[meteorite-list] Ebay Auction Advise

From: Michael L Blood <mlblood_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Wed Jun 7 22:46:38 2006
Message-ID: <C0AC63B1.2B982%mlblood_at_cox.net>

Hi David/Kitt,
        As an auctioneer, several dynamics regarding auctions have become
crystal clear to me. In addition, I have keept an eye on ebay over the years
- particularly the meteorite section.
        The reason you have gotten no bids is simple: you did not offer
an auction - you offered a sale price. If you follow ebay at all, you
will quickly notice that items that start at 1cent or 1 dollar get a
lot of bids. They may or may not sell for a price greater or less than
could be expected in a regular (non-auction) offering. But they will
certainly get bids - people want a bargain and when they see another
bidder might get something at a very low price they bid higher. This
can often become a bidding war that takes a piece well over the price
the seller might have hoped for. And the opposite is true, as well -
sometimes an item will sell for far less than hoped for.
        In my experience, the sellers who are most satisfied with an
auction are the ones that put in 10 to 20 or even more items. It works
like this: Some sell for far less than you had hoped for, but others get far
more than you had hoped for, so, overall you do fine and dandy. If you
put in one or 2 items and it or they sell for less than you hoped, you
are upset - if they sell for more than you'd hoped, you are ecstatic.
        This is why Mike Farmer can start all his auctions at 1c. Sure,
he sells some stuff very cheaply that way - but others bring more than
he had hoped. I have seen some of his items go for ridiculously high
prices - and others go for incredibly low prices (I am sure Mike
could tell you of more than several!). However, he obviously is doing
fine, as he sells on ebay often - but notice it is almost always many
items. (I use Mike as an example - there are many others - because
he always starts at 1c makes a good example of my point).
        In all the years I have done the Tucson Meteorite Auction they
only seller who expressed dissatisfaction was one who put in 2 items
which both sold for less than he'd hoped. Of course those that put in
one or two that sold for more were stoked. But the ones that enter
multiples year after year are always express satisfaction.
        So, you put one item on eBay and it is getting NO action - because
your "opening bid" is near your "buy it now" price. The only way you
will get a bid is if someone is willing to pay that price. You have provided
no enticement to enter into the bidding process. It is, essentially, a
purchase.
        Knowing all this, I cannot tell you how many times I start bidding
at an auction and then go far above my original "limit" I had in my
head at the start. This is particularly true if the item is for myself
rather than for resale - but even for resale, one "sees" the "demand"
the item generates! Very difficult NOT to get into a bidding "war"
for it. And it is fun! It satisfies some kinky human drive - that is why
slot machines are so popular - and make a FORTUNE, even though
many are set to pay out 98% of what goes in. Humans are very complex
and though many of us like to think our behavior is based on "logic"
there are almost always a good many other factors governing behavior.
But that is a whole other subject. - but while we are on it - often a piece
will have a low starting price but also a "Buy it now" price - and once
the bidding starts, it will go far higher than what the "Buy it now" price
was before the bidding started! (Don't take my word for it - ask Dean
Bessey - he told me this happens in his auctions on eBay all the time).
        Many times I have noted 2 similar meteorites (or part slices or the
like) on eBay of the same fall/find. One starts at 1c or $1 and the other
has, say a $5 opening bid. I kid you not - over and over again the one
with no or very low minimum will bid up to $10 or more and the $5 minimum
piece will NEVER get a bid! People will be paying more than twice as
much for another item - BECAUSE they started bidding for it.
        Therefore, if you are really wanting to auction a piece, you must
have a very modest opening price - one people feel they are stealing it
for. If you want to merely put it on eBay to sell and if you don't get that
specific price you would rather keep it - then you can ask what you want.
That is what you did - and it still may sell at the last minute, but
if it doesn't sell at all (and it is looking that way) that is why.
        Thus spake Yoblood.

 

on 6/7/06 2:09 AM, David & Kitt Deyarmin at bobadebt_at_ec.rr.com wrote:

> I have listed a partial slice on ebay and it doesn't look like it's going to
> do too good, no bids yet and very few people have even looked at the listing
>
> Does anyone know if I have made a mistake listing it or is there something
> unappealing about this specimen?
>
> Is my asking price too high?
>
> Here is the auction:
>
>
> http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6635223516&rd=1&sspagename=
> STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1
>
> ______________________________________________
> Meteorite-list mailing list
> Meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com
> http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
>

-- 
"He is not a lover who does not love forever." - Euripides (485-406BC)
--
* If Jimmy cracks corn and no one  cares, why is there a song  about  him?

Received on Wed 07 Jun 2006 02:06:25 PM PDT