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How to Set Up and Launch your Silent Auction

Learn how to configure, publish, and go live with your silent auction on Trellis.

Enable Silent Auctions

  1. From your Dashboard, click Edit on the fundraiser you're working on.
  2. In the sidebar, navigate to Silent & Live Auctions.
  3. Toggle on Enable Auctions. If you selected "Silent Auction" during your initial setup wizard, this may already be enabled.
  4. Leave Show silent auction tab to donors disabled for now — you'll turn this on when you're ready to launch.

Configure Auction Settings

  1. Click Auction Settings in the left-hand menu.
  2. Set your auction Start Date/Time and End Date/Time.
  3. Choose who covers transaction fees — the purchaser or your organization.

  4. Select your preferred bidding visibility: enable Anonymous Bidding to hide bidder names, or leave it off to show names publicly. Either way, you can always view all bids under Dashboard > Results > Bids.
  5. Enable Auction Notifications to alert donors when bidding opens. You can customize this email in the Messaging System.

  6. Review the Auction Upsells. We recommend having both of these toggled on:
    • Donate Your Bid — allows losing bidders to donate their bid amount.
    • Overtime Bidding — extends bidding by 2 minutes if a bid is placed in the final 2 minutes.
  7. Optionally, enable the Auction Item Donation Form to collect items directly from your network. Learn more about the donation form.

Heads Up! Your auction starts and closes automatically based on these settings, and credit cards are charged as soon as the auction ends. Double-check your end date and time before publishing.

Add Your Sponsors

Add your Sponsors before adding your auction items to easily link them. See How to Add Auction Sponsors for a full walkthrough.

Add Your Auction Items

Add your silent auction items before going live. See How to Create Silent Auction Items for a full walkthrough.

Launch Your Silent Auction

  1. Toggle on Show silent auction tab to donors.
  2. Click Publish Changes.
  3. Set your fundraiser page status to Live.

Pro Tip: Want to preview your auction before showing it to donors? Follow this guide on previewing your silent auction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I change an auction item from Silent to Live if it already has bids?

Yes, you can change the Offering Type from Silent to Live while your auction is open if the item has bids. The bids will remain when you switch the Offering Type and will be reflected in your Live Auction Preview section if not deleted manually.

How does anonymous bidding work?

When the Anonymous Bidding toggle is enabled, on the auction item pages, bidding history will be hidden from other bidders, so they can only see the current winning bid amount. No bidder names or past bids are shown.

You can still see all bids that have been placed in the Dashboard under Auction Bids.

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Need Help?

Did this answer your question? If not, please reach out to our Product Engagement Team via the blue chat icon or email support@trellis.org.