What do you think of sniping on eBay?

It's great to read all your thoughts on this. I knew my post would generate some good, fun discussion.

Personally, I like to enter the maximum I'm willing to pay for something in stealthbid, then go out for dinner or something while the auction ends. If I come home and I've won, great, if not, well it was more than I wanted to pay anyhow.
 
Yes, but there's no way for the other bidder to know how high you would have gone... or for you to know how high the other bidder would have gone, when your situations are reversed. So there's no real way to say what "would" have happened -- neither party has enough information to predict the outcome of any given scenario, except in hindsight.

Someday, some math grad student is going to be able to do a great thesis on the application of game theory to eBay bidding! It's a perfect laboratory, and there are always millions of transactions' worth of data available...
 
The key to disciplined bidding, as some have noted, is the determine one maximum price you are willing to pay, and bid only once and not look until the auction is over. Chasing bids is the most foolhardy endeavor. What I would like to see is Ebay offering sniping as a service, much like they now offer a specific list time (for sellers) that costs 10 cents more. That would obviate the need to give out our account information to sniping services. Plus it would generate more revenue for Ebay. On the other hand, you could end up with most auctions sitting with no bids until the last 5 seconds. Ah well 🙂 Probably not the most comforting thing for sellers.
 
Natalia said:
Guilty...but I only bid what I am willing to shell out🙂
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Natalia,

I too, will only bid the maximum I'm willing to pay for any item. I will also include the cost of shipping as part of the final price.
When I go hunting in eBay I am looking for the best quality for the lowest price...I am bargain hunting. If I can find an item at a local camera show for the same price or less, I'll get it there (no shipping cost).
The only time I am willing to put out good money is, if this is the only place I will be able to get it, and that doesn't happen too often. eBay does open up a bigger market place to shop in and sometimes I can predict the final price and sometimes my jaw hits the floor when I miss out on an auction that goes for pennies on the dollar.
 
sockeyed said:
I'll admit it - I do it. I sometimes use stealthbid to snipe auctions. And sometimes I even win them.

Am I a bad person?
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Yes, you are. You are morally deficient and should probably be excommunicated. How can you sleep at night? : )

But seriously, late bidding is the only way to win desirable items on Ebay. I have the feeling the term "sniping" was invented by those bewildered souls who found themselves constantly outbid and couldn't figure out the logic of Ebay bidding that other posters have so eloquently described here.

Always remember: Sniping is good and should be done as often as possible! : )
 
I practice fiscal responsibility and put my bid during the last five seconds. I can only speak for myself, but my price is set well in advance -- if the item exceeds my price at anytime before the auction is over then I do not bid. However, if it is below then I enter my bid during the last five seconds -- I do not very often lose. There are no firm rules for eBay that apply to every situation and all goods being sold, but with especially rare items (e.g. lenses produced in quantities of less than 300, cameras that fewer than 50 were made) there is always someone willing to pay a few dollars more for these items -- the values are far too subjective.
 
I have no objection to sniping although I never do it myself. I simply put in my proxy bid for the maximum amount I'm willing to pay and then walk away until the auction is over. If somebody snipes me or outbids me, so be it. Otherwise, it's way too easy to get caught up in trying to win the item.

If I really, really, really, want an item, I just look for a seller who offers the "buy it now" option and use it if the price listed is a fair market price... eventually I'll find what I'm looking for.
 
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I snipe. It's that simple. I set a maximum amount that I'll bid and submit it within the final 5 seconds. The only two problems I've had have been wishing I'd bid more (after the fact and after losing) and a slow computer connection that held up my bid too long and the auction ended before my bid got there.

Only minutes ago I watched a Vivitar 285-HV flash unit in excellent condition go for $41. I decided not to snipe it as it had no accessories, instructions or box. I was surprised that no one else sniped it either and the $41 bid earlier held up.

Walker
 
There are a lot of eBay bidders who make multiple bids in fairly quick succession. I emailed one of these after he'd "won" the auction to ask why he did this. The answer was to "feel" for the reserve amount or try to discover what someone else had bid. I figure this is for those who treat this as a game to win... eBay surely loves them and wishes we all would likewise "play" to "win," where ego gets in the way of fiscal common sense.

So I always make one bid only, a late one to keep the gamers from getting their egos ruffled with time to do something about it! 🙂 Most often I decline to bid as the price rises past what I'd be willing to pay. I try to stay well down below prices on B&H or KEH, considering their lower risk, return priviledges, and direct payment by credit card.

There is a thrill in being the high bidder, especially at the end, but it's tempered by the thought that I was simply the one who expressed a willingness to pay more than anyone else!
 
rover said:
Well, you can window shop, just can't step into the store.
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Not step in the store, but also not handle any goods that may be in the bargain bin outside the store. 😉
 
Honestly, when i first time encountered a sniper winning against me in the last four seconds i was terribly pissed off how unfair the world is. Then, several RFF members kindly explained to me (some in private some publically) that yes sniping is a bad thing but necessary if you want to win an item that IS somewhat popular.
So i did use esnipe on my contax rf, succesfully.
I think if noone would snipe, ebay auctions would be much more fun. But that cannot be guaranteed, therefore everybody should have the right and possibility for sniping. No moralties involved - only people who can afford bidding will be outbid.

By the way, if i'd really think that sniping is bad, i would conclude that the contax got stolen because i sniped it, so i did not deserve to have it. Hmm, good that i'm not that kind of deterministic guy.

And, as once somebody so perfectly formulated (ofer here on RFF i think),
"Even if you have more sense than money, as a potential buyer you'll be competing with people who have more money than sense."
 
Honu-Hugger said:
I practice fiscal responsibility and put my bid during the last five seconds. I can only speak for myself, but my price is set well in advance -- if the item exceeds my price at anytime before the auction is over then I do not bid. However, if it is below then I enter my bid during the last five seconds -- I do not very often lose. There are no firm rules for eBay that apply to every situation and all goods being sold, but with especially rare items (e.g. lenses produced in quantities of less than 300, cameras that fewer than 50 were made) there is always someone willing to pay a few dollars more for these items -- the values are far too subjective.
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I actually took out a calculator yesterday, figured in the high shipping charges of an item, expected repair, sale of a lens in the kit, bid and lost by $20. I feel good though because I know that I bid the right amount for me, and that other opportunities will come up.
 
Sniping did not only bring me some bargains I didn't expect at all (such as the Canon P + 50/1.8, or the Oly SPn), but also introduced me to Matt Denton himself, as he sniped a Isolette I was bidding for 🙂

After that I became a sniper myself and we still keep exchanging emails. Nice guy.

With US auctions ending at night hours for Europeans, these sleeping bids are very handy for us. That said, I think I've only sniped successfully 2 or 3 items in all my ebay life, and the best deals so far have always come from this forum or photo.net, usually very nice people as well.
 
Hello, my name is oftheherd, and I am a sniper.



I do it sometimes for things I really am interested in, but as others have said, only up to what I have figured I am willing to pay. That with the shipping cost and any cost of repair.
I wouldn't go into a local store and pay more than a certain price. Why should I do it on ebay where there is more of a chance of disappointment?
 
I've never used a sniping service -- didn't even know they existed. Nor any sniping software, which I have looked at. I'm content to just do it manually.

What's a "stealth bid" and how is it done?
 
it's just an automated bid service. it "sneaks in" your bid at the last second.

i sniped an auction just now. manually, though.
 
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