My History of Online Penny Auctions Since 2011
I began bidding on some online penny auction sites at the urging of my brother in 2011. He had been extremely lucky on several different sites so I started watching him and tried to determine what the best techniques for me would be. As I watched and learned how he was able to win, I realized that I did not have the same “luck” he did, nor did I have the desire to “always” be at the top of the board, nor did I like being a bully.
One site in particular was putting up new auctions often and the types of auctions were not always the same. Some auctions were for gift cards, household items, electronics, and of course you had the auctions for bids. There was no bid buddy on this site unlike DealDash. There also was not a buy it now option, and when they started to offer the buy it now, your bids were NOT returned to you. When shipping of your wins and buy it nows slowed down to a trickle and I got more excuses than items, I started watching other sites to see if I could find another legitimate penny auction site where winning was not so hard, not so costly, and where your auction wins and buy it nows were actually mailed to you. Not a promise to mail, but REALLY mailed.
I moved on to several other sites and tried my luck. Again, my brother was a big influence because he continued to be “lucky”, he encouraged me to try DealDash and I watched the auctions for a several weeks before I thought I might go ahead and try it. Boy, did I make a mistake! Thinking I knew what auctions were all about I slapped repeatedly through my first 300 bids and never won a thing. I couldn’t believe it. Why weren’t the other bidders quitting? Didn’t they see I was serious? I wasn’t going to quit! Ha Ha. All my bids were gone and I had nothing to show for it. Now, I look back on the whole experience as a “newbie” who really had not done her homework. I could have saved myself a lot of bids if I had sat back a while and really watched how DealDash worked.
Still searching for a site to be comfortable with, I went to several other sites that are listed on the All Penny Auction site. I tried many but did not do well after my first beginner auctions were won. The beginner auction is a great way to learn how a site works, but it is also a great way to feel super confident until you get in bidding wars with the big fish! Not realizing the big fish can’t swim in the little pond, you really can’t see what you are in for once your quota of beginner auctions is met and you are out in the deep water!
ALSO READ: Learn To Swim Before Diving In
Needless to say after a few “not so nice” emails to customer service at DealDash, about how I could not win on their site, I decided to try to be a little more patient, pay a little more attention to the bidders who are in an auction, and only bid on items that I am willing to buy. Let me tell you I never received an unkind word from anyone at DealDash, nor was I ever told to try another site if I wasn’t happy. (This was suggested at the first site I mentioned.) It didn’t take long for me to “get it”, and I began to actually win. My gift cards and auction items I win are mailed to me within a week and sometimes even sooner. I have won some amazing items on DealDash but I usually go after the gift cards. Gift cards make great gifts, they help me save for the big items, (I just bought a Toro snow blower at Home Depot), and I only go after the cards I know I can use nearby.
The most valuable item I have won so far is an HP laser printer. The most surprising part of the win was I set my bid buddy and went to work. Imagine my surprise when I got home and looked at my win counter at the top of the screen and I had won an item worth more than $200! The auction sold for only $12.74 and I received the printer in 2 days! Imagine my surprise to have it delivered that quickly.
So after several attempts at other sites I have come back to DealDash and appreciate the site for what it has to offer.
Customer service at DealDash is excellent, I always get a response to my emails, and the buy it now feature lets me replay the bids I used earlier. I am a true fan and look forward to a future of bidding and winning on DealDash. This is MY history of penny auction sites. Do your homework, learn what you can from others, and I know you won’t be sorry.
By Joan Vith
