I’m bidding on an item on eBay today and I just got a notification someone has upped their bid. The auction ends in about three hours and I’m thinking don’t respond till the last five minutes of so; lull the other bidder into complacency, maybe?
Advice and opinions, please.
If they really want it, they tend to watch closely and may even have the “auto bid increase” dialed in. You can once in awhile snipe one in the last few seconds if you don’t cut it too close.
I will usually bid in the last 10 seconds. I will bid what I am willing to pay for the item. Sometime I win, sometimes I lose.
re: auto bid. It’s been a few days with no activity until I bid on it so maybe that’s not an issue. Or maybe it is. Meh! Guess I’ll find out later today.
I am the same as Bruce. I don’t see the pint of bidding early, it just bumps it up. And when i do bid, i will bid the max i am willing to pay. I would say about 80% of the time, i win what i bid for.
Sniping is the only way. You need to wait until the last few seconds, but dont wait too long, you may not get that bid in
I will bid the most I am willing to pay. Say the bidding starts at $10, I’m willing to pay $25, so I’ll place my max bid at $25 (my max bid is hidden from everybody else, including the seller). All I’ll pay is $10 if no one else bids. If someone bids $15, I am still the highest bidder and will get the item at just over $15. This way I don’t worry about it. I place my max bid and if I win I win, if not someone else wanted it more than I did, they win. Even if someone snipes me at the last 10 sec, if they don’t go over $25 I still win and get a notification that I won…or lost. Less stress.
Edit: have you ever noticed that when you place a bid and you get a notification that you’ve been out bid? That’s because someone put in a higher max bid days ago.
Another reason why I usually avoid a bidding war on evilbay. I opt to look at “Buy now or make offer” deals instead. I hate getting in a bidding war especially with bid snipers involved.
No war, just max bid and forget about it.
your MAX bid is hidden? Cuz the notification I got showed the new bid amount; was only about a dollar over my bid.
Agreed. That’s how I’ve done all my purchases on ebay up till now. This one’s kinda “special” though. I’m really hoping I get it.
True, but I’ve gotten great deals by taking the “make offer” route many times. I’ve seen far too many sniping practices that involved a conspirator working with the seller to get the maximum value for their item.
I’ll bet that if you put in a 50 cent increase you will still be outbid. Someone put in a higher max bid that you are seeing. Just put down the max you are willing to pay. The fellow you are bidding against is lower you will just pay a dollar over his max. If he really wants it then he will up it. At this point I let it go because I’m not willing to go over my max. If you don’t win, you will force the other bidder to pay a dollar over your max. Get it or did i mess you up?
Yes, it is hidden. The other bidder may have bid much more than just the dollar more you see.
I will sometimes place a bid and leave it. If i get out bid, no big deal. Depends on how bad I really want an item. I will usually only bid on more time, then snipe at the end. Kind of gages the interest of the other bidders.
LOL I lost an already great deal on a 1/144 Gato doing that. While I was waiting for the seller to respond, someone else grabbed it at the already great price. I was greedy [:'(]…I’ll bet it was someone on here [*-)]
I used to use a sniping service, Bidslammer.But I don’t buy much anymore, so it’s not really worth it.
I just hang out and go in with my max about 10-15 seconds before the deadline. High rate of success.
I also put a few cents over the dollar on my max. Surprising how many people bid an even dollar amount.
What are you bidding on? [:D]
12 minutes. The suspense is killing me!
Another way to play on eBay is to check what the thing you want has sold for in the recent past. I’m sure most of us know this but it bears repeating, eBay is like any other exchange. Prices fluctuate, and it’s helpful to know when to buy or sell.
Hit view similar items, then click sold listings, and you get the actual prices people paid for the same thing for as far back as you care to go. It’s also a good idea to check the price at online stores to get an idea of how much you would pay for a brand new one. You’re going to pay shipping to someone, so if you need a few other items the store price may be the best deal.
My two cents;
Mike
Snipping doesn’t do any good if you’re not willing to bid over my hidden max bid. If you do, then you want it more than I do so that’s ok. You just worried about it all the way up to the end, I didn’t.
Did you win???