'Buy It Now' Requests
 

I've seen quite a few 'Do you have a buy it now price?' requests to sellers on ebay, when they are offering items without one. Is there something I'm failing to understand about this?

I've tried to think of a reason I might ask that question and I can't. One scenario that crossed my mind was if I wasn't going to be able to get to a computer for the auction but then I'd just put in my maximum bid and leave it. If it was an item I wanted at all costs, I could place a ridiculously high highest-bid.

The only thing I can think of is if the one asking was hoping for some sort of advantage, that they might, for example, get the item for less than they would in an open bid. Is that the angle? It's seems a very sleazy approach. Or is there another angle?

Yes, it's so the person can get it without the risk of losing out on it at auction. I don't do it, but I understand the motivation. If you spot something good on eBay, usually something that is newly listed, it's only natural to want to secure it for yourself before others become aware of it. Hence the BIN offer.

One of my pet peeves when selling on Ebay - my favorite attempt was, "What'll it take for you to end this auction right now?" If I'd wanted to offer a BIN option I would have - makes me want to ask...

People do that when they don't want to wait for the end of the auction. They need the part right away. I've been tempted to try it myself, but I never have.

I've noticed that almost every Schwinn Paramount auction has been ending like this - seller ends up saving the fees, and the buyer gets the bike at a price that the seller thought acceptable (read = outlandish).

I always respond to these fellows by telling them: "How much are you willing to pay?"

-Kurt

I have requested such a buy it now price on a few occasions: 1) once because I was passing right in front of the sellers town and could save shipping and packing for the seller, 2) I was under time pressure to complete a restoration for a show or similar and wanted something now, 3) I was willing to pay almost any reasonable price, but knew that the object might attract some of the collectors with bottomless reserves that could put in a price that was neither reasonable using standard price metrics nor within my range (i.e. the market price has shown itself to be $100 over a longer period of time, but because I knew that a certain collector with unlimited funds was in the search for just such an item, putting in a bid of $300 would still not have offered a chance of walking away with the item). In each of these cases, I will supply the seller all the information and allow them to decide.

On the other side, I have blocked many bidders from all of my auctions when they tried to use such a method to try to scam a deal...

Yes, that's why such behaviour strikes me as sleazy.

Although Grand Bois and Citoyen du Monde's point about 'needing a part right NOW' during a restoration, for example, seems a pretty good reason, I would baulk at doing it myself in the absence of such an option being offered by the seller. I couldn't bring myself to be that pushy.

I'm going to be honest. I did this once, and it was because I'd lost three auctions on Campy Ergo's in a row. Well, some Chorus Ergo's came up, scratched and needed new hoods. Right out of the gate, I offered him $100 and the deal was set.

But, I do find it annoying as a buyer when I get questions asking if I will end the auction now when I've already posted the answer to the question within my auction. Same with the, "Hi. How much for Yugoslavia," when it's clearly stated that my auction is to be kept domestic.

Edit: So I guess my motive to ask for a BIN was so I could actually get an item. It worked, and both the seller and I benefited.

I think it's different if you make an offer and the seller is happy to take it. Asking a seller what their BIN price is when they have chosen not to offer that option seems to be just imposing on them.

My basic rule on buy it now. I will not do it once I have a bid, I feel that is unfair to other bidders. But if the requestor is ready to buy at full market value I am more than happy to oblige. Usually, the buyer assumes since I am starting at a low price (I often start auctions at 99 cents) that I will take some ridiculous lowball buy it now offer... Not a chance.

Sleazy? Unfair? My word, there are a ton of little things people want to buy on Ebay all the time that don't warrant bidding and waiting a week or more to see if you won. I'm not going to bid and wait five days to try and save $0.75 on a tube or a roll of handlebar tape. Even on larger items, it simply provides a high-water mark that the seller is happy to let it go immediately and the buyer is willing to pay to conclude the transaction. It's just another tool for both buyers and sellers.

- Mark

Yes, I was going to say, I think you are allowed to end auctions if no one has bid.

Then don't buy 75 cent handlebar tape and cable clamps on eBay.

-Kurt

I do it if it's something I really want but instead of "asking" I always make an offer, and one that I feel is generous enough that the seller would consider taking it. Two of the best bikes I own I got like this. I might have gotten them cheaper waiting for the auction to end, I but I have them.

