Help

32auctions is designed for nonprofit, not-for-profit, and similar organizations to host silent auction fundraisers. By using 32auctions, you must agree to and comply with our Terms of Use.

Who can use 32auctions to host online silent auctions?

32auctions is designed for nonprofit, not-for-profit, and similar organizations to host silent auction fundraisers. By using 32auctions, you must agree to and comply with our Terms of Use.

501c3 non profit nonprofit not for profit

Are we required to have an official "organization" or a 501(c)3 status?

Anyone with a link to your online auction can view it without needing an account, making it a great way to boost interest. An account is only required to place bids, and the sign-up process is quick—just a name, valid email address (which we verify), and optionally a phone number. Requiring an account for bidding helps auction administrators easily identify and communicate with bidders during and after the auction.

Do participants need to create an account to bid on items?

Participants can view an auction without an account. An account is only needed for entering bids.

Can participants view an auction without an account?

There are only 2 auction administrator roles: Coordinator and Organizer.

The Coordinator role allows for full access to everything the organization is involved with, including all auctions. Coordinators can edit the organization details, create new auctions, edit existing auctions, add/remove Coordinators, connect a payment account for payment and donation collection, and more.

The Organizer role allows for administering one specific auction. This role does not allow editing organization details, creating new auctions for the organization, or changing payment account information. This role is great for volunteers who are willing to upload auction items, but are not responsible for decisions at the organization level.

Please see How do I invite additional auction administrators? for instructions on inviting Coordinators and Organizers to join your auction.

What is the difference between the Coordinator and Organizer roles?

You can reset your password by following these steps.

1. Click the Login link in the upper right corner of the site.
2. Click the Forgot password? link.
3. Enter your 32auctions account email address.
4. Check your email for the reset password instructions.
5. Click the reset password button contained in the email message.
6. Enter a new password and your 32auctions account email address.

I forgot my password. How can I log into my account?

You can change your account information, including email address, phone number, and display name, from the My Account page. To view this page, log into your account, click the Account menu option in the top navigation menu, then click the My Account button.

change bidder name edit bidder name change display name edit display name

How can I make changes to my account?

Yes, we have a feature for sending outbid text notifications as explained in What notifications are sent, when are they sent, and can they be customized? This feature works if you've opted in to receive the notifications with a verified phone number and the auction you're participating in has the Text & Email Notifications feature.

To opt in to receive outbid text notifications, click the Edit Account button on the My Account page, enter your mobile phone number, and check the box next to "Send me outbid text notifications". You'll be all set once you enter the verification code we text to your phone number.

If you wish to receive outbid text notifications, you'll need to provide a mobile phone number from one of these countries: United States, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand.

If the auction you're participating in is set up to send outbid text notifications, you'll see a message in the bidding box of each item which allows bidding. The message will indicate that outbid notifications are sent by text & email. You can also contact the auction administrator to ask if the auction has the Text & Email Notifications feature.

After opting in to receive outbid text notifications, including verifying your mobile phone number, you'll receive an outbid text notification when you're outbid on items in an auction which is setup to send outbid text notifications. The notification will let you know which item you were outbid on and include a link to the item so you can quickly take back the lead (if bidding is still available).

If you're still not receiving outbid text notifications after following all the steps listed above, please see I am not receiving text notifications.

Can I receive text notifications? How do I sign up?

cancel account delete account email list emaillist mailing list optout opt-out opt out remove me stop emails stop emailing me stop texting me unsubscribe

How do I unsubscribe from text and email notifications?

You can do this by clicking the Cancel My Account button on the My Account page. To view this page, log into your account, click the Account menu option in the top navigation menu, then click the My Account button.

Cancelling your account will immediately log you out of the site and prevent you from creating, accessing, and participating in auctions. This will not remove your bids.

cancel account delete account email list emaillist mailing list optout opt-out opt out remove me stop emails stop emailing me unsubscribe

How do I cancel or delete my account?

As a security measure, accounts are locked for 15 minutes after there have been 3 failed login attempts. You'll need to wait until the 15 minute time frame has passed before trying to log in again.

Another potential cause is you haven't finished setting up your account. Please see I created an account but I didn't receive the approval email for instructions on approving your new account.

My account is locked when I attempt to login.

All 32auctions participants should receive an email when they are outbid. You'll receive the outbid email only if your bid is the leading bid and then someone outbids you. You should also receive an email when you submit a bid which confirms your bid and lets you know if you're the leading bidder.

Have you received bid confirmation emails? If your email application uses a filter or spam blocker and is picking up the emails we send, you may want to check your spam or junk folder for the emails. It's also worthwhile adding noreply@32auctions.com to your address book to ensure you receive emails from us. All messages sent from our system come from that email address. If this doesn't resolve the issue, please see I created an account but I didn't receive the approval email for additional solutions.

I am not receiving emails (outbid notification, bid confirmation, etc).

• A verification code for the mobile phone number you provided, and
• A notification when you are outbid on an auction item.

1. You haven't opted in to receive outbid text notifications.
2. You are not participating in an auction which sends outbid text notifications.
3. You haven't been outbid on an item.

If you replied to any of our text notifications with the word STOP, we will no longer be able to send text notifications to your phone number. If you'd like to start receiving text notifications again, you'll need to reply to any of our previous text notifications with the word START.

If you're not receiving any text messages at all (or phone calls), it's possible you're experiencing network issues. It's best to test your phone by sending and receiving text messages with another phone.

You'll need to search Google for how to unblock someone from texting you. The instructions vary based on your phone, text application, and cellular carrier.

I am not receiving text notifications.

• Your inbox
• Your spam folder
• Your junk folder (if your email application has one)

Please add noreply@32auctions.com to your address book so emails from our system don't get sent to your spam or junk folder.

You can enter your email address on the Forgot Password page to resend your account approval email.

If you're still not receiving the account approval email, please contact your IT department or email service provider and ask them to make sure emails from noreply@32auctions.com can be delivered to your mailbox. They'll need to resolve any issues with their network or email server which are preventing emails from being properly delivered.

If you're still not receiving your account approval email after following all the steps listed above, it's probably best to create an account with a different email address. Our system sends all notifications via email. Therefore, it's important to use an email address which can receive emails from noreply@32auctions.com.

I created an account but I didn't receive the approval email.

The easiest way to learn more about 32auctions is to explore the Demo Auction. The demo auction provides you with a general feel for how a silent auction runs and what information can be presented. All participants and bids are removed from the demo auction each night, so have fun testing it out! We recommend looking at the Overview page, which provides a high level overview of how the auction site works and the steps necessary for running an auction. There's a Help page with answers to common questions we receive and a Testimonials & Reviews page. Lastly, explore our 5 Steps to Success silent auction guide for great tips, tricks, and advice about running a fun, easy, successful silent auction.

Please see How much does it cost to run an auction? Are there any hidden fees? for more information.

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How can I learn more about 32auctions?

Auctions hosted on 32auctions are private and require a special auction link for participation. Typically, the auction link is provided in an invitation which may be sent by email, postcard, flier, or posted on a website or social networking site. If you know someone who is hosting or participating in an auction on 32auctions, contact them to request the auction link. You can also search Google, Facebook, Twitter, the organization's website, etc., to try to find a link to the auction.

Experiencing Issues?

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How do I find an auction?

You can find the contact information for each auction administrator by clicking the Contact Us link displayed on the main auction page and each auction item page.

How do I contact the auction administrator?

We don't have a feature for communicating with auction participants. Other than the auction notifications, all communication with participants needs to be handled outside of 32auctions. Auction administrators will find contact information for all participants on the Participants List page.

• Send Email: a new outgoing email message will open in your email application with the selected email addresses in the To field. Please see the Experiencing Issues? section below if this button isn't working for you.
• Copy Addresses: allows you to copy the selected email addresses to use as you wish.

If the Email Participants options don't meet your needs, the Sales Summary page lists every auction item along with the leading/winning bidder information. Use the filter at the top-right corner of the items list to limit which items are displayed. Click the "Show Contact Info" link at the top of the Bidder column to display contact information for each bidder. You can also click the Invoice link next to a sold item, or on the Invoices tab, to view the winning bidder's invoice, including their contact information. Please see How do I find out who is winning or who won an item? or How do I print invoices? for more information.

We don't have a feature for requiring a phone number when creating an account or before participating in an auction. If you require a phone number, you can view the Participants List page to see which participants don't have a phone number listed. You can contact them individually through email and ask them to update their account. Please see How can I make changes to my account? for more information.

Please see Where is the winning bidder's shipping address? for more information.

Auctions with the Advanced Insights feature upgrade can download all participant data from the Insights page by clicking the Download Spreadsheet Data button in the Participants section.

Experiencing Issues?

excel export download mailing addresses

How do I contact auction participants?

Yes you can! Auctions with the Transition To Live Event feature send leading bidder notifications when the online portion of the silent auction ends. You'll also have the ability to enter final sales information after the live event to sell items to winning bidders. Please see the Transition To Live Event sections on this Help page and the Pricing page for more information.

Can I run a live auction after the online auction and prevent the winning bidder email?

Absolutely! In fact, you can connect both Stripe and PayPal accounts to your auction for collecting payments and/or donations. Please see What payment processing options are available with the Payment and Donation Collection features? for more information.

Can I use Stripe or PayPal to collect payments and donations?

There are a variety of downloads available depending on the features applied to an auction. Each download is explained here, including how it can be accessed. For simplicity, you'll find a single Download button on the Sales Summary page which will get you to the download you're interested in.

The auction item data download is only available for auctions which have the Items feature for listing more than 20 items or have the Transition To Live Event feature. Included in the download is information about the highest bidder for each item, the invoice number for sold items, and shipping details if provided. This download is useful for creating custom reports. You can view a sample Sales Summary download from our demo auction.

To download the auction item data, click the Sales Summary link in the Admin Controls menu, then click the Download button, followed by selecting Auction Item Data.

All auctions have the ability to download winning bidder invoices. Each invoice contains the participant and organization information, a list of items won, up-to-date totals (e.g., amount due, amount paid, etc.), as well as payment details and shipping information if available. Invoices can be printed out and used for bundling the items and providing to the winning bidders. For more information, please see How do I print invoices?

The donor and sponsor data download is only available for auctions which have the Premium Donor & Sponsor Management feature. Included in the download are the address, contact information, and any notes entered for each donor and sponsor.

To download the donor and sponsor data, click the Manage Donors link in the Admin Controls menu and then click the Download Donor Data button.

The participant data download is only available for auctions which have the Advanced Insights feature. Included in the download is each participant's name, contact information, and a summary of their bidding activity.

