Re: OT: ebay sniping

[Mark Hamburg <mark_hamburg@baymoon.com>]

Your scenario is based on the theory that people enter their absolute
maximum bid but it isn't really their absolute maximum bid. If you really
enter your absolute maximum and don't change your mind, then either you get
it or someone pays more than you were willing to pay and it doesn't matter
when you entered your bid.

Counter arguments:

1. People don't always use the automatic bidding support and hence waiting
until the last moment is still a good idea because you will be less likely
to actually be competing against their real bids. (Short form: Other people
aren't smart enough to use the tools available to them.)

2. The bidding process itself changes people's perceptions of the value.
What might have been a maximum bid ceases to be when the price drifts up.
So, waiting until the last moment allows one to avoid encouraging others to
bid higher and also avoids letting oneself be swayed. Or it provides the
maximum time for oneself to be swayed. On the other hand, with the 
exception
of very impetuous people, this psychological effect should be mostly gone 
if
you just place your maximum bid in the last few minutes rather than the 
last
few seconds.

3. You may see multiple items available but not want to be actively bidding
on all of them at once. Again, all that matters is bidding reasonably close
to the end of the auction.

My take on it would be, that you should figure out your maximum bid and
place that bid as late as possible without obsessing over coming in right 
at
the wire. Yes, you may lose out to snipers, but you can reassure yourself 
by
remembering that various studies have shown that the winning bidder in an
auction frequently overpays.

Mark