Sunday 10 October 2010

Penny auctions – What is a buy now option?

Penny auctions are a fun, exhilarating and unique way to shop online and make savings. Penny auctions are pay-to-bid auction sites where users compete against each other to win the right to buy a top brand product for an amazing discount, usually pennies. Sites such as MadBid.com claim that the average saving is 80% and other sites like Flutteroo claim the same.

Whilst they are a great way to have fun, if you are the winner then great but if not you are likely to have lost some money with the bids you’ve placed. That’s why it’s better to use one of the better sites that offer a ‘Buy Now’ option on their auctions.

For example, MadBid.com offer a ‘Buy it Now’ option on the majority of their auctions and those that do not win the auction have the option to buy the product during the auction or for up to 24 hours after the auction has closed. The great thing about this option is that MadBid.com have ‘exclusive’ buy it now prices which are often less than the recommended retail price and the cost of the bids you have placed on that auction are discounted from the final price. So effectively you’re a winner too because you’ve still got your product and the cost of your bids back as they have been discounted from the final price.

Whilst sites like MadBid.com offer these great options, be wary of some other sites that have over inflated ‘Buy it now’ prices, so you end up paying more than what you would elsewhere and some sites only offer a percentage of the cost of bids placed as a discount, so you are not getting the full cost of your bids back and this could end up costing you even more.

Pay-to-bid auction sites...are they worth it?

Thousands of people a day in the UK are registering with penny auction sites in the hope of making a huge saving on top brand products. However, unlike traditional auction sites such as eBay penny auction site use a pay-to-bid model where you will have to purchase your bids in advance in order to be able to bid in one of their online auctions.
The best penny auction sites in the UK have a wide range of products available each day from electronics, kitchenware, jewellery, cars and much more. However the question is once you have purchased the bids placed them on the auctions and pay the final closing price is it worth it? Well with some site yes it is.

Sites such as the UK’s leading penny auction site MadBid.com has over 100 different products a day up for auction and charge only £0.50 per bid. In fact on average users save up to 80% on RRP, this fact was even backed up by The Sunday Times.

The best way to ensure you make a saving is to focus on the product you want to win. Firstly do a bit of research, look in the closed auction section of the site and see how much the product you want has sold for previously, this will help you get an idea of how much it could potentially go for. Then purchase your bids, only buy as many bids as you are prepared to use and set yourself a limit and stick to it.

How do they work? Penny auctions are a form of auction which are designed to be fun and entertaining. Basically an auction will start at £0.00 and will only increase in penny increments every time someone places a bid, each auction will have a timer which can range anywhere from 2 minutes to 30 seconds. When the first bid is place the timer will count down and when another user places a bid the timer will re-set to its original time and start counting down again. This process will continue until no-one else places a bid within the time and the auction will then close. The highest (last bidder) will win the right to purchase the product for the final closing price of an auction.

Monday 13 September 2010

Simplifying Penny Auction Sites

Bidding on sites such as eBay can be long, drawn out and potentially a waste of time, plus a lot of the products are second hand. The revolutionary new concept of penny auction sites brings a new definition of online auctions. The unique auction platform allows users to bid on top brand products and purchase the goods for unbelievably low prices.

Penny auction sites can be confusing as it every site varies and there are a lot of sites. The first thing to do is find the right site for you. The best way to do this is to search on Google with terms like ‘online auctions’ or ‘penny auction’ and make sure you choose a site that is at the top of the results but are no paid for links as a lot of fake sites pay to be in the ‘sponsored links’ section.

When you have chosen your site for example MadBid.com, Google the company and see what results come up and look for external references such as Wikipedia, Forums and articles about the site. See what other users are saying and make sure the site is legitimate.
When you first go on a penny auction site you will have to register, this is free and you usually get between 2-5 free bids when you sign up. Penny auction site are Pay-to-Bid auctions and as such you will have to purchase bids in advance to be able to bid. These prices can vary between £0.50 an £1.50 per bid. Good sites will often run promotions on a weekly or monthly basis.

So when you have signed up to a penny auction website, you’re ready to bid. Firstly take a look around the site and make sure you know how it works exactly. Look out for tutorials such as a ‘How it works video’ or look in the FAQ section of the site. The thing about penny auction sites is that it is all about strategy and skill not luck, there will be regular bidders to avoid as well as times when the site is extremely busy and you should avoid these times. Take your time and just watch and see what you can discover.

When you feel you are ready...start bidding, make sure you have enough bids in your account so that you don’t get caught out but make sure that you set a limit and stick to it!! As a beginner you should bid on products such as perfumes, jewellery, DVD’s etc as these sorts of products tend to have less competition and as such tend to go for a very small amount...normally pennies!

Thursday 1 July 2010

Making Penny Auctions Simple to work

A penny auction site is a great way to get your hands on a top brand product for just pennies. Those who have worked to understand how these sites truly work and have developed their own strategy have been lucky enough to use penny auctions sites to buy all sorts of desirable top brand products for just pennies.

Penny auctions sites often have ‘Big Users’ who can sometimes dominate an auction site. Below we have listed the top 5 tips to take on these ‘Big Bidders’ and be successful.

1)Don’t believe that it’s all about luck! You will need skill, judgement and strategy if you want to win consistently and not blow your bids on something you’ll never win!

2)Watch and learn – Every penny auction site will work differently as will other bidders. Make sure you take the time to fully understand how the site works and how its users work. Watch how the auctions work, watch other users and try to identify any patterns or prolific bidders. Do your homework and look for what recently closed auctions have gone for so you can get an ideal price point to start bidding.

3)Bid when others are not – If you can place your bids when other people are at work, on the school run, asleep or elsewhere. On every site there will be regular times and days when the site is much quieter which will dramatically increase your chances of winning and the price will often be lower than at other times on the site.

4)Set your limits and start small – Start by setting yourself a limit and sticking to it. So buy a bids package and don’t buy anymore that day. Then start small, bid on auctions that are less popular and the smaller ticket items. This is a great way to gain experience and grab yourself a few small bargains in the process.

5)Take advantage of special offers – Good sites often have special offers or promotions on such as 50% extra or Bids Back offers. These are a great way to stock up on bids and will give you more firepower at no extra cost so it means you have more chance of winning without spending more money.

How to get Apple product cheaply

Apple have dominated the ‘Must Have’ list for many years now across the world. A huge array of shiny, fun and practical gadgets have made Apple one of the most desirable brands. The only problem with these fantastic products is the cost. The iPhone & iTouch can cost you in excess of £500 and as for Macs you can pay £1,000 upwards.

However now anyone can get their hands on the latest products from Apple for a snip of the RRP. Penny auction sites are now offering these great products that can go for up to 98% off the retail price. iPod’s can go for just pennies and iPad’s & iPhone’s can go for just pounds. A great example of this recently was a brand new iPad 16GB sold for just £42.97 on penny auction site MadBid.com.

The great thing about Penny auction sites is that all of the products are brand new and they come with full warranties and guarantees. It’s a great way to grab the latest gadgets for less.

You must make sure you choose a good penny auction website in the UK as some are scams. You can make sure you have chosen a good one by searching the website name on Google and see what comes up... Keep an eye out for any external sources such as Wikipedia, Forums and any other social networks such as Facebook where you can ask other users about their thoughts and experiences.