To download the participant data, click the View Insights link in the Admin Controls menu and then click the Download Spreadsheet Data button in the Participants section.

Bid sheets are only available for auctions which have the Transition To Live Event feature. This allows for downloading all bid sheets in a single PDF file or downloading one bid sheet at a time. Bid sheets are always available for downloading, including before, during, and after the auction. However, we recommend waiting until the online auction has ended before downloading the final bid sheets to make sure they include all online bidding activity. You can view a sample bid sheets PDF from our demo auction.

To download all bid sheets in a single PDF file, click the Download Bid Sheets link in the Admin Controls menu and then click the Download Bid Sheets button. If you don't see the download button or if the bid sheets are out-of-date, you'll need to click the button for creating new bid sheets.

To download a bid sheet for an individual item, view the item page and click the View Bid Sheet link in the Item Controls menu.

Display sheets are only available for auctions which have the Items feature for listing more than 20 items or have the Transition To Live Event feature. This allows for downloading all display sheets in a single PDF file or downloading one display sheet at a time. Display sheets are always available for downloading, including before, during, and after the auction.

Display sheets contain a QR code, which when scanned, takes a mobile bidder directly to the main auction page or the auction item page for entering their bid online. Display sheets are useful for displaying items at an event and creating a catalog of items. You can view a sample display sheets PDF from our demo auction.

To download all display sheets in a single PDF file, click the Download Display Sheets link in the Admin Controls menu and then click the Download Display Sheets button. The PDF file includes a cover page with auction information and a QR code for easily viewing the main auction page online. If you don't see the download button or if the display sheets are out-of-date, you'll need to click the button for creating new display sheets.

To download a display sheet for an individual item, view the item page and click the View Display Sheet link in the Item Controls menu.

excel create brochure create catalog create pamphlet create report export sales reports sold items report qr codes

What data and reports can be downloaded or exported from an auction?

Auction administrators can quickly see the high bidder of all items during and after the auction by looking at the Sales Summary page. The highest bidder and their contact information will be listed for each item. Please see How do I find out who is winning or who won an item? for more information.

export download reports sales reports sold items report

Is there a summary of items and leading bids during the auction?

All notifications are sent via email (with the exception of the optional outbid text notifications) and work great on all devices, including smartphones. The notifications keep participants and active bidders engaged and aware of all auction and bidding activity they're interested in. The system automatically sends the following email notifications:

• Auction Starting Notification (24-hour notice)

• Bid Confirmations
• Outbid Notifications (email and optionally text)
• Auction Item Changed (items with bids)
• Watchlist Notifications (participants choose)
• Auction Ending Changed (date and/or time)
• Auction Ending Notification (24-hour notice)

• Winning Bidder Notifications (online only auctions and online-only items)
• Leading Bidder Notifications (live event items)

• Winning Bidder Notifications (as final bids are entered)

These notifications currently can't be customized, however, the winning bidder and leading bidder notifications include the Pickup/Shipping Instructions and Live Event Information which you enter on the Edit Auction page and the Live Event Settings page. Also, the winning bidder notifications, which include a link to the bidder's invoice, are sent even if your auction isn't using the awesome Online Payment Collection feature.

Yes, you can craft and send emails to all online participants using your own email account. It's easy to get all participant email addresses by clicking one of the buttons on the Participants List page. This is a great way to keep participants engaged and actively bidding in your auction as explained in our Silent Auction Guide (Host / Marketing).

sms text notifications email list emaillist

What notifications are sent, when are they sent, and can they be customized?

Outbid text notifications will only be sent by auctions which have the Text & Email Notifications feature. Once your auction has this feature, participants who signed up to receive outbid text notifications will automatically receive them when they are outbid.

Please see When can I apply feature upgrades to an auction? for more information.

add text notifications send text notifications

How do I get my auction to send outbid text notifications?

Item invoices are only available for sold items. There are a few options for printing invoices:

1. All item invoices can be downloaded in a single PDF file and printed by clicking the "Download Invoices" link in the Admin Controls menu.
2. Individual item invoices can be downloaded in a PDF file from the winning bidder's invoice page and printed. To do this, click the "Invoice" link next to a sold item on the Sales Summary page, and then click the PDF button next to the invoice number.
3. Auctions which have applied the Items feature for listing more than 20 items or have the Transition To Live Event feature can download all auction item data on the Sales Summary page. The download includes the invoice number and shipping details. The data is provided in a user-friendly spreadsheet format, compatible with applications like Microsoft Excel, and can be sorted by invoice number for easy printing. You can have a look at a sample Sales Summary download from our demo auction.

Auction administrators can download individual donation invoices in a PDF file from the Donations tab of the Sales Summary page and then print them. To do this, click the invoice number link next to a donation on the Sales Summary page.

Donors can download their individual donation invoices in a PDF format. Simply click the "Download Invoice" button provided in the donation receipt email that was sent when the donation was submitted. In case the donation receipt email has been misplaced, please contact the auction administrator for assistance.

excel export download reports sales reports sold items report invoice reciept recipt recept tax deduction donation receipt invoice receipt payment receipt

How do I print invoices?

Sending thank you letters to donors, sponsors, and winning bidders is a best practice as explained in our Silent Auction Guide (Close! / Thank Yous). While we currently don't provide a feature for generating thank you letters, custom thank you letters can be created using the data downloads available with certain feature upgrades.

Auctions which have applied the Premium Donor & Sponsor Management feature can download donor and sponsor data from the Manage Donors page. The download includes the address and contact information entered for each donor.

Auctions which have applied the Items feature for listing more than 20 items or have the Transition To Live Event feature can download all auction item data on the Sales Summary page. The download includes the winning bidder information for each item sold. Auctions which have applied the Advanced Insights feature can download all participant data from the Insights page by clicking the Download Spreadsheet Data button in the Participants section.

Depending on your spreadsheet application and text editing software, you can mail merge the data for creating custom letters. It's best to reference online documentation or manuals to learn how this can be done.

excel export download

How can I print thank you letters?

Auction sponsors can only be displayed in auctions which have the Premium Donor & Sponsor Management feature. Once your auction has this feature, you'll see a Manage Sponsorships link in the Admin Controls menu. This allows you to select donors which provided auction sponsorship. If the donor hasn't been added to your auction yet, you'll first need to add them to the donor list by clicking the Manage Donors link in the Admin Controls menu.

Once you've added sponsorships on the Manage Sponsorships page, the Sponsored By section will display on the main auction page. Logos and website links added on the donor page will also be displayed in the Sponsored By section.

For a sponsorship example, see the Sponsored By section in the Demo Auction.

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How do I display auction sponsors?

While we don't have a specific event ticketing system, you can use auction items to accomplish selling event tickets. To do this, create a new auction item with information about the type of ticket you're selling, set the total Quantity Available, and enter the fixed Buy Now price. Please see the Bowling Party item in our Demo Auction for an example of how this can be done.

When the auction is running, participants will be able to choose the number of tickets they wish to purchase at the set price. If you have different ticket prices, you'll need to create an auction item for each price. You can also feature these auction items so they are prominently displayed on the main auction page.

Please see How do I handle items which can have multiple winners? for more information.

While we don't offer a feature specifically for a raffle, you can accomplish selling raffle tickets by following the event ticket instructions above. Once you're ready to select a winner, you can use the sales information found on the Sales Summary page to randomly select a winner.

50/50 drawing raffle items raffle prizes raffle tickets tombolas

Can I sell tickets (event tickets, raffle tickets, etc.)?

While we don't have a feature specifically for a paddle raise, you can accomplish it using one of these techniques. The technique to use depends on the type of auction you're running.

You can create a “Paddle Raise” item and then hide it by clicking the Hide Item link in the Item Controls menu when viewing the item page. When the auction is running, you can use your administrator account to enter an Exact bid for the donation amount. If you're accepting multiple paddle raise donations, you'll continue modifying your exact bid so it equals the total amount of all donations received up to that point. For example, after donation #1 of $100, enter an exact bid of $100. After donation #2 of $50, increase your exact bid to $150 ($100 + $50).

The main drawback with this approach is that a single “Paddle Raise” item will appear on the auction administrator's invoice when the auction ends instead of on the participant invoices. Also, all paddle raise donations need to be entered before the online auction ends.

With the item being hidden, participants won't see it but the highest bid amount will still be included in the total amount raised. You can use the Administrator Notes section at the bottom of the item page to keep track of the donations.

1. if you'd like to do this before the online auction ends, follow the Online Only instructions above, or
2. (the preferred option) after the online auction has ended, follow these instructions:

You can create a “Paddle Raise” item and set the Quantity Available at or above the total number of donations you expect to receive. For each paddle raise donation received, you can enter the donation amount, including the participant information. Make sure to select a quantity of 1 for each donation entered. The donation amount for the “Paddle Raise” item will appear on the participant's invoice and will also be included in the total amount raised.

Please see Can I enter final sales information after the live event and sell items to winning bidders? for more information.

Can I enter paddle raise donations?

Custom auction branding is available to auctions which have the Apply Your Brand feature. Once your auction has this feature, you'll see an Apply Your Brand link in the Admin Controls menu. This feature includes the ability to upload a banner image for your auction, change the auction colors, and arrange the sections on the main auction page in your preferred order.

The Apply Your Brand page allows you to upload a banner image and customize your auction colors. The banner image can be up to 980px wide and 200px high (anything larger will be resized to fit within these dimensions). Also, you can convert the banner image into a clickable ad, which will go to a URL of your choice. For example, it could be used to link to your organization's website or to a sponsor's website.

• General Theme - Header, footer, and text can be black or dark blue.
• Banner Background - This is the pink banner in the demo auction.
• Banner Text - Text displayed in the banner.
• Buttons & Links - Clickable buttons and links displayed throughout the auction.
• Donate Button - Button displayed in auctions which have the Donation Collection feature turned on.
• View All Items Button - Button displayed on the main auction page.

To arrange the section order on the main auction page, simply click the sorting arrows button on a sortable section heading and then drag the sections to your preferred order. Once saved, the page will update to display the sections in the selected order.

For a branded auction example, see the Rock the House Auction.

Can I customize the look of my auction?

It's currently not possible to embed or integrate an auction into another website, blog, social media feed, or any other external site. Instead, when setting up your auction, you create a custom auction link which is great for displaying on external websites, emailing, posting on social sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and more. Essentially, you'll use your auction link for all the ways you'd like to invite participants to your auction.

Here's an example auction link for our demo auction: https://www.32auctions.com/32auctionsDemo

We also offer the ability to customize the look of your auction. This allows you to make your online silent auction look similar to your own website and brand, providing a seamless experience.

