Hosting an online silent auction is an excellent way to raise funds while engaging your audience. However, choosing the right online silent auction website can make or break your event. The right platform ensures ease of use, maximum bidder participation, and a smooth experience for both organizers and guests.
Here are 8 ideas to consider when picking a silent auction platform for your next fundraiser.
1. Define Your Fundraising Goals and Needs
To figure out which silent auction website is right for you, start by clearly outlining your event’s objectives. When doing so, consider the following:
- Budget: Determine how much you’re willing to spend on an online silent auction site. Some platforms may charge a percentage platform fee, an upfront flat fee, or a combination of the two. Since a platform fee is typically charged at the end of the event, decide if you would prefer to pay in advance and out of pocket, or after your event.
- Audience and Scale: Are you targeting a small community group or a large national audience? The overall size of your event may influence the type of platform you choose.
- Auction Type: Will your event be completely online, live, or hybrid (a mix of live and online)? Depending on the style, you will need to make sure the platform has features to support your needs.
In terms of budget, Bid Beacon’s pricing is completely transparent and readily available on its website. Featuring a single platform fee with a platform fee cap, organizations gain pricing certainty every time they run an auction. Bid Beacon also provides zero restrictions on the size of your auction, making it easy for fundraisers to meet their needs.
Primarily used as an online silent auction platform, Bid Beacon also offers features for hybrid events. From marketing and promotional collateral to use on location, to highlighting live auction items within Bid Beacon, you can do it all.
2. Evaluate User-Friendliness
Your silent auction website should be easy to navigate for both the administrative team managing the event and the bidders participating. Here’s what to consider:
For Organizers:
- Intuitive tools for uploading items, setting starting bids, and scheduling auction start and end times.
- Multiple admin support to help set up the silent auction.
- An effective dashboard that admins can use to easily monitor bids and guest activity.
For Guests:
- A simple and straightforward registration process that doesn’t require unnecessary information.
- A mobile-friendly design for seamless bidding on smartphones and tablets.
- Confirm that item descriptions, images, and bidding instructions display in a clear way to minimize friction and get guests bidding quicker.
Known for being completely self-served, Bid Beacon’s dashboard makes it possible to set up a basic silent auction in minutes. Best of all, you can invite as many admins as possible to help get going and manage the event.
For guests, Bid Beacon was built to be responsive on any device. This means it can be used on any internet browser or by using the downloadable Bid Beacon app from the Google Play Story or App Store. Participate in Bid Beacon’s free demo auction to see the guest experience.
3. Look for Customization Options
Branding your silent auction site helps to create a cohesive experience that aligns with your organization. Here are a few features to look out for that will help your silent auction stand out.
- The ability to add your organization’s logo, brand colors, and social media profiles.
- Customizable item categories to make browsing easier for guests.
- Options to highlight both sponsors and donors throughout the silent auction website.
Bid Beacon allows organizations to upload their own logo, banner image, and apply a custom theme color. In addition to branding, auction admins can upload any number of sponsors which are prominently displayed throughout the auction. For items that are donated, you can properly acknowledge them by sharing donor details on the item pages themselves..
Lastly, you can create any number of categories to help guests navigate and find the items they care most about. The sooner guests can find items of interest, the quicker they can start placing bids which is paramount to any auction’s success.
4. Assess Promotional Capabilities
Being able to effectively promote a silent auction is key to increasing bidding activity, and if the platform you use can help, that’s even better. The best online silent auction sites will make it easy for you to spread the word. To start with, look for a platform that provides:
- Share links for individual items. This is a great way to get your silent auction in front of more potential bidders while also promoting those attention-grabbing items.
- Bulk imports of guests can significantly simplify the process of emailing invitations out to your audience.
- QR codes and direct links. Giving your audience multiple ways to preview and join the auction will guarantee more signups and overall bids.
Effective social sharing is necessary when planning for a silent auction. This is especially true for online silent auctions looking to maximize engagement and social reach. Bid Beacon makes it easy to invite bidders by importing a .CSV file with a list of emails.
For sharing purposes, every auction is equipped with its own unique URL and QR code. Auction items also come with unique URL and QR codes, making it super easy to promote both the auction and those most-valued items with ease. Best of all, when including the URL in a social post, a dynamic link preview shows relevant information from your auction.
