biddingfortravel.com

[ckmommy]

Have any of you used the biddingfortravel.com boards?? Just tried them out yesterday, and was very disappointed! Sheryl the administor has got to be one of the most rude and non helpful people around! I will never go back there. BTW wasn't there someone else on these boards that was trying to get their own website up--similar to biddingfortravel.com?? Anyone else have a similar experience with biddingfortravel??

 

[poohbear2]

In a nutshell, what happened?

 

[luvdzny]

I used it for our trip to Stone Mountain, Georgia next week and had GREAT results!!!! I got the resort that I wanted at a great price thanks to the advice I received on the biddingfortravel.com site, I would use it again - no problems. I too am wondering, what type of problems did you have?

 

[ckmommy]

In a nutshell,
Asked for info about bidding and what people normally open with for a certain hotel. Was informed that I had to use a certain form when asking a question. Found form, re-imputed my info (same info, just in a numbered form). Got another reply saying that I did not answer the forms questions correctly, and I was wasting the my time and her (Sheryl the administrators) time. Just felt that I was not being helped and the tone of the e-response was rude! I do not have time to waste on someones site who is so anal about how things are worded. If I want to use Priceline, I guess I will have to figure it out on my own....

 

[powellrj]

I use bidding for travel all the time, but the trick is to make sure you read everything before you ask questions. Usually you can find the answer to questions in another part of the board. The easiest thing to do is find your state and then location, and it should tell you what others have bid and gotten the rooms for and what the stars rating for hotels are.

 

[Grog]

Ive never used it myself, but did read once where someone described asking questions over there as being like "dealing with the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld". No hotel for you!

 

[ckmommy]

I think that I will look at the hotels in Tx room. I will stick to looking at others who post their questions, instead of posting my own question. I have read about some really great deals!!! Thanks for posting!

 

[Keli]

Originally posted by Grog
Ive never used it myself, but did read once where someone described asking questions over there as being like "dealing with the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld". No hotel for you!

That made me laugh! I kinda got that feeling when I was just looking around that site one time. Seemed to see quite a few reminders (in a no nonsense tone, lol) to read the entire site before you ask any questions. Actually it was good advice. I've used the site several times for travel and I've never had to post a question, I've been able to find the answers I need just by reading.

 

[Mercy]

I have bid for hotels quite frequently on Priceline and have used Biddingfortravel as a resource many times over the past several years.

That being said, I would have to agree with you. Sheryl can be very rude in her comments and responses to questions. I don't know what her problem is, why she just can't be nice and helpful in answering people's questions. People go to that site looking for legitimate help just to get "slammed" by the "Bidding Nazi". If you don't want to help people, or people bother you, why would you develop a website where the whole purpose is to do just that.

 

[RitaZ.]

You know, asking questions at Biddingfortravel.com is a lot like shopping at Kmart. You had better know the lay-out of the entire store, otherwise their employees snap at you when you ask for help.

 

[JesseBlue]

I'm sorry but I'm rotf here. "NO HOTEL FOR- YOU!"

Keep going back to the site. If you look at it as information only you can save yourself some major money. My advice is also to read, read, read! The secret to the whole process (I believe) is learning how to find the "free rebids" for the city where you are bidding. Until you are shown how to do it, it's confusing.

 

[ckmommy]

Thanks everyone for your responses. I thought maybe I was being overly sensitive. I have learned a lot through her site in the past few days (although, I will become a lurker--not a poster on her site). I had no idea about the free re-bidding. If I have any questions about Priceline, I may ask one of you for your help. I will get you posted. Thanks Again!

 

[disneychrista]

I will never post on that site again. I will go to look to see what others have gotten in the way of bids etc but I refuse to post. Sheryl is simply a female dog in heat.

I have never posted a bidding request but have asked simple questions, and gotten my head bitten off and when I replied to her the entire post was removed from the site.

 

[Pugsley]

I’ve been reading it for years, and Sheryl does come across as rude. I don’t really think she means any harm, it’s just her manner. She’s there to help; she’s just very particular about how her board is run. And I can sort of understand it being frustrating when people don’t read the FAQ or review other posts before jumping in. Anyway, regardless of how people are treated there, that board is EXTREMELY helpful. I normally just read it and don’t post.

 

[snoopy]

I agree with Pugsley, I think its Cheryl's nature to be a little gruff. O.K., more than a little, LOL.

