Sniping

[sencho]

Does anyone have any experience of using a sniping site... which one is best??

 

Cheers

[Sporkkaji]

There was a must have item once and I couldn't be home at the end of the auction to do a manual snipe. I tried Gixen, it was free and it worked perfectly. Of course it's necessary to give them your Ebay password, so once the auction is complete you will want to change it. Also make sure your Paypal password is different entirely just in case.

[DirkO]

I use Justsnipe.com - you get 5 free snipes per week which is a lot more than I ever use.

[Brian]

I also use Justsnipe. I don't bid without it..even if I am awake and at the pc.

Works.

 

Brian

[Gunome]

Hello,

 

I never used a such software, but just to understand, what is the aim of bidding just before the end of the auction, and so using these kinds of software ?

If you want to bid on an item in ebay for example, you just had to put your maximum bid and wait the end of the auction.

[Brian]

Sebastian,

You save money. Lots of money.

I have written down all the reasons many times on many different forums, and the exact psychology would fill a book. But basically it comes down to auction fever and timing.

Firstly, by bidding right at the end, you don't give the other bidders enough time to up their bids. Most people don't just put their maximum down, they creep up to it.

Secondly, no-one keeps to what they planned on bidding maximum. This is auction fever.

Let's say I put in an early maximum bid of $100. The other bidder planned on bidding maximum of $80. So your bid is in early. Maybe the price is at $50. The other guy puts in $60, and your bid is upped. So he puts in $70...then $80. So now you win the item at $80, when you could have gotten it at $60 if you didn't bid early and invite everyone to explore your max.

 

Or..even more likely. The guy plans on spending $80. But at that price, you keep outbidding him because you set an early high bid. So now auction fever kicks in, and he really wants to know what your max bid is, and is angry he can't get the high bid. So he goes to $85..then $90...then $95....maybe $100. So even if you win it, you paid more than you would have if you just sniped. If he sniped at $80, and you sniped at $100, you would have probably gotten it for $85. But auction fever will make him go higher just to see where your early bid is.

 

Very few people will keep to the max that they planned on bidding in the heat of the moment. This desire to know what the other guy's max is, leads people to spend more. After all..what is another $10 or $20 or $50?

By sniping, you remove that temptation to bid higher, and take away the other guy's ability to go higher than he wanted to.

 

Just remember that most auctions for stuff that is desirable nowdays are at least doubling in the last 10 seconds nowdays..and sometimes more than that.

 

Brian

 

Ps - What a lot of people ask is how sniping works. It puts your max bid in at the last moment. That doesn'tmean the price jumps up to that price immediately. It only goes to one increment above the next highest bid, same as if you bid. It will then up the imcrement automatically until your max is reached.

[Gunome]

Hello Brian,

 

Thanks for your reply and clear explanation.

I am not used to buy on ebay (my bought average sould be about 4 items per year) and I discover this kind of software with this post !

As you said, it is more psychologies reasons. Now I understand the utility of the sniping site.

 

thanks

 

Sebastien

[cabowen]

Many other auction sites, especially the Japanese sites, keep adding additional time to the auction if there are any bids in the last few minutes. This renders sniping null. I am shocked that ebay hasn't caught on to this as it often means higher end prices (and more money for ebay)....

[estcrh]

Many other auction sites, especially the Japanese sites, keep adding additional time to the auction if there are any bids in the last few minutes. This renders sniping null. I am shocked that ebay hasn't caught on to this as it often means higher end prices (and more money for ebay)....

Chris, you are absolutely right, allowing sniping costs Ebay sellers a lot of money, I have taken advantage of this myself , and have lost out on buying at the last second also on many occasions and have always wondered why Ebay would allow this practice to continue.

[sencho]

Thanks for the info... I will sign up with justsnipe.com.

 

C. Lewis - I appreciate your good points that I had not considered...

 

As for who it benefits or not, I really don't care... it is all part of the game... But I am eyeing auction that it will certainly benefit me to use it on.

 

Cheers!

[estcrh]

Thanks for the info... I will sign up with justsnipe.com.

 

C. Lewis - I appreciate your good points that I had not considered...

 

As for who it benefits or not, I really don't care...

Except when someone out snipes your snipe!

[sencho]

Except when someone out snipes your snipe!

 

No Eric...

 

Win some, lose some... doesn't matter... once again, it is all part of the game... I have my maximum and if I lose than there will be other auctions..,

 

I am in meetings during the end of the auction when I would put in a last minute bid.... so it makes no difference... the way it benefits me, is that I can conduct real business, while I arse around online!!

 

Cheers

[kusunokimasahige]

I have looked at several snipe sites and most if not all of them want your ebay account name as well as password.

 

Does anyone have a problem with this ? (personally I do)..

 

Are there any sites which allow a snipe without having to give your pwd ?

 

KM

[Grey Doffin]

Since the sites are bidding for you they have to be able to log onto ebay as you, for which they need your password. I doubt they have much interest in buying you stuff you didn't ask for (Who ordered the Bloomers?) so I don't think you have to worry.

Grey

[Thierry BERNARD]

Hi

 

you can also use standalone softwares

 

http://www.auctionsoftwarereview.com/

[kusunokimasahige]

Thank you Thierry !!

 

KM

 

Ps, Grey, I know that the sites like esnipe need to login as you, but i have a policy never to divulge any of my pwds to anyone other than myself. That has kept me safe online for years...

[FBJ]

I haven't read through all the posts here, but I'm very familiar with sniping.

 

My advice. Use sniping software over a sniping website. Purchase an Auction Sentry license (one-time purchase, lifetime updates). It will allow you to itemize as many auctions concurrently as you want. It sits active in your task tray and will run even when you're away from your machine. It's very much a set-it-and-forget it sort of thing.

 

This may have already been said, but sniping is no guarantee you'll win an auction, but it will help you win more items for lower prices. Early bidding wars are great for sellers but are a nuisance for buyers. If you see an item on eBay that carries value but there are no bidders, either it's early in the auction or snipers are poised to strike. Sniping is generally used to eliminate the manual bidders who submit low maximum bids from the equation.

 

If you're a budding sniper, familiarize yourself with how eBay increments its bid intervals, and how to bid certain values to maximize your chances of taking the auction if someone else bids the same as you. In other words, bid in 0.01 cent increments or higher. I generally bid at my maximum plus 99 cents.

[Mark T]

Here's a second vote for Gixen. It's free and reliable.