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Can I embed or integrate my auction into a website, blog, social media feed, or any other external site?

Inviting participants is as easy as providing them your custom auction link or auction QR code, which are displayed in the Important Settings section of the Admin Controls menu. You can share your link or QR code any number of ways, including emailing, posting on websites and social sites, printing, and more. You can view the Admin Controls menu and your Auction Link and Auction QR Code by logging into your auction and clicking the Admin Controls button. Also, the downloadable display sheets pdf file contains a printable auction QR code. Please see the Display Sheets section of What data and reports can be downloaded or exported from an auction? for more information.

Your auction can be viewed at any time by using your auction link or auction QR code. When someone views your auction before it has ended, they'll be automatically joined as soon as they log into their 32auctions account. This means they'll be a participant, can bid on items when the auction is running, and will see the auction on their My Auctions page.

Participants who join the auction before it starts can only view items (no bidding) and donate if the Donation Collection feature is turned on. Online bidding is only available during the dates/times you set on the Edit Auction page. Items which aren't ready for viewing or bidding can be hidden. Please see Can I create items but not publish them for viewing until a later date? for more information.

Absolutely not! Only auction administrators can view the Admin Controls menu when logged into their account. Please see the “What do participants see?” section of How can I test my auction? for more information.

Experiencing Issues?

advertise auction find auction private auction promote auction publish auction share facebook link twitter instagram pinterest

How do I invite participants to my auction?

We currently don't provide a feature for importing or pre-registering auction participants. Each account owner must agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy before hosting or participating in auctions. For this reason, participants need to create their own account before participating in an online auction. Please see How do I invite participants to my auction? for more information.

Can I import or pre-register participants?

Your auction has a Participant Setting which allows you to require all participants to request access prior to joining your auction. To change this setting, log into your auction and click the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu.

With this setting turned on, your invitees will need to create an account or log into their account and then request access to participate in your auction. Auction administrators will receive the access request via email from which they can easily approve the request. Once a request is approved, the invitee will be joined to the auction as a participant and can enter bids.

We caution against locking down your auction to this level, unless you're doing so to restrict bidding to members of a company, organization, or specific group. As an auction administrator, you'll be fielding many requests for access and may deter impulse bidding. Also, you'll need to be quick with approving access requests at the end of the silent auction to give potential bidders enough time to join your auction and enter their last minute bids.

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Can I lock down my auction so participants must individually request access from me?

It's very easy to restrict bidding to members of a company, organization, or specific group when they have the same email domain. First, your auction needs to require all participants to request access prior to joining your auction. Then provide an email domain (everything after the @ symbol) to automatically approve anyone with a matching email address.

Here's an example of how this works. All Acme corporation employees have an email address which ends with @acme.com. To allow automatic approval for all Acme employees to bid in your auction, you would enter "acme.com". Anyone who doesn't have an @acme.com email address will need to request access to join.

If you have multiple email domains to automatically approve, separate them with a comma like this (spaces are not necessary): "acme.com, acme.com.au, acme.ca, acme.us".

Can I restrict bidding to members of a company, organization, or specific group?

We highly advise against testing with your real auction. Some actions, like the auction ending and payment processed, can't be removed or reversed. Instead, we recommend exploring our Demo Auction. The demo auction provides you with a general feel for how a silent auction runs and what information can be presented. All participants and bids are removed from the demo auction each night, so have fun testing it out!

If that's not enough, we welcome you to create a free test auction (without any feature upgrades). This allows you to fully experience how fun and easy it is to manage and participate in an online auction... can't beat that! To get started, simply click the Let's Go button on the Pricing page. Or you can click the Create An Auction link in the Admin Controls menu of your real auction. This allows you to copy your auction, including items, for quickly creating a test auction. Please see Can I copy an auction? for more information.

To test payments, you can make a $1 donation (the payment process is the same for online payments and donations). This requires having the Donation Collection feature turned on by clicking the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu. If you're testing a PayPal payment account, you can't use the same PayPal account for submitting the test donation, otherwise PayPal will block the payment.

To see how your auction looks to participants, log out of your account and then view your auction. Or you can create a new account with a different email address and join your auction as a participant. Please see How do I invite participants to my auction? for more information.

It's currently not possible to remove an auction. Therefore, it's a good idea to name the test auction so it's easy to identify when looking at your My Auctions page. Only auction administrators or participants you invite to join you in the test auction will be able to see it. Participants of your real auctions will not see the test auction. Please see How do I cancel, delete, remove, or hide an auction? for more information.

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How can I test my auction?

You can invite any number of people to assist with running your auction by logging into your auction and clicking on the Invite Administrators link in the Admin Controls menu.

Coordinator invitations can be sent at anytime. Organizer invitations can be sent up to 30 days past the auction end date. Please see What is the difference between the Coordinator and Organizer roles? for an explanation of the different roles.

It's important to enter the email address your invitee uses, or intends to use, for their 32auctions account. They'll receive an emailed invitation which they can also access directly through their account. They can accept the invitation by logging into their account, clicking the Account menu option in the top navigation menu, then clicking the My Invitations link. If any issues arise, it's most likely due to an email address mismatch (mistyped address, wrong address for their 32auctions account) and the invitation can be sent again.

add administrators add an administrator add auction administrators invite administrators invite an administrator invite auction administrators add coordinators add a coordinator add auction coordinators invite coordinators invite a coordinator invite auction coordinators add organizers add an organizer add auction organizers invite organizers invite an organizers invite auction organizers

How do I invite additional auction administrators?

An auction must start within 9 months from the date it is created and can run for as little as 15 minutes to a maximum of 90 days. Please see our Silent Auction Guide (Plan / Dates) for tips to help you choose the correct length for your auction.

How long can an auction run?

Please see How do I end bidding on an item before the auction ends?

Is there a way to have items end at different times?

Every auction link needs to be unique in the system, so it isn't possible to use one link for multiple auctions. Therefore, you can either select a new link for the new auction or change the link on the previous auction so it can be used on your new auction.

If you decide to reuse the previous auction link, you first need to change the link for the previous auction so it's available for your new auction. To change your auction link, view the auction, click the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu, then click the edit (pencil) button next to the current auction link.

change auction name change name change link change url update auction name update name update link update url reuse link reuse url transfer

How can I change an auction link or reuse a link on a new auction?

To change the auction dates and/or times, log into your auction and click the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu. You'll need to use the calendar to:

1. Select the date
2. Select the time (hours)
3. Select the time (minutes)

Once the minutes are selected, the calendar window will close and the field will be updated with the date and time you selected.

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How do I change the auction dates and/or times?

Copying an auction is a feature only available to auction Coordinators. You can view the My Auctions page to see if you're a Coordinator of the auction you want to copy.

To copy an auction, view the auction you want to copy and click the Create An Auction link in the Admin Controls menu. You'll be asked if you wish to copy the current auction. After saying yes, you'll be stepped through the create an auction process with each form already filled out with settings from the current auction. This allows you to change auction settings and feature upgrades before they're applied.

Once your new auction has been created, you can use the Copy Auction Items feature to copy items from the previous auction.

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Can I copy an auction?

There's currently no way to cancel, remove, or hide an auction. Here are a few suggestions to help get the desired effect:

If your auction hasn't ended, you can remove unsold items by clicking the Remove Item link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item pages. The auction will automatically close down after the end date passes. To speed up this process you can change the auction end date and time to a few minutes from now.

If your auction has ended, you can't remove any of the auction items. Instead, you can hide auction items so they can only be viewed by the winning bidder and the auction administrators.

cancel auction take down taking down hide auction unhide auction delete auction delete an auction remove auction invisible visible

How do I cancel, delete, remove, or hide an auction?

Auction administrators can block a participant from participating in their auction by finding the participant on the Participants List page and selecting the Block Participation option in the Participant Options menu. Please note, it's only possible to block a participant after they've joined the auction.

Blocked participants will remain on the Participants List page with a Blocked tag next to their name. Participation can be allowed again before the auction ends by clicking the Allow Participation option in the Participant Options menu.

If you need to remove bids entered by the blocked participant, please see How can a bid or purchase be modified or removed?

Can I prevent, block, or remove someone from participating in my auction?

You'll find the Admin Controls menu button prominently displayed on every auction page when you're logged into your auction administrator account. Clicking this button displays the Admin Controls menu which contains information and links for managing the auction.

The Admin Controls menu is where you'll find links for editing the auction, editing the organization, viewing the Sales Summary, viewing the participants list, and much more. It's important to note that you'll only see links which are relevant to your auction. For example, if you're not seeing the View Hidden Items link, this means the auction doesn't have hidden items.

If you're not seeing the Admin Controls menu button it's most likely because you're not logged into your auction administrator account or because you're not an administrator of the auction. You can see your auction role listed next to the auction on the My Auctions page which is linked from the Account menu in the upper right hand corner of the page. You'll only see the Admin Controls menu button when viewing auctions which show you listed as a Coordinator or Organizer.

add change edit copy duplicate invite manage view export download display sheets bid sheets invoices payment features bidfeed bid feed insights shipping settings

Where is the Admin Controls menu?

Only auction administrators can view the list of auction participants. To view the list, log into your auction and click the View Participants List link found in the Admin Controls menu.

Where is the auction participants list?

To change who is listed as the contact for your auction, log into your auction and click the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu. Scroll down to the Contacts section and select the administrators you want listed. If you don't see the name of someone you want to have as a contact, you can invite them to be an auction administrator. After they accept the invitation, you'll be able to select them as a contact on the Edit Auction page.

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How do I change who is listed as a contact for the auction?

Yes! We have full support for 6 of the most popular currencies, including AUD, CAD, EUR, GBP, NZD, and USD. When creating your auction, you need to choose the currency to use. The currency you choose will be used for bidding and will also apply to the awesome Online Payment & Donation Collection features if you choose to enable them.

british pound sterling australian canadian european great britain new zealand united kingdom dollar euro peso chinese yuan south african rand international

Can I use 32auctions for hosting an auction in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, etc?

Adding items is easy to do. Simply log into your auction and click the Add An Item button in the bottom right corner of any auction page.

Items can be added anytime before the auction ends. The Add An Item button will no longer display after the auction ends.

Items can be added even after the online auction ends. This allows for printing bid sheets and display sheets, and for entering the final sales information after the live event.

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When can items be added to an auction?

Up to 10 auction items can be featured at a time and the list of featured items can be changed as often as you wish, even after the auction has ended. In fact, we recommend changing the list throughout the auction to help with increasing participation, keeping the auction looking fresh, and driving up bidding activity. Please see our Silent Auction Guide (Host / Feature Items) for tips to help you with featuring items in your auction.

