[Ebay] Resellers Thoughts on a "Buying" ID • Collecting General • The Acaeum

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[Ebay] Resellers Thoughts on a "Buying" ID
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Reindeergamez
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2005 10:03 pm

know there are some other resellers out there so I pose this question to those of you to whom this applies. (And anyone else who wants to join in)

I've always bought with my seller ID, never really though much about it until recently. I've gotten some rather negative emails lately, one of which I shared, others not so "juicy" but speaking out against buying to resell, snipe bidding or other practices. I've been considering starting to buy with another ID, but it feels "dirty" to me, like I have to hide what I'm doing.

Any thoughts? I know some of the big guys (guido comes to mind) buy with their selling ID (because I've sold to some of you!) Do you ever get these emails? Do you just have thicker skin than me? I love doing this as a way to expand my collection, and the monetary aspects are nice as well. =)

FormCritic
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2005 10:45 pm

Well...you have posted some of the best AD&D items out there on Ebay, so that is good. I have lost your auctions to some of the best of them.

I get discouraged when I see the big fish circling about any little pond I may have found.....it means I might as well get out now.

IF the item is worth anything, then my chance of beating out the big guys is nil.

As soon as creep1962 or Cougarinnard or one of the other big fish joins an auction I tend to take a back seat and just watch...I have no chance to win if they actually want something.

I do not see anything unethical about the big fish swallowing up all of the good deals. That is business, after all.

But, unless you guys really do have unlimited cash, you might find it hard to get your money back out if you continue to double the cost of auctions.

MRS

"But I have watched the dragons come, fire-eyed, across the world."

Deadlord
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2005 10:48 pm

Well, I am about to start another ID, due to asswipe sellers. I have always bought and sold with the same ID, but that will change. When eBay gets a good policy in place ( not likely), I will be happy to use 1. But until then, I am separating them.

If you hit a Rowsdower, you get to keep it.

Beyondthebreach
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Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2005 11:01 pm

I've always bought with the same ID (though I snipe 99% of the time so usually a bid doesn't come in to the final second).

I try to be courteous (if possible - sometimes it's hard as I might set me snipes days in advance). My own "courtesy" consists of:

- not overbidding anyone currently bidding on one of my auctions

- avoiding overbidding on any of my best customers.

- not bidding on highly collectible items for resale (R series, OD&D, etc.)

- occasionally not overbidding Acaeum members

I have never received a nasty email from anyone.

"Gleemonex makes it feel like it's seventy-two degrees in your head... all... the... time! "

GraysonAC
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 12:20 am

Don't think I've been around long enough to be one of the "big" resellers yet, but I use the same ID for buying and selling. Imo, it's the honest way to do things. I've never gotten any flack for it, but it wouldn't surprise me if I did.

Frankly, I think anyone angry that folks are buying and reselling are missing a big point - it's a free market. If a reseller is foolish enough to buy something for a price he can't make a profit on, then he's hurting himself, and the price will (eventually) come down. I've done it myself, and will probably make mistakes in the future. Heck, I just payed for something that I'm probably going to have to sell at a loss after calculating in shipping - I was expecting to win a few other items, and didn't, heh.

The obvious resellers doing that are Coug and Creep, and to be honest, I don't see Creep staying in business. Coug can get away with more because he's in the UK and can charge more.

Sniping.. well, folks upset at sniping usually make me shake my head. If you don't want to lose to a sniper, then bid the amount that you're willing to pay, and walk away. If someone wants it more, you'll lose, and if nobody wants it as badly, you win. As far as I can tell, most (if not all) folks upset at sniping are angry that they didn't get an item cheaply, for less than they were willing to pay. Seems pretty ridiculous to me.

shadowfax17
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 8:29 am

Reindeergamez wrote:I've been considering starting to buy with another ID, but it feels "dirty" to me, like I have to hide what I'm doing.

There's nothing dirty about it whatsoever. It's a fairly common practice on eBay for people to have separate buying and selling ID's. As long as the two ID's never interact with one another, there's nothing wrong with this.

Reindeergamez
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 8:42 am

Thanks for the replies, I feel a little better about the situation. My latest was from an "anti-sniper" who wrote me three GIANT emails about how as a seller I should feel dishonest about my practices of sniping. He was actually fairy civil however, I think he was just upset over seeing me win a set of books for what looked like only a couple of dollars over his high bid. (In fact I actually bid another $20 above that but it just didn't get that far)

Oh well.

=)

killjoy32
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 8:46 am

shadowfax17 wrote:
Reindeergamez wrote:I've been considering starting to buy with another ID, but it feels "dirty" to me, like I have to hide what I'm doing.

