subject: Low Bid Auctions How They Work [print this page] A low bid auction is an auction where the strategy employed by the bidders is markedly different from those seen in a traditional or normal auction. To win a bid, not only must be your bid the lowest, but they must also be unique. Here unique refers to the figure that you bid. If for instance, two individuals bid the same amount for a product, neither of them can be declared winners as their bids are not unique and they cancel out each other, even if their bids are the lowest.
A low bid auction can be compared to a lottery or a competition because the bidders have to make a payment or a fee to be able to participate in the bidding process. Apart from the fact that you have to bid a unique and the lowest amount, you are also eligible to place multiple bids to increase the chances of your hitting the jackpot. The number of bids at each amount is kept a secret. Some companies do provide information revealing whether the unique bid is higher or lower than the last bid amount.
There are many online websites where you can participate in low bid or unique bid auctions as they are sometimes called. You are required to register your name and user name, along with the password on the online site form. You can modify or change the personal details provided but your username remains unchanged once you have registered for the site.
To be able to place bids, the participant must fund their account with a minimum amount of money as required by the service provider. As bids are placed, the account gets automatically debited by the amounts for which the items were bid. If the user account is completely depleted, then the participant cannot bid anymore before replenishing or re-funding the account. Most of the low bid auction sites accept payments through PayPal or through major credit cards.
Low auction bids carry a ticket value, which is in fact the cost of placing a bid. Your page on the site will give you the requisite details indicating whether your bid is unique and winning or just a low bid, but not unique. You can also use the facility of placing multiple bids on the same item. If you place a bid from $10 to $15, in effect you are placing six bids starting from $10 and ending at $15, and all other numbers in between. Of course, it will cost you six times the value of a ticket.
You can register on any low bid online auction site for free. However, if you want to participate in the bidding process, you must fund your user account with the requisite amount. To place a bid for an item on offer, you just have to select the item and write the bid amount in the designated column.
There are no limits on the number of bids you can place on a particular item. However, every bid will be charged the fee as decided by the website. If your bid is the lowest, but not unique, then you cannot win. A higher bid that is unique will be declared the winner. It is, therefore, more important to be unique than to try bidding for the lowest amount.
Once the bidding process has started, you cannot withdraw your bid.
