Why Watch??

[Gonzai]

I have been wondering about this for awhile now.
I usually don't watch auctions, unless I plan on
bidding at the last minute. I have noticed that
on a lot of my auctions, there are tons of watchers,
but not many bidders. So, it got me wondering - what
do others watch auctions for. Is it just to see what the
ending price is or who wins it, that is if it goes at all.

I am curious - why do you guys put auctions on your
watch list. If you are a seller, would you prefer that
people who aren't going to bid not put the auction on
their watch list - or does it really not matter.

Just curious what others have to say.

[Caroline]

i watch auctions for the sake of research. it is so hard to find cels from the series i collect, i mainly watch auctions to keep tabs on the end prices. its also fun to see if there are any new collectors popping up. usually.. the more people willing to bid, the higher the prices get. so when the time comes to buy a cel i *really* want, it's easier to determine my maximum bid.

[graymouser]

I watch many more auctions than I ever bid on. I probably bid on only 1/10 of the ebay auctions and 1/4 of the YJ auctions I watch. There are several reasons for it.

The most common one is as Caroline mentioned. I like to keep up with current prices in my favorite shows. Another reason is that I am considering bidding on the item, but how much I may be able to spend depends on the closing prices of other auctions I'm involved in. A third reason would be that the item is already very close to or slightly over what my maximum bid would be for it. I will mark it and go back to it a few times while I think about it some more. Sometimes I know a friend is a potential buyer so I watch and see if they get it or not (just being nosey I guess)

[ReiTheJelly]

I'm with graymouser. I bid on about 1 out of every 10 auctions I watch. I mostly do it just to see how high it will go. And I'm really nosy, so I like watching other people that I know duke it out over a cel.

[SME]

I agree with ReiTheJelly...most of the time it's because I want to see who the cel goes to. Most of the time if something is on my watchlist I usually bid, but sometimes I forget, or the auction goes higher than I think it needs to so then I just see who wins. I also have it in my watchlist because I always wait until the last few minutes of an auction I'm eyeing on to bid, so I keep it on my watchlist so I don't *normally* forget.

[Rekka Alexiel]

I haven't sold anything in a long time but the watchlist thing used to bug me because it gave a false idea of how many people might be interested in my item. =P Just because there may be many watchers for an auction doesn't mean that the auction will end with any bids. ^^;;;

But in terms of YJ auctions on the other hand, I'll put a bunch of things on my watchlist. Most of the time when auctions don't end with a bidder, the seller will relist...over and over and over, and it will still stay in my watchlist. So if at any time I feel like bidding, it will always be there in my list to remind me about it. lol I'm very forgetful, too. ^^;;

[kymaera]

Besides the reason mentioned already, I'll add things if I think that I might
bid on it. That way I can look at it a bit before it finishes and decide whether
I will or won't bid on it after all and have it ready in case I decide to.

[wELCOME cONSUMER]

I think everyone has covered all of the possible reasons.

Sometimes I'll watch a friend's auction to see what it sells for (cheering them
on and hoping for a bid war). Seeing who eventually wins or who was involved
in the bid war can be interesting as well. If I'm on the fence about something,
I'll watchlist it for a few days and try to decide on the last day if I want to
bid or not. Likewise, I watchlist things I absolutely have to have and bid at
the last minute. Morbid curiousity and understanding the current market for
a particular series are the main draws for watchlisting auctions you may have
absolutely no intention of bidding on.

As a seller, I don't care how many or how few people watchlist my auctions.
Just as long as the item sells, I'm pleased.

[glorff]

Ditto all the above

[RoboFlonne]

Many of my Watchers want the item, but can't afford it by the time the item ends.

What happens is that a month later when they have the funds. They'll buy the item.

I know this because people will describe an item number and send me an ebay message asking if I had any more for sell!!

[Keropi]

I watch items so I can easily look them every day. If I view them often enough, they'll often lose that "Wow" factor and I then I don't feel like getting them any more.

My reason kicks in and I'm no longer driven by my Id.

It's better to lose the "Wow" factor BEFORE I get something.

[aernath]

Sometimes I watch not knowing if I really want to bid. I have, on occasion, gone ahead and bid because no one else did.
Felt sorry for the cel. <.< It needed some luvin'.

But usually, it's to see how high it goes. To see if I could have afforded it. To see if anyone else is interested in it. To see if it gets reslisted at a lower price that's affordable.

But I also just want to know who ended up with it, if I can recognize them.

[RoboFlonne]

I just got this Ebay Message 3 seconds ago!

He put all my Kos Mos Art on Watch and this is what he has to say...

I know I absolutely want these Xenosaga ones, but i was just curious... If no one bids, will you re-list? Since 3 days isn't enough notice for me... I just came across them...

[duotrouble]

Well, Nida, I'm to blame on some of your watches.

I watch friends auctions to cheer for them. Items that are similiar to mine I'll watch for morbid curiousity of how much other people are willing to pay for it. I also put items on watch that I'm considering buying. If there are a lot of bidders, I'll just keep the item in my watch until I'm ready to snipe at the end.

[Zag]

My reasoning is just a different.
I want it, I want to buy it. But I don't know if I'll have the money on the "end by" date. I don't wanna loose the auction link in case I can buy it, but I can't bid until I'm sure I can pay. So I "watch" it. =D