How does a Bidder pay for the items they’ve won?
Once an Auction has ended, the winning Bidders will be notified via email and/or text of their winning status (and what they’ve won!).
These messages will include a link that Bidders can click that will take them directly to a secure payment portal where they can submit payment.
(Learn more about how Auctions uses Bonterra Payments as a payment processor here.)
What if I have won a "Buy It Now" or fixed-price item?
For "Buy It Now" or fixed-price items in an auction, auction "winners" for those items can check out and pay for those items in advance of the auction's closing.
They can also continue to bid on other items through the remainder of the auction - they will just have to check out and pay for any additional items they have won once the auction has concluded.
How does a Bidder get their auction items after they’ve paid?
Since the nonprofit organization will have their physical auction items in their possession, it’s up to the nonprofit to provide further communication to auction winners.
We recommend proactively reaching out to your auction winners directly to coordinate that process once the auction is over through our new messaging feature – which can be sent out via text or email, depending on the Bidder’s preference!
How do I issue a refund for a Bidder?
Similarly to deleting accidental bids, a Bidder should contact the nonprofit directly to see if they are willing to refund the Bidder. However, refunding a Bidder for an item that has already been won is ultimately up to the discretion of the nonprofit.
If the nonprofit agrees to refund the Bidder, the nonprofit should contact the Network for Good Support Team to ensure that the refund is processed in all necessary locations.
How do I add shipping costs to my auction?
To add a shipping cost to offset any items you may need to mail to winners, you can do by adding a separate, “hidden” item that’s specifically designated as a shipping cost.
You’ll want to make sure that that new hidden item is set to accept multiple “winners” as well, so you can apply it to as many participants as needed.
NOTE: You will need to specify what that cost of shipping is, so we recommend setting a flat “shipping” price for all items.
Once you have added that new hidden item, you can manually add the winning bidders to that item so that the cost of the shipping “item” is now included as another one of their winning “bids.”
We recommend doing this prior to checkout, so your participants can pay for their items and their shipping in one simple transaction once the auction has concluded.
How do I collect shipping addresses from my bidders?
When your bidders check out using their credit card, you’ll already have their billing address included in their transaction!
You can simply search for the bidder in Donor Management, and then collect the address from the bidder’s donor profile.
What’s the difference between the “amount raised” for my auction, and the “amount paid” for my auction?
The “amount raised” figure for your auction represents how much your organization can anticipate receiving once your auction has closed. This includes the total amounts of each winning bid, as well as any donations, “fund-a-need" options, or “buy it now” purchases.
The “amount paid” is the total amount to date of funds your organization has collected from your auction participants. It includes any payments that you’ve already received online from bidders who have won, as well as any cash or check payments that have been entered offline.
In other words, the “amount raised” is the total anticipated amount you and your organization should expect to collect from this auction – and “amount paid” is what portion of that total anticipated amount has already been collected.