I checked before i bid on a dvd to see how well it sold for in the past, and only one bid had ever been made at 99p. the rest went unsold. I bid on the item and at 7am this morning somone shot the bid up to a fiver!
Do some ebayers help the seller do you think?
Or do you think they just take interest cause there`s a bid etc?
What do you think?
2007-09-18 00:06:38 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Computers & Internet ➔ Internet ➔ Other - Internet
It's called last-minute "snatching". I do it myself. I wait for the very last minute to put my bid on, that way nobody can out bid me.
It's nothing petty or personal. I just do it when I really want to win the item.
2007-09-18 00:13:38 · answer #1 · answered by Vivi 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
As a very long time user of eBay there are a few points to note.
1: - Prices can vary widely - items that don't get bids at a penny can fetch £5 at other times and I've sold two of a collectable I found (I managed to get two) at £46 and £24 which is quite a difference.
2: - People do get people to 'bump up' the price of items. It's called shill bidding and is against eBay policy, they will throw the people involved off eBay if they find them.
3: - Sniping is the term commonly used to bid for items at the last minute (or seconds usually). Sniping can be done manually by the bidder or by software.
4: - Yes, some people do just bid with no intention to buy and any other bizarre behavior you can think of.
Having said that its a great place and I love it, have done since 1998.
2007-09-18 02:28:46 · answer #2 · answered by idlehippy 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think you have covered all the reasons!
There *is* some bid shilling going on on ebay, but it's illegal and you can get banned from ebay for doing it. I wouldn't expect people to bother on an inexpensive item, though -- not worth the risk.
Once you bid on an item, you generate interest in it. If it's a common item I would just let it go and wait for the next one, then don't bid till the last moment (snipe it). It's the best way to ensure you'll get the item for the least amount of money.
It could also be that whatever attracted you to that particular auction brought someone else to it. Perhaps you both saw the leading actor on tv last night, heard the movie's name mentioned in passing, or whatever. Either way, I'd just wait for the next one.
Good luck!
2007-09-18 01:44:43 · answer #3 · answered by The Skin Horse (formerly ll2) 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I sell a lot on eBay and often find that one bid attracts others and some as you say just hate to be out bid which is good for the sellers my advice is don't get caught in a biding war wait for s similar item at a later date and only bid what you think it's worth
2007-09-18 02:01:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It could be that the seller is getting a friend to push your bids up. I'd suggest waiting til the very last minute to bid, so that they don't have a chance to do this. Bid the maximum you would happily pay, and then it'll be a bonus if you get it for much less!
If you think that a seller is having others push bids up, check both addresses...if it seems that you are right, report them to ebay & they will investigate.
Good luck!
2007-09-18 00:15:20 · answer #5 · answered by Indeedy 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Some people use their friends to do that.They ain't supposed to ,but who is going to check?I suppose it backfires every now and then,and someone ends up with an item like a copy of "A Complete History Of Staples" or something.And there are those who jump in at the last second to bid.Can't really do anything about that.I only bought one item off Ebay and exactly the same thing happened to me!
2007-09-20 12:31:22 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Some people could try to up the bid so that you pay more, but I did not buy anything or bid so far. So, may be that is not the way.
2007-09-18 00:15:36 · answer #7 · answered by Swamy 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
i think when the auction is near the end & only one or two people have bid the seller doesn't want the item to go so cheap so they get a mate or whoever to bid higher. it has happened to me often but to get back at them i refuse to go higher just to show them they arn't as clever as they think,
2007-09-18 09:20:31 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
An item is only worth what people are willing to pay for it. Decide how much the maximum you want to pay for it AND STICK TO IT! Don't get sucked in. The chances are, a similar item will appear very soon.
2007-09-18 08:32:14 · answer #9 · answered by ben 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If they want to waste their money just to annoy people, I suppose that's their privilege. I sometimes wonder about collusion, but it is against Ebay rules to conspire to raise the price. Just don't let yourself get caught up in a bidding war.
2007-09-18 00:14:16 · answer #10 · answered by Computer Guy 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