Auctions - why bid early?

Fortunately the proxy bid system has eliminated the need to "snipe" just enter your max bid. If you use proxy no need to do this days ahead of time, but also no need to enter bid with 10 seconds left thinking you will sneak in a low price a couple dollars more than last bid, since you have already committed to max price.

The only "problem" with proxy bid is friend of seller with no intention to actually buy item may bid up the item at the end and hope to push proxy bids up automatically......I wonder how much of this happens, and how would you ever prove or find out about it?

I would think red flags would go up if the same item were auctioned more than once from same seller (if you could find out this info).

The times that I will bid early is only to clear out the non serious bidders - I want to get it over a certain amount to test the waters and see who stays in the game. Kinda like poker, I guess, huh?
I then sit back and wait. I usually will not enter my final bid until the end and hope my proxy kicks butt. I have been beat too many time when bidding too early.

megasam, why would red flags go up? I have relisted items when my reserve price was not met. Is that what you mean?

-aj

There is a reason no one else has mentioned. When an item is obviously being auction by a private individual (Not an antique dealer) and is extremely under it's value I'll place a bid just to keep a dealer from taking advantage of the uninformed. A good example would be someone selling their Dad's collection, or stereo after he has passed on.

I have bought and sold on both formats and a few others. The only thing I have learned is you cannot predict what will happen.Sometimes everyone wants it or no one.
I have sold stuff that didn't work (for parts ect.) and got 2 or 3 times what I expected.Put up great items ( to me anyway ) that didn't get much responce or bidding.
Sold stuff in 5 min.after posting and posted items 5 times to sell.
Buying has gone the same.
If I ever figure out when and how to bid and when and how to sell...LOOK OUT B. G. !!!

I sometimes will bid early just to track and or watch something i'm interested in, e-bay use to have a 20 item max. that you could watch, i think it's now 30, but you can bid early or low and watch as many as you want. A $10.00 bid on a $1000-2000 item hardly brings the total up.