Fed up with last second bids

[dercoggins]

I getting outbid 4 seconds before the end of an auction, when there has been no other prior bids. These bids are made by anonymous bidders, obviously professionals as they have 30 or so going at the same time. It's no fun any more - eBay must be losing buyers in droves - it's just becoming a commercial marketplace. There needs to be some changes made somehow - of course you can't contact anyone in eBay to complain directly. David

[zanadoo_56]

Anyone can use a snipe service to place bids - they are very useful when an auction ends at some godforsaken hour (or during work).  I use Gixen - and I'm not a 'professional'. 

If your maximum bid is high enough you can beat them, but if you only place bids by low increments then your chances of winning aren't as good.  It's the highest bid that wins.

[phorum_junkie*]

You don't need to be a 'professional' to snipe at the last minute, it can be done manually quite easily but why bother when you can use a snipe program. Highest bid wins whatever time it is placed so if you lose somebody else was prepared to pay more than you regardless of when they placed their bid.

The only time when a bid is placed matters is if the snipe bid and your max bid are the same, if you have placed a proxy bid earlier you will win.

[syrupsmummy]

When I am really keen on an item I snipe it with my maximum bid manually when less than 10 seconds left. I'm not professional and I don't bid on auction so often. I like to buy items as cheap as possible and it's not wise to keep bidding earlier because it get the price up.

Sniping at the last seconds doesn't mean I can win. If previous bidder's maximum bid is higher than my maximum bid I will lose at the end. You just need to put your maximum bid as the maximum price you would pay. And if you are outbidded someone else was willing to pay more.

[songqi13]

this good for seller business when get higher prices

[dercoggins]

Oh yes, good for sellers. Thanks for the replies. I guess if I want to win anything I'll just have to join the snipers.

[lyndal1838]

You do not have to snipe to win...you just have to have the highest amount.  But it does help if you place that bid at the end of the auction so nibble bidders do not have the time to try and outbid you.

[extra-keen]

My technique is to just place a bid at the highest price I am willing to pay for that item. If I win, I win, if not move on. Still fun and sometimes I get a bargain. And so do my customers sometimes when they bid on my items I hope.:-)

[peternt2001]

I getting p-ed off with being outbid 4 seconds before the end of an auction, when there has been no other prior bids. These bids are made by anonymous bidders, obviously professionals as they have 30 or so going at the same time. It's no fun any more - eBay must be losing buyers in droves - it's just becoming a commercial marketplace. There needs to be some changes made somehow - of course you can't contact anyone in eBay to complain directly. David

You arent being beaten by snipers, you are being beaten by people who are prepared to pay more than you. If your bid was the highest you would win.

i only buy on ebay and i dont use a snipping tool, auctions i am interested in that finish when i am at home, i will wait until the last 10 seconds to place my bid. Those that i am not home for i will place what i am prepared to pay as my bid and leave it at that.

You sound like you are in the trap that i was in when i first started on ebay, getting into nibble bidding trying to top the last bids by a little increment. All that does is push the price up and potentially gets you into a situation where you end up paying more for an item than you were prepared too.

When you are interested in an item, work out what YOU are prepared to pay for it and bid that amount, dont try and work out what others are prepared to pay and try and out bid them

[leader-of-the-band]

Oh yes, good for sellers.

just remember, it is sellers that pay eBay fees, not buyers!  Are you begrudging sellers getting a fair price for their items by attracting more than one bidder? Or do you just want to get the items you bid on at the opening bid amount?