How to Snipe Bid Online Auctions & Win
Sniping in online auctions is the practice of entering a bid just before the close of an auction. The hope is that by bidding seconds before the auction expires, others who are interested in the item will not have enough time to counter the new bid called a snipe bid. Buyers either watch the clock on the auction manually or use online or desktop-based tools to enter automatically the snipe bid, which arrives mere milliseconds before the end of the auction.
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Instructions
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Decide which auction you are going to bid on and take notice of the end date. Choose the auction with the lowest current price and save it. In eBay, the world's largest online auction site, you also can "Watch" the item, which effectively saves the item under your eBay name for future use. If the item you want currently has bids on it, take notice of the price and budget accordingly.
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Choose a maximum bid that you are confident will win the item. In eBay, buyers can search closed listings to see the prices at which past auctions closed. By researching recently closed auctions, you will be able to better gauge how much you will need to win the item. The object is to win the item as cheaply as possible without raising the price. By entering a bid early, you run the risk of raising the auction price.
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Log in to the auction site and pull up the item. If the end of the auction is within a few seconds, quickly enter your maximum bid amount. Because you are doing it manually, you are slowed down by the speed of your body. Don't be offended. Snipe bidding also can backfire if you miss your opportunity to bid because you type slowly. There are many online sites that offer snipe bids that are much more effective at placing a bid shortly before the auction closes. Buyers will win many more auctions if they use this method. Set the snipe bid online and forget it.
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Tips & Warnings
When searching eBay for the item you want, there will be times when your item is not listed or bids simply are too high. You can save your search in eBay and be emailed when an item that matches your search is listed in eBay. For example, search eBay for "candy vending machines." If you are registered on the site, click the "Save this search and alert me later" link.
Most online snipe bid sites have free trials so if you are not certain that being a bid sniper is for you, you can try it out. However, after the trial expires, many sites will charge a transaction fee for every auction you bid on even if you lose. Some sites will not charge you for every auction bid but will force you to pay up front for a specific number of snipe bids you can execute.
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