Jill, how 'ya doing? Chipguy here. Your chips are in the mail.

We need to have a detailed discussion about sniping, resulting in you becoming a sniper yourself, or learning to bid your maximum from the "get go".

The biggest incorrect assumption that people have about eBay is that it is like a traditonal "live" auction, where you will always have a chance to raise your bid.

eBay does not, and cannot, operate like that. It is much more like a "sealed bid" auction, or a "silent" auction, where the high bid at the specified ending date and time wins, whether it was the first, or the last, bid received.

The confusion seems to come in because of the "biddding increments" layout, which almost encourages you to bid the amount of the next increment, rather than placing your maximum bid right off the bat.

We snipers know this, and take advantage of it. Sniping is a perfectly legitimate bidding strategy, and of all the people I've ever tried to explain this to, you might be the first that can understand this analogy:

Sniping is the eBay equivilent of "check raising". Not only is it "ethical", it is absolutely required to be a winner. While some folks get angry and think it's not "fair", it's actually built into the rules of the game, and for a good reason.

Let's talk,

Michael

You are at a fork in tne road.