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Posted By: davidcycleback

As a seller, I never end and auction early if there is one bid, even if the bid
is one penny. However, I will end auctions with zero bids. I do this considering
that that the person who places the minimum bid is the only who can can win it
at the minimum bid-- meaning, there is no reason to not place the minimum bid on
an item if you want it. If bidders are concerned with saving money (which is
presumably the reason they snipe) and have seen the lot and the minimum bid is low,
if there are no bids after four days this is an indication to the seller that there is
little to no interest in the lot. Again, if bidders have serious interest
there should be a rush to place the mimumim bid, as only the first bidder can get it
at that, the lowest possible price. By placing the mimimum as the maximum, the bidder
has no worries about being shilled.

Also, I will switch lots with zero bids. Meaning, if I have a Steve Carlton signed
ball up for auction with 0 bids after four days, I will switch it to a Tom Seaver,
or even a lesser value ball, figuring "If no one is interested in a Steve Carlton,
maybe someone will be interested in a Tom Seaver." If it plays on the minds of people who
didn't place the minimum bid on the Carlton, that's fine by me. I love for people
to bid, I would love for people to bid 1 second into the auction, so if people
didn't take the 10 seconds to bid $9.99 on the Steve Carlton ball for 4 days,
they can't claim it was because of my choice or influence.

As a seller, my loyalties are with the person who places the single, minimum bid
on the Steve Carlton and goes on to win it for the great $9.99 price. My loyalties
aren't with people who don't bid or who have launched Machiavellian space ships to place
secret infrared bids in the year 2025 so they can save $5 on a Barbie Doll. If their
bid goes off in one of my eBay uctions in 2025, I will then gladly honor the bid. But,
for now, Billy Joe has has the high bid at $9.99 on the Steve Carlton ball.