The auction-style listing is the most common
format on AJ and is based on the traditional auction format,
where sellers put items up for sale to the highest bidder.
In AJ, there can be a number of variations and options
for auction-style listings including:
Reserve Price Auction
Private Auction
Multiple Item Auction
Buy It Now
Best Offer
As a buyer, here are the basics of how auction-style listings
work:
Search or browse to find an item you're interested in buying.
Review the entire listing and decide if you wish to compete
in this auction. Some things to note are:
When it ends (always in Pacific Time)
How many bids have already been placed on the item
Amount of the current high bid
The description (and possibly picture) of the item
Payment methods and shipping costs
Enter your bid with the highest amount you'd be willing to
pay for the item. AJ will automatically raise your bid only
as much as is needed for you to remain the high bidder (for
more information, see Bidding on AJ). This means that you
may win an item for less than your maximum bid, but you can
also be outbid if someone else enters a higher maximum bid.
Note: This automatic system does not apply to Multiple Item
Auctions.
If you are the highest bidder when the auction ends, you
win the auction. As the winner, you are obligated to buy the
item for the winning bid price.
Reserve Price Auction
Some auction-style listings have a reserve price, a hidden
minimum price, on their item.
How it works:
A reserve price is the minimum price a seller is willing to
accept for the item.
As a buyer, you are not shown the reserve price, only whether
or not the reserve has been met.
The seller is not obligated to sell the item if the reserve
price is not met.
The winning bidder must meet or exceed the reserve price
and have the highest bid.
When there is a reserved price, bid as usual, entering the
maximum amount you're willing to pay for the item.
Watch the label next to the current price to see whether
the reserve price has been met. Until you see that the reserve
price has been met, there have been no successful bids in
the auction.
Once the reserve has been met, the item will sell to the
highest bidder when the auction closes.
If your maximum bid is the first to meet or exceed the reserve
price, the effective bid displayed will automatically be raised
to the reserve price.
Private Auction
When a seller creates a private listing, a buyer's User ID
does not appear in the listing or in the listing's bid history.
Only the seller is authorized to view the buyer User IDs associated
with that listing. Examples of when sellers use this format
include the sale of high-priced items, or approved pharmaceutical
products.
