To the uninitiated, spending an afternoon at an auction can hold the same appeal as bungee jumping in a hail storm. And it’s no mystery why.
With all the strict rules and seemingly endless subliminal tactics to learn, auctions can be very scary.
A million things can go wrong … just one violent sneeze could lead to the accidental purchase of a new sofa.
But with the advent of the Internet, a new breed of user-friendly auctions have begun popping up that just might erase some of these auction jitters.
So now, instead of traveling to some remote warehouse to listen to a fast-talker coax an audience into parting with its greenbacks, it’s possible to sit at home and bid on things in unharried bliss over the Internet.
The idea is simple. Somebody puts a bunch of things up for sale on the Internet … the person who offers to pay the most for it wins. After sending in payment, the winning bidder gets the merchandise.
Of course, there’s a little more to it — but not much.
Some on-line auction sites are run by companies selling off their merchandise at “discount” prices, while others are just big lists of people selling a few things each — like classified ads.
Traditional auctions and Internet auctions both give bidders the opportunity to browse through numerous items.
Unlike real-life auctions, though, on-line auctions give people more control over searching through the items up for sale.
So mom likes Beanie Babies? Instead of waiting around for a specific lot to come up at a traditional auction, simply type in the name of her favorite beanbag bear and browse through the listings. It’s that easy.
Ready to bid on something? As long as you’ve registered at the auction site you’re visiting (a painless process that usually involves submitting a name and e-mail address), all it takes is a swift click of the mouse on a selected item to place a bid.
Even if you’ve never purchased anything over the Internet, it won’t take long to overcome your timidity after logging onto an on-line auction.
Serious bargains can be found all over the place. In fact, it’s not uncommon to find things going for less than half the price than what can be found at a store.
But keep in mind that among all the bargains, there are bound to be a few rip-offs.
Even with safety measures in place, some people have made money cheating others in Internet auctions.
In fact, Susan Grant, vice president of public policy for the Internet Fraud Watch (a division of the National Consumers League), said almost a third of her organization’s yearly complaints come from dissatisfied customers of on-line auctions.
Grant said most of the complaints involved dealers who either failed to deliver an item or delivered something different from what was bought.
Before you bid on something, Grant recommends checking out who else the dealer has done business with. Some sites give users the option to check out dealers’ references. Otherwise, she suggests trying to call or e-mail them before agreeing to buy something.
“But even if you’re a conscientious consumer and you’re trying to do all your homework,” Grant said, “there’s a limit to how much you can really find out beforehand.”
When you bid on things at on-line auction sites, though, it’s important to keep a check on your competitive nature. It’s easy to forget that you’re using real money — your money — to pay for these fantastic bargains.
Regulars of on-line auctions suggest the whole experience has a very gamelike quality to it. Some even suggest that the whole thing can be very addictive.
John Thibault, vice president of development marketing at eBay (one of the largest auction sites on the Web), recommends taking it easy before jumping too deeply into the world of on-line auctions.
“It’s not too different from going to an auction in the real world,” Thibault said. “Initially, if you’re not familiar with it, you probably want to watch it for a little while to see how it works.”
But with hundreds of on-line auctions from which to pick, the biggest problem isn’t finding somewhere to spend your money, but finding a good site that isn’t a waste of your time.
GOING, GOING, GONE
Anyone interested in owning a piece of the silver screen should check out Universal Studios Online Auction (www.unistudiosauction. com). Every month the site features movie memorabilia, props, artwork and autographed merchandise. (Recent items up for bid included a bra autographed by Heidi Fleiss and a prop tomahawk from “Dances With Wolves.”) But be warned: These unusual items seem to always have unusually high prices. Witness the $700 paid for Jack Nicholson’s sunglasses from the movie “As Good as it Gets.” This site is certainly fun to browse … but actually buying something could be hazardous to your health.
For all intents and purposes, eBay (www.ebay.com) is the on-line auction leader. With hundreds of thousands of items for sale every day, finding what you want isn’t nearly as hard as resisting the urge to bid on things you never knew you always wanted. From Beanie Babies to rare cars, eBay offers the largest and most diverse selection of any on-line auction site. And while prices certainly differ from item to item, it’s not too difficult to locate a bargain here.
Looking for a new laptop, treadmill or stereo system? Check out Onsale (www.onsale.com) for computer products, consumer electronics and sports and fitness equipment. Although Onsale specializes in these areas, the site also features a wide variety of items in a person-to-person exchange. One big drawback: after starting a search, it’s hard to tell how many items are available in each category.
A little nervous about participating in an auction located light years away? Try Winebid (www.winebid.com), based in DuPage County. Founded in 1995, Winebid is a monthly auction that features wines from around the globe. While the wines range from elegant to everyday, the focus seems to be mainly on hard-to-find American red wines.
Not sure where to start? Drop by BidFind (www.bidfind.com) for a fairly comprehensive list of on-line auction sites. While this is a good resource for tracking down specialty auction sites, its searchable database isn’t nearly as complete as it purports to be.
The Internet Fraud Watch (www.fraud.org/ifw.htm) is a good place to learn how to protect yourself from fraud at on-line auctions. Particularly helpful are the tips on how best to pay for your on-line auction purchases (cash = bad … credit card = good).
