you close an auction early, do you still have to pay fees to ebay?

No, I get 500 free listings a month

[PunkCryborg]

If you keep ending your auction and relisting it people will get suspicious as well so it might not be the best practice if it's an uncommon item.

[bob]

What if I put a warning in the auction listing?

[turbokon]

I feel you especially when I bidded and thinking I'm going to win and in the last few seconds, someone comes in and out bid me and I don't have time to react. That just pisses me off.

[Samurai Ghost]

I feel you especially when I bidded and thinking I'm going to win and in the last few seconds, someone comes in and out bid me and I don't have time to react. That just pisses me off.

Well what I do is put in the max I'm willing to pay for the item sometime before it ends. If I get outbid, so be it. But a lot of times I get the item for less than what I was willing to pay.

[kazekirifx]

I usually wait till the last minute to bid. Maybe I shouldn't do that. It has gotten me in trouble plenty of times.

[Tatsujin]

Am I a dick?

are you one? 

[ApolloBoy]

I certainly wouldn't do that, I sold a few things on eBay within the past week and I got the most bids within the last couple of minutes as opposed to the last day.

[CPTRAVE]

Yup, it is best to wait. There are a a lot of people that will not put a bid in until the end of the auction. In the meantime they will be keeping tabs on the item, and if it suddenly dissapears for whatever reason, that can be suspicous. Be patient.

[Tatsujin]

Maybe not a dick, but def WAY to impatient.

Lol yeah. why should someone bid lots of money like 302783 hours before the auction ends? I don't get that in general. It's obvious that for the most part, the race starts shortly before the end, like a bicyle race.

[VestCunt]

In the past, I have ended auctions early when there is 24 hours left when if are no bids, but a bunch of "watchers" lurking out there.

What do you start your auctions at? If you're not getting any bids until the end, you're starting them too high. A lot of pussies start their shit at $50 or something stupid because they're paranoid about taking a "loss." The real secret is to start everything at 0.99¢ and make sure you have all the appropriate keywords spelled correctly in your title and your pictures don't look like they were taken by a palsied methhead in a dark room with a smartphone. 99¢ auctions guarantee early bidding and everybody starts watching it because they think it's their one chance to beat the BIN system and get a good deal. Then shit gets crazy at the end because all of the idiots who don't know what their max bid is get in a bidding war and pay way more than the BIN's ever go for.

Lurkers and snipers are great for business; you just have to trust 'em.

[Tatsujin]

quite right!

[soop]

A lot of times my watch list is filled up with stuff I have no intention of bidding on.  I just want to see what something ends up selling for (or not selling for).  I would assume I'm not the only one who watches stuff with no intention of bidding, so whenever I list something on ebay, I take the number of watchers with a grain of salt.  It's not uncommon for something to sit until the final 24 hours without any bids, and then have them all come in in the last couple of hours.

When you close an auction early, do you still have to pay fees to ebay?

THis^

[geise]

Also, make sure what time your bid will end.  You don't want to put up a $0.99 bid auction that will end at 4 a.m.  I have scored arcade pcb's on the cheap cause I was the only one bidding at 4 a.m.  

One other thing is you can also put a reserve as well.  Some sellers don't like bidding on auctions that have a reserve, but it also guarantees you a price you want to sell it for if the bids go to low.

[Nazi NecroPhile]

What if I put a warning in the auction listing?

Do you want to sell the item or not?  It doesn't matter when the bids come or how many lurkers are watching - if it sells, it sells.

[grimm]

Do you want to sell the item or not?  It doesn't matter when the bids come or how many lurkers are watching - if it sells, it sells.

Agreed.

[soop]

Also, I did't read it before, but Vestcunt is spot on.  You have to have the balls to do it, and accept that sometimes you're gonna get fuck all.  I've sold a wireless router for 99p, which is crazy good value, but in the end, I wasn't using it, so I'm actually 99p better off.

On the other hand, when I sold all my Lego, I got about £300 if I remember, by starting at 99p, ending on a Sunday, and letting the right people know it was for sale.  I have a whole box of stuff I want to get rid of, but I always have better stuff to do on Sunday than eBay.

