Tips for Absentee Bidding with Rock Island Auction
Note: The term absentee bidding is used interchangeably with sealed/telephone bidding at RIAC.
1. Bid early! each and every auction we get thousands of absentee bids. With all the bids we receive there are always many tie absentee bid amounts on the same item. To break the tie between other absentee bidders, we take the bid that was received first.
2. If you really want to win an item, Bid your maximum amount! Your bids are executed against the live crowd and other absentee bidders. We do not start the bidding off at your maximum bid amount! We try and win items for absente bidders as cheaply as possible.
3. Use the bid increment table to your advantage. For example: You place a bid for an item with a maximum amount of $1,900. Consider raising that bid to $2,000. By doing that you will force another bidder to jump to the next level in the bid increments. In this case if you bid $1,900, another bidder would only have to go to $2,000 to beat your bid. If you bid $2,000 the next bid increment is $2,250. This forces the other bidders to bid $250 over your bid instead of $100.
4. Find the related items in the auction. Our auctions many times can have multiple items of the same type, but are in the auction different days. If you know where the items are at in each day of the auction, not winning on day 1 gives you the chance to bid on a similar item on day 2 or day 3. Check your account each night, or the morning before the next auction starts. If you bid on the website we post results of your bids in your 'Current Bids'. If you did not win anything on Friday, check the remaining two days of the auction and bid again.
5. Conditional bidding. With so many great items in the auction we can assist you with conditional bids. For example, some customers have a maximum they can spend at the auction, say that maximum is $10,000. If that amount is reached at any point in the auction we cancel your remaining bids. Another scenario would be: If I win lot number xxx cancel my bid on lot xxx (assuming that lot has not come up for auction). You Must Call 800-238-8022 and we can work with you for reasonable conditions.
6. If you are only going to bid absentee, then by all means place your bids on the RIAC website. Absentee bids are also accepted on the live bidding sites we list our auctions with...Proxibid, ICollector and ArtFact/AuctionZip. These sites all take absentee bids, however you are also charged an additional 3% that is added to the buyer's premium for using their service. You can place the same bids on our site without the additional 3%. If you would like to bid LIVE on your computer during the auction by all means use one of these services.
7. Bid Estimates: Every auction lot has a low and high estimated value. This does not mean the item must sell in that estimate range. You can bid above or below the estimates. The price estimates are based on our specialists research of current market selling prices of similar items, and other factors depending on the item. Most items sell in or near these estimate ranges.
8. Live Bidding: There are two ways to bid live without attending the auction in person. The first is by telephone. You can use our website to find the items you want to bid on just as you would an absentee bid. When adding the item to your bid cart change the option under “Bid Type” from Sealed Bid to Telephone Bid. When you submit your bids you will enter in a phone number we can reach you with on each day of the auction. One of our telephone bidding representatives will call you a few minutes (8 – 10 lots) prior to the item coming up for auction .
The other way to live bid is to use one of the companies RIAC lists its catalog with. Proxibid, ICollector and AuctionZip/ArtFact. You will need to create an account with one of these companies prior to the start of the auction. There is also an additional 3% live bidding fee added to the buyer's premium for using this service. Note to users of one of the Live bidding services: the auction moves very fast, most lots are only up for auction for about 30 seconds. Be prepared to bid your maximum amount. If there is any delay in getting the bid the auctioneers will sell the lot and move on.
Bidding Tips - Telephone Bidding
