Well this is well known amongst experienced ebayers but probably not new ebayers. It is when a seller bids on their own item just to get more money for it, a good idea some may say but it is against ebay policy to do this.

The way i have noticed it is in the following scenarios:-
1) I place a bid on something then within seconds i have been outbid by a user usually with less than 15 feedback, so i usually check other items the seller is selling to see if there is a pattern ie other items being bid on by same user. If this is the case i will report them as its unfair to genuine sellers who always follow ebay policy.
2) An item that i have been watching but the bids go to high so i end up not bidding on is then on sale again within seconds of auction ending ie the seller has won his own item!
3) Checking a sellers feedback before bidding i have occasionally found that an item that has been sold & has received feedback from the buyer 10 minutes after the auctions end - impossible to receive anything that quick!

So to summarise if you are going to sell something & want a specific price for it start it that price then if it sells you will be happy with the end price if it doesnt sell you still have your item that you can re-list at a later date. You will have broken no rules!

If you do Shill bid your own item be prepared to be suspended from Ebay - there is no way around this!

Please vote yes if you found this guide useful!

I believe the people who say this guide isnt helpful are the Ebayers who bid their own item up - shame on you!!