My First Online Auction: What Not to do at an Online Auction

Today was my first online auction, and I am afraid I made a few mistakes and lost out on my favorite item.

I noticed an auction site at the entry to my allotment a few weeks ago. Initially, I thought the local country club was being updated and selling off the older furniture left after its recent sale. But, last week I read the sign and found it was at one of the homes in the neighborhood and it was an estate sale.

My First Experience with an Online Auction

I went online to the holder of the sale and managed to locate the auction. I expected to find a date and place to go for the sale but then read it was an online auction.

You had to sign up for the auction and provide your information and a means of payment: credit card or bank account information. I signed up and then was able to view the online catalog.

There were over 200 items; mainly oak furniture and it was high-quality oak furniture: well made and in good condition.

What I Did Wrong at the Auction

I could have gone to the house and viewed what was available a couple of days before the auction but did not go. Mistake #1. Had I gone, I would have seen the size and condition of the items ordered. Dimension/size was not provided for all items. Grouped items were in boxes; some frames and books, but I could not judge their value by the online auction pictures.
I did not make a list of the items and lot numbers of the items I wanted to buy. Had I done that, I could have looked up the value of the artists and makers listed on the offering.
I did do one thing CORRECTLY. I decided a price not to exceed on each item I wanted, and I did not start bidding until one hour before the end of the auction. By making a top bid and by waiting until the last minute, I could stop myself from getting caught up in the romanticism of bidding and trap myself in a bidding war.
My biggest mistake, however, was leaving the auction before the end of the process. I made four “my highest bid” bids and left Later when I returned, I found out the three items for which I placed my highest bids, I only won one. The other two went to other buyers. I still have some confusion on this, as my most senior request did exceed the winning bids. It seems I did not make the bid correctly. Had I stayed online till the close of bidding, I would have known exactly that my highest bid was recognized.

phone stand — Phone stand I loved but Lost

dressing table bureau — Phone stand I loved but Lost

What I Lost (and Won)

I did manage to get a lovely oak lamp table. I will most likely paint the table for resale in the online shop.

Sadly, I lost out on the phone stand I so wanted, but I guess it was not meant to be.

There was a beautiful dressing table that the auction house marked as marred- it had water stains on the top. I know John could have removed those and fixed the finish in a day, but because I did not keep a record of my initial sighting, I lost out and could not find that item when I looked on the final day.

I have gone to public auctions before and found them to take too long. The item you want might not come up for bidding for a couple of hours. Also, I do tend to bid on things I really don’t want and to make matters worse; I tend to overbid.

Mary’s Insight on Online Auctions

I did call the auction house with my concerns about losing my highest bids. Mary told me they could track the bidding online, and I did not push the final bid thought. I did not do the final step in the bid. Now I know how to make sure my bid goes through.

Mary also told me that if someone makes a bid in the final minute, the bidding automatically stays open to give others a chance to update their submissions.

Mary also recommended downloading the company app on my phone, so if I am called away from the computer, I can still view and update my progress.