[bob]

In the past, I have ended auctions early when there is 24 hours left when if are no bids, but a bunch of "watchers" lurking out there.

What do you start your auctions at? If you're not getting any bids until the end, you're starting them too high. A lot of pussies start their shit at $50 or something stupid because they're paranoid about taking a "loss." The real secret is to start everything at 0.99¢ and make sure you have all the appropriate keywords spelled correctly in your title and your pictures don't look like they were taken by a palsied methhead in a dark room with a smartphone. 99¢ auctions guarantee early bidding and everybody starts watching it because they think it's their one chance to beat the BIN system and get a good deal. Then shit gets crazy at the end because all of the idiots who don't know what their max bid is get in a bidding war and pay way more than the BIN's ever go for.

Lurkers and snipers are great for business; you just have to trust 'em.

I always start reasonable (current example: http://www.ebay.com/itm/110908228037?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649), I'm not a high BIN guy like a lot of folks.  I fully understand the methods of waiting until last second, blah blah blah, but like I said, I don't know why it bothers me.  This thread wasn't intended to explain the mechanics of sniping, and I know some folks just want to see what an item goes for at the end.
Just to be clear, the items I am referring to are never games that I end the auction early on.

[esteban]

"Yes, galam, you are a ______."

[PunkCryborg]

ummm why don't you just sell your turbo games here so you wont have to feal guilty about closing auctions.

[xcrement5x]

ummm why don't you just sell your turbo games here so you wont have to feal guilty about closing auctions.

But he might be able to get more monies on the eBAY?!
...probably not after fees from both sides...


I very rarely sell stuff online, but when I do I'll put it at a relatively low price, of maybe 50% of what it's charting at, and throw out a BIN option (now free to add) that's maybe 15% more than it's charting at.  Some people want to grab stuff fast so the BIN is a decent option. 

I still do 99c auctions sometimes but it depends how much stuff I'm trying to clear.  If I've got a box of junk I just want gone it's 99c or 1c and let it ride

[KnightWarrior]

If I want something yeah I bid like30 seconds left, But if someoe outbids me & I want the game, I bid again..$2 higher

[bob]

Ok, another scenario...
eBay, obviously doesn't show how many "watchers" an item has.
Why?
If I update my listing periodically to reflect the number of watchers, am I a dick?

[Opethian]

if you are worried about selling games for too cheap on ebay you are doing it wrong...

[bob]

if you are worried about selling games for too cheap on ebay you are doing it wrong...

Nope, I don't sell games on eBay, just collect.  I sell some random stuff I come across.  I'm not looking to break the bank on eBay.  I'm just curious as to what the deal is with hiding the number of watchers.  I just didn't understand if there is a benefit to knowing how many people are watching an item.

[PCEngineHell]

Off and on I have this sort of thing happen on auctions of mine. They will watch and wait until after it is over, hoping no one will bid, then contact me to try offer me a low ball price hoping that I will be desperate enough to accept it instead of simply re-listing again or selling outside of ebay, like on CL or something. They send messages like 2 mins after the auction has ended flat out telling me they did not agree with my low bid price, but asking if I would accept so and so amount. Usually they are resellers. The last guy who did this was a dvd reseller going by the name foxhound852. I told him instead of relisting my stuff I was selling it to a friend, that if he wanted it he should have bid, "you snooze, you lose".

The guy wanted to persistently message me after this anyway so I ended up reporting him to ebay for pestering me about trying to have a transaction outside of ebay. I had my fun with him too and added him to my blocked bidder list. It also happens that the guy had feedback from a recent seller that he tried to extort money off of on an already awesome 67 DVD lot he won for 79 bucks shipped. These people usually try to get things as low as possible for their resell business. They will make up complaints to try to get money back off you or free shit all the time that they will say arrived damaged and crap, but suddenly have listed for sale in the exact condition you sold it in.

[Vecanti]

You'd have to post a photo...

[CGQuarterly]

Ok, another scenario...
eBay, obviously doesn't show how many "watchers" an item has.
Why?
If I update my listing periodically to reflect the number of watchers, am I a dick?

