Is it crazy to start Ebay auctions at 0.01?

Barry · April 17, 2005 12:09AM

If you start an auction low, do you tend to get a reasonable final price, or is it too risky?

ziggy29 · April 17, 2005 12:16AM

<< <i>If you start an auction low, do you tend to get a reasonable final price, or is it too risky? >>

If it's a quality coin, with good pictures of obverse and reverse and the seller appears to be legit, I think it might actually *increase* the final sale price as it brings a lot of action into the bidding even before snipe time.

Doing it with a bad picture/no picture, or as a zero-feedback seller, is quite a bit riskier.

clw54 · April 17, 2005 12:18AM

Not if it's something that's hot right now. It will get bids almost immediately and the low starting price will be history. It will get you lower listing fees, also.

tlhoy · April 17, 2005 12:19AM

I start all my auctions at .99 cents

cosmicdebris · April 17, 2005 12:21AM

THIS started at 1 cent and I am quite happy with the results.

tlhoy · April 17, 2005 12:25AM

Someone listed this starting price $50 & didn't sell.

Same item with a $2 starting price sold for $53.08

UncleJoe · April 17, 2005 12:33AM

I start all my auctions at .99 cents

Ditto for me. I started out trying to set a discounted price and found out that I did much better when I started lower.

For example, I listed 3 different "Mercury" dimes with starting bids of $24.99. Not one of them received a bid. I then took a chance and relisted them with a starting bid of $9.99. They all sold!!! They sold for $29, 31. and $32. One week earlier the 3 coild be bought for $75. and one week later I sold all 3 for $92. I believe it was all due to the starting price.

Every now and then something goes for too little IMO but I more than make up for it with the ones that go for more than I expected. All I can say is that it works for me. Try it!!!

Joe.

Fairlaneman · April 17, 2005 12:34AM

If you cluck like a chicken, as I do sometimes, yes it is crazy to start a auction at $.01. I will say that mid range coins do seem to bring better money and do sell when started at a lower money amount.

Ken

ChuckC · April 17, 2005 12:37AM

I support low starting prices too (.01 or .99) because it enables the "market" to set the final price rather than the owner. For example, setting the price at $50 might indicate how much the owner values the coin, and interested buyers usually go along with that price...fearful of bidding any higher. Start the coin at a penny, and it's anyone's game. I've had great results with my 0.89 auctions. The same theory applies to most any ebay auction item.

BAJJERFAN · April 17, 2005 12:39AM

Why are so many people dumb enuf to think that they are going to get smoething for much less than its worth yet stupid enuf to end up paying more than they should have?

WACoinGuy · April 17, 2005 1:49AM

I start all my auctions at 1 cent with no reserve. In general, I seem to do well with more expensive items (they tend to go higher than I expected), but not so well with sub-$10 items (often these go for less than I expect). Go figure.

flaminio · April 17, 2005 2:13AM

<< <i>Why are so many people dumb enuf to think that they are going to get smoething for much less than its worth yet stupid enuf to end up paying more than they should have? >>

Don't know, but I sure do lurve it when they show up at my auctions!

jdimmick · April 17, 2005 6:36AM

I dont know why It is, but many times coins started lower will outsell if they were listed at a set price intially. I usually dont start items low for fear of losing out, but sometimes they dont seem to catch much action this way. Only then to go back and start low, and have it end up higher than the set price initially with lots of action. I have often wondered do bidders feel more comfortable with bidding on a specific item when they see other bidders bidding on it?? Maybe bidders wonder if its worthy of a bid or should they bid, and then they dont see any action, so the take a back seat, and not bid. Then either it doesnt sell or goes at the min bid to a sniper?

Jim

RBinTex · April 17, 2005 6:37AM

No. It's crazy NOT to

unless the goal is LESS bidders

markglicker · April 17, 2005 6:42AM

Up until recently, all of my auctions started ar .99, with no reserve. I would feature every coin worth more than $500. I find though, that the action has become more sluggish, with the last moment becoming a bit to important. An Ebay outage could cost several hundred or a few thousand dollars. I have essentially changed to a fixed price format. This results in many unsold coins, but the sale prices are stronger when they do sell.

BAJJERFAN · April 17, 2005 6:52AM

Do you ever find that sometimes its a matter of who is bidding on a particular coin as opposed to how many are bidding on a certain coin?

UncleWiggly · April 17, 2005 7:08AM

Stick and item on www.bidz.com and wait till the 3 minute drill to start. I've seen some mighty crazy bidding wars there during the 3 minute auction deal. If anybody goes there to bid, there's not a whole lot of pickings right now. But the bidding is instantaneous live. No reveiwing. One click and you've bid.

Jerry

edit to add: Yes it is crazy to start eBay auctions at 0.01. It leaves you unprotected for the unexpected. If the last 2 days of an auction were at the same time as the first 2 days of 9-11 you might not get a single bid during that time as most people where clued to the TV.

291fifth · April 17, 2005 7:22AM

With problem-free US coins there is little risk of starting low as the market is large enough to create active bidding. In the case of exonumia or foreign material I would be wary as the markets are much thinner. Still, starting auctions high is usually a mistake as bidders are getting very tired of "auctions" that are nothing more than disguised fixed price sales.

MrXray · April 17, 2005 8:27AM

Funny as I was going to ask a similar question. But to add, with a reserve.
I made a mistake on an order from the mint, bought 15 proof SAE's but only wanted 5. Changed my subscription but I guess it didn't take effect in time. So I'm no dealer, or even a "wannabe". I just want to get rid of a few. More like 10. Should I put them up for say $0.99, with a reserve of the actual cost+ the shipping? I've only sold 3 things on e-bay (non-coins) also, so I'm sure this is going to have some effect.

Is it crazy to start Ebay auctions at 0.01?

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