Yeah but its easy to get carried away on bidding and end up paying much more than an item is worth so as to "win". I have done it myself. now I put a bid 'up to' the amount I think its worth and leave it at that, sometimes bidders are involved with the seller and are just trying to get the price up.
If you're putting a maximum bid in seconds from the end then none of what you put applies really.
Some niche items I sell which can reach £50+, bidders will often put in a reasonably high bid early on just to test the waters and work out how popular the item will be and how many other bidders they might be up against.
Then they sometimes put their maximum bid in 1 hour before it ends. It can actually have the effect of doing the opposite that some believe: Other bidders see an item already at a reasonably high price early on and get scared about how high it will eventually be - meaning they walk away completely. Plus gives you time to weigh up adding a couple of quid which might win you the item (and I'd rather win an item over a couple of quid than lose out because there's no time left).
Sometimes, all that you'll achieve by waiting till 5 seconds to go is missing out on an item by 20p or something - because someone else had bid higher than that days ago. Which is a waste of time. Get your maximum bid in early and sometimes it can scare away the opposition.
Basically, it's not an exact science. Bidding late isn't always the best option.
Depends on the types of items also and how rare they are.
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If you're putting a maximum bid in seconds from the end then none of what you put applies really.
Then they sometimes put their maximum bid in 1 hour before it ends. It can actually have the effect of doing the opposite that some believe: Other bidders see an item already at a reasonably high price early on and get scared about how high it will eventually be - meaning they walk away completely. Plus gives you time to weigh up adding a couple of quid which might win you the item (and I'd rather win an item over a couple of quid than lose out because there's no time left).
Sometimes, all that you'll achieve by waiting till 5 seconds to go is missing out on an item by 20p or something - because someone else had bid higher than that days ago. Which is a waste of time. Get your maximum bid in early and sometimes it can scare away the opposition.
Basically, it's not an exact science. Bidding late isn't always the best option.
Depends on the types of items also and how rare they are.