Featured items are prominently displayed in the Featured Items list on the main auction page. They are also sorted to the top of the auction items list view. You can view our Demo Auction to see how featured items are displayed.

Any non-hidden item can be featured, even if it has bids or has been sold. To feature items, log into your auction and click the Feature Items link found in the Admin Controls menu. If you'd like to change the order of your featured items, please see Can I choose the order in which items are displayed?

Can I feature items in my auction?

Items are always displayed in alphabetical order. This allows you to take a few approaches to control the order in which items are displayed.

1. Keep them in alphabetical order.
2. Use numbers as the first part of the auction item title. We recommend using 3 digits to ensure your items are in numerical order. For example, if you want to start your numbering with number 1, you should add 2 leading zeros so it would be 001. Number 10 would be 010. This ensures your items are in the proper order as the numbers increase, and especially if you end up having more than 99 items.
3. If you want to bring a few items to the top of the auction items list, you can feature items in your auction.

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Can I choose the order in which items are displayed?

For each auction item, you can give participants the option of bidding, direct purchase at a Buy Now price, or both. We'll explain each of the options and how they work. Please see our Silent Auction Guide (Assemble / Add Items) for tips to help you with listing items in your auction and our Silent Auction Guide (Host / 1 Bid Per Item) for encouraging bidding on each item.

To allow bidding on an item, you need to provide a Starting Bid Amount and a Minimum Bid Increment. You can also choose the bid types to allow for the auction (Exact and Proxy Bids) by logging into your auction and clicking the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu.

To allow direct purchase of an item, you need to provide a Buy Now price. The item will only have a Buy Now button and will not allow bidding.

An item can allow both bidding and direct purchase at a Buy Now price. The Buy Now option will be available on the item until bidding reaches or exceeds the Buy Now price. When this happens, you can make the Buy Now option available again by editing the item and raising the Buy Now price above the current high bid amount.

To allow purchasing a set quantity of an item, you need to provide a Buy Now price and the total quantity available. Bidding is not allowed on items with a quantity available. This setting is great for selling tickets, seats at a party, or any item you'd like to allow multiple participants to purchase.

Please see Can I be notified when bids are entered and items are purchased? for more information about bid notifications.

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What bidding and Buy Now options are available? Can an item allow both?

Auction administrators can see the high bidder on all items during and after the online auction by viewing the Sales Summary page. This page displays all auction items, including the winning bid amount and the winning bidder's information for each item (it'll be blank if there isn't a winning bid). To view the Sales Summary page, log into your auction and click the View Sales Summary link found in the Admin Controls menu. This page can be sorted by item name or bidder name simply by clicking the appropriate column heading.

If you're interested in viewing the complete bid history for an individual item, click the Number of Bids link on the item page.

Please see Is there a summary of items and leading bids during the auction? and How do I contact auction participants? for more information.

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How do I find out who is winning or who won an item?

The best thing to do is view the auction item you won. Within the item description, there is a section called Pickup/Shipping Instructions which should explain how you can pickup and pay for your item. If you have further questions, you can contact the auction administrator.

How do I pick up and pay for the item I won?

You can edit an item by clicking the Edit Item link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page.

To protect bidders from having items substantially changed after placing a bid, bidders will be notified when the following fields are edited on an item which has bids:

Also, all changes made to the fields listed above are displayed on the auction item page. If you want to prevent or remove these changes from being displayed, you have to remove all bids from the item.

If a bidder disagrees with the item changes, they can contact the auction administrator to have their bid removed.

Please see How can a bid or purchase be modified or removed? for more information.

To edit a sold item before the auction ends, you can remove the unpaid winning bid or purchase from the item. Removing the bid or purchase will notify the bidder and allow you to edit the item. Please see How can a bid or purchase be modified or removed? to learn more.

If you choose to remove all bids before editing an item, it's advisable to collect contact information for the bidders by matching the bid history on the item with the participants list. You can click the Number of Bids link on the item page to view the bid history. After you've edited the item, you can contact the previous bidders to let them know they can bid again.

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How can I edit an item which has bids?

You can hide an item at anytime, including after it has sold or the auction has ended. To do this, click the Hide Item link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page. Hidden items are not displayed in the auction items list. Administrators will have a Hidden Items filter on the auction bar to allow for easy access to all hidden items. Administrators can redisplay a hidden item by clicking the Unhide Item link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page.

If the hidden item was sold, the winning bidder will still have access to the item. This allows them to view the item they won to ensure the item they receive is as advertised in the auction. They will also be able to pay for the item online if the auction has the Payment Collection feature.

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Is there a way to remove an item after it has sold or the auction has ended?

You'll find the Item Menu button displayed in the bottom right corner of every item page when you're logged into your auction administrator account. Clicking this button displays the Item Controls menu which contains links for managing the item (e.g., edit, duplicate, hide, unhide, remove, etc.), editing bids, and much more. It's important to note that you'll only see links which are relevant to the item you're viewing. For example, if you're not seeing the Edit Item link, this means the item can no longer be edited.

If you're not seeing the Item Menu button it's most likely because you're not logged into your auction administrator account or because you're not an administrator of the auction. You can see your auction role listed next to the auction on the My Auctions page which is linked from the Account menu in the upper right hand corner of the page. You'll only see the Item Menu button when viewing auctions which show you as a Coordinator or Organizer.

The Item Menu button only displays on individual item pages, so make sure you're viewing the page which shows the item details.

change auction item change an item change item edit auction item edit an item edit item duplicate item hide item unhide item invisible visible delete auction item delete an item delete item remove item mark item as sold manage view export download display sheets bid sheets

Where is the Item Controls menu?

Copying items between auctions is a feature available to administrators of 2 or more auctions. You'll see an option for copying items on the Add Auction Item page. From the Copy Auction Items page, you can select any number of items from one of your auctions and have them copied into your auction in one shot, including images and donors.

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Can I copy items from one auction to another?

Absolutely! You can import items into your auction at any time before it ends by clicking the “Import Auction Items” link in the Admin Controls menu. You'll then be guided to upload a CSV file that should only contain data for the auction items you intend to create.

A comma-separated values (CSV) file is required. This file format can be created from spreadsheet applications, typically by using the Save As menu and selecting CSV as the file format.

The only layout requirement for the CSV file is that the first row in the file contains column names. This will allow you to match your columns to our auction item fields.

You can view an example Import Items CSV file from our demo auction, which shows how the auction items appear in spreadsheet format for importing. To use this file as a template, simply delete the item data while keeping the first row with the column headings.

For an auction item to be imported and fully created in your auction, the row of data must contain all the required information in a valid format. If any data is missing or invalid, the item will be flagged as invalid, and you'll have the option to fix the errors so that the auction item can be created.

For each row of imported data that isn't valid for creating an auction item, there will be an entry in the Import Failures table. The entry will contain a "Fix Errors" button. Clicking this button will present you with a prefilled form for correcting the errors. Once corrected, a new auction item will be created, and the entry will be removed from the Import Failures table.

An auction item will be created for each row of imported data that is valid. However, if the imported data has a secondary error, there will also be an entry in the Import Failures table. The entry will contain an explanation of the secondary error and a "View Item" button. Clicking this button will display the auction item, making it easier for you to correct the secondary error. The most common secondary error is caused by issues with image links provided for the auction item.

It's important to note that the system will not know when you fixed a secondary error and cannot automatically remove the entry from the Import Failures table. Instead, you'll be able to remove the entry by selecting the box next to the entry and clicking the “Delete Selected” button.

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Can I import auction items from a spreadsheet?

When adding or editing an item, you have the option to hide it by checking the “Hide Item” box. Alternatively, while viewing an auction item, clicking the "Hide Item" link in the Item Controls menu will immediately hide the item until it's ready to be published for viewing.

Administrators will find a "Hidden Items" filter on the auction bar, making it easy to access all hidden items. When viewing the Hidden Items list, you can click the "Unhide All" link to redisplay all hidden items, or you can display a single hidden item by clicking the "Unhide Item" link found in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page.

Can I create items but not publish them for viewing until a later date?

Each auction item has the option to allow selling more than 1 at a fixed Buy Now price. This allows you to create a single item and specify the total quantity available. Participants will have the option of purchasing 1 or more of the item in a single purchase. Please note, bidding is not available on the item when this option is turned on. Please see Can I sell tickets? for more information.

The best way to handle multiple winners of a bidding item is to list each item individually. To make it easy on yourself, create the first item exactly as you'd like it to appear, including images, then duplicate it until you reach the desired number. You'll find a Duplicate Item link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page.

How do I handle items which can have multiple winners?

There currently isn't a way to automatically end bidding on an item before the auction ends. However, you can manually mark an item as sold at the time you want it to end. To do this, simply click the Mark Item As Sold link in the Item Controls menu on the auction item page. This link is only available on unsold items which have bids. Clicking the Mark Item As Sold link will sell the item to the current high bidder for the current selling price.

If you want to make it clear to participants that bidding will be ending early on an item, you can use the item title or subtitle to indicate when you'll be manually ending bidding on the item. You can also use custom categories to group early ending items. This is especially useful if you have "auction boards" which you're planning to manually close down at specific times. Please see our Demo Auction for an example of how this can be done.

How do I end bidding on an item before the auction ends?

There is no reserve price feature available for items. The purpose of a reserve price is to guarantee an item sells for a minimum amount while also allowing bidders to enter bids at a lower price. A bidder will not win an item unless their bid is at or above the undisclosed reserve price. Allowing lower bids causes frustration for bidders and can deter bidding.

To avoid frustrating bidders, we recommend setting the starting bid at (or above) the minimum amount you wish to sell the item. This will ensure a minimum price is received before the item is sold. For example, if a donated item has a cost of $1,000, you can set the starting bid amount as $1,000 (or higher), ensuring the cost is covered.

How do I make sure an item sells for a certain amount (aka reserve price)?

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How can a bid or purchase be modified or removed?

A proxy bid allows you to enter the maximum amount you're willing to spend with the goal of winning the item at the lowest possible price. The system will bid for you, up to your maximum proxy bid amount, as additional bids are entered on the item.

An exact bid is the amount you want the item's current selling price to immediately jump to. Your bid amount will not change as additional bids are entered on the item.

To enter a proxy bid, enter your maximum bid amount, click the Proxy Bid button, and then submit your bid. If you don't see the Proxy Bid button, the auction administrator has turned off this option.

To enter an exact bid, enter your bid amount, click the Exact Bid button, and then submit your bid. If you don't see the Exact Bid button, the auction administrator has turned off this option.

