The above picture is from bidz.com. It is a 24/7 online auctioneer of jewelry, art and collectibles. The site's design is so interactive; it provides constant bid updates. Furthermore, the Company requires only a $1 minimum opening bid. Bidz.com offers consumers with the best names in jewelry for low prices and allows an alternative liquidation channel for manufacturers. Bidz has low prices because it brings together the broken supply and demand of excess jewelry products in a single online location. Take a look at the picture below: a "Three-stone Ring With 7.00ctw Precious Stones - Genuine Diamonds Made of Solid 14K Two tone Gold. Total item weight 6.9g" at a current bid (as of 11:34pm 11/5/07) $8938. Retail value is at over $11,000.
It is products such as these, worth so much at discount, that makes people come back. Furthermore, the highly interactive and navigable nature of the site keeps people hooked to this site. It may be possible that a person is just surfing on this site for fun, but the nature of this site draws people to the site for longer and longer periods of time each time they come back. Once people begin to keep constant tabs on their bids at 4am we know that there is a definite case of problematic internet use or PIU.Now lets look at Caplan's article "Preferences for online social interaction", and relate his hypothesis and results to Bidz.com. Hypothesis #1 was proven. It said that an individuals level of depression, and loneliness would predict their level of preference for online social interaction. Something like this can easily occur in Bidz.com. A person who at first regularly went on Bidz.com, may turn to the site all together after a traumatic experience, because this site serves as a reprieve from the real world. Hypothesis #2 was proven as well. It said that the level of preference for online social interaction would predict the severity of symptoms of PIU and negative outcomes due to Internet use. In the context of Bidz.com, possibly, the longer one spends on Bidz.com may suggest more severe PIU. Both are directly related. Hypothesis #3 was not proven. Here it was predicted that an individuals level of psychosocial well-being would predict negative outcomes associated with Internet use.
In addition to the 3 hypothesis, Caplan's theory as a whole stresses that individuals with psychosocial problems “prefer online interaction because it is less threatening and they feel more efficacious.” In an Internet space like bidz.com, the bid starts at $1, but it rarely remains at $1. At first the consumer just wants the item, and is bidding to win the item. After continued tabs on one item, the purpose of bidding changes. Rather than winning the product, the bidding is for competition. People tend to compete online because it provides anonymity over anything else. Such competition in real-life would be highly improbable from many suffering with PIU because of the comfort offered by a CMC environment. Furthermore, the online space is for many, less threatening because no one knows who you are. Once that anonymity is removed as done in a ftf environment, many people are scared and back off in fear.
Regardless, bidz.com is as of yet, a pretty low-profile bidding site. I have bought several things from the site, and I can definitely see why people are hooked onto this site. Although the great product plays a role in this, it is more so the design of the site that keeps people coming back. component.
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2 comments:
Hi Heena,
I really can relate to this post because I posted on the PIU associated with sites like craigslist. I think the inherent draw is the same: there is the endless pursuit of a really good deal. I think it would have helped for you to mention the variable reward schedule that comes with such a system (you never know when your bid will win or you will be out bid by someone else), because that functions as a large part of the driving force that keeps bringing people back. Wallace points to this feature as a strong driving force in many "time sinks," or internet addictions. Overall, great incorporation of Caplan's model!
-Brian
Heena,
First of all I have to say that before reading your post I had never heard of Bidz.com before and as such I set off to investigate. Needless to say I ended up finding it very hard to drag myself away from the website as I watched bidders fight over things and the time tick down. (I found it even harder not to bid on anything myself.) Because of this I definitely agree with your blog’s analysis that this website can become addictive and can lead to the problems dealing with problematic internet use. I especially support your thoughts dealing with the competitive appeal of the website; no one wants to lose and what’s $5 more if you can beat everyone else?
Great post,
Lauren
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