To me they serve several functions, all of which are purely marketing and none of which have much fact-related basis:
1. By providing a lower estimate it encourages people to bid, once people are engaged they are more likely to keep bidding. The more bidders the better chance an item has for selling for more.
2. As pointed out it allows the house to say they "exceeded, blew away, surpassed" the pre-auction estimate when in reality it often appears to be little more than a number pulled out of a hat to serve a purpose.
3. In some instances they may serve as a way to subtly communicate the level of the reserve (obviously the high end of the estimate).
I pay no attention to them, if I want something I am going to pay what I have to pay up to a point. The reserve has absolutely no impact on me unless it is leading others to bid against me.
Leon is right, it's marketng plain and simple, no science. It's another part of the snake oil charm of this hobby.
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Last edited by HRBAKER; 10-26-2011 at 06:46 PM.
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10-26-2011, 06:42 PM
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