dellastreet
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posted on May 25, 2001 09:41:12 AM new
I listed a widget last night with a starting bid of $19.99. Frankly, I'd be satisfied just to get the starting bid. I received an email this morning asking if I had a buy it now on the auction. Well, of course I don't! If I had, she would have seen it.
I think what she wants me to do is tell her what my buy it now price would be, let her bid that amount, and end the auction early. I've never ended an auction early and don't know if this would be the smart thing to do, or even whether eBay allows it. There are so many things they don't allow anymore I'm never sure if I'm on solid ground!
What would you do? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
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reddeer
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posted on May 25, 2001 09:44:15 AM new
My advice, let the auction run its course.
99% of the time emails like that come from bargain hunters who know that particular item will end much higher than the opening bid.
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deco100
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posted on May 25, 2001 02:59:29 PM new
Never! Learned my lesson the hard way. Unless,of course, you have 20 more.
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magazine_guy
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posted on May 25, 2001 03:21:39 PM new
Don't do it.
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kelliegirl
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posted on May 25, 2001 04:06:35 PM new
A guy offered me $10.00 on a booklet if I would end the auction early. I said I preferred not to and the booklet sold for $40.00. He was the 2nd highest bidder. 
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MrsSantaClaus
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posted on May 25, 2001 04:40:14 PM new
And then there was that little ole Nintendo Game ....
Passed on several offers ....
The auction ended at $330!
Let it run its course ..... you will be glad you did!
BECKY
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docadoodle
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posted on May 25, 2001 05:48:46 PM new
I started a similar thread about a month ago. Someone offered me $150 for three items I was hoping to get maybe $20 each. I was very tempted to take him up on his offer, but some very knowledgable folks on this board convinced me otherwise. All the advice here was to let the auction continue and I was rewarded with $225. There was some nail biting but at the end there was a furious bidding war. The guy who emailed me to stop the auction never even put in a bid.
So the bottom line is to hang in there and let it ride!
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uaru
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posted on May 25, 2001 06:19:30 PM new
I've had many offers to end an auction early. The auction has NEVER been won by the person that made that offer, and has ALWAYS gone for more than they offered.
Maybe if it is something that is time related things might be different, maybe.
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jerry12
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posted on May 25, 2001 07:47:38 PM new
One time I had an old book up for auction--a first edition something or other I picked up at a yard sale.
I had a starting bid of $4.99, but received an e-mail from a nice man who offered me $8.00 for it---but only if I ended the auction early. I told him "sure, I'll even include free shipping".
One month later a seller with an ID very similar to his name sold what looked like a very similar book for a final bid price of $7,655!
Won't that high bidder feel stupid when they find out how much it's really worth.
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capotasto
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posted on May 25, 2001 07:48:28 PM new
Well it also goes the other way too.
I offered a seller $200 to end his auction of a scientific instrument early, he didn't accept my offer, I won the auction at around $125.
Ho ho ho, glad he didn't take my offer!
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kelliegirl
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posted on May 25, 2001 08:07:12 PM new
I posted on the same thread as jerry12!
This must mean something.
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dellastreet
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posted on May 25, 2001 08:50:50 PM new
Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. I've decided not to end the auction even though no one has bid yet. I think I'll just take my chances.
What still puzzles me is that this is a new item and it's not rare. You probably wouldn't see it Walmart, but you could probably find something similar at a major department store. Go figure, huh?
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phbroz
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posted on May 25, 2001 10:49:15 PM new
Sell! Sell! Sell! JMO
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mcjane
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posted on June 8, 2001 09:54:58 AM new
When beanie babies were selling for big bucks I had 2 dozen of a hard to find beanie.
Actually it was Osito the bear, which you can hardly give away today, but at the time it was very hard to find. I put a dozen lot up for auction & someone emailed me & said thet would give me 200.00 for the dozen if I canceled the auction, I did, & made a profit of 128.00. Right away I put the second dozen up for auction & it closed three days later for 400.00. I learned a hard lesson & win or loose I will never cancel an auction again.
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