How to know when to end an auction early...

NoGvmnt

Hello everybody, there has been a lot of discussion recently concerning ending an auction early if the bidding hasn't reached a "profitable level".

A lot of comments have been that the most bidding comes at the very last minutes of the auction and that people who "pull" their auctions are probably doing a disservice to both themselves and the bidders who have that particular auction on their watch lists.

Personally, I don't pull my auctions. If I'm auctioning a lower value Item I simply start with a dollar and let it go, if I'm auctioning a higher value item I'll check to see what that particular item had sold in recent auctions by utilizing the "completed auctions" tab on Ebay and set my reserve approximately 15-20% below those amounts (if 15-20% below still provides a profit above my original purchase price.

But I'm getting away from the original point of this thread, If you want to know if people are watching your auction simply watch the "counter". I've had 7-day auctions where after the first day there were only 3 bids on an item and the counter would show maybe 10 "views" and after 6-days there would be maybe 5 bids with 25 - 35 "views" but within the last 2 hours on the last day of the auction the "views" would suddenly pop over 100 and a flurry of 15 - 25 bids would pour in.

So, just watch the view counter dto determine if your auction is being "watched", it works very well to calm any nervousness concerning whether or not you will be profitable on any particular auction.


Jim

tlhoy

Anyone who ends an auction early because of LOW BIDS, should be BANNED from eBay! NO EXCEPTIONS!!!!!!
IMHO,
Glenn

lordmarcovan

Good point, Jim. I put counters in my auctions and usually forget to look at them.

darktone

<< <i>Anyone who ends an auction early because of LOW BIDS, should be BANNED from eBay! NO EXCEPTIONS!!!!!! >>

As a seller I have never stopped an auction but a couple times I was ready to hit the cancel button when bids were only a fraction of the coins worth- for example a $100 bid on a $1,000 coin. I don't mind losing a few dollars but I am not going to lose that much! I ended up getting bids the last couple of times I came close to canceling. Most sellers have their friends bid up the coins if they are not bringing enough so in my eyes the guy that stops an auction because of low bids is probably the more honest seller even though it does not seem that way and yes I would be mad if an auction was stopped when I was high bidder at a low price. mike

pontiacinf

well due to the high jinx of the holidays (everyones heard by now) I decided to sell another sms ms70fs 97-p jeff. I put no reserve and started at 9.99. I had 700 into it and had told a frend when asked. Well last 5 mins it went from 406.00 to 710.00 and I was flabbergasted. It was more than paid, but way it looked somone was rescuing it. I got my answer when after I shipped the coin to the provided address, it reappeared under my tree.

My friend, knowing full well what I was going thru, wanted to help, and knew I wouldnt accept help. So he bought the coin and gave it to me for xmas, with a card saying if ever in financial hardship, to let him know what Im selling on ebay.

I am now out of my pre holiday funk, all is well with the world, and I have many wonderful friends here, so I say this to all:

IM BACK BABY!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS
BILL

DHeath

I asked the seller of this set if they would consider ending their auction early the day it listed for $18 including shipping. I suggested the add a buy-it-now button. If you look at the listing, you'll see their shipping charge was $10, and the opening bid was $10, making the set $20 right out of the chute. It closed without a bid. The set isn't unique. In fact, it appears to be only moderately cameo. I thought it a worthwhile "gamble" at $18.

I won't ask a seller to end a listing if there are bids, nor will I end one early if there are bids, but I frequently ask sellers if they wish to end early for items I want that have NO bids. I figure if the seller, the buyer, and ebay all accomplish their goals, all of the parties with any real involvement in the transaction accept the transaction as ethical.

BAJJERFAN

I'm always a nervous nellie when I sell on eBay. I hate high opening bids and reserves. I prefer to sell here first. There is a reason I don't I don't list much stuff there. I have had some stuff go way too cheap. If I post it here and then on eBay, it doesn't bother me to end it early if a late request comes in from a previous post here.

silverandvinyl

This is a tough one.The counters are nice to have but they are misleading(sometimes).I've had some counts up to 285 hits and get only 1 sometime 2 bids.I usually start off with the lowest amount I'll takefor the product and wait and see.There has been alot times I wanted to yanked them but I didn't.But this might change pretty soon.I just have to be very careful.If bidders can retract their bids why can't we yank it before we get a bid.