EBay bidding

[Hilltopperny]

Haven't bid on anything for a bit and decided to today. I can't help but feel that there is someone bidding up the item for the seller as my max bid was reached and then I raised it and it was immediately reached, but not surpassed again. Seems a bit odd to me and not sure if I'm being paranoid or what. Anybody else have a similar experience?

[belopsky]

huh

[LJohnny]

yes, it happens all the time. Shill bidding, is what is called. That is why most people snipe-bid nowadays

[Hilltopperny]

Yes it's shill bidding, but the item has under 12 hours to go so how do I remove my bid? I'm not cool with being taken advantage of.

[VanBikeGuy]

That's why I snipe. Too many times have I been outbid only to see it relisted within hours of ending. Always puts a bad taste in my mouth.

[Peter P.]

Isn't shill bidding a risky proposition?

Assume the shill-er wins and has to pay up-won't there be eBay fees to be paid even though the object never changes hands?

[nmrt]

i have encountered what i feel is "shill bidding" as well though i have no way of knowing for sure. it happens a lot and i hate it. not much you can do now regarding your bid except to ask the seller politely to cancel your bid. but that is his discretion.

[Hilltopperny]

Isn't shill bidding a risky proposition?

Assume the shill-er wins and has to pay up-won't there be eBay fees to be paid even though the object never changes hands?

Not if the buyer allows the shill bidder to pull their bid. Then they get the max payout for the item.

[nmrt]

Perhaps the seller claims that the shill-er never paid...? then re-lists it without any fees...?
Isn't shill bidding a risky proposition?

Assume the shill-er wins and has to pay up-won't there be eBay fees to be paid even though the object never changes hands?

[Hilltopperny]

Definitely leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Hopefully somebody outbids it, but I doubt it at this point.

[tuscanyswe]

The info you provided alone doesn't mean something was not right.

If i for instance put in a max bid of a 100$ on ebay on an item and I'm currently the highest bidder at 50, then you come along, and bid 75 then ebay would automatically increase my bid to the lowest bid higher than your max provided my maximum bid covers this. In this case ebay would let me be the highest bidder at the first step over your 75, lets say thats 80. So this happens very fast and its automated.

Then you increase your max bid since you did not become highest bidder. You put in a 105. Now ebay will bid my maximum to try and cover your max which obviously is not enough this time so the bidding will automatcly say you are now the highest bidder at the next step over my maximum of a 100$.

You are now in highest bidder at 105 and the bidding may seem to have stopped for a while since ebay have no automated higher bid to put down until me or someone else come along and increase the bid.

[kppolich]

Haven't bid on anything for a bit and decided to today. I can't help but feel that there is someone bidding up the item for the seller as my max bid was reached and then I raised it and it was immediately reached, but not surpassed again. Seems a bit odd to me and not sure if I'm being paranoid or what. Anybody else have a similar experience?

could very likely be the seller him/herself with a second account bidding up their own item as well. eBay has been working on identifying this.

[Hilltopperny]

Yes, I didn't expect so.much competition with 7 hrs left, but I was just outbid and have no intention of going any higher at this point. I will stick to buying my bikes here as that's always turned out great.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[VanBikeGuy]

I almost leave all of my bidding to sniping now. If I get it great, if not, there is always something else. Just picked up a Pinarello K8-S for a fantastic price by using this strategy. Still waiting for it to arrive though.

[quickfeet]

Sniping is the only way to buy on eBay now. eBay very cleverly changed all their marketing to speak to a person "winning" an item to increase the feeling of competition thus making buyers want to to bid more to win. It's not winning, it's buying, and the only way to "win" at eBay is to get a lower than average price for an item.

[woolly]

The info you provided alone doesn't mean something was not right.

If i for instance put in a max bid of a 100$ on ebay on an item and I'm currently the highest bidder at 50, then you come along, and bid 75 then ebay would automatically increase my bid to the lowest bid higher than your max provided my maximum bid covers this. In this case ebay would let me be the highest bidder at the first step over your 75, lets say thats 80. So this happens very fast and its automated.

Then you increase your max bid since you did not become highest bidder. You put in a 105. Now ebay will bid my maximum to try and cover your max which obviously is not enough this time so the bidding will automatcly say you are now the highest bidder at the next step over my maximum of a 100$.

You are now in highest bidder at 105 and the bidding may seem to have stopped for a while since ebay have no automated higher bid to put down until me or someone else come along and increase the bid.

What he said.

From eBay, "How Bidding Works":

In auction-style listings, you place increasing bids to buy an item. The highest bidder wins once the auction ends. In some cases, the seller may set a hidden minimum price, known as a reserve price, which has to be met for the item to be sold.

When you're bidding on an item, we recommend you enter the highest amount you're willing to pay. This is your maximum bid. No one sees it. You won't necessarily pay your maximum, and if no one else bids as high as your maximum, you’ll pay less.

We automatically increase your bid for you, up to your maximum, to maintain your position as the high bidder or to meet the item's reserve price. We'll notify you each time your bid is increased or if you've been outbid.

Alternatively, you can enter the lowest amount needed to beat the current highest bid. Keep in mind, if the current highest bidder is using automatic bidding and has set a maximum amount higher than your bid, you'll be outbid instantly.

Only bid on items you intend to buy. In most cases, you can't retract your bid. If you win, you must pay the seller.

[Bentley]

I use eSnipe. Basically I enter my max bid but it does not make the bid till near the end of the auction so I find less bidding up. I set my limit and either I win or I don't.

Ray

[Cicli]

You didnt get bid up.
You entered what you were willing to pay. If you want it for less, bid less. Its that easy.

Oh and, ebay sucks.

[Ralph]

I just wait for about 5 seconds to go, then bid. But someone with sniping software will still beat me sometimes.

And then sometimes I outsmart myself. With a couple seconds to go....link to E bay goes dead, or I lose Internet for a couple seconds. Or laptop goes to sleep. And I miss something I really wanted....and was willing to pay a good bit above the winning bid.

Still think best way is to bid late. E bay is OK....just have to understand how it works and not let it bother you. And sure....lots of folks have their buddies bid their stuff up. Classic car bidding is a good example.

[Shoeman]

I bid in the last 7-10 seconds I win more than lose. I set my bidding limit at I want to pay. If no one is paying attention I will bump my price to make sure I win. Sometimes I will place the first bid at the start, especially if it starts at .99 just to gauge interest.

[oldpotatoe]

Yes, I didn't expect so much competition with 7 hrs left, but I was just outbid and have no intention of going any higher at this point. I will stick to buying my bikes here as that's always turned out great.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

It may or may not be a 'shill'. Could be your bid was less than somebody else's max bid. I see something, I bid till it's not worth it me to go higher. Sometimes I win, sometimes I don't. As you said, 'no intention of going higher'..there ya go..

And for above, ebay doesn't suck, 'some' people on ebay suck..ebay is just the vehicle..IMHO..

[mayal7]

I use eSnipe. Basically I enter my max bid but it does not make the bid till near the end of the auction so I find less bidding up. I set my limit and either I win or I don't.

Ray

I once tried using eSnipe, but didn't work for me. Not sue what happened :eek:

[eBAUMANN]

I never bid with more than 5 seconds left in the auction, and I never enter a bid ending in zero or 5... ;)