Frequently Asked Questions

Bid-Bob.com is a Penny Auction website founded in February 2011. A Penny Auction refers to the unique format where every bid on every product increases the purchase price by only one penny. All products start with a purchase price of $0.01. Bid-Bob.com customers purchase ‘Bid Packs’ up front, and then choose which item(s) they want to bid on. A timer represents how much time is left in the auction. Each bid on our products raises the purchase price of the item by one penny, and resets the auction timer to either 10, 15, or 20 seconds. The timer then starts counting down, and the winner is the last person to place a bid when the timer first reaches ‘zero’.

Bid-Bob.com places items up for bid its website. A timer indicates how long the product remains up for auction. The person who places the last bid before the timer reaches ‘zero’ is declared the winner. Customers who wish to bid on our items need to Register for an Account, Purchase a Bid Pack, and then place actual bids on the item(s) of their choice. This concept allows us to sell great products at a price that is usually 70-99% off retail price.

You don’t have to purchase bids or bid on products to become a member of Bid-Bob. When you register for an account, you will receive periodic updates on the products up for auction and other important information. If a customer uses our referral program, it’s possible to win products on our site without actually purchasing one of our Bid Packs. Please join Bid-Bob.com right now, and witness one of the most exciting entertainment shopping experiences available.

Bid-Bob.com customers may purchase bid packs of their own, or earn free bids through our generous referral program. To purchase a Bid Pack, select ‘Purchase Bids’ from your ‘My Account’ section. Select the Bid Pack that is right for you, complete your purchase with PayPal or a major credit card, and then go bid on the product you want! To utilize our referral program, go to your ‘My Account’ section and locate the two unique codes you receive after registering at Bid-Bob.com. One of the codes will allow you to automatically recommend Bid-Bob.com to your friends on Facebook. If anyone responds and becomes a new paying customer at Bid-Bob.com, your account will automatically be credited between 10 and 30 free bids (the more new paying customers you refer, the more free bids you receive). Use the other code in general correspondence like E-Mail, Tweets, Phone Conversations, etc. If someone receives your invite to Bid-Bob.com, they can your unique referral code during the registration process. Once that person becomes a new paying customer, free bids will automatically credit to your account.

A particular auction can last from just a few seconds, maybe a few minutes, to over an hour depending on how many bidders are on the site at one time. In general, the specialty electronic items and higher priced items will last the longest. But there is always and exception to the rule, so we can’t be 100% confident on how long product auctions will last. An IPad2 could sell for $1.50 and the auction could last 3-4 minutes. You might want to observe a couple of auctions to get a better feel for the auction times.

Each product auction ends when the timer reaches ‘zero’ for the first time. When you first come to Bid-Bob.com, some items may have a few seconds left on the timer and some might have a couple of hours. The products that have 20 seconds or less remaining on the timer are usually up for active bidding. The products that have a couple of hours left are meant to show you what is coming up on Bid-Bob.com. You may place bids on any product at any time, but the auction only ends when the timer hits ‘zero’.

To give our customers a chance to bid on a product before the auction ends, and to give our active bidders a chance to respond to other customers who bid on the same product. In general, if the auction timer shows less than 20 seconds remaining, each bid will reset the timer to either 10, 15, or 20 seconds. The timer starts counting down immediately, and if it reaches ‘zero’ without someone else placing a bid then the auction is over.

First of all, scream and shout and dance around or about 10 seconds. Then come back to your computer because you need to claim your product. This final screen allows you to pay the final auction price of the item and the total shipping cost. Once you complete your payment through PayPal or a major credit card, your item is officially yours and will be on its way within 24-48 hours.

Suggested retail price is what you will pay for the product if you purchase it through a retailer or online store. We post the suggested retail price so you can calculate how much you are saving by purchasing your product through Bid-Bob.com.

We establish win limits so more of our customers can win products at Bid-Bob.com. Bid-Bob.com is a great place to purchase multiple items, but to keep things fair for the other bidders we have limits on the amount of items you can win per week or per month. Sorry to ‘bum out’ some of our frequent users, but we feel strongly about keeping the auction process fair for everyone.

Auction winners receive the exact product they bid on through Bid-Bob.com. Our product descriptions give you the exact brand and model for every item. Each product is brand new, has never been opened, and comes in the original packaging. If you are not satisfied with your item, you may return in for a full refund within 14 days of winning your auction. You may not return an item that has been opened, or one where the original packaging or seal has been removed.

Within 24-48 hours of final payment for the auction price and shipping costs. All of our items are on hand before we place them up for bid on Bid-Bob.com. If we don’t have it, you can’t bid on it.

When possible, we will provide you a UPS or FedEx tracking number once your shipment is made. If you have any questions about the status of your shipment please E-Mail us at Support@Bid-Bob.com. That is the easiest way to receive quick and accurate information.

