But it's becoming a bit of a misnomer. In reality, the Atlanta crowd and entrepreneurs like them use sites such as eBay, AuctionUniverse, or City Auction to sell merchandise directly to their customers. Most of the auction sites are mainly places on the Web to list goods. Sellers list their goods with brief descriptions and often photographs. The seller also sets the starting auction price.
Bidders contact the sellers via an E-mail link found above the item for sale.
Auctions last between three days and a week. When the auction closes, the seller contacts the highest bidder, usually by E-mail or telephone, and the two parties work out the payment and shipping details. Each auction site has a slightly different approach, depending on its specialty. OnSale, an exception in the online auction world, buys merchandise it auctions from manufacturers and resellers. OnSale, which has 820,000 registered buyers, guarantees the merchandise it sells for at least 30 days.