Penny auctions are an exciting and fun way to shop for your favorite items. They provide the chance to save up to 99% off the retail values. Penny Auctions can be confusing for the newcomer, so we are going to give you a quick lesson on what you need to know before you start. Remember, this information is tailored to BidPigs Penny Auctions and may not apply for all penny auction sites!

The first thing you need to know is that there are several different types of auctions here at Bidpigs.com. We offer standard auctions, nailbiter auctions, free bid auctions, reserve auctions and beginner auctions, just to name a few. To learn more about the different auction types please visit the auction types lesson. In this lesson, we will only deal with the standard, or pigpenny auction type. In the Pigpenny auction, brand new retail items (unless otherwise noted) are placed up for bid. These items are in stock and ready to ship. You never need to worry about not getting your items because BidPigs never lists products that they don’t have!

Each item is started with a begin price, usually $0.00, and has a timer attached to the item. If someone is interested in this item they would place a "bid" for the item. In order to place that bid, you must first have a bid credit. Bid credits are sold in a variety of packs and prices. You can buy bids by clicking on any of the buy bids links on the main page, or by visiting your profile pages. With each bid the price of the item increases by a set amount, usually $0.01. You can’t bid higher and you can’t set a different amount to bid. Once you have placed your bid, you are the high bidder. If the timer for that auction ends before anyone else bids, you have just won that item for the bid price listed, plus applicable shipping and tax!! If someone places a bid after yours, then you need to use another bid credit to re-take the lead for the item. Once a bid credit is placed, it expires and is non-refundable. The only exception to this is the Buy it Now option. You can learn more about this very important feature by visiting the help section, or continuing to the Buy it Now lesson.

Another important feature of the penny auction is the timer reset. Once the timer on any item gets below 2 minutes, any bid placed on the item will add 15 seconds to allow rebuttal bids. It is the most important part of penny auction play to know that in order to win YOU MUST BE ON TOP WHEN TIME ENDS. There is no need to wait until the last second to bid. You should bid quickly and often in order to win the item that you want! You also need to remember that BidPigs does not guarantee any bid placed below 3 seconds due to internet latency issues.

We hope you found this lesson helpful and are now ready to register and try this fun shopping platform! Registration is free, easy and best of all, you get 3 free bids! Register now!

Visit the Help Pages for additional information on how BidPigs features work.