Is snipe bidding killing the hobby?

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by Teamgluck

I got snipped today on a Brooklyn Dodger pennant I really wanted but am ok with it due to a fear of shill bids.

I do wish ebay put on a minute extended bid policy which would reduce sniping/ give me a chance to bid again

eBay tried the extended bid policy several years ago and if failed miserably for good reason.

[vintagesportscollector]

Fair question Travis - but you make it sound so easy...”figure out the highest amount you are willing to pay and no more..”. David addressed it well in post #48. I thought $111.11 was my highest and would easily win the item. Given the opportunity to bid another $1, I did. Since we were tied I knew the next increment would/could win it. I only bid the next minimum increment. Would I have gone to $120?...NO. I had the opportunity to get the item for another small increment and I decided to do it. Most people would…even you I bet.

Think of every item you have lost on ebay that you really wanted….now, think of this…after each time you lost someone tells you you can win it if you pay another $1. Would you say no?? Bullshit – of course you wouldn’t. You would throw in another $1 much of the time, going over “the highest amount you are willing to pay and no more..”. If you say you wouldn’t then I think you are lieing to yourself.

It’s all emotions, the thrill of the chase, yada yada yada…it happens to ALL of us.

[drcy]

Human nature:

Alice: "I just baked thus plate of chocolate chip cookies. Do you want one?"
John: "Thank you, but no. I'm on a diet and am not eating sweets."
Alice: "Are you sure?"
John: "No, but thank you."
Alice: "Just have one. One won't kill your diet."
John: "No. Definitely no. I promised myself I'd stick to my diet."
Alice: "Last chance.
John: "No . . . Okay, but just one."
Alice: "Okay. Here you go. Don't worry, one cookie won't ruin your diet."
John: "Aw what the Hell. Might as well make it two . . . No three."

[doug.goodman]

As for human nature, I prefer :

MAITRE D: And finally, monsieur, a wafer-thin mint.

MR. CREOSOTE: Nah.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir, it's only a tiny, little, thin one.

MR. CREOSOTE: No. Fuck off. I'm full.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir. Hmm?

MR. CREOSOTE: [groan]

MAITRE D: It's only wafer thin.

MR. CREOSOTE: Look. I couldn't eat another thing. I'm absolutely stuffed. Bugger off.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir, just-- just one.

MR. CREOSOTE: [groaning] All right. Just one.

[vintagesportscollector]

Originally Posted by doug.goodman

As for human nature, I prefer :

MR. CREOSOTE: No. Fuck off. I'm full.

I'm sitting here cracking up, and my wife is asking me what I am laughing at.. I'm a big Monty Python fan.

[barrysloate]

Originally Posted by doug.goodman

As for human nature, I prefer :

MAITRE D: And finally, monsieur, a wafer-thin mint.

MR. CREOSOTE: Nah.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir, it's only a tiny, little, thin one.

MR. CREOSOTE: No. Fuck off. I'm full.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir. Hmm?

MR. CREOSOTE: [groan]

MAITRE D: It's only wafer thin.

MR. CREOSOTE: Look. I couldn't eat another thing. I'm absolutely stuffed. Bugger off.

MAITRE D: Oh, sir, just-- just one.

MR. CREOSOTE: [groaning] All right. Just one.

I was just watching this on HBO a couple of nights ago. One of the funniest and grossest scenes in movie history.

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by drcy

Human nature:

Alice: "I just baked thus plate of chocolate chip cookies. Do you want one?"
John: "Thank you, but no. I'm on a diet and am not eating sweets."
Alice: "Are you sure?"
John: "No, but thank you."
Alice: "Just have one. One won't kill your diet."
John: "No. Definitely no. I promised myself I'd stick to my diet."
Alice: "Last chance.
John: "No . . . Okay, but just one."
Alice: "Okay. Here you go. Don't worry, one cookie won't ruin your diet."
John: "Aw what the Hell. Might as well make it two . . . No three."

But if you had to place a snipe for the maximum number of cookies you would eat, and then live with that decision because the cookies would be gone anyway, then you would only eat one...or maybe none.

[travrosty]

Originally Posted by vintagesportscollector

Fair question Travis - but you make it sound so easy...”figure out the highest amount you are willing to pay and no more..”. David addressed it well in post #48. I thought $111.11 was my highest and would easily win the item. Given the opportunity to bid another $1, I did. Since we were tied I knew the next increment would/could win it. I only bid the next minimum increment. Would I have gone to $120?...NO. I had the opportunity to get the item for another small increment and I decided to do it. Most people would…even you I bet.

