| You've bid on and have been following that precious | | | | call a "manual method" of sniping. I simply monitor an |
| item that you could not find ANYWHERE else on | | | | eBay auction of an item that I want. I make sure |
| eBay. You are soooo close to winning it; in fact you | | | | that the amount I'm willing to pay for the item is |
| were the high bidder of the auction! | | | | higher than the current high bid for the item. I then |
| Until...the...last...few...seconds...Oh no! | | | | wait until the auction is almost over. By almost over, |
| You haven't been punk'd, but you have been outbid. | | | | I mean less than 5 minutes to go before the end |
| Relax, it happens to probably millions (if not billions) of | | | | time of the auction. I might even wait until under a |
| eBay shoppers on a regular basis. Since so many | | | | minute if the auction item already has bids from |
| people regularly use and shop on eBay these days, | | | | several other people. After all, the intention is to take |
| the site has become a fiercely competitive arena of | | | | people by surprise before they have a chance to |
| shoppers who are willing and in many cases able to | | | | offer another bid to beat yours. I then make my bid |
| do whatever it takes to win an item at all costs, if | | | | with maybe a few minutes or preferably a few |
| you'll pardon the expression. | | | | seconds remaining in the auction. I've won items from |
| The term Sniping is often used to define the actions | | | | comic books to video cameras using that same |
| an auction shopper who manages to submit a winning | | | | technique. |
| bid for an item within the last few seconds of an | | | | Remember, the advantage of eBay is it can be an |
| auction's end. It isn't illegal but it is definitely on the | | | | incidental marketplace. By incidental marketplace, I |
| shady side. | | | | mean that the demand for an item will fluctuate |
| I've been the victim of sniping, but I've also on a few | | | | depending on many factors like the time of year, and |
| occasions been the perpetrator of sniping. The | | | | most importantly, how many people happen to be |
| methods people use to accomplish sniping vary. Some | | | | searching for the same item on eBay at that point in |
| actually use software to search eBay auctions for | | | | time. What you should also remember is that sniping |
| items they are interested in and then automatically | | | | has, is, and will continue to be a part of eBay for the |
| submit bids at strategic points during the auction until | | | | foreseeable future. Those who are engaging in the |
| either the high bid is achieved or until the bid amount | | | | practice are shrewd individuals who do more than |
| exceeds what the sniping party is willing to pay. | | | | study the items for bid on eBay...they study the |
| As I haven't done sniping much, I've only used what I | | | | people bidding on them. |