Our referral program is an easy way for you to earn free bids at Bid-Bob.com.  For every new paying customer that you refer to Bid-Bob, we’ll give you between 10 and 30 free bids. (10 bids each for referrals 1-10, 20 bids each for referrals 11-20, and 30 bids each for all additional referrals above 20 people).  Please locate our ‘Referral and Bonus Prizes’ section for specific instructions on how to use your 2 unique referral codes provided in your ‘My Account’ section.

One of the codes allows automatic tracking through your Friend network on Facebook.  Just click on the automated referral icon in your ‘My Account’ section, and a Bid-Bob.com recommendation will appear on your Facebook wall.  Each person in your network that clicks on that Bid-Bob.com recommendation will be directed to Bid-Bob.com.  If they are a new member and purchase a bid back, the tracking software will automatically credit your account with the appropriate number of bids.  The other referral code is for manual entry when new customers come to Bid-Bob.com.  If they manually enter your referral code when registering at Bid-Bob.com, their first Bid Pack purchase will generate an automatic credit to your account for the appropriate number of bids.  This sounds harder that it really is.  You can run your Bid-Bob.com experience like a business, and never have to pay a dime for the bids you place on Bid-Bob.

On most of our product auctions, we offer bonus prizes tied to the auction price of the item.  The idea is to reward our customers that place a lot of bids on an item, but don’t end up winning the auction.  As the auction price of an item increases, more bonus prizes will be offered.  If we auction an IPad2 and it sells for $45, the winner gets the IPad2 and at least two other bidders win other prizes.  That is how we create more winners per auction.

Once an auction ends, the winner goes to finalize payment for the product and shipping costs. Bid-Bob.com will donate 5% of the gross profit of every auction provided we reach a minimum donation of $5.00. The auction winner gets to choose which charity receives the donation from Bid-Bob.com. For more information about the charities on our list, visit our ‘About our Charities’ section.

Click on the ‘My Account’ icon after you login to Bid-Bob.com. Select the option to change your profile, and type in your updated information. It should be fairly simple to chance your address, contact information, e-mail address, etc. If you have any problems whatsoever, don’t hesitate to contact us at Support@Bid-Bob.com or by calling (800) 908-2373 during our posted customer service hours.

First you need to register for an account at Bid-Bob.com. Click the ‘Register Here’ tab on the top of our main page, and then fill in all the required fields to complete your account setup. Once you have an account at Bid-Bob.com, you may purchase bids through your ‘My Account’ screen. Choose the Bid Pack you want, and then you may complete your transaction using PayPal or a major credit card.

As the auction winner, you are responsible for paying the final auction price of the product plus applicable tax and shipping costs. To finalize your product purchase after winning the auction, you will be directed to screen where you can complete your purchase through PayPal or Major Credit Card.

The easy answer is to not wait until one second let before placing your bid, but that’s not realistic all the time. Depending on your computer, internet connection, server time, etc. sometimes bids do not get registered at the last second. For information on how to run your computer and connection optimum settings for Bid-Bob.com, please see below.

Bid-Bob should work on any modern browser (Internet Explorer 7+, Firefox 3+, Chrome 6+). Bid-Bob uses javascript for timers and bid processing. Make sure you have javascript enabled in your browser. Also, javascript is client-side, meaning it runs on your computer - if you have an old or poorly functioning computer the site may not run as well as on a newer or healthier computer. Feel free to contact us if you are having issues after checking these suggestions.

You have two options. If live customer service is offered while you are at Bid-Bob.com, call our toll free number at (800) 908-2373. If you have to leave a voicemail or live customer support is not offered currently, send an e-mail to Support@Bid-Bob.com and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Go to the main page and view all the products up for bid. Choose the product you want to win, and click on the actual product to view the full description. You will be directed to the product detail page which gives you a full description of the item up for bid, the bidding history, the current auction price, and how much time is left on the timer. Start bidding, and see if you can be the last bidder before the timer counts down to ‘zero’. You may bid on multiple items from the Bid-Bob.com homepage, or if you tag a couple of favorite products in your ‘My Account’ area.

I do, but everyone has to figure out what works best for them. You can wait until the last second to place a bid on an item, and then hope no one places another bid before the timer counts down to ‘zero’ You should also consider bidding when there is 10, 15, or even 20 seconds left on the timer. You might intimidate the other bidders by placing bold bids early in the timer countdown process, and they might back off enough to let you win the item. Regardless of the strategy you choose, you will get better at bidding as you attempt to win more products.

It depends on how long the auction lasts. It will take you a couple of minutes to purchase more bids. If you are confident the item will still be available when you come back, then you can decide to take that risk. We advise purchasing plenty of bids up front so you don't run the risk of losing an item while you are in the process of purchasing more bids. This might seem like a ‘ploy’ to entice you to buy more bids than you need, but it really is a gamble when you leave an auction to purchase more bids.

You can bid on multiple items from the main page. The auction price and timer for each item is clearly visible. The advantage you have by clicking on one product is seeing the full item description, a bid history to understand how many people are bidding on that item, and viewing the shipping costs before you attempt to win the item. You can jump back and forth between the Bid-Bob.com homepage and the various product screens with no problem.