32auctions

I hosted 2 silent auctions with 32auctions. We exceeded our goal by 50% on the first auction and by 110% on the second auction.

It really only takes a few minutes to create an auction.

Sharing an auction is simple using the auction link (which you get to create) or through the QR codes they automatically create for you.

Collecting payments is SO easy.

Bidders can pay for their personal invoice of items won. It's that simple!

TITLE: GREAT IDEA, WATCH OUT FOR HIDDEN FEES AND NOT THE BEST SUPPORT

RATING: 2.5 out of 5

I used 32Auctions "Free" function to raise money for a local charity that provides low-income housing to students. I read all the content that was posted on the "Free" version.

The auction commenced, we almost reached our goal, and 32auctions site was insanely intuitive, easy to use, and awesome for our auction.

BUT THEN.

The Charity was hit with fees. Apparently, there was information about fee collections that WAS NOT mentioned at all on the "features included with every auction" page...and apparently it contained a BUTTON THAT IS EASILY MISSED EXPLAINING FEES (this button was later sent to me by support after I reached out asking politely why we had been charged for a free service).

I was bummed. So I wrote in again, because fees, after all is what I was trying to avoid by using the free version. I was super grateful to the organization for its existence and ease of use, so I just wanted to know how the fees originated and how I could have avoided them.

Steve, for 32auctions support, sent me the link where I found the aforementioned payment collection button. I repeat, it was not on the page that mentioned free features even where the free features cited payment collection. It's also where I noticed the fees were on a SEPARATE page from the explanation of the Free service. This was very confusing, as 32auctions deliberately makes it seem as though PayPal was a free option - even while connecting the charity's PayPal account to 32auctions, there was no mention of fees. It apparently only lives under that one button, so easily missed on their homepage and so obviously left out of every page onward. When I wrote him back pointing that out, I was even more disappointed than before.

His email began by calling me Jennifer. If he didn't even pay attention to who the email was coming from, you can guess that he was less than invested in his response and my concerns in general. He was polite, but he spit back a response that mimicked what he had said previously. He said that I as the admin was prompted with a link to turn on the payments feature (which I was) and that it mentioned the collection fees at that time (which it didn't). I appreciated the fast response, but I was left discouraged and referred to as Jennifer, which would have been NBD except that my name is Jessica.

SO, IN WRAPPING UP:

Pro: Fast customer service, I guess. Though I would have preferred to exercise pacience and felt heard, instead. Actual live-auction, super easy. Actual payments-collection, not so much.

Cons: HIDDEN FEES. Or, hidden buttons explaining the fees? Regardless, I was trying to RAISE money not PAY money.

Redemption: If they had come back and said, "HEY TRUE WE CALLED IT FREE AND THEN MADE NO MENTION ABOUT PAYMENT COLLECTION FEES ON THE FREE PAGE" or even acknowledged that it's mis-leading, I would have at least felt better. But alas, see for yourself. I would gladly re-consider this review if I had a better customer service and/or a refund of fees that were collected for the "free" service.

LINK to free page: https://www.32auctions.com/pages/pricing.html

LINK that Steve sent me: https://www.32auctions.com/pages/pricing.html#payments

I admire what 32auctions is trying to do here, and I get that it's a business, but I operated this whole time based on their marketing for a free service and was blind-sided by the fees that accrued. If there are fees involved during payment collections, MENTION THEM ON THE FREE FEATURES BUTTON PAGE WHERE YOU HAVE EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO LINK IT AT LEAST (they even mention multiple currencies and shipping fees as a free option here...), not on a button that's listed "Payment Collection" and on a completely separate page.