You can contact the auction administrator for more information about the bid types they've chosen to allow. If you're unable to enter a bid at all, please see Why am I not seeing a place to enter bids in my auction?

Rest assured, your maximum proxy bid amount is never exposed to anyone other than you during the online auction.

If you see the “Pre-event bidding” label in the item's Bidding section, the auction administrator can see your maximum proxy bid amount only after the online auction has ended. This allows them to continue bidding for you on bid sheets, up to your maximum bid amount. Please see What happens at the end of an online auction with the Transition To Live Event feature? for more information. You can contact the auction administrator with any questions about this.

Let's say an item is currently selling for $10 and you're willing to bid as high as $50. You would enter a proxy bid of $50 and allow the system to automatically bid for you until you win the item or the selling price goes higher than $50. If the selling price goes higher than your maximum proxy bid amount, you'll be outbid and someone else will be the leading bidder. You'll only owe the amount the system has bid for you if you win the item. This amount will never be higher than your maximum proxy bid amount.

A proxy bid is entered by a participant as a single bid but the proxy bid can show up in the bid history multiple times. The additional proxy bid entries are created when the system automatically bids for the leading proxy bid as previously explained. The bid history always shows the winning bid amount at the top of the list.

To illustrate how proxy bidding works, let's look at a friendly example of 2 people bidding on the same item:

• Auction Item:
  • Starting Bid Amount: $10
  • Minimum Bid Increment: $2
• Bob enters a Proxy bid with a maximum bid amount of $50.
  • Current Bid: $10 (same as starting bid amount)
  • Leading Bidder: Bob
• Mary enters an Exact bid of $12.
  • Current Bid: $14 ($12 + $2 minimum bid increment)
  • Leading Bidder: Bob
• Mary enters a Proxy bid of $20.
  • Current Bid: $22 ($20 + $2 minimum bid increment)
  • Leading Bidder: Bob
• Mary enters a Proxy bid of $50.
  • Current Bid: $50 (both proxy bids are maxed out)
  • Leading Bidder: Bob (the first bid entered wins when 2 bids are the same)
• Mary enters a Proxy bid of $100.
  • Current Bid: $52 ($50 + $2 minimum bid increment)
  • Leading Bidder: Mary

Here's how this looks in the Bid History:

When Bob entered his $50 proxy bid, he was initially the leading bidder at $10. As Mary entered bids on the item, the system automatically entered bids for Bob which are identified by an asterisk (*). When Mary also entered a $50 bid, Bob was still the leading bidder at $50 because his bid was entered first. Mary finally took the lead when she entered a higher bid than Bob's $50 proxy bid.

What is a proxy bid and an exact bid?

Anytime the system receives 2 bids which are the same, the first bid entered into the system wins. When the bid history displays 2 bids of the same amount, the bid which was placed first is a proxy bid. When someone submits a second bid of the same amount, the first bidder continues to be the winning bidder because they were first to bid that amount.

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What happens in the case where 2 bids are the same?

While we do offer outbid text notifications, we don't offer a downloadable mobile app or a text bidding feature. Instead, our site is completely mobile friendly for all auctions without the headache of installing an application. Simply view an auction on your device (phone, tablet, etc) using any browser and you'll automatically experience the mobile friendly version.

Participating in an auction is easy, even while on the go! With our mobile friendly design, timely text and email notifications, and Watchlist feature, it's easy to enter bids and stay on top of the action, no matter where you are.

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Is there a mobile app to download or a text bidding feature?

There are 2 types of bidding notifications you can choose to receive:

To be notified of all bidding activity on an item, add the item to your Watchlist by clicking the heart on the item so it turns pink. You can view the items which are in your Watchlist by clicking the heart button on the auction bar (next to the Search box).

There's an Advanced Setting for notifying auction administrators when a Buy Now item is purchased. You'll find this setting by clicking the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu. The notification contains the buyer's name and a link to the item, allowing administrators to quickly view and act upon the sold item.

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Can I be notified when bids are entered and items are purchased?

Absolutely! The Participants List page displays a complete list of auction participants, including the number of bids entered by each.

Can I see who entered bids and how many they entered?

Auction items with at least one bid have a bid history display which can be viewed by all auction participants. While the bid history cannot be turned off, the auction administrator can choose what's displayed for the Bidder column.

• show the bidder's full name,
• their display name, or
• their bidder number (which is also useful for anonymous bidding).

To edit this setting, log into your auction and click the Edit Auction link found in the Admin Controls menu. When changing the Bid History selection in the Advanced Settings, you'll see an example of what the Bidder column will show in the bid history.

Participants are shown the bidder's full name, display name, or bidder number, based on the Bid History setting explained above. Auction administrators always see the full name of each bidder in the bid history and can view the participant version by clicking the "Show Participant View" link at the top of the bid history display.

Each participant can make their display name as anonymous as they wish by editing their account on the My Account page. Each display name must be unique within the system and can't be used by more than one account.

anonymous bidding confidential bidding use bid numbers use bidding numbers use bidder numbers hide bidders names hide bidder names private see who bid see who is bidding see bidders

Can the bid history be customized or turned off?

Extended Bidding is an optional feature the auction administrator can choose to turn on which automatically extends the end time of an item by 3 minutes when it receives a bid during the final 3 minutes. This allows bidders to relax during the end of an auction knowing they'll have time to enter a new bid if they're outbid in the final 3 minutes, making it easier to maintain their lead on one or more items.

If an item receives a bid during the final 3 minutes of the auction, the item end time will be extended to allow for 3 additional minutes of bidding. This process repeats until no new bids are received during the final 3 minutes of the item bidding window or the auction has been extended for a maximum of 30 minutes beyond the original end time. When an auction is extended, you'll see Extended Bidding messages displayed throughout the auction with a link for easily viewing all of the extended items.

Here's an example of how the end time of an item may be extended in an auction which is set up to end at 8:00 PM:

In this example, Mary was selected as the winning bidder at 8:08 PM because no more bids were entered after her bid at 8:05 PM. If additional bids had been entered, the item end time would've continued being extended for up to a maximum of 30 minutes beyond the original end time of 8:00 PM. This means this item could've been extended to as late as 8:30 PM.

All items which can be extended will have a message above the bidding box which indicates the item allows for extended bidding. After the auction ends, only items which were extended will have a message indicating the item end time had been extended.

Auction administrators can turn the Extended Bidding feature on or off for the entire auction by clicking the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu. This feature applies to the entire auction and cannot be changed for individual items.

What is extended bidding?

Auction sniping is the act of placing a bid, which will likely exceed the current high bid, as late as possible, leaving little to no time for others to outbid the sniper. To prevent this, each auction has an Extended Bidding feature which the auction administrator can choose to turn on. All items which can be extended will have a message above the bidding box which indicates the item allows for extended bidding. You can view items in our Demo Auction to see how this looks.

Is there a way to prevent auction sniping?

There are 2 common reasons for this:

1. The auction hasn't started yet. Verify the dates of your auction by checking the main auction page. Double check the start date/time (including AM/PM) as well as the selected time zone. Some time zones have the same abbreviation, so it's best to view the full time zone name on the Edit Auction page. You can change the dates and time zone by logging into your auction and clicking the Edit Auction link in the Admin Controls menu.
2. The auction doesn't have any items. When this is the case, it's most common that the item description was entered into the Auction Information section. You'll need to create an item by clicking the Add Auction Item button in the Admin Controls menu. Bidding will be available on the item pages when items have been added to a running auction.

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Why am I not seeing a place to enter bids in my auction? How do I bid?

There is only one limitation in place for uploading images to the site: the file type must be either PNG, GIF, or JPEG. Sometimes web browsers get wacky and cause weird issues. Here are some things to try:

1. Make sure the image file name ends with .png, .gif, .jpg, or .jpeg.
2. Clear your browser cache. Instructions can be found here: https://kb.iu.edu/d/ahic.
3. Restart your browser or device and/or try using a different browser. Using a different browser like Chrome or Firefox usually fixes the issue.
4. Try resizing the image using image editing software. While there is no file size limitation for uploading an image to the site, resizing the image can fix unusual issues.

I can't upload an image.

Absolutely! You can upload images from anywhere on the internet! If you have the links for your images, enter them on the image upload page and we'll work our magic to upload them for you. This is a convenient feature which saves you from the time consuming process of downloading images from the internet, saving them on your computer, then finding/selecting/uploading them.

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Can I upload images directly from the web?

Square images which are 2500px wide by 2500px high work best for all images except the auction banner. Larger images will be resized to fit within these dimensions. Images look best when the 4 Large Images / Item feature has been applied.

The ideal auction banner image dimensions are 980px wide and up to 200px high. Larger images will be resized to fit within these dimensions. A banner image can only be uploaded if the Apply Your Brand feature has been applied.

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What image sizes work best?

You can run auctions completely for free on 32auctions. We NEVER charge a performance fee on the total amount raised by your auction. The only fees we charge are for optional features, which you can read about on the Pricing page. All optional features are purchased on a per auction basis and last for the life of the auction. There are no recurring fees or subscriptions. You can even pick and choose the optional feature upgrades you're interested in on the Pricing page and the total cost will immediately update.

If you choose to accept payments and/or donations through your auction, the transaction fees only apply to payments and/or donations processed through the site. Please see What transaction fees are charged for online payments & donations? for more information.

We also invite you to see How can I learn more about 32auctions?

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How much does it cost to run an auction? Are there any hidden fees?

Feature upgrades can be applied anytime before the auction ends by clicking the Add Features button in the Admin Controls menu.

When can I apply feature upgrades to an auction?

You can learn more about our feature upgrades by reading through the Pricing page.

4 large images no 3rd party ads advanced insights transition to live event premium donor & sponsor management apply your brand online payment & donation collection free most popular best for live event the works

Where can I find more information about feature upgrades?

Yes! All auction traffic can be sent to Google Analytics for detailed analysis. Google Analytics provides many tools for analyzing pageviews, marketing campaigns, how people found the auction, and much more. It's a completely free service and we highly recommend taking advantage of it.

1. Log into your auction and click the Add Features button in the Admin Controls menu to apply the Advanced Insights feature.
2. Log into your Google Analytics account or create an account if you don't have one. See Google's getting started page if you need assistance.
3. Follow Google's instructions for creating a web property for your auction. Be sure to select Web and enter the following information when adding a Data Stream:
   • Website Name: 32auctions
   • Website URL: Copy and paste your auction link from the Important Settings section of the Admin Controls menu by logging into your auction and clicking the Admin Controls button. The Website URL must be the full link, similar to: https://www.32auctions.com/32auctionsDemo.
4. Locate and copy the Measurement ID which starts with “G-”.
5. View your auction and click the View Insights link in the Admin Controls menu. Paste the Measurement ID into the Google Analytics box and click the Save button.

