About penny eBay auctions
April 25th, 2006 | by mbhunter |Just ran across a banner advertising eBay auctions starting at a penny. (It’s actually called a cent, but inertia is difficult to overcome.)
Why would anyone sell something for a penny?
- To bring attention to the auction. If a person viewing the category sorts by price, lowest first, these will appear first.
- To save on listing fees. Auctions that start under a dollar pay the lowest listing fees. This is a good tactic to use on popular items that are sure to get a lot of interest.
- To save on final value fees. A CD that sells for a penny plus $9.99 shipping saves the seller a lot from the final value fee. It goes to zero! This is a questionable tactic, because if someone at eBay deems your shipping price too high, your auction could be cancelled for fee avoidance.
So if you’re looking to buy something on eBay and the listing starts at a penny, be sure to check the shipping price. Or don’t expect to win the auction at just a penny.
3 Responses to “About penny eBay auctions”
By John Koontz on Apr 26, 2006 | Reply
I always start my auctions at $.99. They seem to do better that way. I think it’s because they get more views.
By mbhunter on Apr 26, 2006 | Reply
Me too. I usually do 99 cents only when I think the auction will go for a lot more than 99 cents. Otherwise I’ll start it higher.
By Rachel on May 14, 2006 | Reply
Here is the link to a cool tool I found to help locate misspelled auctions on Ebay. The only way to find the gems is with a tool or to go through every category on Ebay. http://www.typotool.net - I hope others have as good of luck as I did. Cheers!