The Ebay experiment continues, and now the question comes up- is it really a good idea to offer very good books, with low opening bids and no reserve? That's how we've been doing it, and so far it's worked pretty well, but now it looks as if we're being tested-Last week we put up a very nice American hunting book, Malcolm Mackay's 1925 "Cow Range and Hunting Trail". There are only a few copies listed on the databases and those are priced between $350 (an ex-library copy) and $1000 (an inscribed copy, a lot like our copy, actually).
And the bidding has been non-existent. The auction has just a few days to go (it ends Saturday) and the bid is (as I write this) $10. Ouch ouch ouch. People have told me I'm being foolish not to "pull the auction", but that's a violation of Ebay's rules, and it's just not right, you know? We make a big deal of putting our books up with no reserves, and low starting bids (the point is to get folks bidding early) and the books bring what they bring. It's worked out well, until this one.
So this book could well be a huge bargain for somebody -bad for us, but good for them! Hey- some days you're the windshield, some days you're the bug.
So how will it all turn out? Stay tuned. Even Fay Wray is apprehensive...
5 comments:
Good concept, but they call that "shill bidding" and they fry your ass but good if they catch you at it.
And, you know, in the end there's sumthin' noble about sticking to your principles and going down with the ship...
...with a big glass of bourbon in each hand.
If there are a quantity of lookers, they may be waiting to bid until the end of the auction. I've had a couple in which the bids went way up at the end.
are you suggesting I put down the bourbon?
I don' think so...
Never would I suggest such a thing, unless it was to pick up a glass of Tito's vodka.
I knew that, just checking.
We may be naive & distraught... but we're not stupid. Of course, I had a bourbon in each hand *before* this all began, but that's another story.
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