What would be the point of doing that?  Whoever said it was right.  You just have to start your stuff at 99 cents and let the chips fall where they may.  Sometimes you'll get hosed, but you'll do well overall.  Just let your auctions run their course and don't even look at them on the last day.

Chris

[PCEngineHell]

You'd have to post a photo...

?

If your referring to them falsely claiming damage, they don't push it far enough to do a claim or dispute. Its one of those things where they drop people messages claiming the such, asking for a partial refund, and they usually drop the complaints and say all is well when you ask for pics and tell them to save the packing etc and get the stuff ready to go back to USPS, so you can contact USPS and start a claim, which is what I do since everything I ship, I insure against damage.

[bob]

What would be the point of doing that?

Chris

I think you are misunderstanding my question. Because you are asking the same thing...WHAT IS THE POINT?  eBay obviously hides it on purpose within the auction, but again, is there a benefit either way (for buyer or seller) to show it?  If you (or anyone) knew how many watchers an item had, would it influence your bidding?  The "am I a dick" comment is just getting at, if I did post it, would potential buyers be miffed for some reason?  This all came from a question somebody sent me about an item I had listed and they asked me how many watchers it had. I thought about attaching the question to my listing with an answer, but wasn't sure if it was a good idea.

[Arkhan Asylum]

Its not really a dick move, its just kinda dumb.   One of those watchers might be watching it in case they lose a current auction they bid on, and want to then come buy your thingy.


The watch list is like a temporary bookmark system for eBay, really.

I'd stop doing it if I were you!

[Nazi NecroPhile]

I'm just curious as to what the deal is with hiding the number of watchers.  I just didn't understand if there is a benefit to knowing how many people are watching an item.

I see no benefit to knowing (or hiding) the number of watchers.  The only thing that matters to me is the price, not how many people might want to bid on it at some point.

[CGQuarterly]

I agree.  Not a dick move, but pointless.  The bottom line is that you are being both paranoid and impatient, and not letting your auctions go to completion.  I ALWAYS use esnipe when bidding on eBay goods, so my bid doesn't get placed until 6 seconds before zero-hour.  I also add the items to my watch list.  By your method of auction-monitoring, that makes me a non-bidder, which is obviously false.

Chris

[SuperPlay]

When I see people list items and then remove them because they have no bids (especially close to the end of the auction). and then they re-list them a few days later it make me suspect Shill Bidding!

[Bernie]

Its not really a dick move, its just kinda dumb.   One of those watchers might be watching it in case they lose a current auction they bid on, and want to then come buy your thingy.


The watch list is like a temporary bookmark system for eBay, really.

I'd stop doing it if I were you!

This is why I watch items.    I use it as a bookmark system as well.

[csgx1]

www.watcheditem.com

Ebay probably doesn't show the number of watcher because it's not useful information to a bidder.  The site above supposedly shows how many people are watching specific auctions.  Not sure how accurate it is. I used the site once before for a poorly listed auction only because I was curious if anyone was watching it. 

Knowing how many people are watching an auction doesn't give any advantages. 

Also, I use a bid snipping service that keeps track of what I'm potentially bidding on.  I only use the ebay "watch" feature for auctions that I'm NOT planning on bidding.

[esteban]

Q: Am I a dick?
A: Yes.

[esteban]

j/k!

[Vecanti]

You'd have to post a photo...

?

If your referring to them falsely claiming damage, they don't push it far enough to do a claim or dispute. Its one of those things where they drop people messages claiming the such, asking for a partial refund, and they usually drop the complaints and say all is well when you ask for pics and tell them to save the packing etc and get the stuff ready to go back to USPS, so you can contact USPS and start a claim, which is what I do since everything I ship, I insure against damage.

lol..  no, actually I didn't even read the original post, or any post in the thread really.  I meant in response to to the title "Am I dick?", he'd have to post a pic for us to make any sort of accurate informed decision.  Just ignore me.

[RoyVegas]

  I use it as a bookmark system as well.

This is also what I do.