There’s a lot to consider when bidding in an online silent auction. For example, you might think that bidding bid will win you that item you’ve been eyeing, but you might end up losing out to someone who placed an identical max bid to you, earlier. Understanding how auction bidding works will help you avoid overspending or losing out on an item you want.

When you go to bid on an item, Oktion requests you to enter your maximum bid, which is the highest amount you’re prepared to pay for a lot. This is a binding contract, and if you win the lot, you’re expected to pay up to this amount for the item. Oktion app will automatically adjust the current bid on your behalf to make you the highest bidder, up until your max bid is met. If other bidders haven’t exceeded your max bid by the bidding closing time, you might get the item for a lower price.

Your maximum bid is never shown to other bidders. They will only be able to see the current highest bid. Also, the highest bid will depend on your maximum bid as well as the maximum bid entered by others. Keep in mind that you don’t have to enter your maximum bid right away. If you want to keep the prices low for now, you can enter a lower amount as your maximum bid for the time being. To change your max bid, all you need to do is make another bid. Oktion will let you know when you are outbid, and you can adjust your max accordingly.

Every item will have a reserve amount set by the seller. This amount won’t be shown to you during the bidding process. This is the minimum amount for which a seller is happy for an item to sell. If the highest bid doesn’t meet or exceed this amount, the item won’t be sold. If your maximum big is higher than the reserve amount, Oktion will automatically raise the current bid to the reserve price.