See your auction through your bidders’ eyes, from opening your link to placing a bid, and what happens when the auction closes.

Knowing what your supporters see helps you answer their questions and promote your auction with confidence. Bidding takes five short steps, and bidders aren’t charged anything until the auction closes, and only if they win.

Step 1: Description

When a bidder opens your auction link, they see your banner, auction name and organization, and when bidding starts and ends. Below your description, Current Auctions shows every item with its photo and current bid.

The bidder clicks Bid for this item on the item they want.

Step 2: Bid

The bidder sees the item’s photo and description, the current bid and the next minimum bid. They enter an amount of at least the next minimum and click Continue. Nothing is charged at this step.

Step 3: Buyer Information

The bidder enters their contact details:

• Full name and email.
• Country and state.
• Receive Item — How they’ll get the item. This shows the fulfillment option you set up, such as shipping with its fee.
• Address, city and postal code.

If you’ve allowed tips, they can also add an optional tip for your organization. The tip is charged together with their winning bid when the auction closes.

A quick security check runs at the bottom of the form. The bidder then clicks Continue to payment.

Step 4: Payment

The bidder adds the card they’ll pay with if they win. Card details are processed securely by Stripe and aren’t stored by Ideali. They’re not charged at this point. They click Continue to review.

Step 5: Review

The review screen shows the auction details, the bidder’s information, the item and their bid amount. The Payment Summary shows the bid, any shipping fee and the total they’ll pay if they win, with a clear note that nothing is due now.

The bidder clicks Confirm Bid.

Bid confirmed

A confirmation message shows that the bid is in and that the bidder isn’t charged now. If they win, they’ll receive a payment confirmation and receipt by email.

The new bid shows on your Monitor page, and the bidder appears on your Bidders page.

When the auction closes

• The highest bid on each item wins.
• Ideali charges each winner’s saved card for their winning bid, plus any shipping fee and tip.
• Winners receive your winner email and a payment receipt.
• Bidders who didn’t win aren’t charged.

Good to know

• Share the right link — Share your auction link so bidders can browse every item, or an item’s bidding link to send them straight to one item.
• Your colors and banner — Bidders see the campaign color and banner you chose in the auction wizard.
• Questions about charges — Remind bidders that saving a card doesn’t charge it. They only pay if they win.

Related articles

1. Getting Started with the Auction Module
2. Monitoring and sharing your auction