Auction Bidding Tips

There are a number of strategies used by bidders to maximise their success; we've listed the most popular for you here:

1. Head Shake or Nod

One of the most important techniques to take into an auction. If you are bidding on a lot, and the auctioneer looks to you for the next bid, nodding your head will show him that you are still bidding, whilst a shake of your head will indicate that you have withdrawn.

2. Bid Jumping

This is the practice of putting in a bid well above the next bid increment; for example, if the bidding has been proceeding from £50 to £55 then £60, a bid jumper may call out a bid of £150. At this point, the other bidders may feel that the bid jumper will continue to outbid them, and will cease bidding - even though they might have paid more than £150. In this case, the bid jumper wins.

However, it may well be that the other bidders would have stopped bidding after £60 anyway, in which case the bid jumper wins the lot, but ends up paying £150 instead of £65.

3. Lighthouse Bidding

This is the term used when a bidder holds their paddle up leaves it there. This sends out a message to other bidders that they are serious about winning the lot, and will remain in the bidding for the long haul. This may have the effect of intimidating the other buyers into dropping out of the bidding.

4. Cutting the Bid

Bidding tends to increase in regular increments unless the auctioneer determines otherwise. If the bidding has been proceeding from £1,000 to £1,100 to £1,200, and you want to bid £1,250 instead of £1,300, you can indicate this to the auctioneer by raising your arm and holding your hand horizontally at your neck, with the palm down. This tells him that you want to cut the increment by half. You can also do this by calling out the amount that you wish to bid, although you shouldn't attempt to do this too often.