So do people on eBay NOT want to sell their stuff???

tommy316 · Post by **tommy316** » Sat Jan 18, 2014 5:44 pm

I've started monitoring eBay for OOP BB stuff and just find it amazing what some people put as their starting bid price.... It's an auction site- don't put your starting bid at the market rate, few people will be interested, start a little lower and let it build up to that point. I see a lot of stuff that's going to go without being bid on because of that.... Oh well, just venting... I guess if they really want to sell then they'll re-list it at a reasonable starting price

lauth81 · Post by **lauth81** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 8:50 am

tommy316 wrote: It's an auction site- don't put your starting bid at the market rate

Actually, that's not true anymore. Ebay transformed over the last 5 - 7 years into a shopping platform and C2C auctions are a not a sizeable part of the bunsiness anymore (even though still important in many ways). As a trading business selling on ebay, auctions just don't make much sense.

tommy316 · Post by **tommy316** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 4:48 pm

I get what your saying, but most of what I was noticing was 6-8 figs starting at $60-$80 with no buy now option (so truly a auction format)... Full teams starting at $90 (not talking about any painted figs either- those are usually double that).... I guess what I'm saying is that usually to generate interest the price should start out a little lower and then they'll probably see some bids starting and then they'll probably hit their price and possibly go above.... That's my thought... If they want $60-80 for the figs then put in the buy now option and leave the starting bid lower... Like I said, just venting, but thanks for the info on the shift of eBay business- actually didn't know it had changed that much

tommy316 · Post by **tommy316** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 5:03 pm

http://bit.ly/1eWFl7G this Elf team is an example of what I'm talking about for start low and end high.... Started at $10 and is at $90 now... As opposed to one like this http://bit.ly/1eWFKqI (sorry if this is anyone's) were they're asking for $30 starting (no buy now option) for just 4 figs and there's no bidders.... I just find that a poor approach to an auction, maybe that's just me

Xac · Post by **Xac** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 7:44 pm

The first link is a 2nd edition elf team, wich is quite a collectors stuff and not so easy to find. The second link are 4 dwarven miniatures from the 3rd edition, much easier to find than the elves and (sorry if it's someone's auction) a bit expensive for 4 frequently seen miniatures...

So, though I agree with what you want yo explain, you can't compare those 2 auctions as it's like comparing the price of gold and the price of iron...

tommy316 · Post by **tommy316** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 7:57 pm

No, I agree that they are different, not saying that the dwarves would get that kind of bidding... Just saying that the dwarves may sell for close to the starting price ($28) if they started the asking price around $10 and got some interested bidders... That being said- $28 for those 4 is still steep

axiom · Post by **axiom** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 8:31 pm

There seems to be a bit of a rise in sellers offering models at rather high priced BIN auctions. Models that regularly sell for £2 are listed at £10, £15 or £30. I guess the strategy is that eventually a buyer will need a model immediately & occasional sales justify large numbers of listings.

Personally, I start nearly all my auctions at £0.99 and 90% of them reach or exceed the value I anticipate. But then I'm not trying to make a living from it

neverworking · Post by **neverworking** » Sun Jan 19, 2014 11:07 pm

As a frequent seller on ebay (but not blood bowl), I sort of agree and disagree. Auctions last 7 days and you are hoping 2 people who really want it show up at the same time, but its very likely that wont happen and you end up with considerably less money than just knowing what its worth choosing a 30 day buy it now (or good til cancelled) and waiting patiently for a wanting buyer to find it and purchase it.

I agree it is silly to set a ridiculous starting price on an auction only price though. If you want the crazy price just stick it at buy it now and see if it happens, but if you want it to sell for certain and get your cash quick you are correct a starting low price on an auction will generate enough interest. The combo, auction w/buy it now option is misleading though. As soon as someone bids on the auction the buy it now option vanishes and it becomes pure auction. You should not set a low starting auction price with a high buy it now option, someone will just make a token bid on the auction to kill the buy it now option.

lawquoter · Post by **lawquoter** » Tue Jan 21, 2014 3:07 am

I buy a lot of BB on ebay. Three pet peeves for sellers: 1) if you are going to try to drum up interest in your item, don't list it as "Rare! OOP!" unless it really is. A quick ebay search for your Rare! OOP! might indicate whether that's the case. I saw a 2nd Edition Astrogranite pitch on ebay listed as such with a starting price of $120. Really? There were 3 or 4 available at the same time, with a low opening bid of $0.99 and no reserve.

2) Take good, clear, pictures of your painted team for sale. A LOT of people put one up, it's a lousy pic, and they advertise it as "pro painted!" when it clearly isn't. 3) I hate it when a seller takes a team, say any 2nd edition team, and breaks up selling the team in lots of 4 models each. That's pulling a Grandma Wendy.

Talk Fantasy Football