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Perhaps this topic has been discussed earlier. But I am relatively new to this board, and haven't seen it posted yet...
How do you feel about the auction closing format that Mastro has instituted? Does anyone else miss the ability to jump over to alternate lots, once a given lot has gone beyond your limit?
I have limited funds, and when I used to get outbid late, it was nice to be able to jump to a different item that was still within reach. Mastro's new closing format (with each lot closing individually) does not afford the bidder this opportunity. Once it becomes evident you need to switch, the "alternate" lot has already closed.
Let's see a vote on which closing format is preferred... Mastro/Huggins/Hunt type or Lelands/Grey Flannel/REA type. My vote is for the latter...
Personally I like individual lots closing themselves. If the whole auction would stay open it would be "who can stay up the longest" again.....I am sure there will never be 100% agreement on this subject. Many folks think that the whole auction resetting after each lot is bid on is best. It might be the best for the seller, I am not sure. Even as a consignor, and I have been in several auctions, I am ok with each lot ending individually, after 15-30 minutes of no bids.....regards
I look at it like this: If I'm at a live auction and stop bidding on Lot No. 1 because I want to save my money for Lot No. 10, and then Lot No. 10 goes for way more than I figured, I can't go back and bid on Lot No. 1. So why should bidders in an online auction have that option?
Like Leon said, too often online auctions become competitions of who can outlast one another rather than who's willing to spend the most on an item.
Of course, I'm speaking as a bidder. Were I a consignor, I'd want bidding on my items to stay open as long as possible. But again, a consignor wouldn't be afforded that luxury in a live auction ...
Since I am on the other end of most auctions, selling instead of buying, I prefer leaving all lots open until the end. Because my auctions are small, they generally end before midnight (and that's 9:00 PM on the West Coast).
My fear is having someone who would like to jump back on a lot, but finds himself shut out because it has closed. That would mean I left money on the table.
So since as a seller I like to keep all lots open, it would stand to reason that buyers might prefer the opposite.