Once the Google Analytics Measurement ID has been added to the Insights page, view the real-time page in Google Analytics. You'll see activity displayed on the real-time page as you click around the auction.

For assistance with Google Analytics, see this article from Google which explains how to navigate Analytics.

Can I use Google Analytics with my auction?

There are a few reasons why traffic doesn't appear in Google Analytics. Follow these steps to get your auction properly setup:

1. Log into your auction and click the Add Features button in the Admin Controls menu.
2. Scroll to the bottom section and verify the Advanced Insights feature is listed.
3. If the Advanced Insights feature is not listed, see Can I use Google Analytics with my auction?

1. To find your Measurement ID, see the Find your Measurement ID section on the Google Analytics help site. Didn't find a Measurement ID? See Can I use Google Analytics with my auction? to get a Measurement ID and link it to your auction.
2. View the Insights page for your auction by clicking the View Insights link found in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Verify the Measurement ID listed in the Google Analytics box matches the Measurement ID found on the Google Analytics site (see step #1).

1. Log into your Google Analytics account and navigate to the to the view listed under the name provided when creating your Measurement ID as explained in Can I use Google Analytics with my auction? See the Google Analytics help site for instructions on navigating to a view.

For assistance with Google Analytics, see this article from Google which explains how to navigate Analytics.

Why am I not seeing website traffic in Google Analytics?

To edit a donor's information, click the Manage Donors link found in the Admin Controls menu. Find the donor you wish to edit and click the Edit link displayed next to them. Your saved changes will be visible on all auction items the donor is displayed on across all auctions for the organization, including auctions which have ended.

update donor

How do I change donor information?

There are two options for removing a donor.

Deleting a donor completely removes them from the system and all auction items they are displayed on across all auctions for the organization, including auctions which have ended. To delete a donor, click the Manage Donors link in the Admin Controls menu, then click the Delete link for the donor you wish to delete. If you're deleting an active donor and they are displayed on items, you'll be presented with the option of replacing them with another donor. This is useful if you need to combine two donors into a single donor.

Archiving a donor removes them from the donor list, but they will remain on all auction items they are displayed on across all auctions for the organization. No data will be removed from the system. The donor will simply be moved to the Archived Donor List page and will not appear in the donor selection list when adding or editing items. To archive a donor, click the Manage Donors link in the Admin Controls menu, then click the Archive link for the donor you wish to archive.

How do I remove a donor who is no longer associated with our organization/auction?

When deleting an active donor which is displayed on items or sponsorships, you'll be presented with the option of replacing them with another donor. The selected donor will replace the donor you're deleting on all items and sponsorships they are displayed on across all auctions for the organization, including auctions which have ended.

• Donor A is displayed on items 1, 2, 3
• Donor B is displayed on items 4, 5, 6

• Donor A is displayed on items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
• Donor B is permanently deleted from the system

I have multiple entries for the same donor. Can I combine them into one entry?

Archived donors can be restored so they appear on the Donor List page and in the donor selection list when adding or editing items. To recover an archived donor, view the Archived Donor List page by clicking the Manage Donors link in the Admin Controls menu followed by clicking the Archived Donors link. Then click the Restore link for the archived donor you wish to restore. The donor will be moved to the Donor List page which can be viewed by clicking View Active Donors.

If you don't see an Archived Donors link at the top of the Donor List page, the organization has no archived donors.

How do I restore an archived donor?

Once your auction has the Payment Collection feature turned on and a payment account connected, winning bidders will be able to submit payment online from their invoice page. The system sends winning bidder notifications which contain a link to the winning bidder's invoice page. Invoices display the items won, the winning bid amounts, the total amount due, and a payment button. Winning bidders can click the payment button to pay with a credit card, debit card, PayPal account, and more.

When a payment is submitted, it's immediately deposited into the connected payment account and then the transaction fees (32auctions and payment processor) are automatically paid from the connected payment account. Auction administrators can view a winning bidder's invoice by clicking the Invoice links on the Sales Summary page.

The payment process is the same for the Donation Collection feature. Donations of any amount can be made before, during, and after the silent auction. Like Donations, Buy Now items can be paid immediately, or the buyer can wait until the auction has ended. This allows them to win more items through Buy Now and bidding and pay for them all at one time.

Each payment processor has their own rules for when funds are made available for transfer to a bank account.

You'll need to contact the payment processor with any specific questions about receiving funds 32auctions deposits into the connected payment account.

Transaction fees only apply to payments processed online. If someone pays in person or by other means outside of 32auctions, no transaction fees are charged. Please see Can I collect payments in person or outside of my auction (aka self-managed payments)? for more information.

Please see What payment processing options are available with the Payment and Donation Collection features? for information about payment account options.

add donations accept donations donate button donation button

How do the Payment and Donation Collection features work?

We only support connecting PayPal and Stripe payment accounts to auctions for collecting online payments and/or donations. Both are secure and trusted and make the payment process easy for both participants and auction administrators. We don't support Authorize.net, Square, or any other merchant account, nor do we have the ability to accept payments on your behalf and then send the funds to you.

All financial information is secure using this payment process. 32auctions never collects sensitive payment information and instead routes all payment processing through the payment processor(s) you've chosen.

For more information, please see:

• How do I connect a PayPal payment account to my auction?
• How do I connect a Stripe payment account to my auction?
• Can I collect payments in person or outside of my auction (aka self-managed payments)?
• How do the Payment and Donation Collection features work?

acceptiva ach actblue affinipay bloomerang cardpointe cash net cashnet donor perfect eft givelify lawpay nmi network merchants pay payfacto simple square squareup swipesimple touchnet venmo zelle

What payment processing options are available with the Payment and Donation Collection features?

We don't have a feature for collecting financial information before a participant enters bids or purchases items. We also don't automatically process payments when an item is won or purchased. Instead, winning bidders are sent a notification with a link to their invoice where they can submit payment. Please see How do the Payment and Donation Collection features work? for more information.

Auctions with unpaid invoices will have an option for sending payment reminders from the Sales Summary page. This is a quick, easy, and friendly way to notify anyone with a balance due on their invoice.

On the rare occasion when a winning bidder doesn't pay for their item, the winning bid can be removed. This allows for selling the item to the next highest bidder. Please see How can a bid or purchase be modified or removed? for more information.

when do I pay non payment non-payment unpaid required instantly pre-authorized

Can we automatically charge bidders when the auction ends or items are purchased?

Using the online Payment Collection feature is optional. You can leave it turned off and collect payments offline by any means available to you. You can even choose the most popular route of accepting both online and in person payments, providing the widest variety of payment options for your participants - which they love! We recommend stating the payment options you accept in the Pickup/Shipping Instructions of the auction as these are displayed on every auction item page and emailed to winning bidders.

Online payment collection makes it very easy for you to collect payments and opens up a variety of payment methods for winning bidders, including credit cards, debit cards, PayPal accounts, and more. All online payments are automatically tracked within your auction. Without the Payment Collection feature, you'll need to manually track payments, which you can do on the Sales Summary page and winning bidder invoices.

You can mark individual items or an entire invoice as paid. To mark an individual item as paid, click the Edit link on the right side of the item on the Sales Summary page Items tab and then use the Final Sales Information window to mark the item as paid. To mark an entire invoice as paid, click the Invoice # link on the Sales Summary page Invoices tab and then click the Mark Invoice As Paid button.

offline payments self managed payments

Can I collect payments in person or outside of my auction (aka self-managed payments)?

We currently don't provide a feature for collecting sales tax or adding sales tax to an invoice. If you need to collect sales tax, we recommend speaking to a tax professional to determine the best approach for handling this.

charge taxes gst hst vat

Can I collect sales tax or add sales tax to an invoice?

Here are a few options for having the proceeds from your silent auction sent to a charity.

1. You can set up the auction to use your payment account for collecting payments and/or donations. After all payments have been collected, you can send the proceeds to the charity.

2. You can ask to use the charity's payment account for having payments and/or donations sent directly to their account.

   For PayPal, after entering the PayPal account email address into 32auctions, the PayPal account owner will need to approve connecting it to your auction. This is done by clicking the approval button contained in the email we send to the PayPal account email address.

   For Stripe, you'll need to work with the Stripe account owner in order to connect their Stripe account to your auction. An auction administrator will need to initiate the process of connecting the Stripe account and the Stripe account owner will need to log into their Stripe account to complete the process.

3. You can invite a representative of the charity to be an auction Coordinator, allowing them to connect their payment account to the auction for collecting payments and/or donations. Once the payment account is connected, you can click the View Auction Administrators link in the Admin Controls menu to remove their Coordinator role from the auction.

4. You can ask a representative of the charity to create an organization on 32auctions, followed by creating an empty auction. Once the auction is created, they can connect their payment account and invite you to be an Organizer. As an organizer, you can completely manage the auction but can't modify the organization. Please see What is the difference between the Coordinator and Organizer roles? for more information.

How do I set up online payments and donations to go directly to a charity?

For item payments, donations, or feature upgrades purchased online through 32auctions, a receipt was sent to the email address provided when making the payment. If you don't see the receipt in your inbox, please check your spam or junk folder. If you'd like to download and print invoices for item payments or donations, please see How do I print invoices? for more information.

Invoices for item payments and donations include the organization's information, including the tax ID when provided. Auction administrators can update the organization's information, including the tax ID, by clicking the Edit Organization link found in the Admin Controls menu.

Feature upgrade receipts can also be viewed online by clicking the View Receipts button located lower down on the Add Features page.

For all other payments, or if you need anything extra for tax purposes, you'll need to contact the auction administrator.

fees billing feature upgrade invoice reciept recipt recept tax deduction donation receipt invoice receipt payment receipt

How do I get a receipt?

Refunds (full or partial) need to be initiated from the payment account into which the payment was deposited as instructed here:

*Important: If you are not taken to the payment details after logging into the payment account, please verify you logged into the correct payment account.

cancel donation delete donation delete a donation how do I remove a donation how to remove a donation remove donation refund donation refund payment

How do I issue a refund for a payment or donation?

32auctions charges a transaction fee of 2.9% + $0.40 for each payment and donation processed online using the Payment & Donation Collection features (no fees are charged by 32auctions for in person or cash payments).

