eBay Question:

[Curti]

Is it possible for the seller to view the max bid of a potential buyer? I always bid an odd amount in dollars and cents. for example $37.43 on an item listed for say $24.

The reason I ask, is recently I have bid on items on the last day of three different auctions that had no bids. In each case I won the auction but some one bid against me within an hour of the end but did not exceed my high bid.

1) I won the auction because I was the first bidder to bid

2) I won by one cent

3) I won by exactly 1$

Am I lucky, or does the seller have a friend ?

[misterc9]

They can't see your max bid . This is just how some people bid and is coincidental.

[Matt Harwood]

I don't think so. I've never seen the top bids on cars I've listed on Ebay--if I had been able to, I bet I could have closed more deals. I can't explain what happened to you, it does seem coincidental, but maybe it's just random chance? Do you bid an unusual amount (like some guys will bid the year of the car on my auctions). I do occasionally wonder if Ebay has employees or automated processes that throw bids on items as long as they're under reserve to try to get things sold (chandelier bidding, which happens a lot at live auctions). For instance, I have a car listed starting at $1000 with a Buy It Now of $99,900. There are always a bunch of people who throw bids out there which are nowhere close to the actual price and they have to know it. Why? Why'd did you just bid $2261 on a $100,000 car? Did you think you'd get it by accident? Do you want to tell your buddies you tried to buy it but were out-bid at the last moment?

Or are you a computer program designed by Ebay to try to push sales?

Hmmmmm...

[R Walling]

I was once biding on seat covers for my car on a no reserve auction . The price that I bid was way under theie advertized prices in their web site.

Each time, at the last min., "someone" bid $1 higher than me. If I diden't bid on the item, nobody else bid either.

This happened 4 times before I complained to e-bay. The next time I won the bid @ my price. Coninsidence? I think not.

[95Cardinal]

The "last second" winners are often using auction software like "powersnipe".

You program the software to bid an authorized amount on a listed item and it only bids up to your maximum OR the minimum required to win the item.

The program bidding is done within the last few milliseconds of the auction.

The software often results in winning bids that are exactly the minimum bid increment above the next highest bidder's maximum bid.

[JACK M]

Just recently a collectable car dealer opened up in my small town. Of coarse I befriended these guys and we get along well. Keep in mind that they are used car guys and its all good.

My obvious question was why would they think that this would take off in this small town. They tell me that they do a lot of internet advertising and the bulk of their sales are thru the internet.

The head guy told me that he has a way of looking up all of the Ebay watchers and bidders and can tell just what they are up to and will often contact them if he feels that they are serious buyers.

Now I didn't believe all of this taking into account that being a used car salesman and his lips were moving, but it opens the question if this could really be true.

[keiser31]

I don't think it is possible, but I don't know it all.

[1912Staver]

Up to a couple years ago anyone signed into ebay could click on another bidders Id {bid history for any given item}. And contact them. There was lots of fraud, phony 2nd chance offers and the like. Now bidder Id. is hidden to everyone but the seller. I am sure ebay fraud is still possible but things have become a lot safer.

The buyer protection program may have gone a bit too far the other way. It gives the buyer nearly all the power, and leaves the seller open to liability. Many of the "little guy" sellers have left ebay. Unfortunately they are the people most likely to be selling genuine; as opposed to repro, old car parts.

Greg in Canada

[Bleach]

The "last second" winners are often using auction software like "powersnipe".

You program the software to bid an authorized amount on a listed item and it only bids up to your maximum OR the minimum required to win the item.

The program bidding is done within the last few milliseconds of the auction.

The software often results in winning bids that are exactly the minimum bid increment above the next highest bidder's maximum bid.

I always wait until the last few seconds to bid when I want something. If I can't push the bid button personally, I do use a "sniping" program that will bid on the very last second. I don't like to put an unnecessary early bid on an item or attract attention to it by placing a bid on it. I like to pay as little as I possibly can.

