First off, in no way affiliated with WWC - just a fellow R2R person who saw a few people get frustrated during the Time Splitter live sale a few months ago. I posted this in one of WWC's auction threads, but hopefully this will be helpful to all the new people who are participating in their first live sale tomorrow!
1) Set up express checkout before the start of the sale. This requires you to receive a text message from Shopify (the platform WWC uses for their store) and input the code. After that's set up, you'll greatly speedup checkout, which is critical for successfully winning a coral.
2) Unless there's one coral that you really, really, really want, go in with an open mind. Have general types of corals in mind instead of specific color morphs - "I'm looking for blue acropora" instead of, "I must have an Oregon Tort!"
3) When you see something that grabs you, move fast. WWC is one of the most popular coral sellers, and over the years they've cultivated a following. If you like it, chances are someone else likes it too. So when you see one you like, look at the price, decide if you're okay with it, and move on to checkout.
4) Don't try to buy more than one coral at once. Their site will be hammered during the sale, things will move slow. In the time it takes to try to add multiple corals, one of them is almost certain to be purchased. That'll cause an error in your shopping cart and you'll have to take time to remove the item from your cart. In the time that you take to remove that item, your other item might sell out. Now you spent all that time and didn't get anything.
5) Decide on a budget ahead of time. It's very easy to go crazy with the live sale, especially when corals are flying out for $5, $10, $15. One good deal after another, and it's very easy to be up in the hundreds or thousands of dollars.
6) Decide whether you're looking for volume (target cheap corals) or rarity (hold out for high-ticket items). There's no wrong or right way to do it, and there are plenty of really attractive corals at affordable prices. That said, if you know you want a Homewrecker frag, probably best to not spend all your budget on Green Slimers and Whamm'n Watermelon zoas.
7) Don't be afraid to ask WWC questions about what's coming up. They're typically very responsive during the sale and while they won't flat-out tell you what's coming up... they'll let you know if something you're sniping for is coming up.
8) Occasionally, frags will slip past the sale watchers. You can sometimes find unsold frags by going back through the previous pages of the sale, but honestly, with how slow the site can run, I don't think it's really a productive use of your time. Anything unsold will be put up in an aftersale, so make sure you check that out after the sale to see if there are any good nuggets.
Finally - WWC is run by humans who are just as passionate about corals as we are. They have their policies that they have to abide by, but if you need something that isn't covered under the strict rules of their sale, ask! If what you're asking is reasonable, they'll probably find a way to work with you.
Now get your cards ready and your mouses oiled up, the corals will fly fast tomorrow!
1) Set up express checkout before the start of the sale. This requires you to receive a text message from Shopify (the platform WWC uses for their store) and input the code. After that's set up, you'll greatly speedup checkout, which is critical for successfully winning a coral.
2) Unless there's one coral that you really, really, really want, go in with an open mind. Have general types of corals in mind instead of specific color morphs - "I'm looking for blue acropora" instead of, "I must have an Oregon Tort!"
3) When you see something that grabs you, move fast. WWC is one of the most popular coral sellers, and over the years they've cultivated a following. If you like it, chances are someone else likes it too. So when you see one you like, look at the price, decide if you're okay with it, and move on to checkout.
4) Don't try to buy more than one coral at once. Their site will be hammered during the sale, things will move slow. In the time it takes to try to add multiple corals, one of them is almost certain to be purchased. That'll cause an error in your shopping cart and you'll have to take time to remove the item from your cart. In the time that you take to remove that item, your other item might sell out. Now you spent all that time and didn't get anything.
5) Decide on a budget ahead of time. It's very easy to go crazy with the live sale, especially when corals are flying out for $5, $10, $15. One good deal after another, and it's very easy to be up in the hundreds or thousands of dollars.
6) Decide whether you're looking for volume (target cheap corals) or rarity (hold out for high-ticket items). There's no wrong or right way to do it, and there are plenty of really attractive corals at affordable prices. That said, if you know you want a Homewrecker frag, probably best to not spend all your budget on Green Slimers and Whamm'n Watermelon zoas.
7) Don't be afraid to ask WWC questions about what's coming up. They're typically very responsive during the sale and while they won't flat-out tell you what's coming up... they'll let you know if something you're sniping for is coming up.
8) Occasionally, frags will slip past the sale watchers. You can sometimes find unsold frags by going back through the previous pages of the sale, but honestly, with how slow the site can run, I don't think it's really a productive use of your time. Anything unsold will be put up in an aftersale, so make sure you check that out after the sale to see if there are any good nuggets.
Finally - WWC is run by humans who are just as passionate about corals as we are. They have their policies that they have to abide by, but if you need something that isn't covered under the strict rules of their sale, ask! If what you're asking is reasonable, they'll probably find a way to work with you.
Now get your cards ready and your mouses oiled up, the corals will fly fast tomorrow!
