tooltimes
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posted on October 8, 2002 04:19:34 PM new
I have only seen this in jewelry auctions so far. There is a "Buy It Now Price is $XXX.XX" notation in the auction description but the auction does not use a BIN at all. Since all traces of any BIN disappear after the first bid so it is very difficult to catch because most of these auctions start at a super low price like $1.00 or a penny. The problem is that usually the bidders have no way to gauge the relative value of the jewelry by looking at the BIN after it disappears on the first bid. If a seller says there was a $400 BIN price but the jewelry is only going to sell in the $50 range many bidders may think it's worth at least $250 or $300. When the seller uses a reserve the bidders may bid a lot more than they would have if the supposed BIN price were not prominently displayed in the auction description.
I know this is very similar to writing "Retail Price is $400" when it is really a $40 item but this is more deceptive because the seller supposedly paid for an extra ebay feature. I think it's deceptive because most sellers use a somewhat realistic BIN price.
Here's an example
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=963997482
As a note: Bidz.com auction uses a Buy It Now Price in their 3 minute auctions that does not really work as the bidders can not hit a BIN button to buy it and the BIN price is always very high and meaningless. Some ebay seller may see this BIN practice on Biz.com and think it is okay to use on ebay.
Thoughts?
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twelvepole
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posted on October 8, 2002 05:42:07 PM new
I don't call that deceptive... call that salesmanship.
Just reinforces that a bidder should know what they are bidding on and based on the description it went for about the right price... if someone can't wait to bid, then they pay what the seller is asking.
Ain't Life Grand... 
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sanmar
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posted on October 8, 2002 06:20:45 PM new
I agree this is a deceptive practice. I use BIN on a lot of collectibles & fine china, but it stays on until the reserve is met. The BIN is only pennies more than the reserve. I use it because I feel the item is worth at least that much. This way I have an opportunity of turning over my merchandise faster @ a reasonable profit. The name of the game in retailing is turning over your inventory. The faster, the more new you can put in. I put an item on last night with a BIN of $125.00, 14 hours later it was sold with BIN.
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capotasto
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posted on October 8, 2002 07:16:07 PM new
"There is a "Buy It Now Price is $XXX.XX" notation in the auction description but the auction does not use a BIN ..."
How do you know? BIN disappears when a bid is placed. When I see an item I want with a low starting price and a high BIN I will place a low bid to kill the BIN, then come back near the end to place a real bid.
Good salesmanship to state your BIN in the description (as twelvepole said). But a smart bidder will give it the attention it deserves.
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kiara
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posted on October 8, 2002 08:34:49 PM new
Do you mean like in this auction?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=966288553
There is no BIN price but in the auction it says "Buy now price $170.00".
Buyers that are unfamiliar with jewelry prices may think this is the true value of the item but it is overvalued.
Is it deceptive? I guess it's called marketing strategy whether one agrees with it or not. I don't do it because I think it's too much of a gimmick but perhaps it works for some sellers.
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twelvepole
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posted on October 8, 2002 08:51:31 PM new
That auction is promoting fee avoidance... LOL
But yeah, if a buyer thinks they are getting a $170 piece of jewelery for $9.99 and feel good about it... who are we to say it is wrong.
If they know it is not worth the $170 amount they will just do a normal bid of what it is worth to them.
BIN is for those who don't want to wait and that means you pay a premium.
Ain't Life Grand...
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tooltimes
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posted on October 8, 2002 09:45:29 PM new
Thanks Kiara for finding an auction with the BIN price in the description and no actual BIN. I bet it is a violation of one of ebay one million rules.  It is good salesmanship in a way but unfair in another way. There are so many new ebay bidders it seems like they would be vulnerable to this form of trickery.
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sapington
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posted on October 8, 2002 10:35:29 PM new
They might be relists that had a BIN the first time and they forgot to remove it when relisting.
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sparkz
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posted on October 8, 2002 10:47:56 PM new
I'm totally ignorant when it comes to jewelry (my wife is the expert in that department) but the auction Kiara brought up seems misleading to me. Just my opinion though. I can see where many would consider it clever marketing. I'm looking at it the way a newbie on Ebay would see it. Does anyone think that this type of auction will culture new buyers or scare them off? Just curious how others feel.
The light at the end of the tunnel will turn out to be an oncoming train.
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kiara
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posted on October 8, 2002 11:00:04 PM new
Many jewelry items are pre-tagged with excessive prices and then offered for a low price so the uninformed consumer thinks they are getting a huge bargain.
If you check around you can find similar items offered. Here is an example:
http://www.asplashofsilver.com/milbeepen.html
Here is a similar auction but value is stated as $100 (bad picture)
http://www.bidville.com/listings/details/index_asp.asp?itemnum=5830789
[ edited by kiara on Oct 8, 2002 11:04 PM ]
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tooltimes
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posted on October 8, 2002 11:10:11 PM new
I know this is very similar to writing "Retail Price is $400" when it is really a $40 item but this is more deceptive because the seller supposedly paid for an extra ebay feature. I think it's deceptive because most sellers use a somewhat realistic BIN price
I use to go to Live Auctions where they would offer to bidders new cheapo tool sets with retail prices printed on them for $49.95 yet they were worth only $5 or $10. It sounded like a bargain to get them for the $5 or $10 at auction.
This is different because most ebay sellers place a fairly realistic BIN price on their auction items. This guy's auctions have a very unrealistic BIN price and it's not even a real ebay BIN price. I asked ebay if this practice is okay so let's see if they pull his auction or say it's fine with them.
here's another one of the seller's auctions without a bid yet
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=966275512
[ edited by tooltimes on Oct 8, 2002 11:11 PM ]
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kiara
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posted on October 9, 2002 12:01:04 AM new
Many ebay auctions also have 14k in the title but when you read the description closely you will find that it is only a gold plating.
This is an informative site for anyone buying or selling jewelry:
http://www.nationaljewelersassociation.com/shoppinginfo.htm
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tooltimes
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posted on October 9, 2002 12:40:48 AM new
I saw an auction the other day that used the term "14K shielding". I suppose that's plating.
At least the 14K in the title is at least 14K plated. The seller in the BIN auctions that are not really BIN auctions is doing what the Hong Kong, United States seller was doing a while back. Just using the tactic on a few of their many auctions. If they get caught only a few auctions are pulled and they are less likely to get caught with only a few sneaky auctions.
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tooltimes
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posted on October 14, 2002 08:16:27 AM new
Looks like ebay got the seller to change the "Buy It Now" that wasn't really there to "Retail Price"
The original auctions have a flase BIN in auction description but the 'Go To Relisted Auctions' link has the BIN replaced with the word RETAIL
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=966288553&rd=1
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=966275512&rd=1
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capolady
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posted on October 14, 2002 08:42:09 AM new
I don't really see the problem in inflating the BIN price on any auction. In my mind sellers are not here to see to it that buyers are protected from paying too much for an item. Last time I looked this was still America and people can charge what the market will bear. If a buyer pays too much for an item that is their fault. Buyers need to educate themselves on what the value is on any item they are purchasing. If they choose to blindly bid and they wind up paying too much for an item - "OH WELL"!!!
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