How important is auction sniping to you?

[FrankWakefield]

I've never used a snipe service. I think that I never will.

Never wasn't an option, so I thought Rich needed company.

[Jim VB]

At the risk of outing a current (but non-card) auction, here's a good example of why non-snipers get hurt.

A zero feedback bidder placed 4 bids in 7 minutes and walked this one up from $200 to $400+.

I know it will go for much more, but it looks like Mr. zero feedback is trying to find the other guy's bid.

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=190336391115

[base_ball]

I would never consign an item to an auctioneer that allows sniping. Closing an auction at a fixed time costs the seller (consignor and actioneer) money. Think of how many times you were the under-bidder in an eBay auction and you thought to yourself, "That went cheap, I would've gone up some more." That is what happens in a real (live) auction....you have the opportunity to change your mind and get caught up in the fever. That is also what happens in the online auctions that have a 15-minute or whatever rule...assuming, of course, those auctions are on the level.

That being said, I love sniping. I do it all the time. As a buyer.

[buymycards]

Leon, your poll should have another option. "I don't care". I would love to see another auction site, and I will be happy to pay a fee to sell on the site, but it doesn't make any difference to me whether or not it has a snipe feature.

You may want a listing fee so you get a little bit of $ up front so people don't use the site as a free catalog and close their deals off site to avoid final value fees. PayPal is essential. Maybe you can avoid listing fees and sales fees by having sellers "join" the site for a monthly fee that would entitle them to list a set number of auctions.

Good luck!

Rick

[pitchernut]

why a seller would be worried about sniping, all the seller has to do is set a reserve or start the auction at the min. the seller wants. I think where ebay goes haywire is they charge more for reserves and what amount the auction starts at. To me a good way to run an auction would be just a flat fee for listing an auction and thats it.

[insidethewrapper]

I would like an alternative to ebay. My son sells legos on a lego site. No listing fees and all items have no deadline. Fees are paid only when an item sells. That sounds good to me.

I do like extended bidding. Anyone who makes a bid before the orginal deadline is eligible to continue bidding (all others locked out) If a bid was placed in the last minute,the auction would be extended by one minute each time a bid is placed until no bids for a minute. This is more like a real auction and helps the seller get the best price and the site gets additional income.

That's my opinion. Mike