Think of every item you have lost on ebay that you really wanted….now, think of this…after each time you lost someone tells you you can win it if you pay another $1. Would you say no?? Bullshit – of course you wouldn’t. You would throw in another $1 much of the time, going over “the highest amount you are willing to pay and no more..”. If you say you wouldn’t then I think you are lieing to yourself.

It’s all emotions, the thrill of the chase, yada yada yada…it happens to ALL of us.

it is easy, you are making it way too hard. when you make your initial bid, think about the max you are willing to pay, then think about what would happen if someone else wins it for 1 dollar more, and how you would have been willing to pay another 1 dollar more than that. Then you have NOT thought about your max bid, think about this process happening over and over and over again, and think about the highest, most ridiculous price being bid for this card, to the point where you say "that's enough, i just wont pay 1 more penny"

Then, and ONLY then, have you come to your max bid in your own mind. put that price down at the beginning of the auction and you don't have to worry about anything. There is always someone that might bid another dollar, it doesnt mean HIS max bid was only 1 dollar more than yours, you dont know how much more he might have ridiculously bid in order to win the item. I think people have regrets when they see that someone else got the item for only 1 dollar more than their max bid, but in reality the other guys max bid might have been way higher than yours.

So you don't have to sweat it, just think about the amount you would be willing to pay and not 1 penny more even if someone had a gun to your head, so to speak. It IS that easy, It's not hard.

[1952boyntoncollector]

Originally Posted by travrosty

it is easy, you are making it way too hard. when you make your initial bid, think about the max you are willing to pay, then think about what would happen if someone else wins it for 1 dollar more, and how you would have been willing to pay another 1 dollar more than that. Then you have NOT thought about your max bid, think about this process happening over and over and over again, and think about the highest, most ridiculous price being bid for this card, to the point where you say "that's enough, i just wont pay 1 more penny"

Then, and ONLY then, have you come to your max bid in your own mind. put that price down at the beginning of the auction and you don't have to worry about anything. There is always someone that might bid another dollar, it doesnt mean HIS max bid was only 1 dollar more than yours, you dont know how much more he might have ridiculously bid in order to win the item. I think people have regrets when they see that someone else got the item for only 1 dollar more than their max bid, but in reality the other guys max bid might have been way higher than yours.

So you don't have to sweat it, just think about the amount you would be willing to pay and not 1 penny more even if someone had a gun to your head, so to speak. It IS that easy, It's not hard.

right..eventually there is a max price you are willing to pay...when someone wants you to pay and says cmon its only 'only 1 dollar more' then bidding would go on forever if everyone had that philosophy..eventually there is no more '1 dollar more' that's worth it..

[vintagesportscollector]

Yes, eventually there is a max price you are willing to pay, of course there is, but everyone finds it that easy to lock in their max price up front?? Maybe it’s just me…(my wife says I am too emotional ).

In Theory, Travis, I hear what you are saying. I suppose MY problem is determining exactly the highest amount I am willing to pay or the “that’s enough not 1 penny more” point as you have described. BUT maybe that is just me and most everyone else finds that as EASY as you describe it. I admit I am flawed – call me human. My recent experience that I described is unique and specific (its not always as clear as $1 more will win it). Do you think I should have not bid the extra $1? (BTW - I am looking at the item now on my desk and really glad I won it).

But let me ask you this again? You go through your thought process to come up with your highest amount, following the steps you described for an item you really want. You’re perfect so you know you have confidently figured out your highest amount, because it is an exact science they way you described it. You snipe your bid and are losing but realize if you bid 1 penny more you would win it…would you bid the extra penny? You don’t have to answer because I am sure your response would be your bid would have already thought about that penny.

How many people out there have set a snipe bid and change/raised it at some point?

Edited to add: BTW, Travis, please don’t take my sarcasm as criticism, just provocative to stir the debate. It’s a good discussion, and honestly you do make a point and I am going to try to apply that in the future.

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by vintagesportscollector

Yes, eventually there is a max price you are willing to pay, of course there is, but everyone finds it that easy to lock in their max price up front?? Maybe it’s just me…(my wife says I am too emotional ).

In Theory, Travis, I hear what you are saying. I suppose MY problem is determining exactly the highest amount I am willing to pay or the “that’s enough not 1 penny more” point as you have described. BUT maybe that is just me and most everyone else finds that as EASY as you describe it. I admit I am flawed – call me human. My recent experience that I described is unique and specific (its not always as clear as $1 more will win it). Do you think I should have not bid the extra $1? (BTW - I am looking at the item now on my desk and really glad I won it).

