I'm new on auctions and trying to figure out the best strategy for bidding. I've come across this article. Want some feedback from experienced auction users - does it really help?
Are we talking about online auction like eBay I use sniper program on live auction keeping your emotions in check is key set an amount your are willing to pay and stick to the plan. There are several places to check prices guide and auction results so you can be informed of the price range the coins fall in.
ebay: small bid to get it to you Home Page. Right before the end of the auction (60 seconds or less) throw out your highest bid.
floor auctions: I have learned that in smaller local auctions, the owner of the coin is sometimes in the audience reading you and jacking the bid. When it gets down to me and him I jack him and then bail.
"Interest rates, the price of money, are the most important market. And, perversely, they’re the market that’s most manipulated by the Fed." - Doug Casey
Establish the most you will pay for an item and bid whenever. You’ll feel better and get an idea of what others are willing to pay. I have gotten some great deals over the years and felt good after each purchase.
@derryb said:
ebay: small bid to get it to you Home Page. Right before the end of the auction (60 seconds or less) throw out your highest bid.
Exactly, if you bid your max hours or days earlier, people will just peck at it until they outbid you buy one bid increment. In fact I would say in the last 10 seconds or so because 1) You won't have time to get auction fever and hastily put in a bid higher than what you originally decided to pay, and 2) others won't have time to peck away at your bid (perhaps their auction fever!). I have lost a lot of auctions that way, but I always feel OK afterward because controlled #1 and #2. I was simply outbid by someone else who was wiling to pay more (without knowing what my bid was).
On ebay, I like sniping.... I set up two screens so I can watch it and have my nuclear bid ready... then slam it in the last five seconds....It works.... Cheers, RickO
There is no right answer. The right strategy depends ENTIRELY on the coin, the auction format, market conditions, and the timing of the auction.
For some coins, especially less-expensive items on eBay and Great Collections, a sniping strategy can be effective. For eBay there is software that does this for you. For GC, I usually set a reminder to bid real-time. For very expensive items that I've carefully evaluated, I will do a phone bid, have a dealer execute a bid for me, or try to be present for the actual auction. For bullion or near-bullion items, the final sale price is often predictable at a certain bid increment. For these, the first one to enter a bid at that increment will usually win.
For coins that I like, but don't absolutely HAVE to own, I usually enter my max bid after the on-line bidding closes but before the lot goes live. Then I sit on my hands and watch. Trying to enter live-bids from home on-the-fly has left me with a handful of unwelcome surprises over the years. Internet lag can cause all sorts of problems.
For ebay: You certainly do not want to bid early and hold the high bid spot early on. The ebay site has no policy prohibiting withdrawing your bids and re-entering the same auction later on. Bidding at the very end of the auction is the only way to go for ebay. Don't show your hand early. The reality is ebay is not a true auction site in the way most would define it.
For Ebay I will place an opening bid at the minimum to get it on my bidding history to find it again. Then I snipe. I do my max bid with under 10 seconds and either win or lose. That way I don't get caught up in a bidding war and let my adrenaline or emotions bury me in a coin.
I've been participating in online auctions on Auctionwin for about half a year now and I was able to win my fair share of bids on some of the items that I really wanted. Some of the tips that I could give you based on my personal experience are to: do your research about the item and figure out its actual value before bidding, and to set a maximum amount that you'd be willing to bid for every item to make sure that you don't overspend.
Make sure when you bid you know the hidden cost that will be added onto your bid if you win. Auction houses usually have a buyers preimum added on. I have seen anywhere from 10 to 20 percent extra on your winning bid. Dont forget about sales tax and shipping cost as well. All these little things can really add on to your bid so make sure to take all that into account when deciding on the most you will bid.
Positive BST as a seller: Namvet69, Lordmarcovan, Bigjpst, Soldi, mustanggt, CoinHoader, moursund, SufinxHi, al410, JWP
What you don’t want is bid war with some collector.
For an auction house I will calculate a factor for the juice, y. So if my best offer a pct of CPG, x I take x times my factor y to get my highest bid so win it at the pct of CPG planned. That allows me get item at my price. Unfortunately in many instances there will be bidders bidding it up beyond target. Sometimes I will use my old coin club bidding strategy bidding on items near auc end when its likely a lot of them have run out of money.
On GC, I wait until the last minute to bid my max price.
On eBay, I wait until the 8 second rule to bid.
On heritage, I bid live at the time the coin is at the hammer.
Deduct all fees from your planned max bid. Do the math first.
Wayne
@JimW said:
If you bid your max hours or days earlier, people will just peck at it until they outbid you buy one bid increment. In fact I would say in the last 10 seconds or so because 1) You won't have time to get auction fever and hastily put in a bid higher than what you originally decided to pay, and 2) others won't have time to peck away at your bid (perhaps their auction fever!). I have lost a lot of auctions that way, but I always feel OK afterward because controlled #1 and #2. I was simply outbid by someone else who was wiling to pay more (without knowing what my bid was).
I agree, and there’s another excellent point to your strategy that you did not mention. Yes, when a person bids their max early, and others then have time to peck away, and you can then lose by one increment, the other issue is that even when an early high max bidder gets pecked away at, but still wins the lot, chances are they then ended up paying more than they had to had the others not had all that time to peck away!
Steve
A day without fine wine and working on your coin collection is like a day without sunshine!!!
Comments
I'm a seller, so I recommend; early and often.
Are we talking about online auction like eBay I use sniper program on live auction keeping your emotions in check is key set an amount your are willing to pay and stick to the plan. There are several places to check prices guide and auction results so you can be informed of the price range the coins fall in.