As a seller I can't stand when people ask, "if I have a buy it now" or "how much to end the auctuion". That is a complete waste of my time. Have some balls and put a number out there.

'Unfair' hadn't crossed my mind. By sleazy I meant 'willing to impose' on a seller. Perhaps 'lacking manners' would be a better way of putting it. A bit like bidding on an item when the seller has stated they want payment within a week, winning and then asking if the seller will wait 2 weeks for payment. Or winning and then asking the seller for a discount because you've been offered the same item somewhere for less.

I have another angle for you, because it happened to me. You can get cashbackfrom Bing (used to be MSN Live cashback) on purchases made through eBay. Right now that amount is 10% of your purchase, but to qualify you have to have use a Buy-It-Now option and pay with PayPal. So, I was approached with a "what is your BIN price", and that followed with a "can you add BIN to your auction". I knew what was going on, but the buyer told me he wanted to use BIN on eBay so we would both be protected by eBay and PayPal policies that don't apply if you buy outside of the auction itself. I asked what my share of the cashback was and then never heard from the buyer again....until he won the auction for more than the proposed BIN price.

i do it occasionally and has netted me lots of good deals. sellers often also don't feel like waiting several more days for the auction to end. also, sometimes a seller will have multiples of an item, so they're happy to do a Buy It Now for you. lastly, sometimes sellers, especially newbie ones, don't realize there is a BIN option when setting up an auction, and so are willing to do a BIN transaction but didn't set it as such in the listing.

dunno why you guys would even be bothered by the requests. if you don't want to offer a buyer this option, just ignore the email.

I'd say that's stretching an assumption rather thin, don't you?

-Kurt

It looks like a win win to me.The seller gets a price he can live with the , the buyer gets something "right away" and he figures he might be saving a $$ or two.

The seller might have the reserve set too high, he might figure "a bird in the hand is-well a bird in the hand."

One problem for the seller is even if he gets a higher winning bid on Ebay, that doesn't mean he is actually going to be paid.I would bet about 5% of pricey items($800 bikes are pricey) sold on ebay don't actually get paid for.The buyer weasels out, so the seller is SOL.
If someone offers real money paid right now-bears considering.

Like Sidney Greenstreet said-paraphrase of course " coin of realm is worth much more than talk of money" $$ talks bs walks.

Nothing sleazy to me.Both parties are adults with eyes wide open.The other bidders are just SOL, so what??Let them send an email with a $$ offer. They lost nothing.
Charlie

I usually list my bikes on Ebay for $9.99 and let the buyers decide how much the bike or frame set is worth. Sometimes, when I feel a bike has a certain value in the market that others might not be aware of, I have a reserve price. When this is the case I rarely end an auction early to accommodate an impatient bidder. However...

I have recently found that in such cases it is cheaper to implement the Buy It Now option and forget about the Reserve Price. This lets people know what the price is and saves me paying the more costly Reserve Price fees on Ebay. That said, I do get a kick out of watching an auction progress. Sometimes the last minute or two is almost Las Vegas like in its entertainment value.

Or it's because scambay has now made it that you need 5 feedback before you can do a BIN auction.

CL is full of sellers who want bidders. Ebay is full of buyers who don't want bidders.

Bankers risked billions, lost it, and get bonuses. .. from our government.

Personal Injury lawyers only get paid if they win, and take few cases they'd lose.

Unions negotiated for salaries and benefits, and lost thousands of jobs, and turn to the government.

No one wants to confront risk.

I think it's human nature.

People inquire about 'Buy Now' primarily becasue they dont want to pay what they know it will cost and they're hoping for a sysmpathetic seller who doesnt know the true value of the item.

I have done it both ways *blushing* I have asked and gotten a seller to agree to a BIN price (but usually by buying multiple items) and and taken BIN request for things I am selling. I do generally list my items at what I would like to get out of it, and unfortunatly some things have sold for next to nothing other times done very well.

what I hate is when someone starts a an item (ie colbalto/ delta brakes) and has a reserve price. if you know you want $100 for something start the bidding at 100 or atleast 90

Because it sucks to put in a bid with 10 seconds to go only to have 5 other bids come in in those ten seconds from people with auto-bidding software.