Working with auctions

WebSphere Commerce provides an auctioning component that lets you sell products to the highest bidder. This component provides an ideal environment for implementing small to moderate-scale auctioning as part of your e-commerce solution, and for conducting auctions simultaneously.

In addition, auctions offer special advantages in these situations:

• When you are uncertain about the size of the market and the willingness of buyers to purchase a product; for example, when selling used or reconditioned products.
• When a product's price has been set too high initially, and you want to determine a price based on market demand.
• When you want to promote new product lines or liquidate inventory.

In WebSphere Commerce, the following store models support auctions:

• AdvancedB2BDirect
• Sample B2B Reseller
• Sample B2B Store
• Hosted stores in the SupplierMarketPlace

The consumer direct sample store does not support auctions.