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/quarters/washington-quarters-major-sets/washington-quarters-date-set-circulation-strikes-1932-present/publishedset/209923
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/quarters/washington-quarters-major-sets/washington-quarters-date-set-circulation-strikes-1932-present/album/209923
ebay: small bid to get it to you Home Page. Right before the end of the auction (60 seconds or less) throw out your highest bid.
floor auctions: I have learned that in smaller local auctions, the owner of the coin is sometimes in the audience reading you and jacking the bid. When it gets down to me and him I jack him and then bail.
"Interest rates, the price of money, are the most important market. And, perversely, they’re the market that’s most manipulated by the Fed." - Doug Casey
Establish the most you will pay for an item and bid whenever. You’ll feel better and get an idea of what others are willing to pay. I have gotten some great deals over the years and felt good after each purchase.
What ever the Pats guy said is wrong
. I bet against them!!!!!!
OLD GOAT time to retire!
Exactly, if you bid your max hours or days earlier, people will just peck at it until they outbid you buy one bid increment. In fact I would say in the last 10 seconds or so because 1) You won't have time to get auction fever and hastily put in a bid higher than what you originally decided to pay, and 2) others won't have time to peck away at your bid (perhaps their auction fever!). I have lost a lot of auctions that way, but I always feel OK afterward because controlled #1 and #2. I was simply outbid by someone else who was wiling to pay more (without knowing what my bid was).
Successful BST Transactions: erwindoc, VTchaser, moursund, robkool, RelicKING, Herb_T, Meltdown, ElmerFusterpuck
On ebay, I like sniping.... I set up two screens so I can watch it and have my nuclear bid ready... then slam it in the last five seconds....It works.... Cheers, RickO
There is no right answer. The right strategy depends ENTIRELY on the coin, the auction format, market conditions, and the timing of the auction.
For some coins, especially less-expensive items on eBay and Great Collections, a sniping strategy can be effective. For eBay there is software that does this for you. For GC, I usually set a reminder to bid real-time. For very expensive items that I've carefully evaluated, I will do a phone bid, have a dealer execute a bid for me, or try to be present for the actual auction. For bullion or near-bullion items, the final sale price is often predictable at a certain bid increment. For these, the first one to enter a bid at that increment will usually win.
For coins that I like, but don't absolutely HAVE to own, I usually enter my max bid after the on-line bidding closes but before the lot goes live. Then I sit on my hands and watch.
Trying to enter live-bids from home on-the-fly has left me with a handful of unwelcome surprises over the years. Internet lag can cause all sorts of problems.
For ebay: You certainly do not want to bid early and hold the high bid spot early on. The ebay site has no policy prohibiting withdrawing your bids and re-entering the same auction later on. Bidding at the very end of the auction is the only way to go for ebay. Don't show your hand early. The reality is ebay is not a true auction site in the way most would define it.
ebay: sniping in last 10 seconds
Heritage et al: bidding my max on last day of auction
If you want to go big.....add an extra zero to the tail of your bid.
For Ebay I will place an opening bid at the minimum to get it on my bidding history to find it again. Then I snipe. I do my max bid with under 10 seconds and either win or lose. That way I don't get caught up in a bidding war and let my adrenaline or emotions bury me in a coin.
For on-line coin auctions:
Pay attention to the increments. If you think you know the appropriate number, be the first to that number. Make the other guy make the extra bid.
One bid less than the potted palm in the back of the room.
I've been participating in online auctions on Auctionwin for about half a year now and I was able to win my fair share of bids on some of the items that I really wanted. Some of the tips that I could give you based on my personal experience are to: do your research about the item and figure out its actual value before bidding, and to set a maximum amount that you'd be willing to bid for every item to make sure that you don't overspend.
Make sure when you bid you know the hidden cost that will be added onto your bid if you win. Auction houses usually have a buyers preimum added on. I have seen anywhere from 10 to 20 percent extra on your winning bid. Dont forget about sales tax and shipping cost as well. All these little things can really add on to your bid so make sure to take all that into account when deciding on the most you will bid.
Positive BST as a seller: Namvet69, Lordmarcovan, Bigjpst, Soldi, mustanggt, CoinHoader, moursund, SufinxHi, al410, JWP
Bid high.
Auction sniper. Or wait till last seconds.
What you don’t want is bid war with some collector.
For an auction house I will calculate a factor for the juice, y. So if my best offer a pct of CPG, x I take x times my factor y to get my highest bid so win it at the pct of CPG planned. That allows me get item at my price. Unfortunately in many instances there will be bidders bidding it up beyond target. Sometimes I will use my old coin club bidding strategy bidding on items near auc end when its likely a lot of them have run out of money.
On GC, I wait until the last minute to bid my max price.
On eBay, I wait until the 8 second rule to bid.
On heritage, I bid live at the time the coin is at the hammer.
Deduct all fees from your planned max bid. Do the math first.
Wayne
Kennedys are my quest...
I bid in the last few seconds when bidding on-line auctions.
Donato
Donato's Complete US Type Set ---- Donato's Dansco 7070 Modified Type Set ---- Donato's Basic U.S. Coin Design Set
Successful transactions: Shrub68 (Jim), MWallace (Mike)
I agree, and there’s another excellent point to your strategy that you did not mention. Yes, when a person bids their max early, and others then have time to peck away, and you can then lose by one increment, the other issue is that even when an early high max bidder gets pecked away at, but still wins the lot, chances are they then ended up paying more than they had to had the others not had all that time to peck away!
Steve
My collecting “Pride & Joy” is my PCGS Registry Dansco 7070 Set:
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/design-type-sets/complete-dansco-7070-modified-type-set-1796-date/publishedset/213996