High Web of Spider-Man #1 pricing

[RockMyAmadeus]

MUCH better results this time.

 

There's no such thing as "bad publicity"....

 

[mycomicshop]

MUCH better results this time.

 

There's no such thing as "bad publicity"....

 

 

Agreed.

 

Take a look at some of those lower grade Green Lantern issues 2-20. Whoa. And some of the more unusual stuff did well, like two CGC 9.6 issues of Dr. Kildare going for $95 each, both new GPA highs.

 

I came up with a couple new ways to promote the auctions this time around and I think that helped. I also believe that switching back to auto-extending auction end times for last-minute bids led to higher results for some items, and plan to stick with that format.

[RockMyAmadeus]

MUCH better results this time.

 

There's no such thing as "bad publicity"....

 

 

Agreed.

 

Take a look at some of those lower grade Green Lantern issues 2-20. Whoa. And some of the more unusual stuff did well, like two CGC 9.6 issues of Dr. Kildare going for $95 each, both new GPA highs.

 

I came up with a couple new ways to promote the auctions this time around and I think that helped. I also believe that switching back to auto-extending auction end times for last-minute bids led to higher results for some items, and plan to stick with that format.

 

That format works on a small scale, and will probably always work for you. On a large scale like eBay, it would eventually crash the servers, as millions of auctions pile up with no end.

 

The bids for your raws were extremely aggressive. Even your coverless GL #1 with brittle pages did well.

[TheLiamSturgess]

I almost bid on the GL #1.

[mycomicshop]

I also believe that switching back to auto-extending auction end times for last-minute bids led to higher results for some items, and plan to stick with that format.

 

That format works on a small scale, and will probably always work for you. On a large scale like eBay, it would eventually crash the servers, as millions of auctions pile up with no end.

 

The bids for your raws were extremely aggressive. Even your coverless GL #1 with brittle pages did well.

 

I somewhat disagree with you about the auto-extending format being technically impossible for eBay. It's just a datetime field in a database. A searchable/sortable field like end time is indexed to make sorting and filtering much faster, but it's possible to maintain that index while still allowing a high volume of near real-time updates to the field. Maybe the simplest counter-example is the value of the current bid on an auction. That field also allows sorting and filtering just like end time, and eBay has no problem supporting updates to that field while still allowing you to search and sort on it.

 

I suppose it's possible that if you had a large database distributed across multiple nodes, you could potentially have a situation where one segment thought the auction had ended but another segment had extended the end time. But even there, those are the kinds of problems that large IT companies like Google and Amazon and eBay solve all the time.

 

 

eBay tangent:

 

Our auctions are very different from eBay, and so I'm not claiming that just because this format is better for us it would necessarily be better for eBay. In our case you have a small number (compared to eBay) of well-organized items ending on one night, sequentially, with a group of bidders watching them as they go and being able to easily respond as additional bids come in. Our auctions are similar to a live auction in that respect. On eBay, you have a much more random group, ending at all hours of the day and and night, with bidders coming and going at different times.

 

It's possible that auto-extend might result in higher average prices on eBay auctions, I don't know. If that were the case, I suspect the reason they stick with fixed end times is a combination of inertia and eBay knowing that bidders wouldn't like it if they switched, since sniping is fun and can help you win at a lower price. Auctions are already marginalized at eBay compared to what they used to be. Making an additional change that snipers didn't like would weaken auctions further.

 

Sellers on eBay are somewhat of a captive audience--despite eBay's flaws there aren't many strong alternatives, so eBay can get away with a not-so-great seller experience. On the other hand, for the past 2-3 years eBay has been making a lot of changes to try to compete for buyers with sites like Amazon--encouraging free shipping, adding carrots and sticks tied to DSRs to improve seller performance, tilting problem resolution in favor of buyers, not allowing sellers to leave feedback for buyers, etc. In that context, I can see why eBay wouldn't employ auto-extending auctions even if they thought it would result in higher average auction prices. Sellers would benefit, but some buyers wouldn't like it, and lately eBay's been all about making buyers happy.

 

We're in a different boat. I certainly want buyers to have a good experience, but when it comes to designing auction policies my goal is to maximize the price achieved by the seller, not make snipers happy. Nothing against sniping--I consider it an acceptable and rational strategy and use it myself when the auction allows it. I just believe, based on analysis of our auctions thus far that have used both formats, that auto-extension leads to higher average prices. Most bidders don't protect themselves by using the proxy bidding system to enter their true maximum bid, and so leave themselves open to sniping.

[spideysenses]

Was my Batman 608 the first comic to reach a grand in your auctions?

[mycomicshop]

Was my Batman 608 the first comic to reach a grand in your auctions?

 

Nope--it was preceded by a Showcase #22, Showcase #14, and a Batman #14. Not many big league books yet, but they'll come with time.

[spideysenses]

I'll take 4th place! Hah!

[Gatsby77]

I like the auto-extend auction format, even when it costs me extra time and money. While it can be frustrating as a bidder, it ensures that the book goes to the person willing to pay the most, rather than he who snipes last.

 

I liken it to poker, where you can be raised and then have time to thoughtfully consider whether to see that bet or fold.

 

It's more egalitarian for the bidders and likely leads to higher profits for the sellers. Same reason I prefer live auctions (even Heritage Live) to setting eBay snipes.