EBay ?: How many view/watchers

Ahrensdad

Do you expect to see on a well run auction?

A popular auction?

Being a new ebay seller, I am trying to get a sense of what is normal/abnormal.

mrpotatoheadd

Depends on what you're selling, but some coins are more popular than others and "watchers" don't necessarily translate into "potential bidders".

Bochiman

<< <i>Depends on what you're selling, but some coins are more popular than others and "watchers" don't necessarily translate into "potential bidders". >>



Very true. Depending on what you are selling, "watchers" can also mean "potential competitors selling the same thing or wanting to sell the same thing"....
(especially true when selling the "latest fad" on ebay.

derryb

Some of your watchers are your competition. I don't pay attention to watchers, I pay attention to bidders and buyers.

jonathanb

Check out a site like http://www.ace.com to find out the the number of watchers that the most-watched items have, in the categories you care about. Then take a much smaller fraction of that maximum number.

When I post to the exonumia categories, I'm pleased when I get at least 10 watchers, and satisfied when I get at least 5. The most-watched items in those categories typically have 20-30 watchers.

The number of views seems not to be directly related to the number of watchers. I had one listing recently that had over 2,000 views, and only 1 watcher. The item sold for about $20, which was all I was expecting. At the end of a 7-day auction, I commonly have had 50 views and sometimes as much as 150 views.

ymmv

bretts911

As from my experience it doesnt matter how many watchers/bidder you have. I had an item listed before that only had 11 views and 0 watchers and it sold.

COALPORTER

Coins have far more watchers than many other collectable items I watch. Some things only have auctions ending every few hours or so. Coins tend to have non-stop action. Snipping is done allot on coins but less so in really slow catagories.

I always wonder about all the items that sell with only one bid. It makes me wonder if they are mostly shills. I only really pay attention to items tath sell with 2 or more bidders.

slipgate

A lot of people don't "watch" an item per se; they see it and immediately set their snipe and don't pay it any mind after that.

291fifth

Most "watchers" are other sellers who are trying to get an idea of what the item actually sells for.

However, a lack of watchers is usually a very bad sign. It shows a real lack of interest in the item.

ctf_error_coins

<< <i>Most "watchers" are other sellers who are trying to get an idea of what the item actually sells for. >>



I have watched tens of thousands of major error coin auctions on ebay over the last 11 years. I really have a good sense of what a $5 to a $2000 error coins will sell for on the bay as there are no "real" price guides for error coins. It really is the only way to know your market.

giorgio11

With all the usual caveats above, I have noticed that raw key Lincoln cents tend to have among the most watchers of the items I sell. I had an uncertified 1909-S VDB XF Details light corrosion that had more than 120 watchers when it closed (7-day auction starting on Sunday) and bids from more than 20 different bidders. It sold for pretty good money, considerably more than what I paid.

A more typical example is a certified Kennedy half. If priced right (and auction format) they might have 20-25 watchers and several bidders. BIN items tend to have as many watchers -- but not necessarily any bidders!