Purpose of Guide: To help both buyers and sellers enjoy mystery auctions. There are things to avoid when entering the world of mystery auctions but there are also things to enjoy! So read on and get educated!

Division of Guide: Four parts, guys. Intro, sellers section, buyers section, conclusion.

Length: It's about two pages, easy read. Should take you about 2-4 minutes.

MYSTERY AUCTIONS 101

by: Helga R

INTRODUCTION

Mystery auctions are great for both the buyer and the seller. Unfortunately, they have recently taken on a bit of a bad reputation on both sides. For buyers, there is a fear of bidding on "unwanted" items that are not worth much.  For sellers, there is a fear of scammers, people who only bid on their auctions to play the game and occassionally, to win freebies, and not to win the actual mystery box.  Regardless, of the mixed experiences that sellers and buyers have, mystery auctions can be fun and they can be quite successful for both the buyer and the seller. 

SELLERS:

So you want to set up a Mystery Auction, right? Well, the best thing you can do for your bidders is be honest. And yes, this is very hard since part of the game is not being direct with your customers. However, just because part of the game is guessing does not mean that you should MISLEAD your bidders.  Even though eBay policies state that the bidder is only bidding on a box, the bidder wants more than just a box. They want quality goods. Many folks out there use mystery boxes to get rid of their "unwanted items" and while I believe the saying: one person's trash can be another person's treasure, I have heard horror stories about the horrible items being given away in these boxes. Please try your best to give out good items.

Tip #1: To avoid misleading a bidder, be as honest as you can in your clues and don't exaggerate!

Some Do's:

• Do make your auction unique!

By now, mystery auctions seem to be a whole new craze. Bidders love them because they are fun and exciting. However, most of them have gotten dull and common place. Add clipart to your auction. Add color and dazzle! Make it a fun place to be in! I love to add little "gift" icons and "party icons" and say things like "It's a celebration because we have 10 bids and I have just added one more gift to this box!"

• Do give away extra gifts!

Many sellers give away all their prizes in their descriptions. I think a better technique is to divide your gifts. What I mean is this, if you have 10 items to give away, simply state in your description that you have 5 items in the mystery box. Then, leave the other five items for gifts! At the end of the auction, you are giving away the same number of gifts, 10. However, now you winner feels like he/she has won something extra, which is always more fun!

Relating to prizes, here is a BIG Don't:

• Don't give away prizes to bidders. Only give away prizes to your auction winner.

Some sellers may disagree with me because giving away prices to bidders seems to increase your sales. Well, at first glance it probably seems like an ideal incentive, however, there is a drawback to this technique. What these types of auctions end up doing is drawing in people who only want free stuff. If these people win your auction, they will not pay! There have been numerous sellers who have lost a lot of time and money because of this.  If you give away free gifts to bidders, you are risking drawing in freeloaders. It's that simple. I mean think about it, why would a person want to buy something from you when they can get it for free? Moreover, the focus of your auction will soon become the freebies and not the mystery box which defeats the entire purpose of your auction. THE MAIN ATTRACTION SHOULD BE YOUR MYSTERY BOX NOT SOME RANDOM FREEBIE. 

Now, this is not to say that you should NOT give away gifts. As I have mentioned above, I love giving extra stuff too. However, I believe in giving these gifts only to the winner of the auction. The way I do it is the following:

I have a quiz question and I state: The bidder who answers this question correctly will receive an extra free gift IF he is the winner of the auction!

Thus, it is clear to the bidder that he/she will only receive this freebie if he wins the auction.  Now, the incentive is to win your auction and not to try and be lucky and win some random "freebie." 

Another do:

• Do educate your bidders!

I think that education is the key. I love adding links to this forum to my auctions. I usually state the following:

This is a mystery auction and it is very fun IF you understand the rules of the game. Please do yourself a favor and read the following [insert link to forum or policies section]. 

This does two things, it informs my bidders and thus ensures me that I will have a smoother auction process and two, it creates a sense of trust and security in the buyer. They see you as a person who is trying to help them and not scam them. Do you think a person would rather buy from a trustworthy person or a mysterious seller? The former always win.

BUYERS:

Mystery auctions are fun and not all sellers are trying to sell you unwanted items. I know that most of the items I sell are brand new and hot sellers. The best thing for you to do is to check a seller's feedback and to check up on how past auctions have gone. Were the winner's happy? You can be bold enough to even email a winner (simply check the seller's feedback, locate a mystery auction, locate the winner, enter their feedback, and click on "contact member").  Email this person and ask them if they were happy. Ask them what was in the msytery box. This way, you can get an idea of how this seller works.

Tip: You want to know what's in the box? ASK QUESTIONS!!

Many buyers believe that there is a limit to the number of questions that you can ask. This is NOT true. You are able to ask as many questions as you want. Of course, the seller may not always be willing to answer. Especially if you ask: What is your item? Lol. Big no, no.  Just ask stuff like "Are these items you frequently sell in your store?" Things that don't give away the big mystery but that do help you get a mental picture.

CONCLUSION

Mystery auctions were created to have fun, to make money, to give away great items for less! Even though there are things that buyers and sellers should be careful about, mystery auctions are still fun and popular.  Please remember to educate yourself! 

Final words: For sellers, be careful with how you attract bidders to your auctions. Buyers: Ask all questions before bidding!

Well, I hope you guys have fun creating and bidding on mystery auctions! I know I do!