Hi all, I am an eBay seller and have my account set up to insert AS ads in my auction pages. But so far I haven't seen on anywhere in any of my auctions. Does anyone else use this? Where is the ad displayed? Maybe I am missing it...

They don't seem to work - I think that eBay objected so AS stopped doing it...

That said, I have seen sites that advertise recently so maybe they don't object anymore. Search ebay for 'auctionsniper' to see if they're still there.

R2

Hmmm, I couldn't find any auctions with the AS logo or mention, so I guess what you say is true. I remember eBay banning auction sniper mentions from auctions, but that was long ago and I figured they had since realized that sniping raises their final value fee profits.

Thanks for your help!

eBay started ending all of a persons listings if they had the logo, so we stopped.

Sniping does NOT raise eBay's final value fee profits -- that's why AS exists, to benefit *bidders*, rather than sellers, by winning with *lower* bids! (hence also lower commissions for eBay).

"Sniping" owes its very existence, however, to the basic flaw in eBay's format, so it's eBay's own fault -- a proper "open auction" ends only after a "no more bids received" interval, allowing every bidder to first be informed and then to react to every single other bidder; by violating that most fundamental part of the basic concept, eBay creates an environment where what we call "sniping" is the only sensible way to bid (converting the auction to a "closed" secret format, actually).

eBay then also foists on naive bidders the stupid advice to file an irrevocable "maximum bid" in advance, and thanks to the large supply of people who still fall for eBay's wrong advice, snipers generally get the information they need to win, without overbidding.

I wonder why no one sues eBay for malpractice, for that very "bid your max" advice, which is so wrong? Perhaps it's too hard to explain to a jury why it's so wrong, since an auction is a somewhat subtle procedure.

Happy weekend everyone!

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Sniping does NOT raise eBay's final value fee profits

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I do believe snipers do purchase more, and our site encourages that. So in the end if anything it's a wash, or they make a little more. And sellers sell a little more, but perhaps with a bit lower of a margin.

Cant say I (as a Seller) agree with ..

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Sniping does NOT raise eBay's final value fee profits -- that's why AS exists, to benefit *bidders*, rather than sellers, by winning with *lower* bids! (hence also lower commissions for eBay).

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I love it when snipers come along and bump up my auction in the last few seconds. I look at my ebay and see that some items are doing well, then when I get the *end of auction* email - I am pleasantly surprised as my final price has jumped up.

I concur with Lexie and Sara! I have had snipers push my auction final price up many times! I love snipers in my auctions!!

Sellers, of course, welcome any increase in their final prices. However, as I recall from previous discussions here, the locus of this discussion (does sniping help sellers?) depends on one's comparative point of reference.

If one is comparing the final auction price with what it would have been had the sniper simply never bid, then naturally the end price was raised by the sniper and the seller is happy. However, if one is comparing the outcome of the auction with what would likely have transpired if the sniper bid his same max bid earlier in the auction, then often the result would be quite different. Bidding wars may have ensued and the final price may have been driven much higher. After all, the whole reason we snipe is because we know that the same max bid earlier in the auction might bring about other, higher bids.

Some sellers who rail against snipers highlight this very point. Don't get me wrong; obviously I do not share their views. I am simply saying that claims that snipers help sellers (and eBay) get more money are based on the premise of the sniper bidding the last second of an auction versus not bidding on that auction at all. They do not consider the scenario of the last-second snipe versus the same amount bid earlier in the auction.

It should ALWAYS be a BUYERS market whenever a buyer and a seller meet. eBay, through thier flawed auction process has turned the tables and made it a seller's market and so AS and services like it were created. Sniping simply levels the playing field so that all participants play equally. Because eBay makes a percentage of the auction seller's ending price, eBay has an interest in inflating the seller's price.

Auction sniping causes items to sell lower than they would under eBay's proxy bidding format, for the simple reason that if you place a proxy bid, others are now aware of your interest in the item and can sit there and nibble away at the proxy and drive the cost of the item up and of course eBay's "final value" fees.

eBay hates anything that doesn't make it money, like most bloated corporations. I still remember the days when eBay was a FREE place to list and you could list whatever you wanted and they respected that even offensive items could be listed. Now they have become a sanitized corporation that does its best to make money off you at every turn. Level after level of fees apply to each and every listing. The old days of just trying to make a healthy profit are long gone for the eBay folks.

I expect them to ultimately require sellers to accept PayPal as a condition of selling on their site and eventually they will require PayPal to be the exclusive payment method. There really are only two classes of PayPal users: those who HAVE been screwed by PayPal and those that WILL EVENTUALLY be screwed by PayPal.

I have used paypal for a long time to buy and sell. I have never been "taken" in any way, shape , or form! Before retirement, my husband took credit cards in his business. Believe me, it was much more expensive than the paypal costs!
As for Ebay making mega buck..they are NOT a charity in your berhalf AND there are other auction sites out there to use if you think it is too expensive!..Oh those conservative Hoosiers! LOL!

Most of the business I've worked for that accept credit cards pay anywhere between 3 and 6 percent of the total sales transaction in fees. The higher the volume, the lower the percentage - but if you don't do much in credit card sales you might even pay a 'per transaction' fee too. Then on top of that you have monthly equipment rental charges for the physical credit card machines and a software charge if you elect to poll the information to your pc instead of just sending it to the credit card processor from the credit card machines. The major reason a lot of business don't take american express or diners club is that their fees are higher than visa and mastercard. Also, the amount of time you allow the processor to send your $$$ to the bank once the items have been processed affects your rate.

The tradeoff for all these fees/charges are twofold - happy customers that don't have to carry cash and increased business/cash flow for the seller because people that don't have the $$$ in the bank can still purchase your goods. Seems to me that it's a pretty reasonable process all around.

Exactly right, BJ! It has been ten years since my husband became ill and retired, but even then the fees were higher than I pay paypal!