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With minimal information necessary, you can create an account and have an
auction ready to go in a matter of minutes. We've made it very easy to setup
and run your silent auction online. The auctions at 32auctions are private,
giving you the ability to determine who bids based on who you share your
auction url with. Having a private auction allows you to invite a trusted
network of participants. The people who join your auction are those who are
interested in seeing your organization raise money to reach your goals.
You can create your silent auction in 3 simple steps:
- Create a user account (if you don't have one)
- Create an organization
- Create an auction
Once your silent auction has been created you can:
Create a user account
Creating your user account is a simple process which involves providing minimal
information, including a valid email address. An email will be sent to the
email address provided, containing a link to finalize creating the new account.
Once your 32auctions account is finalized, you will be able to:
- Join an auction you have been invited to
- Bid on auction items
- Create your own silent auction
- Upload an image for your account
- ...and more!
Create an organization
If you are interested in creating a silent auction, you will first need to
tell us a little bit about your organization. This information is useful
for auction participants to recognize the organization or cause they are
supporting, so add as much identifying information as you can.
A benefit of creating an organization is that over time you'll be able
to run many silent auctions without having to re-enter this information.
We will also track the total amount of money raised by your organization
through 32auctions.
The user who registers an organization is automatically the organization
coordinator. Organization coordinators can invite people to be organization
coordinators and auction organizers. They have the right to manage the
organization as well as all auctions associated with the organization.
They are also responsible for the initial creation of all new auctions being
run for the organization.
Create an auction
Once you have an organization, you can create many silent auctions for it.
The organization coordinator is the person responsible for the initial auction
creation. They will need to enter the name of the auction as well as the
starting and ending date/time. An auction can start anytime within 6 months from
the date it is created and can run for as little as 1 day to a maximum of 45 days.
Additional information can be added, including pickup instructions and a
fundraising goal amount. Pickup instructions will be displayed on each auction
item and are emailed to winning bidders. This informs participants on how
they can receive their items should they win. A fundraising goal meter can be
displayed on the auction information page which displays your goal amount and
the total amount raised by your auction through bids and/or donations.
Once the auction is initially created, the organization coordinator can invite
people to be auction organizers. An auction organizer has the right to manage
their specific auction. They can edit the auction information and add items to
the auction. They also have the ability to invite additional auction organizers
to assist with administering the auction. An organizer does not have the ability
to modify organization information or create new auctions.
Upgrade auction features
You have the opportunity to upgrade individual features of your auction anytime
before the auction ends. Take a moment to review the currently available feature
upgrades and the simple process for upgrading on the Features & Pricing page.
Add auction items
Gather up the pictures, item descriptions, fair market values and start adding items.
When adding items, it is important to set a detailed description so participants are
well informed. For each item, you must choose to allow bidding and/or set a buy now
price. These options are further detailed here:
- Allow bidding - Allows users to bid on the item. Additional information
is needed, including:
- Starting bid - The price to start the bidding at
- Bid increment - The minimum amount a bid must be over the current selling price
- Buy now price - Allow the item to be purchased for a set price. If bidding is also enabled, the buy now option will be available until bidding moves the current selling price at or above the buy now price.
Also, be sure to upload pictures. Displaying pictures for your auction
items can increase the selling price. Pictures allow bidders to get a
better understanding of the items you are selling, not to mention they add
to the attractiveness of your auction!
It's important to note that an item can be modified by an auction administrator anytime
before the auction ends, as long as there are no bids on it. It's also possible for an
administrator to remove unsold items prior to the end of the auction. This should be
reserved for rare cases like when an item has been recalled or damaged.
Invite auction administrators
Within 32auctions, there are 2 types of administrator roles: Coordinator and
Organizer. These roles determine the rights a person has within an organization
and auction.
Organization Coordinator
The person who creates an organization is automatically the organization
coordinator. Organization coordinators can invite people to be organization
coordinators and auction organizers. They have the right to manage the
organization as well as all auctions associated with the organization.
They are also responsible for the initial creation of all new auctions being
run for the organization.
Auction Organizer
An auction organizer has the right to manage their particular auction. They can
edit the auction information and add items to the auction. They also have
the ability to invite additional auction organizers to their auction. An
organizer does not have the right to modify any organization information.
Invite participants
Inviting participants involves creating a custom auction url of your choosing
when creating your auction. Once your auction url has been created, you can
provide it to anyone you wish to invite to participate. Your invitees can view the
auction anonymously, or they can create an account to join your auction and start
bidding. Here is an example of an auction url for our demo auction: 32auctions.com/32auctionsDemo.
Getting the word out about your auction is very important. You'll want to have a large
number of participants to maximize the potential for reaching your fundraising goal.
Here are a few suggestions for getting the word out about your auction. It's as easy
as providing your custom auction url on:
- Personal blog
- Charity website
- Personalized email campaign
- Mass mailing
- ...and more!
Close the auction
Shortly after an auction ends, an email is sent to the winning bidders informing
them they won items. An email is also sent to the auction administrators
with a link to the Sales Summary page for their auction. The Sales Summary
page displays a list of the auction items. For each item you will see the selling
price and name, email and phone number (if available) of the winning bidder.
This summary is very useful when winning bidders are picking up their items.
Winning bidders will be able to submit payment using a major credit card or PayPal account
for the items they won, provided this feature has been added to the auction. Learn
more about the Payment Collection feature on the Features & Pricing page.
