Online auctions can be more unnerving than the traditional version. There are more bidders. You do not get to see the bidders and hence studying your competition with the potential of bluffing becomes more difficult. Online auctions can last longer so more time and effort is necessary if you want to win and especially if you wish to emerge victorious time and again. Every successful bidder has a strategy. Those who have been doing this for a while have more than one strategy. Every item up for auction and the nature of bidding will demand a certain strategy. The same tactics may not work all the time. Regardless of the particulars or specific terms, here are some proven strategies for winning online auctions.

Choose a Maximum Bid

At the crux of every strategy lies a maximum bid. You need to know your maximum bid even before you have placed your first bid. The maximum bid is obviously influenced by your budget or affordability, what you think the item is worth, the minimum bid as listed and the expected competition. The maximum bid is your threshold. You will not breach this regardless of what happens. Most beginners may a mistake of not having a maximum bid or exceeding it, hoping that the competitors will stop bidding sooner or later. This may lead to an unnecessary inflation of the price. The item you may end up buying might not be worth the bid. The maximum bid has to be abided by at all times. Even if you lose a bid by a few bucks, so be it as exceeding your maximum bid simply ushers in the possibility of continuous outbidding, even by a few cents each time, and you may end up paying much more than you had set out to.

Do not Choose Rounded Bids

It is common for people to think in terms of rounded off figures. The minimum bid may or may not be rounded off. Do not worry about that or what others are doing. You should always go for a bid that is random but closest to the amounts you wish to put forth. If you have to bid ten dollars, choose eleven cents more. You may bid ten dollars and nine cents or perhaps ten dollars and seventy three cents. These cents increase your chances of winning. Rounded off bids are the easiest to beat. You could lose by a cent at many auctions. When you go for more random figures that are close to your desired bids, including the maximum you are willing to pay, they become harder to outbid.

Avoid a Minimum Bid

Simply avoid starting with the minimum bid. Even if the auction is expected to be unpopular and there may not be too many bidders, you should always begin with a serious bid. Placing a minimum bid is for amateurs or those who are hoping to get lucky in the quaintest of ways. A minimum bid is a waste of time and effort. It also shows that you are not a serious player. Competitors will know you are just looking for a steal and easily outmaneuver you. Place a serious bid and you will benefit in more ways than one.

The moment you start with a serious bid, you will be eliminating all those amateurs and noisemakers that simply end up creating a bit of chaos at the outset. There will be too many bids at online auctions when the minimum and its range are at play. Scale a notch higher and the cacophony will disappear. Then you will be with serious bidders and can get on with your strategy to win at online auctions.

Phase your Bids

Incremental bidding is essential. It is a standard practice. Every serious bidder increases bids in increments and is going to be wise about the figures they choose. You should tread expectedly and unexpectedly with your incremental bids. You must have a preferred approach to phasing the bids as per your convenience, budget or maximum bid and how much you need the item. You can start with a substantial bid, wait for others to place their bids and then spring a surprise by escalating your bid by quite a bit. You can always increase your bids nominally but it will only keep the progress in check and many bidders will continue to be at play.

You can also go slow and increase your bids marginally when you want, even if others are expecting you to take a leap. You need to stay in the game and outbid your competition. This means you have to keep bidding but not necessarily comply with any expectation others may have. Take a leap when you want, play patiently when you want and stay firmly rooted when you are at your max bid. This will put you in the driving seat. You cannot steer online auctions as precisely as you want or even remotely as you expect in some cases. However, you can definitely steer your own bidding. Phase it accordingly.

Avoid Frantic Bidding

There are times when you will find your bid being outbid by only a few cents. You may be tempted to increase your bid but hold your horses at this stage. If there is enough time on the clock, wait and see how others bid in a few minutes or over the next hour. You can always return and increase your bid substantially. One such strike may deal a final blow to all your competitors. Frantic bidding draws too much attention. There may be some bidders who simply wish to instigate you so you keep on increasing your bids by a few cents each time and you end up paying much more than what you intended or what you should have for the item. Do not indulge in impulsive bidding.

It is difficult for anyone to become a champion at online auctions in a short span of time. Exposure and hence experience is the key. You will need to test your nerves. You must be familiar with how your competition works in every distinct circumstance. Practice and effective use of the aforementioned strategies for winning online auctions will help you to improve your game.