- Who determines the minimum or
starting bid?
- What is the Bid Increment?
- Okay, what are Proxy or MaxBids?
- What does using this auction
cost and how do I qualify?
- How do I bid?
- What are Reserve Bids?
- How do I Post an item for sale?
- How do I find out more about
a posted item?
- How do I know I'm getting a
good deal?
- How do I know I won?
The seller (the person who posted the item) decides what
he or she wants the bidding to begin at. Usually this is (and should be) just
below the lowest price acceptable for the item. If you bid, the system will ask
you to bid the starting price PLUS the Bid Increment. Sellers are
encouraged to start items at a reasonable amount and not absurdly high. Buyers
like the auction process because it allows bargain shopping. If an item is
priced right, people recognize the bargain and bid on it.
The Bid Increment (\$1 is the default increment) raises
the bidding each time by that minimum amount (you can always bump it up
even higher or enter a Proxy Bid, in which case the system will bid either the
bid increment or enough of your stated amount to make you the leading bidder.
The purpose of the bid increment is to keep someone from outbidding you by some
silly amount like \$.01. It protects you and assures the seller of getting a
decent return if the item is hotly contested.
There are several systems of
"proxy" bids; i.e. the system bidding for you automatically.
The system in the EveryAuction software is called "MaxBid."
Think of 'Max' as someone who stays and watches the auction 24 hours a
day while you're off doing more interesting stuff. You activate 'Max'
by entering the highest amount you are willing to pay for an item into
the "place bid" box. The system will then bid for you,
bidding only enough to make you the high bidder. If someone tops that
bid, good old 'Max' places another bid for you and so on up to the
maximum amount you've specified. Under no circumstances will 'Max'
ever bid MORE than you said. But the system will send you e-mail about
an outbid and you can give 'Max' a few more bucks to play with, if you
like. Just enter another bid amount.
This auction is FREE
but we do
require that all sellers and buyers be registered. This enables our
software to keep track of items for sale and who bids on what. It
protects both us as auction providers and you as buyer and/or seller.
Registration is simple and painless. Merely click on New Registration on the menu near the bottom of any auction page.
Click on the name of items you'd like more
information about. If you wish to place a bid, enter your bid in the
box below the item, then just click on the "place bid"
button nearby. We suggest that a good strategy for items you really
want is to place the highest bid you are willing to pay. Otherwise,
someone may beat you out. This system accepts proxy
or maxbid bids (see
Proxy Bids
below). Should someone outbid you, the system sends you an e-mail
notification with a link back here to the item. Click on the link
right in your e-mail message and you will be returned to the directly
to the item. You can then decide whether you want to raise your bid.
Sometimes (and our system supports
this) a seller enters a Reserve Bid. For
example, his Model 384T Golden Widget sells for \$100 new. He or she
decides to place a starting bid of \$1 on the item but they want to get
at least \$80 for it. So a reserve bid of \$80 is entered into the
system. In such a case--even if you are the high bidder at, say, \$60--you will not win the item unless you go over
\$80. We feel this is
a poor auction strategy and wastes the time of buyers and sellers
alike. We suggest this to sellers: enter the item at the least
price you will accept, with no reserve.
Posting
your items for sale here at this auction is both free
and easy.
Simply register if you have not already (by clicking
New Registration on the menu near the bottom of any auction
page). Our system automatically
mails your password within usually a few seconds (no need to disconnect
while you wait). Once you have the password, you might want to copy it
from your e-mail and go to Change Registration
to replace our rather obtuse collection of letters and numbers with
something you might more easily remember.Again, we charge currently
nothing to buy or sell items.
In the future, we do reserve the right to add premium features that
other auction sites have like bold listings, featured auctions, and the
like. For those, we may charge a nominal rate.
Posting items for sale is accomplished by clicking on Post New Item on the menu at the bottom of any auction screen. Fill in the form that pops
up with a short descriptive title (make it snazzy to get people's
attention). Next, select the category the item should be in (if you
don't see an appropriate category on the drop down list, please e-mail
us (see address below) and ask for that
category to be added. Be a little patient, please--we get LOTS of
e-mail.
If you have any questions about an item, by all means
contact the seller and ask him or her (not us!). The seller's e-mail address is
included on the item's page. Just click on it to send him or her mail. You can
ask about condition of the item, payment and shipment terms, or anything else
not already spelled out in the item's description.
When buying something from
someone--whether on the internet, in any kind of auction, or anywhere else--your best
protection to be an informed buyer. In Latin: Caveat Emptor!
The age-old warning of Buyer Beware! We do police this auction and
make our best effort to keep it clean and pleasant, but we can give no blanket
guarantee. You might read our Terms & Conditions page for more info on this.
However, we also go to great lengths here to make sure you have plenty of great
stuff at bargain prices to bid on.
The system automatically sends the
buyer (highest bidder) and seller of the item e-mail when the auction
ends. The buyer and seller then are responsible for making their own
arrangements to conclude the deal by payment and shipment. This
auction merely offers a venue for buying and selling. We will not, nor
cannot, be held responsible in any way for any lack of performance by
any and all parties. We simply provide a place that allows people to
buy and sell. HOWEVER, do let us know of any problems. We can and will
banish anyone who abuses our auction.
For any other questions you might have, please feel free
to e-mail our auction administrator (see address below).
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