There's nothing dirty about it whatsoever. It's a fairly common practice on eBay for people to have separate buying and selling ID's. As long as the two ID's never interact with one another, there's nothing wrong with this.

i've heard talk of this a few times and i can totally understand it. its hardly underhand at all - makes good business sense if you think about it.

i buy and sell on my own ID (which is the same as the one on here) - i dont hide anything as most of the guys here will see.

however doing biz with a mate of mine, when we are buying a fairly decent sized item now, he will get it and what we sell on ebay, i will sell. most will be for our own site tho, so it doesnt really relate in the same way to the ebay issue.

i dont see what the problem is really.

Al

<edit> as to the ebayers who mail you in anger or whatever, well frankly, its their loss. in the end its an auction. if you just outbid them at whatever time, well its tough. it doesnt say you can't do it, so whats the problem? i've been outbid literally hundreds of times in the last few seconds, but in the end, thats life. i aint happy about it at the time, but what can you do. if i truly wanted it, i would put a bid in that anyone else bidding, they would REALLY need to seriously think about it if they actually wanted the item(s). i've had a few nasty e-mails in the past, but i have just replied with a "if you wanted it enough, you should have bid more - thats life, get over it and leave me the f*ck alone"

Are we nearly there yet?

bclarkie
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 9:09 am

shadowfax17 wrote: There's nothing dirty about it whatsoever. It's a fairly common practice on eBay for people to have separate buying and selling ID's. As long as the two ID's never interact with one another, there's nothing wrong with this.

And if they do I will catch you. :twisted:

As far as I am concerned, I do not see a problem with having 2 different uer IDs, but I personally do not see the need for me. Granted I do not sell nearly as much as some folks, as most of what I sell is extras that I have picked up along the way thatI am using to help fund my next purchase. Truthfully, I do not see how anyone can complain about being sniped, because the auction is x days long and no matter when you do place your bid, if you bid the most you are willing to pay then you really never should be upset at being beat. If you do get beat, no matter when it is, the only person you should be angry at is yourself for no putting in your Max bid right off the bat. I can see being angry about a lot of "things" that go on on Ebay, but being sniped really should not be one of them.

"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." -Neitzche

deimos3428
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 9:48 am

bclarkie wrote:
shadowfax17 wrote: There's nothing dirty about it whatsoever. It's a fairly common practice on eBay for people to have separate buying and selling ID's. As long as the two ID's never interact with one another, there's nothing wrong with this.

And if they do I will catch you.

As far as I am concerned, I do not see a problem with having 2 different uer IDs, but I personally do not see the need for me. Granted I do not sell nearly as much as some folks, as most of what I sell is extras that I have picked up along the way thatI am using to help fund my next purchase. Truthfully, I do not see how anyone can complain about being sniped, because the auction is x days long and no matter when you do place your bid, if you bid the most you are willing to pay then you really never should be upset at being beat. If you do get beat, no matter when it is, the only person you should be angry at is yourself for no putting in your Max bid right off the bat. I can see being angry about a lot of "things" that go on on Ebay, but being sniped really should not be one of them.

Being sniped isn't something to get upset about, but then neither is being cut off in traffic -- I still find both mildly irksome. The reason most people don't like sniping is that they get their hopes up, and then get them dashed in the final minute (or 8 seconds for you professional snipe artists). Solution: Don't get your hopes up. :wink:

As far as the two accounts, I wouldn't do it but I see no harm if someone else does. I suppose I'm an occasional reseller -- if I manage to get something super-cheap, I'll resell it to fund my collection. I don't feel guilty for a second if I score a deal. I'm sure someone out there bought a 1st woody for the price on the box at one point -- but probably not for the last 27 years or so...

Guido-the-Gypsy
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 10:09 am

beyondthebreach wrote:I've always bought with the same ID (though I snipe 99% of the time so usually a bid doesn't come in to the final second).

I try to be courteous (if possible - sometimes it's hard as I might set me snipes days in advance). My own "courtesy" consists of:

- not overbidding anyone currently bidding on one of my auctions

- avoiding overbidding on any of my best customers.

- not bidding on highly collectible items for resale (R series, OD&D, etc.)

- occasionally not overbidding Acaeum members

I have never received a nasty email from anyone.

I try to do the same. If I out bid a known Acaeum member for a rare item, it is because I need if for my collection, not for resale.

The beauty of eBay (for all of its downfalls) is that it is a free market. I never get upset when I loose an auction. I set my price on the auction and walk away. If I win, I win.

It seems like guys like creep come along a couple times a year, often after seeing several "big" sales for individual items. The either don't have the passion for collecting (or sales in some cases) or the financial staying power. Some stay around and those tend to create a better collecting community because most or them find their way to this site eventually. Funny how behaviors change when you get to know some of your buyers a bit.

bclarkie
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 10:23 am

deimos3428 wrote: Being sniped isn't something to get upset about, but then neither is being cut off in traffic -- I still find both mildly irksome...