[auburnseeker]

I don't think a seller can find out much about any of the bidders except location and feedback as well as how many times they bid and what their bid was up to the current bid. If they bid 10 more times it won't show you any of those amounts until the bid actually gets executed via a counter bid by another member. Atleast that's what I've experienced so far as a powerseller with 14791 feedback.

[JFranklin]

Maybe some NSA employees are doing a little Ebay bidding on company time?

[nick8086]

I would like to use ebay to sell stuff .. But I need the in and outs... Pm me...

[Guest prs519]

I thought that was the way all e-bay and most other auctions work. The price is set by the second highest bidder. The "winner" is the person who is willing to go the next increment higher than the second person and with e-bay, it is automatic as long as your maximum is higher than #2+increment. The only way to get a final bid that is NOT #2+increment is if the "winner" bid something greater than #2 but less than #2+increment (i.e. essentially a tie with a small tie breaker)..... Maybe I am missing the point?

Back to the original question: If there was no such thing as coincidence, we would not have a word for it.

With your post, and Matt's, I am left scratching my head, as I always thought random and coincident were basically particular instances of the same thing. In seriousness, I believe we can define a term as being undefinable?? Please do tell, if you have any ideas, about the basis for coincidence. I will pay the expenses we incur going to Vegas!

[Machinist_Bill]

Is it possible for the seller to view the max bid of a potential buyer? I always bid an odd amount in dollars and cents. for example $37.43 on an item listed for say $24.

The reason I ask, is recently I have bid on items on the last day of three different auctions that had no bids. In each case I won the auction but some one bid against me within an hour of the end but did not exceed my high bid.

1) I won the auction because I was the first bidder to bid

2) I won by one cent

3) I won by exactly 1$

Am I lucky, or does the seller have a friend ?

I have been a buyer/seller on Evil Bay since 1998. The trick years ago from the seller was to have a buddy place a bid extremely high to see what the high bidders maximum was. Then he would cancel the bid and another buddy re-bids just under the amount. This was called "Shill Bidding". I believe it's still done but it has to be 12 hours before the auction closes.

Go to your item and click on the bids and see if any bids were cancelled. This is why everyone waits until the last minute to bid!

Most likely in your case it's just coincidence and all the bidders know what the top value is.

Good Luck to you!

[Curti]

If you bid in say the last minute or so, doesn't eBay offer it's own version of sniper?

[Studemax]

This is why everyone waits until the last minute to bid!

Everyone, Bill? Everyone?

I bid what I am willing to pay (and I want it cheap). Sometimes I win, sometimes I don't. There will be another one show up next week. Sniping programs are for lazy people or guys who think they are smart - sometimes both.

[Machinist_Bill]

Everyone, Bill? Everyone?

I bid what I am willing to pay (and I want it cheap). Sometimes I win, sometimes I don't. There will be another one show up next week. Sniping programs are for lazy people or guys who think they are smart - sometimes both.

I shouldn't have categorized it as "Everyone". I will change it to "I".

As far as waiting until another one shows up next week you should own a 1925 Overland Coupe. NOTHING shows up the next week!

Sniping programs serve their purpose, and as a seller, Heck yeah! I love watching the last few minutes of my items!

Ain't life grand?

Bill

[West Peterson]

Everyone, Bill? Everyone?

I bid what I am willing to pay (and I want it cheap). Sometimes I win, sometimes I don't. There will be another one show up next week. Sniping programs are for lazy people or guys who think they are smart - sometimes both.

I used to do what you say, but I'm succeeding a lot more by bidding in the last few seconds, and paying a lot less. Plus, as Bill mentions, when I see an item I want, usually (if not always) it's something that isn't available very often, if ever. On the other hand, if I'm buying a part for an appliance or a late model car, that's different. Those parts are readily available by many different sellers (not so much for the dryer, which is more than 40 years old, but for the late model cars in the driveway).