posted on November 25, 2001 01:34:51 PM new
Heya all,
I'm going through all of my stuff today and revamping... looking at prices, TOS, all of that and redoing things that aren't working well enough or aren't working at all. Learning process, this is.
I'm thinking about taking off 'Buy it Now' on all of my auctions, at least until the Holidays are over, but I'm torn between whether or not this is a good idea. On the one hand, I want my auctions to actually get bids and, thus, by getting bids, sell for more than the 'bin' price. On the other hand, I don't want to take that option away, potentially ending an auction sooner and getting payment for it sooner. On the third hand (mutating, here), I'm concerned about listing fees... I never bothered to check, is your listing fee based on the BIN price, or the auction price?
Anyways, I was hoping folks would share their experience/opinions on using 'buy it now'. Thanks!
posted on November 25, 2001 02:39:05 PM new
To BIN or not to BIN, that is the question.
As to cost, happily the insertion fee is based on the starting auction price, not the BIN price. I have lots of items close to $25, 50 and 100 that I can save a little on listing , but the BIN prices are $30, $55 and $105. It is one of the few money saving things you can do on ebay without breaking or bending the many rules.
Around the holidays I like to offer mostly items with BIN prices since people are sometimes in a rush and don't want to wait out an auction. I do put a BIN one to five dollars higher than my starting bid, and it is a price I can live with. I would rather have a hot bid-it-up auction, but they don't happen much these days, at least not since I sold a group of American flags in September/October. Now that WAS exciting.
I made the mistake of listing a couple of them with a BIN and undercut my potential sale. So it depends on what you are selling, how many you have, and whether there are a lot of people looking for them.
posted on November 25, 2001 07:33:55 PM new
I am using Buy It Now on more of my auctions lately and it seems like alot of my items are selling higher with Buy It Now than they normally would if the auction continued to the end......of coarse do your homework before setting your Buy It Now price.......but I love it!
posted on November 26, 2001 04:29:05 AM new
I have started to use BIN over the last 2 or 3 months. I have not sold one thing that way. I don't put the BIN price to high either. I guess it just doesn't work for me, or either the right people just have not looked at my auctions.
posted on November 26, 2001 07:19:19 AM new
As nanas turtles suggested, do a little homework, experiment with various BIN prices to see if another formula might work.
If you have a number of identical items, you might make it the same price as the starting bid in order to gain maximum turnover at a modest profit.
I would rather sell 10 items in 10 days at $5 profit each, than one item at the end of a 10 day auction with a $25 profit, especially if I have a lot of widgets just sitting around taking up space.
posted on November 26, 2001 09:35:19 AM new
I start all of mine at the opening bid and add, usually, a 1.00 or 2.00, sometimes only 50 cents.
Still hasn't worked for me.
Over on Yahoo, I use the same method, almost, the difference is that usually my BIN price there is up to 5.00 over the starting bid. I have sold a lot of stuff there using the BIN, so I don't know what makes it different at Ebay.
posted on November 26, 2001 09:50:10 AM new
Offering a Buy Now Price
http://www.auctionwatch.com/awdaily/tipsandtactics/sel-buynow.html
Knowing when to Buy It Now
http://www.auctionwatch.com/awdaily/tipsandtactics/buy-knowbuy.html
If my Buy It Now is in the mid-range of the completed auction values, the auction tends to close within a day or two with a BIN. Offer "free shipping" as a bonus and your auctions with close a BIN even quicker. Drive buyers to your eBay Store as the BIN price is listed by default for auction items.
posted on November 26, 2001 10:40:02 AM new
So is what you are saying this--- that maybe if I started the bidding at the amount I need to get for the item. Add a buy it now price for the cost of shipping or maybe 50 cents above cost and state that shipping is free if you use BIN -- this works?
Seems logical, but I think most people would figure that out, wouldn't they.
Maybe I just read your post wrong. If so please forgive me. I am just looking for ways to make BIN work for me.
posted on November 26, 2001 12:34:40 PM new
When 51%+ of similar items are selling higher than your target price, use a regular auction.
[ edited by quickdraw29 on Nov 26, 2001 12:41 PM ]
posted on November 26, 2001 12:41:57 PM new
I don't very often use the BIN on eBay, but all the time on Yahoo. I find that sometimes the items I would probably have put a BIN price of $10 on, can go up to $50 with a couple of keen bidders.
posted on November 26, 2001 01:55:09 PM new
BIN on yahoo is significantly different from on ebaY - on ebaY the BIN option disappears when a lower bid (meeting reserve if applicable) is received, whereas on yahoo it stays (and lot can never go higher than the BIN offer). As bids attract lookers the presence of lower bids (either on yahoo or under reserve on ebay) can increase the liklihood of someone taking the BIN.
posted on November 26, 2001 02:01:29 PM new
You can do the same on eBay by setting the Reserve Price the same as the BIN Price. It adds to your listing fees, but it is effective at times.
