Losing auctions in the last 1 second by "snipers" - any way to combat this?

[tankman1989]

I'm so frustrated. I've lost out on 3 really good auctions on surplus sites for some servers and UPS's. I'm the highest bidder going into the final seconds usually with about $100 extra cushion - over the current high bid as my top bid (so the high bid is $700 but I had entered $800, I win anything $800 or below). I refresh every second the last 10 seconds and like clockwork there is a new bidder to the auction ! 1 second with a bid of $805! Now on most sites I would usually have a chance to make one last bid since I was the highest bidder before the next highest bid placed at exactly 1 sec, but I'm not getting the chance all the time like I use to.

I want to know if anyone has any suggestions on how to deal with this b/c I've tried to even bid way over what the item was worth and wait till the end, with say a $700 cushion on a $3,000 top bid (so my top bid was $3,700). The auction really wasn't worth much more than $3100-$3300 but I knew I could make it up and it was worth it to see if I was being snipped even at unrealistic prices - which turned out to happen.

So, does anyone else run into this? Is there something that can be done other than just setting the max price to pay and then sitting back and let it ride? I know there are sites that offer a "sniping" service (bidding the very last second) for ebay and surplus auctions but have never used them or heard much about them.

Any suggestions here? I just missed out on 2 NIB IBM servers (nice dual CPU quad core Xenon 3.6Ghz w/ 64GB ram, 8 300GB 15k SAS6) and 2 NIB APC 2200RM2U's UPS's. I had some plans for them but I guess I'm learning the hard way.

Is there a strategy for doing this that anyone would care to share?

 

[katz]

I've used this site in the past - worked great for me.

http://www.gixen.com/index.php

 

[tankman1989]

I've used this site in the past - worked great for me.

http://www.gixen.com/index.php

Thanks for the referral, I'll look into it. I'm especially interested in surplus auction bidding services if they can give some kind of advantage, like (D)DOS'ing the site the last 10 seconds

 

[YOCS]

I've used JBidwatcher with good results and an Android app called MyBidder

 

[Bryce W]

Its easy. Snipe what it is worth to you in the last few seconds.

If the current bid is $100 and its worth $500 to you, drop $500 as your bid in the last few seconds. The other people wont be able to find out what your top bid is quick enough.
This doesnt mean you pay $500 if you win though. You pay just a little bit over the last persons bid, so you could get it for $110 when you posted $500 as your bid.

If it goes over your maximum, just let it go.

 

[uprighttech]

Its easy. Snipe what it is worth to you in the last few seconds.

If the current bid is $100 and its worth $500 to you, drop $500 as your bid in the last few seconds. The other people wont be able to find out what your top bid is quick enough.
This doesnt mean you pay $500 if you win though. You pay just a little bit over the last persons bid, so you could get it for $110 when you posted $500 as your bid.

If it goes over your maximum, just let it go.

That is true on some sites like EBay, but not all auction sites will bid incrementally for you up to your max bid. On some sites if the current bid is $100 and you bid $500, you will be the new high bidder at $500.

 

[Mercenary Roadie]

Rule #1 of online auction is to NOT bid until the very end and then use a snipe service. Bidding before then is just running up the price.

Use a snipe service like www.esnipe.com or one that works with the auction service you are bidding on.

Online auctions are not like live auctions, so don't try and bid the same way.

If you are dead set against using a snipe service, then bid what you are willing to pay and if you win, you win and if you don't you don't.

Even with a snipe service, you won't win them all.

 

[300DDR]

+1 on esnipe for me. used for years, and I almost always win unless outbid.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

My friend Philip, owner of Speedguide.net, wrote an ebay sniping software.
http://www.auctiondefender.com/

However, a few years ago eBay overhauled its engine in the back ground....so sniping software is pretty much obsolete when you put your max $$$ amount in. eBay automatically ups your bid if competitors big higher than you..all the way up to your max set amount.

If you don't care about your max dollar amount...then sniping software will help..but even they have a max dollar amount settings.

And..uhm...DDOS'ing the site would only hurt you too...if you're trying to bid or using sniping software...it needs to contact the site too! So you'd also be locking the door on yourself.

