All of my boxes are up in the attic.

Totally new to auctions, so was wondering what happens at expiry. Does the best bidder automatically win? Or does the seller have the option to sell or not at the best bid price at that time? Thanks.

I haven't used Axioms auction, but I sell and buy items on Ebay frequently. Assuming it's similar, as auctions are pretty universal. The winning bid is final unless the seller sets a reserve, in which case the item won't sell unless the reserve (lowest price the seller is willing to sell the item for) is met.

watched while i got outbid (by $1) at the last second yesterday. like i said, am totally new to auctions. is this how it really goes? suppose congratulations are in order to the winning bidders ...

If Axiom Auction does not provide automatic bidding to the maximum one is willing to pay, it opens the door to last minute bidders and that is truly unfair. Did you make sure you could not have set in advance an automatic bid if someone tried to outbid you by 1$?

Setting a maximum bid that you're willing to pay is the norm, but it's very common to have someone bidding repeatedly in the last minute until they're the top bidder. I've done it on Ebay numerous times, and have also been the one, frustratingly, outbid.

Hi pinoy168.

I helped them test the system when it was still in beta and EFalardeau is correct, the Axiom system will allow you to enter your maximum value, and will increment as necessary. (Unless they have since removed it)

Example, you are willing to pay up to $250 for the Bid Item? Enter $250.

CompetitorA bids $100, your bid should automatically increment to $101.

CompetitorB Bids $225, your bid should increment to $226

CompetitorC Bids $300... well, no help there. You lose.

That way you don't have to be at your keyboard watching the item all the tiem. However, please note this doesn't safeguard against last minute hawks. If CompetitorC above bids $300, and CompetitorD sits and waits and with 1min to go Bids $301, C is out of luck.

They key here (and at eBay or other) is to either:

A) Bid the *most you are willing to pay and not 1 dollar less* and if someone else goes higher, accept that you didn't want to pay more.

B) Do the last minute thing. If you are willing to pay $1 more than the going bid with 2min to go, then do so. However, you can still get beat if a previous bidder had a higher Maximum.

Aren't online Auctions FUN!

snazzed

In my opinion, I think the time frame for bidding, especially on "Axiom direct" products is just too long. Perhaps there was a reason for this but three weeks or longer just seems far too long a period to conduct an auction without encouraging the obvious process of potential bidders waiting around until the last minute to bid while another one has been sitting for awhile. Under this current set-up I have asked myself, "why bid early"? There seems to be no point.

It might be unrealistic, but,to me I think if we knew the auction was only going to be for a few days,more and maybe a little higher bids might be forthcoming earlier so there would be less time for the last-minute stuff to occur.

I agree that the auctions are too long.

I'll probably agree when I want something that's on auction and I don't get it.