eSeller004
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posted on August 30, 2001 07:20:41 AM
I've got a dilemma. I'm having trouble spurring bidding on some of my eBay items. If I list an item and it gets to a price of X I'm content, but if I can get the price to Y, I'm ecstatic!! The problem is most of my items end near X, not Y.  I was thinking of offering the winning bidder a Bonus if the winning price reached Y. I'm trying to incent bidders to bid high! But is this an acceptable technique on eBay?? Will I get the boot if I try it?
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tjbrocean
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posted on August 30, 2001 07:24:26 AM
I have had a few auctions where I will state if bidding hits xxx amount you will get free shipping, has worked for me here and there.
I dont think Ebay could boot you for offering a bonus along with the winning bid
Jen
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holdenrex
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posted on August 30, 2001 07:32:51 AM
Technically it's against ebay's rules and your auctions could get pulled if somebody reports you. Offering free or reduced shipping may be acceptable under the rule. Go here to read it for yourself:
http://pages.ebay.com/help/rulesandsafety/42010002.html
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avaloncourt
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posted on August 30, 2001 07:45:47 AM
Bonus is a bad word at ebay. As holdenrex pointed out, there is a specific prohibition against "Bonus" auctions and, as noted, if someone turns you in you'll get pulled. It's playing the odds if you want to try. There are lots of bonus auctions posted.
There's nothing wrong with a shipping incentive.
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eastwest
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posted on August 30, 2001 08:00:14 AM
I do it all the time and it works great...i offer free shipping if they use the buy now....and the buy now is the higher price....i alos offer free shipping if reserve is met as well
increased my sales by 40%
if you want to see my auctions email me
[email protected]
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eSeller004
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posted on August 30, 2001 08:10:43 AM
Thanks everyone, maybe I can use free shipping as the incentive. Nice idea that I hadn't considered although the bonus item is worth many times more than shipping. But will it be enough of a carrot?
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mballai
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posted on August 30, 2001 08:18:54 AM
People love anything that appears to be a savings. The only offset is that it adds a bit to your FVF so you need to calculate for that in your price.
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JMHO2
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posted on August 30, 2001 08:27:05 AM
No you can't even offer free shipping unless you offer it to all bidders.
This bonus ruling is interpreted differently by everyone. ebay considers the free shipping a bonus if it's selective.
You can offer discounts on shipping or free for multiple purchases, but you can't say if you BIN you'll get free shipping.
If reserve is met, you've sold the item to the highest bidder, so you can offer free shipping to everyone who wins.
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MAH645
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posted on August 30, 2001 08:51:10 AM
It is against E-Bays rules, however on some auctions I was running,another Seller was offering a free vacation if you bid on their item,and when I turned them into E-Bay said they didn't see anything wrong with the auction.And I can tell you that you can't hardly get a bid on your item when some clown does this, but there is nothing you can do about it.Its one of those deals of If you do it E-Bay throws you off,If somebody else does it,its O.K. The bottom line is that there are certain items not worth offering on E-Bay,because your competition is going to break all the rules and get away with it,and its not worth the worry trying to sell in those areas.
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flynlizards
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posted on August 30, 2001 07:07:04 PM
While it may be against the rules, you'll probably be able to do it. I've listed many with free/bonus items (including reduced shipping) and have not yet had a one pulled or a warning.
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