 

[tankman1989]

My friend Philip, owner of Speedguide.net, wrote an ebay sniping software.
http://www.auctiondefender.com/

However, a few years ago eBay overhauled its engine in the back ground....so sniping software is pretty much obsolete when you put your max $$$ amount in. eBay automatically ups your bid if competitors big higher than you..all the way up to your max set amount.

If you don't care about your max dollar amount...then sniping software will help..but even they have a max dollar amount settings.

And..uhm...DDOS'ing the site would only hurt you too...if you're trying to bid or using sniping software...it needs to contact the site too! So you'd also be locking the door on yourself.

When I said DDOSing it I would initiate the moment I was the highest bidder with like 1 min left! THat way, no one else could enter a bid and my high bid would stand!

 

[TenYardFight]

The highest bid still wins. However, bidding early does drive up the price. I snipe because the previous bidders think they are going to steal it and they don't put their max bid in. Had they simply bid what they were willing to spend, they wouldn't have the item sniped out from under them. Like stonecat eluded to, if you bid early, bid your max and let ebay's proxy system do the work for you.

 

[Rosco]

i never bid until the last few seconds. I put anything i want on a watchlist. If you bid early people see that there is interest and bid more. I have never won bidding early. Even if you bid in the last minute that might be to long. It has to be 5 secs or under.

 

[Larry Sabo]

+1 for JBidwatcher. Been using it for years and rarely lose an auction. You only lose if your not willing to pay more than someone else.

 

[YOCS]

+1 for JBidwatcher. Been using it for years and rarely lose an auction. You only lose if your not willing to pay more than someone else.

Also works great when the auction ends at 2AM... You just wake and pay for the item you won in your sleep

 

[Larry Sabo]

LOL, so true. Does anyone else hold their breath as the deadline approaches? My heart almost stops, I get so keyed up/anxious.

 

[Mercenary Roadie]

My friend Philip, owner of Speedguide.net, wrote an ebay sniping software.
http://www.auctiondefender.com/

However, a few years ago eBay overhauled its engine in the back ground....so sniping software is pretty much obsolete when you put your max $$$ amount in. eBay automatically ups your bid if competitors big higher than you..all the way up to your max set amount.

If you don't care about your max dollar amount...then sniping software will help..but even they have a max dollar amount settings.

And..uhm...DDOS'ing the site would only hurt you too...if you're trying to bid or using sniping software...it needs to contact the site too! So you'd also be locking the door on yourself.

I'm not sure of what your talking about? Sniping programs only do their work in the last few seconds of the auction.

esnipe you tell it when to check the auction and how close to the end you want it to snipe. I have mine st to check the auction 15 minutes prior to closing so it can email me if I have already been outbidded.

I then have it set to snipe with 3 seconds left in the auction.

At no time does eBay know what my snipe amount is and when esnipe does it's work, it looks like I did it manually myself.

I was just looking at my esnipe win history and 90% of my wins are for less than my max snipe amount.

One of my favorite uses of esnipe is when a buyer has something with a Buy it now price and a much lower bid price. I set my snipe amount to the bid price and I don;t have to worry about remembering to bid at the last minute and I save money.

 

[16k_zx81]

gixen

say you're looking for a tv

give it a profile and whack in a bunch of ebay item numbers with a top bid dollar amount

it will bid until the item goes over the amount, at which point it will just move onto the next item, and the next, until you win at *your* max bid

As long as your bid is realistic you will then get an email when it has won an item for you, at which point it has 0stopped bidding because you have won an item from the list of IDs

It takes all the emotion out of it, and saves masses of TIME, and frustration, watching items at end stages

Be particularly alert to items that are ending at odd times, (for example 4am on a Monday morning). Items with 'underpopulated' end times will often go for lower prices, simply because there are less people in front of their computers to bid on them.

There are also lots of other 'tricks' for getting bargains on ebay, for example mis-spelled listings or listings that use improper keywords do not readily come up in searches - google for more

Jim

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

I'm not sure of what your talking about? Sniping programs only do their work in the last few seconds of the auction.

esnipe you tell it when to check the auction and how close to the end you want it to snipe. I have mine st to check the auction 15 minutes prior to closing so it can email me if I have already been outbidded.