But let me ask you this again? You go through your thought process to come up with your highest amount, following the steps you described for an item you really want. You’re perfect so you know you have confidently figured out your highest amount, because it is an exact science they way you described it. You snipe your bid and are losing but realize if you bid 1 penny more you would win it…would you bid the extra penny? You don’t have to answer because I am sure your response would be your bid would have already thought about that penny.

How many people out there have set a snipe bid and change/raised it at some point?

Edited to add: BTW, Travis, please don’t take my sarcasm as criticism, just provocative to stir the debate. It’s a good discussion, and honestly you do make a point and I am going to try to apply that in the future.

I "get" both sides of the argument and, yes Joe, you did have a unique circumstance where you knew $1 more would win it. That said, I may NOT have bid that extra buck because most times I'm thinking "Please, don't take my max bid to win!"

Case in point was a pinback I just won for $17.50 but had a $101.01 snipe on. Yes, I wanted it but it's probably not a $100 pin.

[vintagesportscollector]

Rob – That’s a good point. I too often place snipe bids hoping/praying it doesn’t take that max bid. In your example, that would be like me placing a $125 max bid on the $111.11 item (I previously said I won’t even go as high as $120) and hoping it wouldn’t go that high. If I place a max bid that possibly exceeds that value that I even place on the item – but place that bid to be extra extra extra sure I win it - I too wouldn’t go any higher. BUT, in my example no way was I going to lose placing a matching high bid, but still losing out - that just leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

[perezfan]

That "early bid" scenario is still flawed. If you plop down your highest bid early in the game, you are giving competing bidders much more time to act upon it. Why reveal your hand so early? There is absolutely no competitive advantage to doing so. You are just giving the "competition" an increased ability to top you.

Another problem is for those of us with "finite" budgets. If I win something unexpectedly early in the week, I may have less money to spend on the auction in question. No problem... I just reduce (or cancel) the snipe amount. It takes all of 15 seconds. Same holds true if a Catalogue comes in the mail that week.. and the eBay item subsequently loses some of its lustre.

I've changed snipe amounts as many as 6 times per week... and really don't think it's contributed towards killing the hobby!

[1952boyntoncollector]

Originally Posted by vintagesportscollector

Yes, eventually there is a max price you are willing to pay, of course there is, but everyone finds it that easy to lock in their max price up front?? Maybe it’s just me…(my wife says I am too emotional ).

In Theory, Travis, I hear what you are saying. I suppose MY problem is determining exactly the highest amount I am willing to pay or the “that’s enough not 1 penny more” point as you have described. BUT maybe that is just me and most everyone else finds that as EASY as you describe it. I admit I am flawed – call me human. My recent experience that I described is unique and specific (its not always as clear as $1 more will win it). Do you think I should have not bid the extra $1? (BTW - I am looking at the item now on my desk and really glad I won it).

But let me ask you this again? You go through your thought process to come up with your highest amount, following the steps you described for an item you really want. You’re perfect so you know you have confidently figured out your highest amount, because it is an exact science they way you described it. You snipe your bid and are losing but realize if you bid 1 penny more you would win it…would you bid the extra penny? You don’t have to answer because I am sure your response would be your bid would have already thought about that penny.

How many people out there have set a snipe bid and change/raised it at some point?

Edited to add: BTW, Travis, please don’t take my sarcasm as criticism, just provocative to stir the debate. It’s a good discussion, and honestly you do make a point and I am going to try to apply that in the future.

The one thing about being outbid by a dollar and not knowing exactly what exact dollar you will bid up too isn't a big deal when there will be the same type card up for auction again.....if its one of kind that's one thing but most things are ebay you can find again eventually...so losing out on a dollar isn't a big deal when can bid again on the same type of item again and maybe even get for less...or if lose..can then bid a few months later.....theres always another auction.....so don't worry about a margin of error in to what exact high dollar you were willing to offer.....you will have the opportunity to bid at another auction...heck I see 'winners' of a card try to resell the same exact card again which then sells for less at that auction (cause the former 'winner' isn't bidding on it anymore ) plus ebay fees they have to pay..

[vintagesportscollector]

That makes a lot of sense Jake, agreed. In my case the memorabilia item was pretty much one of a kind, in that I had never seen it in twenty years of collecting, and wouldn't expect to ever see it again. If it is a commodity like a card, or a mass produced memorabilia item, then totally agree with what you are saying.