Bids vs. Buy It Now
There are two ways a customer can win an item in your drop: place a bid in the auction, or grab it instantly at your Buy It Now price. You can offer one or both — here’s how each works.
- Bids — customers comment a number; the highest bid when the drop ends wins.
- Buy It Now (BIN) — a set price; a bid at or above it wins the item instantly.
- Bidding and Buy It Now are set for the whole drop — choose what you want before you upload photos.
An auction
Customers comment a number to bid. Each new bid must be at least $1 higher than the current high bid.
When the drop ends, the highest bidder wins.
A set price
You pick a price. A bid at or above it wins the item right away — no waiting for the auction to end.
Buy It Now is just a price threshold, not a separate mode.
How bidding works
Customers place a bid by commenting a number on the post. The Sales Assistant reads the amount — there are no special words to remember. Each bid has to be at least $1 more than the current high bid, and the highest bid when the auction ends wins. You set how long the auction runs (6, 12, or 24 hours) in your Sales Assistant settings. For more on how comments are read and answered, see How Comments Work.
How Buy It Now works
If you set a Buy It Now (BIN) price, any bid at or above that price wins the item instantly — the drop doesn’t wait for the auction to finish. For example, if your BIN is $25 and someone comments “25” (or more), they win it right away.
Using both in a drop
Bidding and Buy It Now are set for the whole drop, not item by item. With bidding on, you can also turn on a Buy It Now price — so customers can either bid and wait, or comment your BIN price to lock an item in immediately. With bidding off, there’s no auction and items simply sell at their Buy It Now price.
Where you set it
Bidding, Buy It Now, and Delayed BIN all live in your Sales Assistant settings. Because they apply to the entire drop, pick the setup you want before you upload your photos for that drop. (You set each item’s actual prices on the review screen.)
Common questions
Do I have to offer Buy It Now?
No. You can run pure auctions with bidding only, Buy It Now only, or both together.
Does a Buy It Now bid end the auction for that item?
Yes — unless you’ve turned on Delayed BIN, a bid at or above your BIN price wins that item instantly and closes it.
What’s the smallest a bid can go up by?
$1 — each new bid must be at least a dollar above the current high bid.
Still deciding how to price a drop? Reach out — we’re happy to help you set it up.