I then have it set to snipe with 3 seconds left in the auction.

At no time does eBay know what my snipe amount is and when esnipe does it's work, it looks like I did it manually myself.
.

It doesn't have to know. The days of "wait til the auction is almost over" are extinct as far as ability to win, the key is whoever caps their max bid the highest.

Now you can enter that amount early on and let eBays engine handle it for you, and sit back and wait until after the auction ends to see if you won or not. I for one and certainly not going to sit at the edge of my seat for hours and hours biting my fingernails in fret...I set my max amount, and walk away. I'll see if I won or not at the end. Or you can use a remote bidding program and sure set it to dial in at the end...and it does....the same thing! It ramps up the numbers to stay ahead of the competition.

Now...before eBay overhauled their bidding engine to ramp up bids and allow you to place a max bid...sure, sniping programs had their worth....because they competed against humans...and occasionally other sniping programs.

It's simple really...it all comes down to who places the max bid amount. Nothing more..nothing less, period! eBays engine handles the bids internally.....no external sniping program will outpace that.

Say you and I (and a buncha other peeps) are looking to get an item on fleabay. The item starts at 200 bucks. I am willing to pay 450 bucks for it. You are willing to pay 400 bucks for it. I enter 450 on ebays max bid engine, you enter 400 bucks on your sniping program...guess what? I win it for 401 bucks (assuming no other bidders placed a max amount higher than mine). Your sniping engine does nothing...nothing...to give you any advantage. If the next highest bidder was 250 bucks I'd have won it for 251 bucks...setting a max amount doesn't mean I pay that max amount.

Now...say it's the other way around..max bid wise. I am willing to pay only 350 for it, and you'll pay 400 for it. I bid early on using eBays bid engine, you bid using sniping software....assuming no other bidders are higher than you, you'll win it for 351 dollars. Your sniping software gave you zero advantage, the max dollar is what counts.

It's_simple_math. Who bids using what...doesn't matter...although I'd probably argue that those using ebays native bid engine will probably have an advantage to anyone bidding from the outside using sniping software. Because you have internet latency causing that software to be a few milliseconds behind, it cannot keep up with eBays internal servers that maintain the max bids.

All the "nail biters" and anxious wrecks that cannot control their emotions.....and get into bidding frenzies...allowing other bidders to jack up their max bids to crazy insane amounts.....they'll all turn to bidding software and so you're competing against people using the same technology as themselves...so where's their advantage? If 100 people are bidding on an item and 75 of them having sniping software...where's the advantage? (not that I think even 1 person with sniping software has any advantage over the other 99 that use eBays default bidding engine).

One could debate that setting max bids at the last few seconds of an auction would keep items at a lower cost.....well, if you're bidding against a slow crowd, and your competition cannot think logically and economically and they allow their emotions to get the best of them and they would all start making ridiculously high offers that are way above the actual value of the item...whelp, I'd remain calm in the bid and simply set my highest dollar that I'll pay for that item. I refuse to succumb to that bidding fever and I don't care if the auction ramps up early or at the last few seconds. The math with the dollar amounts will settle either sooner or later during the period, it does not matter.

 

[TenYardFight]

I stopped reading after paragraph 4. That's simply not true. There are real people involved. Thus, emotion. Bidding early reveals your interest and wakes up the other bidders. Bidding at the end yields lower prices, on the whole. Not every time, but on the whole. And the good news is, there is no downside. Set your max bid at your snipe service, not at eBay. No cost, no hassle.

The fact is, many eBay users are stupid and don't use proxy bidding. Its when they are your opponent that it really benefits you to snipe.

And on the flipside, if any if your opponents are sniping too... High bid wins, no matter the method.

 

[DocGreen]

I think the point that the pro-snipe side is trying to make is this...

When you use eBay's built-in max and bid early, it will make you the high-bidder right then and there. It may not go up to your max bid right away, but it tells others that you are interested in the item and prompts them to bid or increase their own max bid.

When you use the sniping service, it doesn't put in any bid at all until the very end. So to others it appears that there is no interest in the item... less chance of competition increasing their own max bids.