In this article we will try to answer the questions:
- What are the types of bids on online auctions?
- How to bid on online auctions?
Figuratively speaking, there are 2 types auction bidding:
- SINGLE BID;
- MAXIMUM BID (Proxy Bid, AutoBid).
The SINGLE bid is fixed and constant, and the MAXIMUM bid is the exact opposite - changing and interactive (depending on the other bids made in advance or later).
The SINGLE bid, in practice, is almost never used unless you want to intentionally increase the CURRENT price.
If you place a SINGLE bid, the price will instantly become as much as your bid is for.
The MAXIMUM bid is used mainly when you know the maximum amount you are willing to pay.
With each subsequent MAXIMUM bid the auction increases by 1 "step" over the last one.
The step is determined by the owners of online auctions, normally ranging from 10 to 100 pounds, and sometimes increases in proportion to the CURRENT price.
Our experience shows us that customers tend to bid more money at the last minute, this is what online auctions aim for. They are successful because they do more favour to sellers than to buyers.
In our examples, below, we will assume that the step is 20 pounds.
1Example 1 - SINGLE BID:
THE CURRENT price is £ 100 (at the time you bid).
You are placing a SINGLE bid worth £ 200.
The CURRENT price instantly becomes £ 200.
If no one else has placed a bid, or does not place a bid after you, more than £ 200 MAXIMUM or SINGLE bid, you will win the auction. But if someone has already placed a MAXIMUM bid bigger than yours, then his bid will beat yours by 1 step, and the CURRENT price will become, in this case, £220 pounds. And if someone places a SINGLE bid of more than £ 200, their bid will still beat yours, and the CURRENT price will be equal to their SINGLE bid.
In the SINGLE bidding there is no official competition and the price increases at the moment, and the other players must either accept the CURRENT price or bid more.
2Example 2 - MAXIMUM BID:
The CURRENT price is £ 100.
You are placing a MAXIMUM bid of £ 200.
- First probable result: if no other MAXIMUM bids have been made before yours, at a step of £ 20, the CURRENT price becomes £ 120. The system remembers that your MAXIMUM bid is £ 200 and automatically (officially) bids for you 1 step above any other bid made after yours. If no one bids more than £ 200, your bid beats the last one and you win one step above it, but if someone bids more than £ 200, you will lose the auction.
- Second probable result: if another MAXIMUM bid is made before yours, for example £ 160, in a £ 20 step, the CURRENT price will increase by 1 step above that bid and will become, in this case, £ 180. The system remembers that your MAXIMUM bid is £ 200 and will automatically (officially) bid for you 1 step above each other bid until your bid is reached or exceeded. If no one bids more than £ 200 you win, but if someone bids more than £ 200 you will lose the auction.
De facto, the MAXIMUM bids outweigh each other and the bigger one always beats the smaller one by 1 step.
What happens if the auction ends with 2 identical final bids?
Each online auction has different rules, provided that the auction ends with 2 identical bids, and no one plays after that. In some cases, the last placed bid wins, and in others the first.
With our Auction Bidding Service you can place a MAXIMUM bid for all online auctions, for which we are registered, and you can even increase your bid.
