As far as I know, there aren't many (maybe not any) categories where you can put a reserve price on an item. Not in the everyday categories, at least. I suppose cars or property would be different.
If you start an auction at a 99c price, you may be lucky and it might get lots of bids to push the price up, but don't count on it!!
Someone here worked out your fees if it sells for 99c. You would be out of pocket.
Ebay doesn't care. They want you to list cheap so things will sell and they will get their commission, but you notice there is no consideration or allowance for you, where your fees cannot exceed the cost of the item?
So, you need to decide what you would like for the item, minimum.
Close the auction now and relist.
Years ago, I used to sell in a small way, probably about 10 mixed items a week. I found that listing an item cheaply didn't necessarily push up the price at all. Even if you get two bids, you can end up selling for $1.25, which is hardly inspiring. Even a rash of bids might only push it up to $5 because people are in the mind set often that it should go cheap.
But if you start it off at a more realistic price, if someone wants it they will still bid.
It's probably worth having a read through the ebay selling information so you know just how it works and what fees you could be up for, so that you have an idea of what listing prices would suit you best.
