Let's Learn:
Your auction does not go live automatically. You need to publish your homepage and set an open date for your auction. This article walks you through every step so nothing is missed on launch day.
Before You Go Live — Required Steps
Complete all of the following before your intended open date. We recommend finishing these at least 48 hours in advance.
Step 1. Connect your payment processor
Go to Close Out > Get Ready > Confirm Payment Processor.
You must complete this step before bidders can register or purchase tickets. If you are using FrontStream Global Fund (FGF), this is already configured. If you are connecting Stripe, follow the prompts to link your Stripe account.
If you see a "Reconnect Stripe" message, see How to Reconnect Your Stripe Account.
Step 2. Create and activate your homepage
Go to Event > Homepages. If no homepage exists, click Create Homepage.
Once created:
Add your hero image, Headline & Main Text, Live Event Details. You can also set your Auction Features, featured Sponsors, and Featured Items on this page.
Click Save Homepage to save the homepage details.
-
Click Activate Homepage.
Until this step is done, visitors will see a placeholder page instead of your customized homepage.
Important: Saving your homepage and activating it are two separate steps. Always confirm the page shows as "Active" before your event opens.
Note: Please note that the Preview button is currently under enhancement and may still display the previous version of your auction interface when selected. Our team is actively working on improving this feature to ensure it reflects the updated experience soon.
Step 3. Set your auction open and close dates
Go to Event > Set Up > Online Auction Dates.
Set both the open date/time and the close date/time. Your auction will not be publicly accessible for bidding until the open date is reached, even if your homepage is active.
Tip: You can share your auction URL before the open date — visitors will see the Coming Soon page (if enabled) or a "Bidding Opens [Date]" message.
Step 4: Publish your items
Items in Draft status are not visible to bidders. Go to Items tab and confirm all items you want active is under the Published Items page. To bulk-publish, you can either select multiple draft items that you want to publish and choose Move Selected to Publish or if you want ALL items to be published, select "Publish all Items".
Step 5. Test as a bidder
Open your auction's public URL in a private/incognito browser window and walk through the bidder experience:
Can you register as a bidder?
Can you add a credit card?
Can you see all published items?
If you're selling tickets, can you complete a ticket purchase?
This test will catch most configuration issues before real bidders encounter them.
Day-of Launch Checklist
On the day your auction opens, verify the following:
✅ Auction open date/time has passed — items should now show "Place Bid" buttons
✅ Homepage is activated and displaying your correct banner/colors
✅ All items are published
✅ Payment processor is connected (check Close Out > Get Ready)
✅ Ticket sales are enabled and the "Order Tickets" button appears on the homepage (if applicable)
✅ Any scheduled promotional emails are set to send
Common "My Auction Isn't Live" Questions
Q: I activated my homepage but bidders can't bid yet.
A: Check that your auction open date/time has been set and has passed. Activating the homepage and opening the auction for bidding are separate settings.
Q: The homepage looks right to me, but bidders are seeing an old/different version.
A: Ask bidders to clear their browser cache (Ctrl+Shift+R / Cmd+Shift+R) and reload. CDN caching can delay updates by up to 15 minutes.
Q: My items show on preview but not on the live page.
A: Confirm items are in "Published" status, not "Draft." Preview shows both published and draft items to admins.
Q: Ticket purchases aren't going through.
A: Confirm your payment processor is connected under Close Out > Get Ready. Ticket orders require an active payment processor even if you plan to manually charge later.
Q: The "Order Tickets" button isn't appearing on the homepage.
A: Check the start date on your ticket type under Event > Tickets. The button only appears after that date is reached.
Related Articles
BiddingForGood New UI — Homepage Customization & Image Guide
Comments
0 comments
Article is closed for comments.