How to be a winner on Ebay

Buy, sell, trade, or discuss prices of Super Soakers and water guns here. (For members only)
Locked
User avatar
vaporizer28
Posts: 187
Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2004 1:47 pm

Post by vaporizer28 » Sun Mar 06, 2005 4:13 pm

I didn't write this, someone at Reader's Digest did :mellow:
How to be a winner on eBay

Haven't scored on eBay yet? Marsha Collier, author of eBay for Dummies offers these tips for improving your luck:

Place Your Highest bid

Doing this at the outset improves your odds of winning. "Remember, eBay doesn't show your maximum bid or anyone else's until it's topped," says Collier. Fear not. If you win, you'll pay only slightly more than the bid just below yours.

Bid An Odd Number

You stand a better chance of winning if dollar bids are unusual and the last two numbers are above 50 cents. "Most people bid in round numbers," Collier says. "so if you bid $27.57, and the next highest bidder stops at $26.50, you win."

Try A Snipe

Several online services will place your bid automatically within the final seconds of an auction. For example, bidrobot.com charges $3.95 for three weeks of unlimited last-second bidding, while esnipe.com charges 1% of your winning price, with a $10 maximum fee.

I don't know if this is old info, but whatever. Reply away!
Image

^This was made by Superstormer. What, do you think it got here on its own?

User avatar
Jadefalcon09
Posts: 409
Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 12:00 pm

Post by Jadefalcon09 » Sun Mar 06, 2005 5:37 pm

This is good information a newer person to Ebay should know. However we all know that powerful and rarer soakers will sell for a lot. One thing you cannot change about ebay is the price people bid on the item, or the minimum a price is willing to accept for an item. If you do not have enough money to cover hipping (which is usually outrageous) and the bid, your out of the game, plain and simple. my advice? stay away from Ebay unless your really desperate.

User avatar
DX
Posts: 1780
Joined: Wed Feb 04, 2004 1:00 pm

Post by DX » Sun Mar 06, 2005 9:38 pm

However we all know that powerful and rarer soakers will sell for a lot.
Not necessarily. Those who are truly determined to buy a good gun off Ebay for a low price can do so. You must watch it constantly, use several search terms, just keep looking for new auctions. You will eventually find a powerful soaker that for some reason does not ignite a bidding war and does not have many people watching it. Most people do not have the patience required to wait until one such rare opportunity arises, but when it does, it pays off huge. Last fall I found 2 CPS 3200's with a starting price of $20 and $24. Nobody else ever put a bid on them. My bids held through the entire 5 day listing unchallenged. And so I was able to snatch 2 nice 3200s in great new condition for a dirt-cheap price. The other soaker I got cheaper than normal off Ebay was a CPS 2500, I paid $31. However, these exceptions are quite rare, I haven't seen any more yet since last fall.
Mess With the Best, Get Soaked Like the Rest!

2004 Red Sox - World Series Champions
2007 Red Sox - World Series Champions!

User avatar
SSCBen
Posts: 6449
Joined: Sat Mar 22, 2003 1:00 pm

Post by SSCBen » Sun Mar 06, 2005 9:45 pm

I've only used one technique on the few items I bought off eBay. Using a specialized computer program, I simply snipe the items I want. I had no idea that people are charging for something that should be completely free. I find that ridiculous.

The remaining tips sound like they're from experience. I'm sure there's a lot more tips about winning on eBay. Try Google if you're interested.

Locked