Who doesn’t love a good auction sale? It’s an infamous way to acquire valuable goods at less-than-ideal prices and a good way to make money online So, if you’re familiar with it, you may have heard of Kobobid. The question every Nigerian is taking is, Is Kobobid legit? We’ll find out soon enough in this Kobobid review.
As with everything else, the auction has found its way to the internet and is now what we know as a penny auction. It’s a new shopping method carried out online where interest parties bid on a product for a period of time till the highest and last bidder wins the item.
Kobobid is a penny auction site in Nigeria where interested parties register and bid on items listed on the platform. The last bidder wins and pays for the product when the set time runs out.
Considering this shopping service is relatively new to the Nigerian online market, it’s okay, even wise, to be wary. There are countless stories of people getting scammed online or attacked by fraudulent persons through setups like these. It behoves every online user to dig deep into every shiny new service to avoid woeful tales. For this reason, we’ll be doing a review of Kobobid. Is it a legit penny auction platform? Let’s find out.
What is Kobobid?
Kobobid is a penny auction platform allowing users to bid on products with little tokens. The inspiration behind the platform is to give Nigerians a chance to buy high-quality products at less than retail prices while having fun. But even this leaves Nigerians with the same question – Is Kobobid legit?
Victor Muoghalu, founder and current CEO of Kobobid, divulged to Businessday in an interview that he ventured into the betting/gaming industry after researching why Africans populate the consumer population of the industry. Rather than run like traditional auction sites like eBay, Muoghalu chose to add fun and entertainment by making Kobobid a penny auction site or, shall we say, a Kobo auction site.
Kobobid’s Business Model
Kobobid as a business is a marketplace where items are auctioned and given to the last bidder instead of the highest bidder on regular auction sites.
Customer Base: The business caters to individuals who want to acquire certain products at less-than-retail prices.
Source of Revenue: The primary source of revenue is from sales of Bidpacks, a bundle of tokens that enable Kobobid users to bid on their items of interest. Other sources are
Costs of Business: Kobobid spends some of its revenue as recurring capital. Some of the business’s costs include taxes, staff remuneration, and website maintenance.
What Types of Products Does Kobobid Offer?
Kobobid offers both physical products and services-as-products. They host items from vendors which are available to bidders to buy. The products range from household items and fashion pieces to gadgets such as laptops and phones.
They also sell bidpacks which is how users gain access to auctions.
How Does Kobobid Work?
Let’s quickly see Kobobid in action, shall we? Well, not exactly. But here’s how it works.
How to Register on Kobobid
How do you register? There are just two easy steps.
- Go to the Kobobid website and click Sign up.
- Enter your details and check the necessary boxes beneath the form.
- Click Sign up.
How to Bid on Kobobid
After signing up, log in and do the following to start bidding.
- Buy a Bidpack. Just click the Buy Bidpack. Here’s a breakdown of the bidpack prices.
1000 BidPack + 150 Free/Token bids = ₦100,000
500 BidPack + 70 Free/Token bids = ₦50,000
250 BidPack + 30 Free/Token bids = ₦25,000
100 BidPack + 10 Free/Token bids = ₦10,000
75 BidPack + 6 Free/Token bids = ₦7,500
50 BidPack + 3 Free/Token bids = ₦5,000
- Head to the Auctions page to see what’s available. You can also browse the categories to find items you might be interested in quickly. Another way to find items is to add them to your Watchlist before you decide to bid on them.
- Click on Bid Now to start bidding.
You must keep up with the bidding process. Usually, the timer starts running again as soon as a new bid is placed on an item. The last person to bid before the timer runs out wins the item.
- Claim your item.
If you lost the bid but are very keen on getting the item, you can use the Buy It Now feature to get it. Note that you’ll have to pay VAT (Value Added Tax) and delivery fees to deliver your package.
Payment and Delivery Options on Kobobid
As stated, you can win your favourite products by bidding or buying them at a discounted price. All payments are made online. The available payment methods are
- USSD
- Bank transfer via Flutterwave
- Debit card
After payment, your products will be shipped within three business days. However, if Kobobid has too many orders to process or it’s the rainy season, the delivery may take extra days.
Is Kobobid Legit?
