Silent Auction FAQ

What’s a “silent auction”?
In regular auctions (like on eBay) you can see what other bidders are offering. Most silent auctions don’t allow you to see other bids, so you just have to bid an amount that you feel is appropriate for what’s being offered and hope that others aren’t bidding higher. And of course, you only pay if your bid is high enough to “win”.

Why don’t you do regular eBay-style auctions?
Sorry, it’s just way too difficult! Doing it myself is impossible because I lack the web resources to pull it off, and not everyone has an eBay account so that’s not an option either.

How do I get the 300×100 ad that’s next to the logo in the page header?
Bid on the ad size 300×100/200×60 and bid more than everyone else! Ads will be arranged top-to-bottom in order of the winning bid amount. The highest bidder will be given the 300×100 page header ad, 2nd highest gets the top 200×60, and so on.

160×600 and 728×90 is still bid on separately.

How do I know when ad spots are available?
I have a mailing list that I use for sending potential advertisers (mostly app developers) reminders of when each month’s auction is about to end which is on the 20th of the month.

If you’re not on the list already, you can opt-in here. Once you’re on the email list, you can never get off it! Just kidding. You can opt-out anytime you want.

How many people visit iPhone App Reviews.net each day/each month/etc.?
Best way to find that out is to take a look at my website traffic stats.

What happens if I bid the exact same amount as someone else?
In the event of a tie, the bid that was received first will be given priority.

To avoid this situation, though, I recommend that you bid an odd amount… a bid of $100.01 will always beat a bid of $100.00!

I want to advertise for 3 months straight. Do I have to come back and bid every month?
If you’re already advertising and want to renew your ad at the same bid amount, just send me an email and let me know.

However, your bid amount will continue to be ranked along with other bidders just like normal, so if you’re in the #1 spot this month and next month 3 people outbid you, your ad would drop to #4. Sorry, I’m just trying to be fair… but I don’t anticipate that situation coming up too often.

I placed a winning bid, but I don’t like my ad spot. What can I do about this?
Unfortunately your bid is your bid and I have to put it where it belongs! If you want to make sure your ad is at or near the top of the list, you need to bid on the high end.

I placed a winning bid, but I changed my mind… what are the consequences if I don’t buy the ad?
I try to be a pretty fair guy, so if there’s a good reason for the change of heart I may just let it go.

However… if no reason is given or if I see the same would-be advertiser backing out of multiple auctions, chances are I’ll put some email filtering in place to send that advertiser’s future review requests straight to the trash bin. I may also suspend the associated iPhone App Index account along with all posts by that user. Unfortunately I’ve had to create a “blacklist” and there are some developers out there whose review requests are no longer being considered.

What are my chances of getting an ad for the minimum bid amount?
The minimum bid is subject to change from time to time, but generally speaking the chances aren’t all that good unless you’re bidding on the 728×90 in the page footer.

What schedule do the silent auctions run on?
The cutoff date for getting your ad live next month is the 20th (Chicago time, U.S. central time zone). If it’s after the 20th, your ad will run the month after next.

If this sounds confusing, look at calendar below… place a winning bid during the yellow dates in Month 1 and your ad starts on the first of Month 2. Likewise, if you place a bid during the green bid dates in Month 1, your ad will have to wait until the green ad start date on Month 3.

If I place a winning bid, when is payment due?
Payment must be received within 48 hours after you are notified via email that your bid is a winner. If payment is not received within that timeframe, I’ll have to assume you’re not buying the ad which means that (a) your future review requests will go straight to the trash, and (b) your ad will be sold to the next highest bidder.

I placed a winning bid… how do I send payment and my ad graphic?
Winning bidders will receive an email with instructions on how to do this.

Silent Auction Terms:

Winning bidders will be notified via email

Payment must be made within 48 hours of being notified
Ad runs will start no later than the 1st of the month and will end on either of the final two days of the month
Ad sequence will be set by bid amount, ie: highest bidding ads at top, lowest bidding ads at bottom

Auction Periods: Bidding for the next month’s ad spots closes on the 20th.

For information on ad placements, just look at the ads in the sidebar, in the page header, and in the page footer. Or you can click here.

The form below is for submitting a bid to buy an ad.

If you win, you will be expected to purchase the ad. Please bid ONLY if you intend to advertise.

Your Name (required)

Company Name (required)

Your Email (required)

Name of the app or service you wish to advertise (required)

What ad size are you bidding on? (required)
The highest bidder of the month will receive the 300x100 ad unless you prefer a particular ad unit. All other winning bidders will also receive FREE ads at iphoneappindex.com. If you specify "300x100 only" your bid will NOT be considered for other ad sizes.
300x100 only 200x60 or 300x100 160x600 or 300x100

Please enter your bid amount below (required)
US$ (minimum bid: $75)

It is recommended that you enter an odd amount to avoid a "tie" with other bidders, ie: $75.42 instead of $75.00

Comments (optional)

Type what you see below (no spaces)