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3 second vs 6 second snipe

 
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rushnbobo
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 5:25 pm    Post subject: 3 second vs 6 second snipe Reply with quote

I've read a lot of comments stating that there is no benefit in the 3 second bid vs the 6 second bid. REALLY? There is a huge difference:

Scenario: Snipe placed at 6 seconds usually results in exactly a 6 second bid before auction closes bid on my eBay. This gives AMPLE time for manual bidders NOT using eBay proxy bidding to place bids by "enter at least your bid here" this will often result in losing auctions by one increment (has happened multiple times to me) Just like myself, most people will go up 1 increment over their "maximum" to win.

If it is a proxy eBay or other bid there is nothing you can do anyway, let them have it. If it is a user staring at his/her screen to save a buck you will lose every time if your snipe is close to the actual winning bid. They can place 2-3 bids in the remaining 5-6 seconds.

A 3 second snipe leaves little (or ideally) NO time for said manual bidder to out bid you in increments. He/she will panic at 2 seconds and attempt a bid at 1 second resulting in failure. There is virtually no time to click and send out bid at 1 second

FACT: Many bidders still don't know what eBay proxy bidding is. They will literally sit by the screen and snipe by manually entering bids in the remaining seconds.

If sniping is good, then sniping at the LAST possible second is better. If it doesn't matter then why snipe at all?
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mario
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Joined: 03 Oct 2006
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 10:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Such scenarios as you describe are, in my opinion, very rare in practice. I use 8 seconds for all my personal snipes in order to keep bid increment advantage over other snipers, which I consider more beneficial than remote risk of manual bidders changing their opinion and being able to place a bid 6 seconds before auction end. But since there are different opinions, there are different options for offset. You are free to use Gixen as you see fit.
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Cupid



Joined: 09 Aug 2007
Posts: 7567
Location: Bristol, UK

PostPosted: Sun Mar 02, 2014 4:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My opinion is based on tens of thousands of auctions, all that I have been interested in winning... and I agree with Mario the advantage of the bid increment is far more significant (and has saved me far more money) than the remote chance of attracting a reaction bid in the short time available.

For there to be a reaction, there has to be a human there waiting to do so... and to react in less than ten seconds indicates that the person is watching the auction waiting to give that final bid... that scenario is fundamentally different from receiving an email a few hours before the auction ends indicating that someone is already preprepared to pay more than you have bid... indicating that you might want to reconsider what it is worth to you, which is why sniping is beneficial, that extra research time is not available when the bid is late.

My opinion has always been that the person sitting there waiting has already made the decision that if a late bid comes in, they are going to bid again... they may regret that they paid too much later, they may not, but they can not help themselves... a few of those and anyone doing it realises that the better strategy is to know their maximum bid well in advance and schedule a snipe for that amount and then get on with their life, doing more productive things, until after the auction closes.

The effort required for sniping is in researching the item in question thoroughly so that the maximum you set for your snipe is truly competitive, not more than you want to spend but also not less than you would be prepared to pay given the availability of the item and the likelihood of you being able to find another in a reasonable time-frame. A few more minutes doing this always achieves better results no matter what offset you choose for the snipe you then schedule.

As Mario says, because our opinion is not universal, the option is there for Mirror subscribers, to choose their own offsets and I wish everyone the best of luck with whatever they choose and think works best for them.
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javaboon
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 1:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I had a 3 second snipe yesterday, checked the bid history and won from another sniper who had a 4 second snipe Very Happy
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 1:49 pm    Post subject:

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mario
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Joined: 03 Oct 2006
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 04, 2014 2:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sure, but you possibly would have won for less had your bid arrived a second before his. You would have won anyway, that's for sure.
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mblockk
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 23, 2014 3:55 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mario wrote:
Such scenarios as you describe are, in my opinion, very rare in practice. I use 8 seconds for all my personal snipes in order to keep bid increment advantage over other snipers, which I consider more beneficial than remote risk of manual bidders changing their opinion and being able to place a bid 6 seconds before auction end. But since there are different opinions, there are different options for offset. You are free to use Gixen as you see fit.


What is the "bid increment advantage" / how does it work?
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Cupid



Joined: 09 Aug 2007
Posts: 7567
Location: Bristol, UK

PostPosted: Mon Mar 24, 2014 1:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

mblockk wrote:
What is the "bid increment advantage" / how does it work?


Ebay will not accept a bid that is less than one bid increment more than the current auction price. This can lead to your bid not being accepted even though it was higher than anyone else was prepared to pay.

Since other snipers may raise the price at the end of the auction, the situation where your bid is higher but rejected is more likely to happen the later your bid is scheduled to be placed.

So there is an advantage to bidding earlier than other snipers, your bid is less likely to be blocked due to the bid increment rule.

Also, once your bid is placed other snipers may get their later bid blocked due to that rule, even though they may have been prepared to pay more than you were.
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