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How to declare auction item winners and record offline payments

Manually declare winners for auction items and log offline payments

Alyssa avatar
Written by Alyssa
Updated this week

With Givebutter's enhanced auction features, you can manually declare winners for auction items and record offline payments directly from your dashboard. These tools are especially useful for hybrid events, accommodating offline bids, and handling special circumstances.

You can manually declare an auction item's winner from the Items page. You may need to designate a winning bidder manually if bids are placed offline, bidders can't complete a transaction themselves, or other special arrangements have been made. The winning bidder must be registered for the auction before being manually declared the winner.

You can manually declare winners (on desktop) for:

✅ Live items with a Buy Now price set

✅ Private/Hidden items with a Buy Now price set

✅ Paused items with a Buy Now price set

You cannot declare a winner (on desktop) for:

Live items without a Buy Now price set

Private/Hidden without a Buy Now price set

Paused items without a Buy Now price set

Unsold items with or without a Buy Now price set

Sold items with or without a Buy Now price set

Canceled items with or without a Buy Now price set

Manually declare a winner 🏆

To manually declare a winner for an auction item:

  • Navigate to your campaign's Auction tab.

  • Click on Items and locate the item you wish to assign a winner to.

  • Click the three dots [...] on the right-hand side of the item, and click Declare Winner.

declare winner
  • Choose a registered bidder from the list.

  • Enter the final bid amount/price of the item. (If applicable, the Buy Now price will be displayed if a lower number is entered. Reserve prices won't be flagged.)

  • Select one of the following payment options:

    • Charge saved payment method – Bidder will be charged immediately.

    • Send payment request – Bidder will be sent a payment request/invoice via email.

    • Record offline payment – Mark this payment as received outside of Givebutter.

  • Confirm the amount on the next screen, and click Charge/Request.

Charge bidder 💳

If you select to charge a bidder's saved payment method, you'll see the payment method the bidder saved when registering for your auction. Fees are noted here before charging the bidder. Fees charged include a 5% platform fee, plus a 2.9% + $0.30 processing fee.

Payment request 📫

If you select to send the winner a payment request, you'll see a summary of the charge and a note that they are being sent an emailed payment request/invoice. The fees that the winner will incur by completing payment via payment request are noted here. Fees charged include a 5% platform fee, plus a 2.9% + $0.30 processing fee.

payment request

Offline payments 📝

If you mark an auction item as paid offline, you must select an offline payment method. Options include:

  • Cash

  • Check – Enter a check number and deposit date, as applicable.

  • In-kind

  • Stock

  • Property

  • Other

You can also log an offline payment for a completed item from the Winning Bids page. No fees are charged for logging offline payments, because no online processing by Givebutter takes place. Please note that offline payments collected outside of Givebutter won't be included in your Givebutter payouts.

offline payment

Using the mobile app📱

For in-person events, the Givebutter mobile app allows you to manage auction items seamlessly:

  • Declare winners: Assign winners for items directly from your device.

  • Collect payments: Process payments using saved payment methods or via Tap to Pay.

  • Track item status: Monitor which items are pending, completed, or need attention.

Learn more about using the mobile app for auction management in our dedicated guide. Please note that you cannot extend auction items from the mobile app.

FAQ 🤔

I can't manually declare a winner for an auction item.

You won't be able to manually declare a winner or log offline payments for auction items that have been cancelled or paused.


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