PayPal and Stripe also charge a transaction fee for each online payment and donation. The amount they charge depends on the payment account connected to the auction, but is typically 3.49% + $0.49 per transaction for PayPal and 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for Stripe (or lower if their non-profit discount is applied). To find the fees associated with a payment account, or to see if their non-profit discount applies, log into the PayPal account or the Stripe dashboard.

Here's an example of the fees charged for a $100 payment using the optional Payment or Donation Collection feature. This example is for a Stripe payment account with a fee rate of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. All fees are automatically paid when the payment is processed and are calculated using the currency chosen for the auction. Please see Can I choose who pays the transaction fees? for more information.

• Payment Amount = $100
• 32auctions Fee = $3.30
• Stripe Fee = $3.20
• Amount Raised = $93.50

Keep in mind that research indicates people spend 12-18% more when using credit cards than when using cash. This increase more than pays for the transaction fee, allows winning bidders the convenience of using their preferred method of payment (credit card, debit card, PayPal account, and more), and simplifies the process of managing your auction. All you need to do is deliver the items.

costs price percentage

What transaction fees are charged for online payments & donations?

The Payment Collection feature provides two options for winning bidders to help pay the transaction fees, as explained below.

The Payment Collection feature includes a setting that allows you to choose if winning bidders are given the option of also paying the transaction fee when paying their invoice. This setting can be found by clicking the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu and then turning on the Payment Collection feature.

When winning bidders are given the option to pay the transaction fee, they'll see a calculated amount for the fee on their invoice and can choose to pay it along with the amount due. We calculate the transaction fee amount based on the 32auctions transaction fee and the standard transaction fee charged by the payment processor. It's important to note we don't provide a setting for changing the fee calculation or a setting for requiring winning bidders to pay transaction fees.

The Payment Collection feature always allows winning bidders to add an additional amount to their invoice when paying online. You could consider encouraging participants to include an Add-On Amount to their invoice. They can do this by viewing their invoice, entering the additional amount they want added in the Add-On Amount box, and then clicking the Pay Now button. This will ultimately increase the total amount raised for your auction, helping to offset any transaction fees.

You can see which invoices included an additional amount, either by paying the transaction fee or by including an invoice add-on amount, by viewing the Invoices tab on the Sales Summary page or by downloading the invoices PDF. You'll see the additional amount displayed as an Add-On Amount. To see the details of an Add-On Amount, view the winning bidder's invoice by clicking the Invoice # on the Invoices tab of the Sales Summary page and then clicking the details link next to the Add-On Amount.

The Donation Collection feature includes a setting that allows you to choose if donors are given the option of also paying the transaction fee when making online donations. This setting can be found by clicking the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu and then turning on the Donation Collection feature.

add on cover costs pass along pass on passed on price percentage

Can I choose who pays the transaction fees?

Before connecting a PayPal account to your auction, the account must meet the following requirements:

• A business PayPal account is required for collecting online payments and or donations. Please see Why do I need a business PayPal account? for more information.
• The PayPal account must be confirmed and have a confirmed email address. You can log into the PayPal account and view the profile page to verify the account and email address are confirmed.

For account related questions, or if you're being asked for information you're not sure about when setting up your PayPal account, please contact PayPal support as explained in the Need Account Assistance? section below.

The Payment Collection or Donation Collection feature must be turned on before you'll be able to connect a PayPal account to your auction. You can turn on one of these features and connect a payment account by following these steps:

1. Log into your auction.
2. Click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Click the toggle button to turn on one (or both) of the payment features.
4. Click the Connect A PayPal Account button.
5. Enter the primary email address for the PayPal account and click the Add PayPal Account button.
6. Open the approval email sent to the provided email address and click the approval button to connect the account to your auction.
7. If required, log into the PayPal account and complete the approval process.

After completing the approval process, you'll be returned to 32auctions. You should see the PayPal account email address displayed in a green payment account box on the Payment Features page and the "deposit into this account" box will be checked. This indicates the PayPal account is connected and ready for accepting deposits.

Experiencing Issues?

Please call PayPal Merchant Support at 1-888-215-5506 (Australia: 1800-073-263; Canada: 1-877-569-1116; UK: 08707 307 191) for further assistance. You'll need to tell them you're trying to process payments on 32auctions using the PayPal Marketplace API.

If the above instructions didn't work, it's best to start the process over by following these steps:

1. Log into your auction.
2. Click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Click the gear button for the PayPal account and select the Remove Account option.
4. Log into the PayPal account.
5. Click on the profile name in the top right corner and choose Account Settings.
6. Click on Update across from API access.
7. Click on Manage API Permissions in the pre-built solution section.
8. On the Manage permission page it should show 32auctions. Check 32auctions and click revoke.
9. Follow the Steps To Connect A PayPal Account above.

How do I connect a PayPal payment account to my auction?

Before connecting a Stripe account to your auction, the account must meet the following requirement:

• The Stripe account must be ready for processing live payments. You can log into the Stripe dashboard to verify the account is ready to process live payments.

For account related questions, or if you're being asked for information you're not sure about when setting up your Stripe account, please contact Stripe support as explained in the Need Account Assistance? section below.

The Payment Collection or Donation Collection feature must be turned on before you'll be able to connect a Stripe account to your auction. You can turn on one of these features and connect a payment account by following these steps:

1. Log into your auction.
2. Click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Click the toggle button to turn on one (or both) of the payment features.
4. Click the Connect A Stripe Account button.
5. Log into the Stripe account.
6. Follow any additional instructions for approving the Stripe account for use on 32auctions.

After completing the approval process, you'll be returned to 32auctions. You should see the Stripe account email address displayed in a green payment account box on the Payment Features page and the "deposit into this account" box will be checked. This indicates the Stripe account is connected and ready for accepting deposits.

Experiencing Issues?

Please contact Stripe support for further assistance. You'll need to tell them you're trying to process payments on 32auctions using the Connect API.

If the above instructions didn't work, it's best to start the process over by following these steps:

1. Log into your auction.
2. Click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Click the gear button for the Stripe account and select the Remove Account option.
4. Log into the Stripe dashboard.
5. Click the Settings link on the left side of the page.
6. Click the Authorized Applications link under Teams and Security.
7. Locate "32auctions" in the list and click the Revoke Access button.
8. Follow the Steps To Connect A Stripe Account above.

How do I connect a Stripe payment account to my auction?

Only Coordinators can change the payment account connected to an auction. It can be changed by following these steps.

1. Log into your auction.
2. Click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu.
3. Click the toggle button to turn on one (or both) of the payment features, if they're not already on.
4. Click the gear icon in the upper right corner of the desired payment account box.
5. Click the Edit Account menu option.
6. Provide the new payment account information.

For payment account specific instructions, please see:

• How do I connect a PayPal payment account to my auction?
• How do I connect a Stripe payment account to my auction?

How do I change the payment account connected to my auction?

If you want to connect a PayPal account to your auction for collecting online payments or donations, it needs to be a business PayPal account.

There's no cost for creating a new business PayPal account or upgrading a personal account to a business account. PayPal assured us "business" simply means the account is more thoroughly verified compared to a personal account. A few benefits of a business account include the ability to accept direct credit card and debit card payments, higher payment processing limits, and greater success rates without the headaches. To convert a personal account to a business account, log into the PayPal account, view the account profile, and click the "Upgrade to a Business account" link.

Alternatively, a Stripe account can be used for accepting online payments and donations. Please see What payment processing options are available with the Payment and Donation Collection features? for more information.

Why do I need a business PayPal account?

• Your inbox
• Your spam folder
• Your junk folder (if your email application has one)

Please add noreply@32auctions.com to your address book so emails from our system don't get sent to your spam or junk folder.

To resend your account approval email, view your auction, click the Payment Features link in the Admin Controls menu, then click the Resend Approval Email button.

If you're still not receiving the account approval email, please contact your IT department or email service provider and ask them to make sure emails from noreply@32auctions.com can be delivered to your mailbox. They'll need to resolve any issues with their network or email server which are preventing emails from being properly delivered.

I connected a PayPal payment account but I didn't receive the approval email.

Please check your PayPal account and verify you have at least 1 credit card other than PayPal Plus associated to your account. PayPal is working on an issue with processing payments using PayPal Plus.

Why do I receive an "Insufficient Funds" error in PayPal when attempting to make a payment or donation?

PayPal tracks the number of times you've made payments through them without using a PayPal account. Once you've met their unpublished threshold, they'll require you to create an account before allowing additional payments, regardless of what site you're trying to make your payment on, including their own Send Money page. When this happens you have 2 options:

1. Create a PayPal account and link your credit card to it. This is PayPal's preferred option which will raise your payment limits and not cap the number of times you can make online payments. You'll always be required to log into your PayPal account to make a payment using the credit card(s), bank account(s), etc. linked to your PayPal account.
2. Use a different browser and/or clear the browser cache and cookies to be presented with the option to pay directly with a credit or debit card. Once you have this option, you can't use the credit card or email address that you've used numerous times before. If you do, PayPal will block the payment and require you to create a PayPal account before allowing the payment to go through. Instructions for clearing the browser cache can be found here: https://kb.iu.edu/d/ahic. You also need to clear the browser cookies.

Why am I not given the option to pay directly with a credit card through PayPal?

All auctions start with no shipping options. If you don't want to offer shipping, leave the Shipping Settings page alone and the system will not mention shipping anywhere in your auction.

If you want to offer shipping, you need to add shipping options on the Shipping Settings page before your auction ends. To view this page, click the Shipping Settings link in the Admin Controls menu. You'll be able to enter the shipping options and associated costs for each option. Shipping options can be anything you choose but most often they are countries or states/provinces/regions. The costs entered on this page apply to each item and can be changed for individual items. You can also offer a combined shipping discount to winners of multiple items.

When shipping options are changed after items have been purchased, the updated options will only be applied to unpaid invoices and may change the invoice total amount due. If necessary, you can change the total shipping cost on an invoice.

Once set up, winning bidders can select their preferred shipping option on their invoice. The system will calculate the shipping cost and add it to the invoice total. They are then prompted to enter a shipping address (unless In-Person Pickup is selected). Once entered, you can view this information on the winning bidder's invoice by clicking the Invoice link on the Sales Summary page.

You can view items in our Demo Auction to see how shipping options are displayed. Also, if you purchase a Buy Now item, you'll be able to experience shipping options on an invoice.

ship to

How do I offer shipping?

Each auction item has shipping options with two shipping cost amounts - Cost and With Another Item. The Cost amount is the primary shipping cost and the With Another Item amount is the discounted shipping cost. The total shipping cost is calculated for each shipping option on an invoice as follows. The Cost amount will only be use for one item, the item with the highest Cost amount. All other items on an invoice will use the With Another Item amount. This allows you to take advantage of a combined shipping discount, when available.