I do read though, and back when I used Priceline a lot, would post winning bids because I wanted to help others. I find her website invaluable, and would never attempt a bid on Priceline without reviewing it first.

 

[DawnCt]

I think that impatient responses are typical of a lot of travel oriented web sites that people frequent. Fodorites for example get impatient with the question; Should I stay in Ka'anapali or Wailea? It is probably the most common question asked on the Hawaii BB but if you have never been to Maui, it is a reasonable question. I try to read all of the available posts on the first couple of pages, do a search of what has been written before and if I still come up empty handed or am impatient myself, I put on my flame retardant suit and ask away. I got some good ideas yesterday on biddingfortravel and then went to Priceline and bid on a three star downtown Ft. Lauderdale Hotel for our precruise stay in April. I ended up with the Marriott Hotel and Marina for $65. The best rate I could get it at was a AAA for $199, so I am happy with that.

 

[dtuleya]

I felt that same way as you when I first started posting over there (and I still do). Sheryl is downright nasty at times, but I have found that if you try not to take it personally and pointedly reply to some of her comments at times (ie - snap back at her) she backs off. The site has helped me save over $1000 in the last two years, so I can put up with her BS. It gets easier to fill out the bidding form and navigate around both BFT and Priceline the more you use it. Hang in there and don't let her scare you off.

 

[Cindy B]

I have read and not posted there as well.. so true of the soup nazi approach..

No travel for you

 

[peg2001]

I'm a long time lurker on bidding for travel and started posting only a few months ago. I still cringe whenever I read a terse reply to anyone's sincere question.

It is a totally different approach to questions than the DIS. The DIS seems willing to answer the same question every couple of days from hundreds of different posters.

I hesitate to bad-mouth Sheryl because it is the very best site out there for preparing to make Priceline bids. You can learn a LOT by just studying the FAQ and reviewing similar bids. She just has low patience for anyone who doesn't read (or understand) the information she has already developed.

I've exchanged e-mails with her prior to posting on her board to ensure that I didn't get scolded. That seemed to work fairly well. She still heavily edited my posts but was civil in her explanations of why she did it.

Peggy

 

[Pat_Elliott]

I've got to step up to the plate for Sheryl. Note: I think mean people stink. And the first time I got a "Nazi" reply to a post, I swore off Biddingfortravel.

However, after reading hundreds of posts there and seeing Sheryl repond to some complaints, I think it's important to note that Sheryl isn't taking bags of cash to the bank for her site. It's the most comprehensive Priceline help board out there. Not only can they give you tips, but as you become a Priceline pro, you can follow the trends and (while always keeping in mind you can get anything) posibly score a hotel of your choosing.

Two things: first, the board is littered with pleas to read the FAQ. The traffic there is enormous. It must get quite frustrating to Sheryl and the other moderators to respond to dozens of questions per day that basicallly represent a failure to either read the FAQ's or follow them.

Second: from what I've seen, most of the "Nazi" responses are canned. I don't think Sheryl sits down and individually writes nasty messages. I think she's got three or four template-driven responses to cover a couple different scenarios (in the case of the OP, incomplete bidding information) and simply launches the response that's most appropriate. They're misunderstood as written to an individual, rather than launched automatically due to lack of info.

It's taken me about five minutes to write this. Imagine having to write several dozen of these per day complete with comprehensive bidding strategy (I'm sure they take more than five minutes), then throw in a dozen or two from those who've not provided the full information needed. I'm of the opinion she's short on time, is offering a free service, and simply wants folks to use the FAQ's to eduate themselves on how the board works, so she and her moderators can spend the time they have doing what they're pros at: bidding strategy. Note: If I've read correctly, Sheryl is an employee of Priceline (I could be wrong, but I don't think I am).

Is Sheryl a little terse? Yeah, I guess she is. But mostly, I think the OP and others are responding to a perceived personal attack when what they're really getting is a canned response sent to those who've not provided enough info to forward bidding strategy.

That's not to bust on those that have that feeling. It was my initial reaction. But if you spend enough time there (another place to blow off life to feed this Disney affliction), you'll begin to "get it." Anyway, I think Sheryl offers an incredible service for free. When initially po'd, I gave her the benefit of the doubt and found out my initial reactions were wrong.

One man's opinion..

Pat