To bid on an item click on button found on the Lot Detail page. This will pop up the bidding page as follows:
Note if you are not already logged in, you will be required to do so before you will be allowed to bid. In the figure above, the "Bid Now" button is greyed out because the user is not logged in and a space is provided to enter a user id and password. Once this information is entered the "Bid Now" button will be available.
The bidding page will give you some summary information about the item you are bidding on, including the Lot # and Name, a picture, the current winning bidder, the starting bid, the current bid and the minimum amount that you will need to bid. The minimum amount is usually the current bid plus the bid increment (usually bids are done in increments of $100). In the event that you are already the winning bidder, the minimum bid will be your current maximum (proxy) bid + $100. That is, you may raise your own proxy bid.
A proxy bid is automatic bidding that increases your bid incrementally each time someone outbids you, until you win or reach your maximum bid. A proxy bid thus represents the maximum amount you are willing to pay for an item. When entering your bid, you may enter the maximum amount you are willing to pay. The auction site will then bid the minimal amount on your behalf in order to ensure you are the winner. For example, the current bid is $1000 on Lot #1 and you wish to bid. You decide that you would be willing to pay up to $4000 for Lot #1, so you enter $4000 as your proxy bid. If nobody had a proxy bid entered that exceeded $1000, you would now be winning Lot #1 with a bid of $1100. Now another bidder comes in and enters a proxy bid of $2500. Your proxy bid of $4000 exceeds their bid and you will now be winning the item with a bid of $2600. If nobody else bids again before the auction closes, you will win the item for $2600 even though your maximum was $4000. The auction site will always bid the minimal amount needed to win.
In addition to competing against other bidders with your bid, you are also bidding against the reserve amount. For instance, if Lot #1 has a current bid of $1000 and a reserve price of $3000. Currently the reserve is not met and nobody would win if the auction closed. You now decide to enter $4000 for your proxy bid for Lot #1. Since the auction site will always bid the minimum amount needed for you to win, the price will be raised to $3000. This is because $3000 is the minimum needed to win the lot based on the reserve price. Some sellers will make the reserve price known to buyers while others will keep it hidden. This is completely up to the seller.
It is always best to bid the maximum you are willing to pay and bid early. This is because if 2 people bid the same proxy bid, the one who entered their proxy bid first will always win.
Note: As a result of the proxy bidding, sometimes the bid history shows the same user id bidding twice in a row. This may occur in order to break the tie and ensure that the earliest proxy bid is the winning bidder. For example "BIDDER A" is winning LOT #1 with a proxy bid of $1500. The current winning bid is $1400. "BIDDER B" bids with a proxy bid also of $1500. Since "BIDDER A" had their $1500 proxy bid in first, "BIDDER A" wins the tie-breaker and now is the winning bidder at $1500. The Bid History reflects two "BIDDER A" entries in a row as a result.