Online auctions are a great way to get the best deals on all types of goods ranging from household items and furniture to vintage products and rare collectibles. If you’re doing research about auction bidding strategies and what’s the best way to win an online auction, read on for a few tips…
This is most commonly known as “auction squatting”. We like to call it “marathon bidding” because you’re in it for the long haul. You start putting bids in early, but pace yourself and keep an eye on the item(s) you’re bidding on until the very end. Auction squatting lets people know that you’re a serious bidder and if they want to compete with you, they’ll need to keep up.
This type of strategy works with online auctions that have a confirmed ending time. Auction snipers wait until the very last second to put in their bid. Some people even use special software to place bids, especially if they can’t be in front of the computer at the end of the auction.
Here at CalAuctions auction sniping doesn’t work because if bids are placed within the last few minutes of the time an item closes, the time is extended another four minutes. This will happen until someone decides they’ve reached the absolute maximum amount they’re willing to bid.
If you find an item that has many bidders on it, do a search to see if the same item is available with less bids. Oftentimes we have auctions with multiple items that are the same. For example, the community college auctions include quite a few lots of Mac computers. We’ll see a computer with many bids on it, but if you scroll down you’ll see the same exact computer with only one or two bids.
This is a “bid and forget it” strategy in which you enter the maximum amount you want to pay for an item. The system will bid on your behalf until that maximum bid. This type of strategy is best for someone who is on a strict budget and doesn’t want to get caught up in the hype of bidding. There is a certain level of excitement that can happen as you participate in online auctions. If you find yourself getting caught in auction fever, you may end up paying way more than you anticipated for an item.
Hopefully the online auction bidding strategies outlined here will help you as you hunt for online deals!