5. Consider Payment Processing Features
A reliable silent auction platform should give organizations options when it comes to managing payment collection. Every organization is going to be different; some prefer managing funds online while others may prefer to manage payments by collecting cash, checks, accepting e-transfers, etc.
When comparing different online silent auction websites, look to see if they support:
- Multiple integrations with third-party payment providers.
- Offline payment collection outside of the platform.
- Auto-charge capabilities to simplify the auction closeout and prevent buyer’s remorse.
We understand organizations all have varying needs when it comes to managing payments, which is why we support only the most trusted third-party payment providers. With Bid Beacon, you can choose to accept payments using Express Banking through Stripe Connect, Square, PayPal, or the non-Connect version of Stripe. With the two Stripe payment options, it’s possible for organizations to automatically charge guests with winning bids which significantly improves the auction closeout process.
Alternatively, an auction can accept payments entirely offline and outside of Bid Beacon. For example, over the years, we’ve seen organizations collect cash, check, e-transfers, and even use payment apps like Venmo or Cash App. The choice is yours.
6. Explore Advanced Bidding Features
There’s no surprise that creating a competitive bidding environment drives up the silent auction’s revenue. The question is, how can you create such an environment? With the right online silent auction website, you should have access to plenty of tools that increase engagement and overall bidding activity. Look for features such as:
- Auto-Bid Options: Commonly referred to as Max Bid, this feature allows you to set a maximum bid amount on an item and have the platform bid on your behalf.
- Outbid Notifications: Real-time alerts like this are one of the main reasons why online silent auctions are so successful. When a guest is outbid, they are notified right away which helps keep everyone engaged and active up until the end.
- Multiple Item Types: In addition to having items with bid increments, look for item types where guests can purchase an item at a fixed price, or simply make a monetary donation.
Max Bid and outbid notifications are staple features of Bid Beacon that seriously drive bid totals. Both features make it extremely easy for guests to stay engaged and secure the items they care most about.
Bid Beacon also features five different item types that can be included in any auction. In addition to the standard bid-increment style, Bid Beacon supports Blind Bid, Live Item, Buy It Now, and Donation item types.
7. Prioritize Customer Support
For a lot of volunteers and organizations, it can be tough to try and learn a new silent auction platform, especially if you’re short on time. When you have access to readily available support resources, this can help reduce stress and frustration during setup. While browsing online silent auction websites, check to see if they have any of the following:
- The ability to chat with a human. This isn’t to say that chatbots aren’t useful, but sometimes, it’s nice to be able to get in touch with a real person.
- Comprehensive FAQs and support guides for self-directed troubleshooting.
- Onboarding support to help you set up your auction quickly.
Bid Beacon’s website includes detailed support guides to help admins get going and create their silent auction from the ground up. The website also features a lengthy list of FAQs and an AI-driven chatbot trained on everything related to Bid Beacon.
For more hands-on support, the Bid Beacon team uses a robust online ticketing system to manage all incoming requests, as well as hosting bi-weekly support sessions to demo and answer questions in an online group format.
8. Verify Platform Reputation
Before committing to an online silent auction website, try to research its reputation. The internet is a powerful tool which makes it relatively easy to find information on any business. To make sure you choose the perfect platform, look for:
- Reviews and Testimonials: If a website has customer reviews and testimonials, that’s a good sign of a trusted platform, but be aware that these can be forged. A best practice is to see if the platform has any reviews on Google or other third-party sites which are less likely to be faked.
- Case Studies: These act as a great form of social proof as they help to demonstrate, in greater detail, that successful fundraisers are hosted on the platform.
- Recent Activity: For reviews and testimonials, look at the most recent ones first. This is an effective way to understand the current state of the platform. Additionally, check to see if the website has recent news or blogs being posted. A website lacking new content updates could indicate that the platform itself is also outdated.
On the Bid Beacon website, there are a variety of written and video testimonials from customers, as well as case studies. As of November 2024, Bid Beacon has received over 560 reviews on Google, with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars.
Final Thoughts
Selecting the perfect online silent auction website is essential to running a successful fundraiser. Unless you are crunched for time, don’t rush this process. Take the time to research silent auction sites thoroughly, test their features, read recent reviews, and ensure they align with your organization’s needs.
With the right platform, your fundraiser is sure to surpass expectations and drive meaningful results!
