posted on January 28, 2004 03:44:52 AM new
...would eBay's system be overwhelmed?
Probably not. When running an interactive system such as eBay, the database connections are made/released so quickly that it should take a large number of bids (such as a denial-of-service attack) to kill them.
The problem for (manual) snipers is that they usually are not as quick as they think they are, they may have a slower response time than they think, or their system clock is not in sync with eBay.
Since I have gotten quite used to leaving left bids at live auctions, I now just leave my max bid and forget about it. Keeps you from getting "auction fever", too.
posted on January 28, 2004 07:48:58 AM new
Damariscotta -
What amazes me - Here and there, something from my father's collectibles will turn up as being "hot." For instance, out of 6 kits for building wooden ships from the 1940's, the "Fire Boat Alert" got the most interest and the most bidding.
Every time this happens, somebody emails me - they want me to cancel the auction and sell it to them directly. Of course, I refuse - if I have a hot auction with a lot of bidders, why would I end it early? But I also point out - politely - that they should leave a proxy bid in the system and maybe they'll get lucky and get it for less.
AND THEY NEVER DO!!!
With the Fire Boat, a guy was willing to buy it for $175 when the bidding was still at $92. At the close, he was in there bidding last minute - and lost to another guy with a top bid of $152.50.
Another mystery: My father has a fair number of model railroading books and videos from the 1990's that are still current releases. Someone could just as well order them from an online retailer, so I discount them by half or two-thirds - the starting bids are usually $8.99 or $9.99 vs. a full retail price of $15.95 to $29.95. Usually, they trade up a bit and sell at half price.
But, inevitably, I get emails from Holland, Brazil, Sweden ...asking for permission to bid. And, my ads say *US BIDDERS ONLY. I DO NOT SHIP OVERSEAS OR TO CANADA.*
It's not the rare books or the vintage books. My father has books going back to the 1930's. I sold two of the big "Cyclopedia" books that are always hot.
I don't get a peep from the international crowd with those. It's the current release stuff.
Why would I want to mail a $10 or $15 book or video to Brazil or Holland?
I wonder if these people overseas are serious - they seem to be. But they could just as well buy from an online retailer who does international shipping on a regular basis - the difference would be perhaps $10.
Any thoughts on this one?
PS, my ads also emphasize *NO CREDIT CARDS.*
I do cash only through a PayPal personal account, so it can't be the credit card charge back crowd.
posted on January 28, 2004 07:48:59 AM new
Wow! I thought I was the only one getting ebay fatigue. After 4 years and about 3000 auctions I can hardly do it anymore. Go figure.
I think it is a combination of ebay's subtle pressure pushing out small sellers, higher fees, lower prices, too many auctions.
posted on January 28, 2004 08:01:00 AM new
rozrr, yesterday I saw a post on another board that a guy placed a snipe bid with 10 seconds left in the auction. He was mad because his bid didn't make it through Ebay's system. I still say sniping is bad for business. Like I said before, have you ever seen a auction end before the bidding was over.
posted on January 28, 2004 08:52:14 AM new
I rarely bid on anything. I use buy it now and pay for the item ASAP. The other day I won an auction. In less than 24 hours i have received three invoices and a few emails telling me to pay ASAP. This is truly annoying. No where in their terms does it state you must pay ASAP. What if I want to send a check or money order?
I give people at ten business days to pay before I start sending the reminders. Most people right way.
The good news is that business is picking up on my sites and someday I would love to chuck Ebay.
posted on January 28, 2004 10:05:43 AM new
<<Any thoughts on this one? >>
If I could figure out why some people do the things they do I would be so rich I would be too busy spending money to come and post here. We can only guess at these reasons, but they are just as wacky in the off-line world.
posted on January 28, 2004 10:17:07 AM new
It has to deal with what you sell, because just like everyone I have NPB to file, but my guess I am looking at 1-2% of transactions. Maybe instead of quitting, maybe take the time to look for different things to sell?
posted on January 28, 2004 02:17:05 PM new
Roz: I truly believe that there are many ebay searchers who are not aware of all the book sites out there. Or they're on ebay anyway and decide to look for the book they want there. Sometimes I don't have the time to search for the rock-bottom price; if I find a book at a reasonable price, for me, I just get it.
I think many people around the world have never bought on the internet until they tried ebay and they're just not up to date on the other sites for identical items!
___________________________________
"I have resolved to allow my friends their peculiarities." -- Samuel Johnson
posted on January 28, 2004 08:20:22 PM new
Roadsmith -
I think you may be right - they haven't bothered to search beyond eBay.
When I get someone from overseas asking to bid, I say no - politely - but I also include a couple of URL's for sites where they can buy the book or video from a professional merchant who ships internationally.
BigPeepa ...I've had some of my bidders say that, too - that the auction should automatically be extended if the bidding is still ongoing.
But I can't imagine how eBay would juggle that because of the volume of auctions.
I would love it, if they did. A couple of my hot auctions could have/would have gone a couple of notches higher
