More And More "Private" Bidders And Feedback!

Is there a way to hide the items you buy/sell in your feedback?

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Is there a way to hide the items you buy/sell in your feedback?

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Yes, you can make the auctions themselves private. This is usually only done legitimately in the mature categories (no one will buy these items if everyone can see that they do) and highly competitive categories (like DVD's) where bidder interference runs rampant. IE: "I have the same DVD you're bidding on cheaper".


However, it does happen in coins (and other categories), when the seller knows they're being dishonest and doesn't want bidders to be warned. Right Swamperbob?

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If a person leaves a feedback, is it really necessary to see what that item is they are leaving feedback for? A positive feedback could say "outstanding ebayer, fast & speedy shipping, and well packaged." Is it really important to know what that item is? It is like going to the supermarket and having the store keep track of everything you buy. How creepy is that?

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Yes, it is important. Someone could be a fantastic seller, selling x-ray equipment, which is their specialty. Then they inherit a big coin collection and decide to sell them on ebay, but they know nothing about coins. The x-ray equipment feedback doesn't mean quite as much now. At least to me.

If I came across the above scenario while looking to buy coins, I certainly would ask more questions, if needed, than I would with a seller that sells exclusively coins and has good feedback.

The supermarket analogy really doesn't apply here. When was the last time you heard of someone being a victim of fraud at the supermarket?

Supposing I wanted to buy something of a personal nature, why would I want anybody to see what it was? That's my only issue.

First, madbudgie0, welcome to the forum! While we may not agree among ourselves on many issues, we keep our differences at the level of polite society rather than rabble.

Next, while I see a certain amount of your viewpoint for keeping your feedback private, I think you need to be reminded that we are discussing coin auctions in which individual items are sold for hundreds or thousands of dollars, not auctions for CDs or DVDs with only $14.95 at stake. Your attempts to rationalize private feedback are, to me, weak and without foundation and, like the others, I am not convinced that you are not trying to hide something.

When I look at a coin in which I am interested where a couple thousand dollars is what I expect to pay, I look at the WHOLE auction before I bid; I am not rich enough to gamble this kind of money on what might be a losing or fraudulent proposition. Because I do not usually know the seller, I want to find out everything I can about this person to give me the confidence to bid without any possibility that I might be defrauded; this is an issue of trust and I want to be able to trust the seller to give me an open and honest auction. With only one exception, all that I am going to learn about a seller is what is contained in this auction; the exception is that I always contact the seller prior to my first bid on a high value coin - the response to my message in terms of erudition, honesty, guarantees, ethics, and openness will be the final factor to determine if I bid or not. Unviewable feedback is a major, major red flag to me; I cannot conceive of any circumstance wherein I might be persuaded to bid on an auction with private feedback.

I CAN guarantee you that with your private feedback unviewable to me and with no history of past auctions (I have no idea if you specialize in coins or mostly sell widgets) for someone who has been an eBayer for only two years and three months and with a very poor feedback score of 98.5%, your coin auctions would not get a second glance from me or any other big bidder. I am such a bidder; if I want a coin badly enough, I will pay WAY over market value to get it, but I want some guarantee I am receiving fair treatment.

Further, the big loser in this issue is you, at least on the seller side. Without the trust inherent in open feedback, you are not going to attract bidders who will give you top dollar for your coins. Indeed, you may sell otherwise excellent and good value coins, but you are going to receive only a fraction of what they normally might sell on ebay. As a good example, we on the forum recently attempted to persuade a seller and forum member that he would be far better off cracking a coin out of a non-tiered slab and submitting it to a reputable third party grading service. Instead, he listed it in the near-fraudulent slab, advertised it at the overgrade it stated on the slab, and received less than 30% of what he might have received had it been in a good slab and had he been more open and honest. Even worse, the first sale fell through and he relisted it exactly as before; this time, he received less than 15% of what might have been its true market value. He lost big because he was not open, honest, nor as it proved, trustworthy. We have not heard from him since.

From my own viewpoint, you appear to be otherwise open and honest by giving us your ebay ID, so you have already established a certain level of trust. In return, I invite you to review my own ebay profile: user ID "thefred2".

In summary, I urge you to drop the notion of private feedback, at least for your coin sales.

I'm not in any way suggesting feedback comments be private but rather just the items. Can't always find what your looking for that is a private auction. I'm talking about items in general, not just coins. If there are any questions you can always contact the seller so users can have some privacy in the items they buy.

Hi bobby131313 & Morgan Fred, While you have expressed comments that has I had not thought of for this debate, (and thus learning something from this forum already) and some I may even adopt in my next auction, So thanks for your input.

But Morgan Fred thank you for your welcome, I politely but strongly resent your quote of...

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for someone who has been an eBayer for only two years and three months and with a very poor feedback score of 98.5%, your coin auctions would not get a second glance from me or any other big bidder

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Firstly I consider you also a loser in this scenario as well although I may miss your bid, you may miss out on something special because of your bias towards private feedback sellers. And secondly...If you consider this a POOR feed back I'm truly sorry. I have only been collecting for several years & selling for much less, while learning all the time, but I won't put up with "crap" from anyone (for the sake of other e Bayers), and for my myself, and if I cop a neg because of it, so be it, I have broad shoulders. Considering I have had only the 1 neg in the past 12 months, again thought as I would do, that one would look past one blemish in 440 transactions (which is visible, private or not) and put it down to bad luck. And in your precise examination of me please tell which one I deserved? Was it the one were I refund his monies, by my miss-grading through inexperience or the one were I bought a note 3 full grades out? And thus making it such a POOR feedback, that you & other wouldn't deal with me?

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Further, the big loser in this issue is you, at least on the seller side. Without the trust inherent in open feedback, you are not going to attract bidders who will give you top dollar for your coins. Indeed, you may sell otherwise excellent and good value coins, but you are going to receive only a fraction of what they normally might sell on eBay

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Again I can see your point about this also but as I only sell in my home Country I'm also limiting my options? I had just consider selling outside Australia a problem is something went wrong, not easily fixed & more of a headache, without a guarantee of better monies.

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From my own viewpoint, you appear to be otherwise open and honest by giving us your ebay ID, so you have already established a certain level of trust. In return, I invite you to review my own ebay profile: user ID "thefred2"

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Thank you, and I can assure you and anyone that I'm here for a long time & not just the fun time. And I did review your e bay ID as asked, even though you have been buying & selling for 4 years longer than me doesn't make you better, just more experienced & possibly a better negotiator than me, and being a 100% there is nothing more I can say other than well done!

Further more I have done what I regularly do when selling (which is not often as I'm a collector not a dealer, un-privatised my feed back) ... Just for all who have posted & those reading it, who think WE who privatize our feedback have some thing to hide!!!

Thank you all for your comment weather I agree with you or not, I enjoy the chat, and PLEASE take me for what I am & not what the general stereo type might be of a private feedback seller.

Again I have only tried to express the thoughts of a private feedback e Bayer, weather right or wrong, and nothing else!

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I want an un-circulated Australian $1 note/bill as would have been issued in 1970, the year I visited Australia (Queensland and NSW).

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Morgan Fred... This is easy, if you were here is 1970 there are three different signature combinations you could have come across and had in your wallet.

1966 $1 COOMBS - WILSON C/V by Macca's book in UNC - $75.
1968 $1 COOMBS - RANDALL C/V by Macca's book in UNC - $695
1969 $1 PHILLIPS -RANDALL C/V by Macca's book in UNC - $60.

Do you know which signatory combo you had? It would probably be the Coombs - Randall... Especially if your X took it.

And if you haven't been here in 36 years, about time you came back!