What does the Bidder have to do ?
Instructions to the end user can be given well in advance so they can be printed in event literature along with the silent auction lots. Instructions are also shown on screen.
All the user need do is send a text message to bid. The text message will be in the form of “LOT lot bid name”, i.e. (LOT 12 £300 John Smith). This allows users to tag a name to their bid to help show who is winning. The system has error correction, so if the SMS arrives with missing text, swear words or out of order text then they will be flagged to the control machine before being manually confirmed as a bid.
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Once sent the user gets a text message to confirm the auction bid. Should the user be outbid then they will receive a text to encourage them to bid again. There is also the option to have lots set up as Pledges. This is where users text an amount for a lot and all the lots are added together ("bidding on air"). Useful for raising a lot of money very quickly. |
At the end of the auction all the bidding information is passed on to allow the client to recoup the money and ensure the correct lots go to the right person. The system keeps all bids should extra lots become available or the highest bidder has difficulty paying.