The rules of an auction

Whether online or offline, auctions are quite popular and have been a major attraction for businessmen as well as common folks and it existed as far as one can trace back in history. Auctions have existed since the dawn of time, and they simply continued evolving alongside its society. In case you are new to auctioning or if you want to skim through the basic rules, here are the basic steps that can be seen at a regular auction.

1. Person X wants to sell an object.

There is an object in which you wish to sell, but do not know how much it could go for; in that case, it may be better to have it shown to everyone. (It is also quite possible that you know the value of the object, but simply want to fetch the highest price possible.)

2. Person X brings the object to an auctioneer

After setting a base price for your object, it is then given to an auctioneer. This so-called auctioneer can either be a real person or a website that acts as a virtual mediator.

3. The auction opens; war rages on

The auction is shown to the public (which does not apply to a silent auction) people then bid on the object; if Person A bets $5, then any other individual wishing to acquire the object must bid $5 plus an increment.

4. The auction ends

The auction will end under at least three circumstance: if the auctioneer deems the current bid so impressive that he closes the auction, if the time allotted for the object has finished and finally, if one person bid and no other person decided to outbid him.

Offline versus Online

When the digital age came, it brought with it some very important auction-like websites that specialize in having items presented and sold exactly like offline auctions. Evidently, offline auctions end much quicker than online ones, since the later can actually last for days with bids flying left and right. As well, it is normally easier to navigate and get information about items up for auction on a nicely organized website. Where the offline auctions get the higher hand is when it is time to finalize the transaction with the exchange of good and money. In an online auction, you need to place trust in the seller to actually send you the item as they will normally wait until they received the money before sending the object to you; such problem does not occur in offline auctions

Techniques

Being Patient

Being patient is a key strategy in both type of auctions, but is probably more prominent in offline auctions, as everyone came with a set amount of money. It is quite possible that inexperienced buyers will be eager to participate in bid wars; waiting is actually quite a good option, if you are patient, you may see a clearer picture.

Sniping

Sniping is a legitimate and quite popular technique used in online auctions. Since online auctions are timed, an eager buyer will be constantly watching over the item. If you bid an amount of money an hour before it ends, the eager buyer will definitely notice and bid higher. Sniping consists of bidding as close to the end as possible; although very frustrating, this technique allows you to bid higher than other buyers and blocks them from outbidding you as by the time the higher bid is noticed, the auction will have ended. Obviously if you are out-snipped, then you will have learned the risks of sniping.