ClickBid 101

Landing Page Builder
Landing Page
Items
Items
Bidders
Bidders
Ticket Page
Ticket Page
Butler
Butler
Event Readiness Walkthrough
Event Readiness
Post-Event
Post-Event Walkthrough
Previous Lesson
Next Lesson

Items

ClickBid 101 Items

ClickBid 101: Items

Getting your items set up well from the start makes everything downstream, bidding, packaging, thank you letters, easier. This walkthrough covers everything from the video above, from adding your first item to printing display cards.

Quick Summary

  • Add items one at a time, or download the bulk import template under Items > Manage Items. Images are uploaded separately.
  • Set Pricing Defaults so starting bids and bid increments auto-populate as a percentage of fair market value.
  • Every item needs a status (Active, Closed, or Invisible), a category, an availability setting, and a closing time.
  • Choose an item type, Silent, Live, Donation, or Quantity, each with its own fields.
  • Add donor info and up to 10 images per item.
  • Use Batch Update to change many items at once, and Package Items to bundle multiple items together.
  • Manage item donors, the item donation form, and item donor thank you letters from the Items tab.
  • Print item display cards, including QR codes bidders can scan to bid directly.

Step 1: Add Items Individually or in Bulk

Go to Items > Manage Items. From here you can add a single item, or scroll down to download the mass import template.

ℹ️ The template only requires an item name and item type. Everything else can be edited after you upload. Item images aren’t included in the template, they’re uploaded separately under the Manage Item Images tab, where you can drag and drop multiple images at once.

💡 When saving an image file on your device before uploading, name the file after the item number so the system attaches it to the right item automatically.

Step 2: Set Your Pricing Defaults

At the top of Manage Items, you’ll find Pricing Defaults and Winning Text Message settings.

  1. Enter a percentage of fair market value to use as your default starting bid (for example, 30%).
  2. Enter a percentage to use as your default bid increment raise (for example, 5%).
  3. Click Save.

ℹ️ The winning text message goes out automatically based on your item closing time, if enabled under your auction settings, and only to your silent auction winning bidders.

Step 3: Fill Out the Core Item Fields

  1. Enter an Item Name. Keep it short, you can add more detail in the description field further down.
  2. Confirm or customize the Item Number. Numbers start at 100 and count up automatically, but you can set your own.
  3. Set the Item Status: Active for anything open for bidding, Closed if you’re just previewing the item, or Invisible if it’s not ready for public view yet.
  4. Choose a Category to help bidders browse and search your bid site.
  5. Set Availability: All Bidders (the default) or Checked-In Bidders, which only shows the item to guests who have been physically checked in through the Butler.
  6. Confirm the Closing Time. This defaults to 11:55 PM, so use the sort arrows on the Manage Items page to double check everything matches what you intend.

💡 An Invisible status is also useful for items you want to sell exclusively through the Butler at the event, like a raffle ticket or wine pull.

Step 4: Choose an Item Type

The fields below this section change based on the item type you select:

  • Silent: great for anything bidders will place bids on from a phone or laptop.
  • Live: for items sold with an auctioneer.
  • Donation: for general donations, fund-a-need, or paddle raise appeals.
  • Quantity: for set-price items with a limited quantity, like t-shirts, centerpieces, or wine pulls.

For a silent item, enter the fair market value. If you’ve set pricing defaults, the starting bid and bid increment will auto-populate. You can also set a Buy Now price, letting a bidder purchase the item outright instead of bidding. Use the description and extras fields for additional detail or exceptions, for example blackout dates on a travel package.

Step 5: Add Donor Info and Images

Under Donor Information, search for an existing donor by name and select them from the dropdown, or create a new one by tabbing through the fields like a spreadsheet. If a Donor Display Name is entered, bidders will see who donated the item while they’re bidding. An item package can list multiple donors.

Under Image Details, you can add up to 10 images per item in PNG or JPEG format, using the recommended sizing shown on the page. Drag images to reorder them, the first image in the rotation is what bidders see as the preview.

Step 6: Set Type-Specific Options

Depending on the item type, you’ll see a few additional options:

  • Live items let you set a reserve amount.
  • Donation items let you allow monthly giving, allow checkout later, and show giving activity and comments (donors can leave a comment before completing their donation). You can also set custom denominations, defaults will show if you leave this blank, and donors can always enter a custom amount.
  • Quantity items have their own setup considerations depending on what you’re selling, see the Related Best Practices section below for raffle- and e-commerce-specific guides.

For donation items, Projected Display Settings let you show a thermometer-style display on a screen. Choose a theme, save the item, then use the link that appears to preview how the appeal display will look based on your settings.

Step 7: Make Batch Updates

Manage Items only shows 10 items at a time by default. When making bulk changes, click Show All, select the items you want to update, and scroll down to the Batch Update section.

ℹ️ Only make one type of change at a time in the batch update section. Common examples are updating item status to Active when you’re ready for bidding, or updating closing times so nothing is left at the 11:55 PM default.

You can also filter first by tag, item number, or item type, so you can give your silent items one closing time and your live items another.

To remove items, select them, scroll to the batch update section, choose Delete, and click Update.

⚠️ Deleted items cannot be brought back, and you cannot delete an item that already has bids on it.

Step 8: Package Items Together

  1. Select the items you want to group and click Package Items.
  2. ClickBid uses Auction GPT to suggest a package title and description, which you can edit however you’d like.
  3. Search for and add additional items to the package if needed.
  4. Select up to 10 images to keep across the combined items.
  5. Click Finish.

ℹ️ Starting bid and bid increment default to zero on a package unless you’re using the pricing defaults feature. Packaged items are also given a number in the 9000 range, so they’re easy to spot later.

To remove one item from a package, open the package and click the unlink button, then click Update, it will show in red to confirm it’s been removed. If you unlink down to just one remaining item, the package breaks entirely. Your items are not deleted, they simply return to being separate, unpackaged items.

Step 9: Manage Item Donors and the Item Donation Form

Under Items > Manage Donors, you can add donors the same tab-through way described in Step 5. Any donors you already added while creating individual items will show here too.

If someone submits the Item Donation Form directly, their donation will appear on this page and on Manage Items with an Invisible status. Your event admin, listed under Software Settings > Event Settings > Event Support Contact, receives an email notification. If the same donor gives more than once, you can group those donations together under one donor record.

The item donation form can be shared using its direct link, or added to your event landing page. You can also add custom questions to the form: go to Items > Manage Items, scroll past the batch update section to Custom Questions, then write your question, choose a text or dropdown response, and mark it required if needed.

Step 10: Print Item Display Cards

Under Items > Display Cards, choose which details to show or hide on printed cards for your event.

💡 Turning on the item QR code lets a bidder who’s already logged in scan the card and go straight to that item to place a bid.

Step 11: Send Thank You Letters to Item Donors

Under Items > Thank You Letters, you’ll find default letter text and a set of shortcodes (listed on the right) that pull in donor and item details automatically from your Manage Donors information. Toggle which fields to include, and your letters will generate accordingly.

Related Best Practices

Items Overview and Setup

Quantity Items and E-Commerce

Item Donation Form and Donors

Fair Market Value and Tax

Previous Lesson
Back to Course
Next Lesson