BidPal

Watch out paper and pencil! There are new tools on the block for silent auctions….they’re called BidPals. So lets talk about them. The BidPal network is a fairly new company that uses wireless LAN networks to conduct silent charity auctions.

So here’s how it goes. The charity organization buys BidPal’s services to conduct the silent auction. Several days before the auction, BidPal receives the information for each auction item (such as item description, starting bid, and minimum raise) from the client and loads it into a database. Several hours before the auction, BidPal arrives to the auction site and sets up its own wireless LAN network that connects to a central server with all the auction information on it. The bidding devices used by the client are nothing more than iPod Touches with the BidPal app loaded onto them.

So BidPal assistants, such as myself, clean and charge the iPods and then synchronize them with the wireless network. We check to make sure all the information loaded into the database is correct and then begin registration. Usually bidders are slightly confused when they receive the device simply because they have not encountered this kind of technology in a silent auction setting. And if they have sour feelings about the change, those feelings only get extrapolated as the evening carries on and the bidders' BAC steadily increases. But that is where BidPal assistants come in handy. We circulate around the auction area and ask bidders how they are enjoying the device to ensure that the bidders understand the technology and to fix any glitches that might be occurring. This really helps to make sure that the technology is warmly received and that people enjoy themselves. For the most part, people enjoy it, are fascinated by it, and want it back for next year’s auction!