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How to Create a Timed Auction

Bianca Utihata avatar
Written by Bianca Utihata
Updated this week

Getting Started

  1. Log in to the admin area.

  2. Click the Auctions & Items drop-down on the left collapsible menu, then select Create Timed Auction.


    OR

    On the Home page, click on View Auctions on the top right side, and then New Timed Auction in the same location on the following page.

General Settings Tab

  • Auction Name & Description

    • Title: max 128 characters

    • Description: max 500 characters

  • Currency – Select the auction currency (this will automatically default to the one you originally provided on your Onboarding Form).

  • Bidding Extension – Select how many minutes or seconds the item’s end time will extend by when a bid is placed within that time window.

  • Purchase Cut-Off – Set the number of hours before the auction ends when ‘Make Offer’ and ‘Buy Now’ options will be disabled.

  • Buyer’s Premium – Set the default (can be changed per item later).

  • Sales Tax

    • If applicable, tick Required and enter tax amounts for Hammer Price, Buyer’s Premium, and Charges (these act as defaults per item).

    • If not required or if tax rates vary, untick Required and provide the text you'd like displayed instead (default is “Please Contact Auctioneer”).

Auction Logo

  1. Go to the Logo tab and click Add.

  2. Drag and drop your logo or click Choose Files... to upload an image.

TIP: It is best to upload logos with an aspect ratio of 4:3 to ensure they are not cut off. This can also be achieved by adding padding around the logo to make it the right aspect ratio when uploading.

Dates

  • Select the Timezone (this will automatically default to the one you originally provided on your Onboarding Form).

  • For Webcast auctions:

    • Select the Start Date & Time

    • Tick whether Pre-Bidding is allowed

  • For Timed auctions:

    • Select the End Date & Time

  • Auction Viewing

    • Choose whether Viewing is by Appointment

    • If Yes with Dates, set the available dates; or just yes with any public-facing notes in the Comments on Viewing box

  • Clearance Dates – These are the dates, should you wish to display them, where you're telling your bidders when they can collect their items.

    Set Start and End dates if applicable (leave blank if not used).

  • Stagger End Times – Tick this box if you want lots to close one after another (rather than all at once).

Location

  • Enter the address for the auction.

  • Click Pin Point On Map to display a Google Map with a location marker.

  • To adjust the marker, drag and drop it to the correct location.

Documents

  • Here you can either:

    • Drag and drop file(s), or

    • Click Choose Files... and select the documents.

  • Optionally enter a label for each document.

  • To upload more documents, repeat the above.
    (Note: You can also attach documents to individual items.)

Contacts

  • Tick the box next to a contact name to assign them to the auction.

If no contacts are listed, refer to the How to Add Auction Contacts help article.

Supporting Content

  • To use the default content from your auctioneer settings, leave Use Auctioneer Content ticked.

  • Unticking this box allows you to customise the content for this auction only.

Catalog Config

Use this section if the auction is hosted outside of BidJS and you’re only creating a listing.

  • Tick the Catalogue Auction? box.

  • Enter the External Webpage URL where the auction is hosted.

  • (Optional) Add UTM Parameters to track click-throughs in analytics.
    👉 Learn more about UTM fields here

Saving Your Auction

  • Click on Save Auction on the bottom right.

✅ If all required fields are completed, your auction will be saved in Preview status.

⚠️ If required fields are missing, you’ll see an error message.

  • To save as a draft:

    • Tick the Save as draft box

    • Then click Save Auction
      (This allows you to save progress without completing all required fields.)

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