Buy it Now vs auctions on eBay

[Brian Van Horn]

Just for a matter of comparison at 9:40 a.m. EST I looked at the totals of all items on the pre-1942 baseball cards section (30,559) versus auctions only (2162). Let's throw these ideas out for discussion: Is it the economy, the direction of cards for the long term future of the hobby or is it both?

Personally, if the auctions stay at such a low rate, I think it's a very bad sign for the viability of collecting.

Let's hear your opinions.

[barrysloate]

Most sellers are afraid to take the risk of letting cards go at whatever the market will bear. I am one of the few who still do, but my mixed results may put an end to it. Many dealers have inventory they purchased before the economy tanked. So they are almost certainly looking at losses if they don't start at least at cost or a little higher.

I agree it's not a good thing but it's a sign of the times.

[Robextend]

As a testament to that, I have been setting snipes at sometimes 60% of VCP and winning with pretty decent regularity.

[glynparson]

I generally sell enough out of my store, when I have it well stocked, that taking the chance with the auctions makes no sense to me. There was also a lot of collecting before ebay ever came around so the idea that this somehow hurts collecting seems odd to me. Yes you may not always be able to get somethings at give away prices but that seems to be the general direction. It's sort of like the walmart thing we keep worrying about always getting something at the cheapest possible price and we end up with less variety to choose from.

[barrysloate]

Glyn makes a good point that the hobby can survive without everything being auctioned. To clarify my point of why I don't think it's a good thing is there was a time a few years ago when you could put a card up for auction, start it at a penny, and still be certain you would achieve a great price.

Because of the current market conditions, you can't do that anymore with full confidence. So it's the state of the market which is causing the no reserve auction format to disappear.

[Leon]

If anyone bought cards 2-4 yrs ago and are selling them now, and they aren't super scarce (rare) or in high demand, they are fetching a fraction of what they were. It's just the way it is. I have one very good friend/dealer who has quite a bit of inventory and he would be glad to get 50% of what he paid for it. NO harm in protecting yourself with higher starting bids or reserves. The hobby, like the rest of the country, is down quite a bit... If the country was booming and the hobby was sucking, then I would be more worried for it.

[hunterdutchess]

Originally Posted by Robextend

As a testament to that, I have been setting snipes at sometimes 60% of VCP and winning with pretty decent regularity.

How do you set a snipe?

[Robextend]

There are many sites out there, but I use Gavelsnipe: www.gavelsnipe.com

Basically, you can set up a max amt you want to spend on the card, and seconds before the auction ends the bid will be placed. Check out the site.

[quinnsryche]

I agree with Barry's assessment, because speaking from experience, if I need a certain amount out of a card, I can't take the chance of auctioning it off with a low minimum and getting killed. I know people here don't seem to like the non-auction ebay sales but you have to do what's best for you. Geez, go to the National and look at some of the prices there. See how difficult it is to deal with some of the sellers there. Alot of the pricing there will send you running to ebay to buy!

[3-2-count]

Originally Posted by quinnsryche

Geez, go to the National and look at some of the prices there. See how difficult it is to deal with some of the sellers there. Alot of the pricing there will send you running to ebay to buy!

Hallelujah, ain't that the truth!!! Just think about how tough it would be if we didn't have Ebay.

[Matt]

Originally Posted by hunterdutchess

How do you set a snipe?

Alternatively, on grandslambids.com, sniping is integrated into the system so you don't need to supply your UserID/Password to outside parties.
(plug)

[Oldtix]

Ebay changed their listing and selling fees earlier this year, and that has caused a huge shift away from auctions. They touted "free insertion fees" in all their news releases, but that only applies if your starting bid is less than $1.00 and you don't have a reserve...a pretty risky proposition for the seller. Any other auction listing costs from 25 cents to $2.00 per item, whether the item sells or not.

Ebay also provided greater incentive for sellers to open ebay stores which offer reduced listing fees. In my case, it only costs 5 cents to list a buy-it-now item regardless of the fixed price. I can list 40 fixed-price items for the price of one $200 item listed as an auction...and can ensure that I'm satisfied to sell at that price.

Anything sold under the auction format has a 9% final value fee regardless of price. Generally, fixed-price final value fees are higher if the item brings less than $100, but they are dramatically lower if it sells for more (and, if you have a good feedback record and maintain an ebay store, you earn additional discounts on final value fees).

A $100 ebay sale via a fixed price "buy-it-now" listing costs $9.00 in final value fees and a 5 cent insertion fee. If you sell the same item via auction, you also pay $9.00 in final value fees and a higher insertion fee (unless your start bid was less than a dollar).

If it brings more than $100, the fixed price selling fees are far, far less. On a $1,000 item, auction final value fee is $90 and fixed-price final value fee is $63. For a $2,000 item, auction costs $180 and fixed-price costs $83.

I only use the auction format for exceptional items when I'm unsure of the market value. The only advantage the auction format has under today's pricing is a listing has a better chance of being seen. Personally, it was more fun the way it used to be!

[botn]

The 9% final value fee caps at $50 per item. So any item selling over $555.55 is charged the same final value fee.

[barrysloate]

My understanding is those final value fees are reduced the more the item sells for. The percentage is less on a $1000 item than on a $10 one. Is that incorrect?

Greg and I posted at the same time.

[smtjoy]

I think the lack of auctions is just a sign of the tough times, if things change to the positive again I would expect to see a lot more open ended auctions.

On ebay while I dont think their pricing changes have helped I just dont think they make anywhere as much difference vs what your items sells for. All it takes is to have one card you purchased for $77 sell for $17 and you will see why many are listing cards with high starting bids or as BIN's. I prefer auctions as I know I will get cash soon but I also dont like to get hammered on what I am selling so I try to do a mix to protect myself.

My store BIN sales the last 6 weeks has been as good as any time for me in the last 4 years, not really sure why but lots of cards have been selling.

[botn]

One would think with so few non reserve auction listings that prices would be stronger than they are. The smaller supply has not diminished the impact of what appears to be a much weaker demand.

Sellers have to eat paypal fees (3%), listings fees (which are nominal in a true auction listing with no reserve), sometimes some shipping costs and final value fees (9%). Prices realized on ebay, for the most part, have been lower than the prices realized (before the buyer's fee is added on) from any of the numerous auction houses. So if you can wait to get paid and get a 0% consignment deal, you will end up with more money.

eBay is 24/7 and listings are continuously added and ending. Buyers have to make the time to search daily or things can get missed. Not everyone can search the site each day and now it is even less fun to search with the category changes and the sheer volume of high priced Buy It Now listings. It is easy for stuff to be missed. Catalog auctions are set to end on a specific day with a specific group of listings. Much easier to get buyers' attention which would also explain the higher prices realized.