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This may be a silly question

Started by oldguy, December 28, 2015, 09:30:01 PM

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oldguy

Why do people bid on early in the listing time? Are they shills bidding to drive the price up? I usually don't bid until the last 30 seconds. I can usually get 2 bids in in that period of time.
Gary

Buzby

I'll make bids on things I come across, regardless of the time remaining. I will have an amount that I think an item is worth, and will set my maximum bid. I'm not going to be around for the end of every item I'm bidding on.

I'm not driving the price up. I'm putting out there what I am prepared to pay. Those who want it more drive the price up, and if it were shill bidding, the bidders against you have a low feedback score.

oldguy

I also will bid as much as I am willing to pay if I'm not going to be around when the auction ends. My theory is, that if I will be around at the end of the auction, I may be able to get it for I less if I wait & don't bid early, because if somebody else wants it more than I do & I bid early, They will out bid me & raise the price.
Gary

Buzby

I guess everyone has their own strategies and techniques for ebay. For me, if there's something I want, I don't mind bidding early in the game. The price doesn't go up automatically to my maximum bid, and I can just forget about watching it. Whatever happens in those last few seconds of the auction were going to be happening anyway - it would be me vs the other last second snipers. I'm still in the game, and they are trying to beat the bid I would have placed if I had been around for the last minute of the auction.

Fabius

I am a sniper. I use one of the free snipe programs. I set the program for my maximum amount I want to bid. I have won many items at prices usually below my maximum amount.
Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905

19and41

If I bid early on, it is with a max bid.
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
— Arthur C. Clarke

oldguy

I didn't know I had a name, "Sniper". I will admit it, I'm a cheap skate. I didn't know There were programs to help scum like me. for some reason my wife doesn't like my iPhone alarm going off at 2:10AM so I can make a bid on an auction that is ending. I will make a 1st bid early because it doesn't raise the price & that way if I miss the end of the auction I have a chance to win.
Gary

NorthernElectric

Quote from: oldguy on December 29, 2015, 04:38:14 PM
I didn't know I had a name, "Sniper".

If you're bidding with 30 seconds to go, you're not really a sniper.  I bid with 1 or 2 seconds to go.  I right click on the bid now button about 3 minutes from the end and open that in a new tab.  Then I type in my max bid, click continue,  then leave that and go back to the auction tab and watch the clock count down.  When it hits about 3 or 4 seconds if my max hasn't been exceeded I quickly switch back to the bid tab and click the 'Confirm Bid' button.  Sometimes in the couple of seconds that takes, there are 3 or 4 other snipers bids in.  Sometimes I win sometimes I don't.

Of course, there are times when I know I won't be at a computer when the auction ends.  In that case, I will sometimes bid early if I'm the first bidder or just bid as close to the end as I can.  I might try out bidding software this winter for those times.
Cliff

Doug Rose

Hey Cliff...you are braver than I am....9 secs and I am off. I am not a fan of the snipe services that want a SS# or a bank account. Too many ways to get burned now. If I am there at the end,  I bid or I do as everyone else has mentioned....most I want to pay and bid when I see it......Doug
Kidphone

Dennis Markham

I use this program often.........it's free.

https://www.myibidder.com/

It doesn't ask for anything.  I've never put in my social security number or bank account info.  One only has to put in their ebay username and password.  I set it for 2 seconds and put in what I want to spend.  I've won many an auction while I was away from the computer.  The only time it doesn't bid is if the amount of the item has already exceeded my chosen bid amount.

~Dennis

Fabius

Quote from: Dennis Markham on December 29, 2015, 08:54:14 PM
I use this program often.........it's free.

https://www.myibidder.com/

It doesn't ask for anything.  I've never put in my social security number or bank account info.  One only has to put in their ebay username and password.  I set it for 2 seconds and put in what I want to spend.  I've won many an auction while I was away from the computer.  The only time it doesn't bid is if the amount of the item has already exceeded my chosen bid amount.

~Dennis

I use myibidder. Totally free and seems to work fine. The only problem I have is I forget that I set up one or two snipes on different items and forget about them and then set a third and forth and win them all. That get me in trouble.
Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905

Phonesrfun

Quote from: Fabius on December 29, 2015, 10:17:01 PM
I use myibidder. Totally free and seems to work fine. The only problem I have is I forget that I set up one or two snipes on different items and forget about them and then set a third and forth and win them all. That get me in trouble.

Does that mean you wind up bidding your own bid up?
-Bill G

Fabius

Quote from: Phonesrfun on December 29, 2015, 11:13:03 PM
Quote from: Fabius on December 29, 2015, 10:17:01 PM
I use myibidder. Totally free and seems to work fine. The only problem I have is I forget that I set up one or two snipes on different items and forget about them and then set a third and forth and win them all. That get me in trouble.

Does that mean you wind up bidding your own bid up?

No, I set different snipe bids on different items but forget how many different bids I set. If I win them all I get in trouble with you know who.
Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905

Phonesrfun

-Bill G

oldguy

Hi Cliff, I live in the boonies outside of Grass Valley, CA. The only internet service I can get is satellite & my satellite Internet is very slow. With this situation, I am afraid if I bid any later I will miss out. I guess I need to try biding on something I don't care about as a speed test to see what happens. Oh ya, what does the term "BIN" mean?
Gary