24 Apr
2003
24 Apr
'03
4:30 a.m.
Jeffrey,
When two or more bidders are competing in the final
moments of an
auction, they
get caught in the excitement of battle, and those
psychological forces
induce them
to place bids higher then they would have normally
placed. I have
experienced it both
as a seller and as a bidder.
This happens sometimes. I've been there. Sometimes my best way to keep from
getting
caught up in it is to enter my bid ( that hopefully only purely rational
thought has gone into
making that decision, leaving emotion out of it ) into a bid sniping
service, and then walking
away from it. Come back after it's all over and then see if the item was
won or not.
My favorite idea is simply to have sealed bids.
A sealed bid sale is effectively where every bid is the same as the snipe
bid. I'd bid at a few
sealed bid sales. I generally liked them, but again, you don't have the
chance to change your
mind and increase your bid if you're not the high bidder.
At 10:48 AM 4/24/03 -0500, you wrote:
On Thursday, April 24, 2003, Innfogra(a)aol.com wrote:
Actually, as a seller, I think the eBay process
sucks. It is the second
best bidder that really sets the price. The advantage really is to the
bidder.
I feel that the advantage quite frequently tilts to the seller. When two or
more bidders are competing in the final moments of an auction, they get
caught in the excitement of battle, and those psychological forces induce
them to place bids higher then they would have normally placed. I have
experienced it both as a seller and as a bidder.
Another very successful Internet auction run by
LabX is a much preferred
model for me. It is where the sale is extended by a minute or two when
each bid comes in at the end of the auction. WWW.labx.com
My favorite idea is simply to have sealed bids. That is, you don't know the
high bid until the auction closes. Doing it that way prevents last-minute
psychology from causing bad decisions.
--
Jeffrey Sharp