Outbid email notification?

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we be notified by email when an update shows that we've been outbid?

You should get an email, but I wouldn't DEPEND on it.

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I've noticed that Updates don't automatically appear on my Snipe page

http://www.auctionsniper.com/faqbasics.aspx#basics17

Also, it is best to decide up front what your absolute max and and set that snipe. If you are considering raising the amount of your snipe because someone else has bid higher, then you did not set your max and that is just another form of nibbling and defeats at least part of the purpose of sniping. Set your max and walk away. Let the final moments play out and then you will know.

That's a good principle, but sometimes a higher bid will generate a re-think. I tend to underbid; a higher bid can sometimes work as a reality check.

It happens but if you're watching the auction then consider sniping manually rather than upping your snipe - especially as you can't change it with less than 5 mins to go...

R2

Part of determining what one should bid is the value of the item. An individual’s value can be very subjective, and could well be under priced. After all, everyone wants to pay the least amount possible. A more objective valuation is the market price, or what others are willing to pay. Finding out what others are willing to pay often influences what an individual is willing to pay. It’s very common, if not universal, to find out what others have paid for a similar item and base one’s purchasing decision on that information. Even on ebay, if one researches what an item typically sells for, they are in essence allowing others to control their bid amount, which is the same as changing one’s max bid on a snipe, only the latter doesn’t require the research time wading through completed auctions.

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that is just another form of nibbling

Not really. Changing one’s snipe bid is more like a bidding skirmish, as there are a lot fewer shots fired.

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defeats at least part of the purpose of sniping

Which part would that be? Would that be winning the item without letting others know your intentions?



Remember, it’s much easier to establish a max bid amount and stick with that amount on lower priced items. I know Chatter agrees with that.

"Set it and forget it" is fine if the value of an item is easy to determine - not always the case. On the other hand, manual sniping (last-minute bidding, by definition) allows too much emotion and ego into the process. But you can't have too much information, and sometimes info about early bidding will suggest that I'm underbidding the item. So, well before the auction closes, I have a chance to take that into account, unaffected by the heat of the final moment.

Like most things, sniping isn’t an absolute. Everything pertaining to sniping is a personal choice, which includes the bid amount and the lead time. The is no Sniping Science. What works for one sniper may, or may not, work for another one. Not sure why anyone feels the need to pontificate their sniping religion. THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG OF SNIPING!

I suspect that the maximum bid amount is changed for a large percentage of snipes due to an outbid. After all, why would AS send an outbid email? Why would AS allow the maximum bid amount to be changed? Why would AS even list the current price if it didn’t realize that a significant number of snipers would change their bid?

For me, one of the uses of AS is to enter the fray with an initial price I'm more than willing to pay. So I'm in the game but I'm freed from concern, i.e., I don't have to worry that I've bid too much, and I don't have to remember to bid later on.

After my initial bid, I can raise my offer if I decide either that the item is worth more than I initially thought. Example: I buy hobby items and sometimes I'll fall in love with an item after I've given it some thought. Or, if I initially thought I could pick it off for peanuts, an Outbid might persuade me to up the ante. Often there's some combination of those things.

AS also allows for a change of heart - I'm in, but if I decide to withdraw my offer, I am free to do so without dealing with any eBay red tape.