Dont get me wrong being sniped does suck, but to get all hot and bothered and start sending nasty emails to people who you lose out to is not only a waste of time, but also flat out childish. :roll: Now as far as getting cut off in traffic, that is a MUCH different story....... but I will save you the diatribe(I have a tendancy to drive angry at times :lol:

). :wink:

"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." -Neitzche

FormCritic
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2005 3:30 pm

With any business, SOMEONE is going to be unhappy. You cannot please all of the public and stay in business. If you try to please everyone, then you will end up pleasing no one. :?

If you are buying on Ebay in order to re-sell, then you are certainly going to displease one of your potential customers. Angry customer responses are a part of business. :cry:

There is nothing unethical about splitting your business into parts and operating under different names. Companies do this all of the time, including companies that put out the same product at different price levels, under different names, so they can get a larger share of the overall market.

Ebay is a grownup marketplace. Who here has not paid too much, or miscalculated or bid on something that you should have avoided? You take your chances when you join Ebay and you might as well enjoy it. :oops:

While I am ranting...being on this forum also helps me enjoy the Ebay experience because I get to cheer for the home team even when I personally lose. I get to enjoy other members' successes and I get to share my hobby with others who share my joy in it. Anyway... 8)

"But I have watched the dragons come, fire-eyed, across the world."

Badmike
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2005 12:02 am

MShipley88 wrote:With any business, SOMEONE is going to be unhappy. You cannot please all of the public and stay in business. If you try to please everyone, then you will end up pleasing no one. :?

If you are buying on Ebay in order to re-sell, then you are certainly going to displease one of your potential customers. Angry customer responses are a part of business. :cry:

There is nothing unethical about splitting your business into parts and operating under different names. Companies do this all of the time, including companies that put out the same product at different price levels, under different names, so they can get a larger share of the overall market. 8)

Ebay is a grownup marketplace. Who here has not paid too much, or miscalculated or bid on something that you should have avoided? You take your chances when you join Ebay and you might as well enjoy it.

While I am ranting...being on this forum also helps me enjoy the Ebay experience because I get to cheer for the home team even when I personally lose. I get to enjoy other members' successes and I get to share my hobby with others who share my joy in it. Anyway... 8)

I buy probably 90% of my stock on my own, not on Ebay. I don't know if I'm unique or not among EBay RPG resellers. I hated getting myself into the kinds of situations that are described, where you are essentially bidding against your customers to resell to those same customers. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Much better and less stressful to find the used RPG hordes elsewhere than to have to fight scratch and claw your way past other dedicated Ebaying Acaeum members and end up paying far too much for a bunch of stuff that I could get cheaper by getting lucky at a used gamestore.

Mike B.

Kingofpain89
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2005 12:59 pm

Reindeergamez wrote:I've gotten some rather negative emails lately, one of which I shared, others not so "juicy" but speaking out against buying to resell, snipe bidding or other practices.

I never even considered that someone might be so upset at not winning an auction that they would email the winning bidder to complain to them about what they thought was an "unfair" bidding tactic. Heck, the only time I ever got even mildly upset about being outbid was when I was bidding on four different auctions and the same person outbid me in the last second on all of them. I was thinking "How the hell did one person outbid me on every auction in the last second???". It was only later I found out about sniping software....the bastard. :D

By the way Guido, congratulations...ya bastard. :wink:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 5227180916

Pointy Stick
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2005 1:28 pm

deimos3428 wrote:The reason most people don't like sniping is that they get their hopes up, and then get them dashed in the final minute (or 8 seconds for you professional snipe artists). Solution: Don't get your hopes up.

That's exactly why I hate sniping. However, I have simply learned not to get my hopes up, because it is more effective than ranting to one's half-listening spouse, and devising elaborate auction rules to prevent sniping from occurring that fall on deaf ears at, say, the Acaeum. :wink:

Now I just sit there saying, "Dude, I am so going to get sniped on this one, I can just tell." And occasionally I'm wrong, which makes for pleasant surprise, instead of the old unpleasant surprise.

Plus, I am now obsessed with sniping anyway. I won a recent auction in which the price was jacked up at the end by a very suspicious looking bidder. It went from being a fantastic price to merely a quite good price. I'm not going to say more than that because I'm probably wrong, but I had to vent that much. :D

GraysonAC
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2005 4:40 pm

For those that want to snipe, I recommend Bidnapper. It's a yearly fee (or monthly), and works darn well.

bbarsh
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2005 10:29 pm

1. I use the same ID for everything. Never recieved a complaint about sniping or the like

2. I buy and resell as a hobby and sometimes to add to my collection. Certainly not a big fish in the pond.

3. I follow the same rules as Beyond. I will pick my spots.

4. If I am going to snipe, I am gonna do it personally! No automation for me. Old school

And I could've bought these damn modules off the 1$ rack!!!

New modules for your Old School game http://pacesettergames.com/

Everything Pacesetter at http://pacesettergames.blog.com/

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