Here are examples of how the total shipping cost is calculated.

• Teddy Bear
  • Cost - $5.00
  • With Another Item - $3.00
• Monkey Shirt
  • Cost - $4.00
  • With Another Item - $1.50

Invoice A: 1 Teddy Bear + 1 Monkey Shirt

• The total shipping cost will be $6.50. The highest primary shipping cost of the 2 items is applied (Teddy Bear - $5.00). The discounted shipping cost is applied for the other item (Monkey Shirt - $1.50).
• $5.00 + $1.50 = $6.50

Invoice B: 3 Monkey Shirts

• The total shipping cost will be $7.00. The highest primary shipping cost is only applied for 1 item (Monkey Shirt - $4.00). The discounted shipping cost is applied for the other 2 items (Monkey Shirt - $1.50).
• $4.00 + $1.50 + $1.50 = $7.00

How is the total shipping cost calculated?

With a quantity purchase, each item purchased is included in the total shipping cost calculation. For example, let's say there is a single Monkey Shirts item with an available quantity of 10. If a bidder purchases a quantity of 3 Monkey Shirts, the shipping cost will be calculated as explained in the Invoice B example.

How is the shipping cost calculated for quantity purchases?

When entering shipping costs, you have two fields to enter for each shipping option - Cost and With Another Item. The Cost field is the primary shipping cost and the With Another Item field is the discounted shipping cost. The With Another Item shipping cost will only be used when more than one item is paid for on a single invoice. Please see How is the total shipping cost calculated? to get a complete understanding of which shipping cost is used when calculating shipping costs for an invoice.

If you don't want to offer a discounted shipping cost, enter the same amount in both fields.

shipping multiple items

How do I offer a combined shipping discount?

If the default shipping costs set on the Shipping Settings page are not correct for an item, you can set item specific shipping costs when adding or editing the item. Simply click the edit icon next to a shipping option to change the shipping costs for that option. The new shipping costs entered will apply only to that item.

Shipping options are created on the Shipping Settings page and apply to every item in the auction. Shipping options can be anything you choose but most often are entered as countries or states/provinces/regions. The shipping options can't be changed for a specific item because they apply to all items within an auction. This allows winning bidders of multiple items to choose a single shipping option for their entire invoice.

Can I list different shipping costs for each item?

Winning bidders can only choose a single shipping option when paying their invoice. Therefore, the shipping options, which are created on the Shipping Settings page, apply to every auction item and cannot be removed from individual items.

To prevent the winning bidder from being charged shipping for the item, you can set the shipping cost amounts to zero when adding or editing the item. Additionally, you can state in the item description that shipping is not offered for the item.

Can I remove shipping options from an individual item?

Once an item is sold, you can no longer edit it to change the shipping costs. Instead, you can change the total shipping cost for the invoice. To do this, view the Sales Summary page and click the appropriate Invoice link. Then click the Update Shipping Cost link found directly under the shipping options. This link is only available to auction administrators when the invoice has not been paid.

Once the total shipping cost has been changed on an invoice, the winning bidder will not be able to choose a shipping option, but they will be able to enter a shipping address. You will have the option of reverting back to the original shipping options by clicking the Revert Shipping Cost link.

Can I change the total shipping cost on an invoice?

Shipping options is an optional setting which auction administrators can choose to forgo. If the auction items don't display shipping options, you should look at the Pickup/Shipping Instructions to determine how to receive items. You can also contact the auction administrator to ask if shipping is available.

Why don't I see shipping options on items?

You can enter your shipping address once you've won an item in an auction which offers shipping options. When you win an item, you receive a winning bidder notification with a link to your My Items invoice page. You can also view your My Items page by logging into your account, clicking the Account menu option in the top navigation menu, then clicking the My Items Won link.

Once you choose a shipping option which requires shipping, you'll see a link for entering your shipping address. Clicking this link takes you to a form for entering a new address or choosing a previously entered address. When you're done, your shipping address will be displayed on your invoice along with a link for changing it.

How do I enter my shipping address?

Shipping addresses can only be collected if the auction offers shipping options and the winning bidder has selected a shipping option other than In-Person Pickup. After a winning bidder enters their shipping address, you can view it on their invoice page. This makes it easy to know which items should be shipped together and where to ship them. You can view all invoices for a bidder by viewing the Sales Summary page and clicking the Invoice link next to an item they won. Each paid invoice contains the items won, the amount paid, the selected shipping option, and the shipping address (if necessary).

If a winning bidder wasn't able to provide their shipping address because the auction didn't have shipping options, you'll need to contact the bidder to ask for their shipping address.

mailing addresses

Where is the winning bidder's shipping address?

The Transition To Live Event feature allows you to start your silent auction online for pre-event bidding and effortlessly transition to bid sheets at a live event. Once all bidding is complete, you can enter the final sales information into the online auction. Please see the Transition To Live Event section on the Pricing page for more information.

bidding sheet bid sheet pre event bidding pre-event bidding

What is the purpose of the Transition To Live Event feature?

Auctions with the Transition To Live Event feature send leading bidder notifications when the online portion of the silent auction ends. The email notification informs leading bidders that bidding will continue at the live event and includes the Live Event Information provided on the Live Event Settings page. Winning bidder notifications are also sent to the highest bidders of online-only items.

Online auction participants who can't attend the live event have the option of entering Proxy Bids which you can choose to honor during live event bidding. Only after the online auction ends, auction administrators can view maximum proxy bid amounts in the Max Bid column of the Sales Summary page and in the Sales Summary download. During the live event, you can continue bidding for online proxy bidders, by writing bids on the bid sheets, making sure to not exceed the maximum proxy bid amounts. If you don't want to allow proxy bidding, you can turn this option off in the Advanced Settings section of the Edit Auction page.

The Sales Summary page and Sales Summary download display every auction item including leading bid information like bid amounts and bidder information. The data is provided in a user-friendly spreadsheet format, compatible with applications like Microsoft Excel, and can be sorted. You can have a look at a sample Sales Summary download from our demo auction.

You can download and print bid sheets for all auction items at any time. This is available as a single PDF file on the Live Event Settings page or individually on the auction item pages. It's best to wait until the online auction has ended before downloading the final bid sheets to make sure they include the highest online bid amounts. Take a peek at the sample bid sheets PDF from our demo auction.

We currently don't offer blank bid sheets, however, with the Transition To Live Event feature, new items can be added for up to 30 days past the online auction end date. This allows for creating bid sheets for late arriving items and entering the final sales information.

When choosing the end date and time for your online auction, we recommend giving yourself enough time for transitioning to the live event. The printable bid sheets are the easiest way to handle this transition, however, it still takes time to print out bid sheets and arrange them on bidding tables at the live event. It's common to end the online auction a few hours to a day before the start of the live event.

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What happens at the end of an online auction with the Transition To Live Event feature?

Yes! With the Transition To Live Event feature, auction administrators have the ability to enter final sales information after the live event. This allows you to sell items to any auction participant, regardless if they participated in the online auction or only attended the live event.

To use this feature, go to the Sales Summary page after the online auction ends, click Edit next to an item, enter the final selling price, and choose the winning bidder. If the winning bidder only attended the live event, you can enter their information one time and then choose them from a list of auction participants. You can even enter participants ahead of time to pre-populate the winning bidder selection list. It's important to enter their email address so they can be notified about winning items.

After entering the final sales information, the Sales Summary will update to show the new selling price and winning bidder. The previous leading bidder will receive an outbid notification and the winning bidder will receive a winning bidder notification with a link to their invoice.

Oh, and if you've set up the optional Payment Collection feature, winning bidders can pay for their items online. This allows you to manage the entire auction process all the way through closing out the live event and collecting payments. It's that easy!

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Can I enter final sales information after the live event and sell items to winning bidders?

Offline participants can be added to the Participants List before, during, and after the online auction. These participants will be included in the winning bidder selection list which makes entering the final sales information quick and easy. A bidder number will also be assigned to each participant, which allows you to use bidder numbers at the event. Please note that while offline participants can be added during the auction, they will not be able to participate in online bidding.

Participants can claim the offline account by creating a real account and joining the online auction before it ends. The email address must match in order to claim the offline account. When this happens, the offline participant is no longer included in the Participants List.

Can I add participants ahead of time to simplify entering the final sales information?

Every participant in the online auction is assigned a bidder number, which can be viewed on the Participants List page. You can enter an event attendee as an offline participant to have a bidder number assigned for them. This will also simplify entering the final sales information if they win an item.

If you choose to use bidder numbers at the event, you'll need to provide event attendees their assigned bidder number from the Participants List page.

Can bidder numbers be used for bidding on bid sheets?

Yes! With the Transition To Live Event feature, you'll see an option when adding or editing items to only allow bidding at the live event. This prevents bidding on the item during the online auction. All item information you enter, including the starting bid and/or buy now price, are displayed in the online auction and on the bid sheet.

bidding allowed promote live

Can I showcase live event only items during the online auction?

Yes! With the Transition To Live Event feature, you'll see an option when adding or editing items to only allow bidding online. When the online auction ends, the system will mark the item as sold and notify the winning bidder.

bidding allowed online only

Can I have online-only items?

If you'd like smaller bid sheets, display sheets, or invoices, you can use Adobe Acrobat to print two sheets per piece of paper. To do this, you should first download and save the PDF file. Open the PDF file using Adobe Acrobat and then follow our detailed instructions. If for any reason these instructions are not accurate for your version of Adobe, you can reference Adobe's instructions for printing multiple pages per sheet. You may also find that your printer properties/options may offer similar capabilities.

• File > Print
• Page Sizing & Handling: Multiple
• Pages per sheet: 2
• Page order: Horizontal
• Print on both sides of paper: No
• Orientation: Portrait
• Scale to Fit: Fill Entire Paper

How do I print two bid sheets, display sheets, or invoices on one piece of paper?

Our site uses email and text messaging to communicate with auction participants and administrators to inform them of relevant auction activity. At times, we'll communicate directly with auction administrators for other reasons related to the site or their auction. The 32auctions team despises spam and will not allow junk mail or junk text messages to be sent from our site.

Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.

We are concerned about our participants getting spammed.

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We get this question a lot. Our fees are low because our goal is to help people raise money for their cause... period. Charging high fees does exactly the opposite by taking money from causes that need it.

We also receive revenue from advertisements on our site. This revenue helps offset expenses, allowing us to offer this free service with reasonably-priced feature upgrades.

We invite you to explore this further by discovering a little About Us and hearing from auction administrators and participants.

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Why are your fees so low? How do you make money?