Experienced eBay buyers call it sniping, and they often employ this technique when they wish to win an eBay auction. When you bid on eBay at the last minute, you watch the auction carefully and use time as a tool to win the item. To compete successfully for hot items on eBay, you may need to learn last-minute bidding techniques.
Instructions:
1) Place the item on which you want to bid into your "Watched Items" area in your eBay account when you find an item you desire. Note the time the auction is ending so you know when to return to bid.
2) Return to the item auction approximately 10 minutes before it ends. Assess any bidding activity to ensure you still wish to bid on the item. Often, an auction price will rise steeply as the end of the auction approaches and the item price may be higher than you anticipated. If you still wish to bid on the item, proceed to the next step.
3) Refresh the web page every five to 10 seconds as the timer ticks down to the end of the auction. As you watch the timer, also watch for other bidding activity that may occur by other buyers.
4) Wait until the timer counts down to approximately 20 to 30 seconds (depending upon your internet connection speed). When this amount of time remains, quickly enter your maximum bid in the empty field beneath the current bidding amount. Bid the highest amount you are willing to pay for the item because you will not have time to enter a second bid if this bid fails. Click the blue "Place Bid" button.
5) Confirm your bid as quickly as possible on the next page by clicking the appropriate button.
6) Wait until the auction ends to see if you won the item. You will see a message congratulating you as the winner if you won.
Source - eHow