While auctions and lottery games seem a bit shady, there are regulatory bodies that govern and license every legitimate business in this category. This assuages the concerns of users and customers of the company. So, is Kobobid legit? Let the licenses speak.
Licenses and Registrations
Going by an article published on Business Day and This Day, Victor Muoghalu explains that Kobobid is registered under the National Lottery Regulatory Commission and licensed by the Auctioneers Commission of Nigeria.
As proof of registration, the National Lottery Regulatory Commission lists Kobobid on its website under the Online Interactive Gaming/Mobile Vas Permit Holders category.
Reviews and Testimonials.
Several business platforms have done reviews on Kobobid. The question on everyone’s mind is, “Is the Kobobid penny auction legit?
Some platforms that have done Kobobid reviews are Bizvestor, Coinist Nigeria, and even Nairametrics.
For testimonials, some Nairaland users opine that while the platform is legit, the system of operation is not consumer-friendly because users lose one way or another.
Kobobid Vs Other Penny Auction Sites
Penny auction sites are more prevalent in the United States. They are similar to traditional auction sites like eBay but have significant differences in their modes of operation. One such difference is the time limit. Traditional auction sites extend the auction for about a week, while penny auction sites use a timer. The timer is reset every time someone places a new bid. The auction ends after the time runs out. Kobobbid operates this way.
However, in comparison with other penny auction sites, how does Kobobid differ?
Some other penny auction sites include DealDash, HappyBidDay, QuiBids, and BidRivals.
The major difference between Kobobid and other penny auction sites is that Kobobid uses kobo per bid while other penny auction sites use cents per bid.
Tips For Bidding on Kobobid
While there are other ways you can get your favourite items on Kobobid, such as the raffle draw, flash auction, scratch cards and sports betting, bidding is the most popular, and there are rules around bidding on this site.
- You must buy a bidpack to participate in the auction.
- There is a set time for each item. As soon as the auction kicks off, every bid placed resets the timer.
- The last person who bids on the item before the timer runs out wins.
- You can still be the one to take the item home even if you didn’t win the bidding game. You can get the item at the retail price with the Buy it Now option. The price of all bids you placed previously will be subtracted from the retail price. In other words,
Set retail price – the price of your placed bids = Buy it Now price.
- If you don’t win an auction, there’s an open window of 24 hours for you or any other bidder to use the Buy it Now.
- Value Added Tax is added to your delivery charges. This means that if you’re paying for the delivery of an item you’ve won or bought, VAT will be added.
- You have 48 hours to redeem your wins. Not doing so will incur a penalty of losing your winning to the second to the last bidder, i.e., the bidder before you.
Setting a Budget
There is a feature that lets you control how much you spend bidding as well as keep track of the timer. It’s Kobobid’s Bidmate.
Bidmate is an automated bot that acts as an assistant for Kobobid users. It places bids on your behalf depending on your set budget. Bidmate is there to assist you in the bidding games when you’re not on your phone to keep track of the bidding war.
Bidmate can be activated during or before an auction. Only 30 bids can be set at a time for your Bidmate for your bidmate to use. You will receive notifications when the budget you’ve set for your bids is down to your last five bids.
Pros and Cons of Kobobid
Pros
- You can win various items for a small token.
- Other options for those not interested in auctions include raffle games, scratch cards and sports betting.
Cons
- There’s no guarantee that you’ll ever win an auction or any of the raffle games.
- You spend lots of money on bidpacks and bids.
- There is no refund for lost bids.
- You may pay more than the retail price for an item even after winning a bid.
Bottomline
Kobobid is Nigeria’s first penny auction platform. Its primary aim is to enable Nigerians get high-quality items at affordable prices through bidding wars. The platform requires users to gain access to auctions by buying bidpacks. Users can also get some items or win cash through raffle games, sports betting, and scratch cards.
While the platform looks appealing at first glance, a closer observation reveals that users spend lots of money on bidpacks and are not guaranteed any wins.
In conclusion of our Kobobid review, we can say that Kobobid is legit. However, we advise users to use the platform carefully to avoid getting addicted.
Disclaimer📢: Prestmit is not responsible for any choice you make regarding the use of the platform reviewed in this article. We urge you to take the time to do your research before engaging with the platform.
