by cyberwriter

Created on: March 20, 2007   Last Updated: April 19, 2007

Auction winning techniques

How many times have you placed a bid on an auction and anxiously awaited the result, only to find out that you lost the auction in the last few seconds? Most likely, the auction was sniped. Sniping an auction, is the term used to describe this. Auction sniping is legal according to ebay policies, as long as you honor the bid.

A snipe is exactly that, somewhere, someone in hiding is ready to pounce on your great deal. This is done either manually, or by using 3rd party software and services. The process involves keeping your absolute maximum bid hidden from the other bidders. In the last dying seconds of the auction deadline, your hidden bid is placed. This leave little time for the other bidders to react to your bid and you win the auction.

The manual process is not as desirable as an automated 3rd party auction sniping service because your system and connection to the internet may not be reliable, or quick enough to get your sniped bid submitted in time. 3rd party companies have faster connections and more reliable servers to handle the process for you.

The difference between sniping a bid and placing a higher proxy bid (placing your maximum bid amount early, in secret) is that other auction bidders can learn your maximum bid simply by placing their bid. If your bid is higher, they will be advised that they have been outbid. This reveals the current bid amount, and often raises the value of the item making less enticing, less of a deal.

Sniping software holds your bid a secret until you say when to place it. This it typically several minutes to several seconds before the auction ends. The sniping software uses the sniping choices and preferences that you have made in advance. You purchase the software or service and enter your account credentials beforehand. Some may argue that this is a security risk they do not wish to make. Essentially, you are handing over your account information to a 3rd party, which is stored on their servers. If there ever was a security breach, your information may be compromised. On the other hand, they may have more secure servers that your home computer, coupled with their reliability and faster internet connection. Using these options means your bid can be placed anywhere, anytime. The snipe will happen automatically, regardless of your monitoring the auction or not.

There are several auction sniping software and services, from bidnip.com which costs about .25 per successful auction snipe. If you bid too low, or for any reason the bid is not placed due to unforeseen circumstances, you are not charged. Other software packages cost about $9.95, plus 1% auction item value. You may also search google for auction sniping. Try it, you'll soon understand why it's so popular.

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