Boost recurring donations this giving season with the upsell prompt!With the Auctions app, you can step in on individual items while an auction is running. You can hold bidding on one lot without stopping the rest, close a lot early, or void what has been bid on it. Each action is on the toolbar of the auction's Items tab and applies to the items you tick.
These act on items, not the whole auction. To halt an entire auction, use the auction's Paused setting on its Details tab instead.
Pausing an item
- Open the Auctions Manager.
- Click the title of the auction.
- Click the Items tab.
- Tick the item.
- Click Pause.
The item's status becomes Paused, and bidders can no longer bid on it or buy it. Everything already bid is kept, because pausing does not undo anything, and the rest of the auction carries on as normal.
Important: There is no button to resume a paused item. A paused item stays paused until you end or cancel it. If you only need to stop all bidding for a while, pause the whole auction from its Details tab instead. That setting can be switched back.
Ending an item
- On the auction's Items tab, tick the item.
- Click End.
The item closes immediately rather than at its scheduled time. If it has bids, the highest bidder wins, as long as any reserve price is met. The winning bid is added to the winner's checkout, and the item is listed on the Fulfillments tab, exactly as if the auction had closed. If the reserve is not met, nobody wins it, and the Winning Bids tab shows it as Reserve not met.
On the Items tab, an ended item shows as Closed, whether or not it had a winner. To see who won, check the Winning Bids tab, where it shows as Won.
Use it when a lot has clearly finished. For example, a price was agreed in the room, or you need to hand an item over before the auction closes.
Canceling an item
- On the auction's Items tab, tick the item.
- Click Cancel.
Important: Canceling voids every bid placed on the item and then cancels the item itself. Bidders who bid on it no longer have those bids. This cannot be undone. You are not asked to confirm. The action takes effect the moment you click, so be certain before you do.
Reserve this for a lot that should never have been in the auction, such as an item the donor withdrew, a duplicate listing, or one created in error. If you want the current high bidder to win, End it instead.
Item statuses
The Status column on the Items tab shows one of the following:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Preview | The auction hasn't started yet, or its Status is set to Preview. |
| Open | Open for bidding or Buy Now. |
| Closing Soon | A silent bidding or fixed price item in the last 30 minutes before the auction ends. |
| Paused | Bidding is held, either on this item or because the whole auction is paused. |
| Live Auction Only | A Live Bidding item, run by an auctioneer in the room rather than online. |
| Closed | Ended with End, or the auction has ended or been set to Closed. An item shows this status whether or not it has a winner. |
| Canceled | Withdrawn, and its bids voided. |
Printing lot cards
Tick an item on the Items tab and click Print to download a printable lot card for it as a PDF. The card shows the item's photo, number, name, fair market value and auction name, plus a QR code that links to the item's page on the front end. Place the cards on your display tables so guests can scan straight to the item and bid from their phone.
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