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Quote:Several recent academic studies have centered on the behavior of eBay buyers. See how the information gathered can help you sell for more

The wealth of data that the auction giant makes available has also been a boon to researchers. Professors of marketing, economics, management, and psychology have published dozens of papers to try to explain how and why eBay users buy and sell online. We've combed through the data to boil it down to what eBay sellers really want to know: How to get the best price. Here's what we found.

1. Set the starting price low (except for items you expect little interest in). Low starting prices stimulate auction traffic and get early bidders psychologically invested in the auction, leading to more completed sales and higher final prices. Professor Gillian Ku from London Business School and professors Adam Galinsky and J. Keith Murnighan from Northwestern found that Nikon cameras with starting prices of $0.01 resulted in significantly higher final prices than the average price for completed camera auctions.

An auction for a kitchen sink with a starting price of $225 ended without a single bidder. When re-auctioned with a starting price of $75, the sink sold for $275. The exception to the start-low rule: If you're selling an idiosyncratic item you don't think a lot of people will bid on, set a price closer to the item's actual value...