Place Bid Examples
The following examples provide JSON data which may be used with the jobs endpoints as described in Usage.
These examples are specific to the place bid API, to be used with the /jobs/place-bid endpoint which is fully described
in the OpenAPI Specification.
Note
The Bidding API is not available on the Free Plan. It is only available on the Enhanced or Premium Plan.
A bid is placed against a single item (lot) in an existing Sourcing Event. The Sourcing Event must be open and accepting bids at the time the job is processed; bids submitted against an event that is not open will fail.
A Basic Bid
Identify the event with sourcing_event, the item (lot) with item, and supply the column value(s) to bid in bid.
Each entry identifies a column and the value to bid for it. Values are always provided as strings.
{
"sourcing_event": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
"item": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111",
"bid": [
{
"column": {"name": "Linehaul"},
"value": "1500.00"
}
]
}
Identifying a column
Each column is identified by one of the following fields. When more than one is provided, the first populated
field (in the order below) is used.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
name |
The column's display name, e.g. "Linehaul". |
uuid |
The column's stable identifier. Unaffected by column renames. |
standard_field |
The column's standard field id, e.g. "logistics.linehaul_cost". |
{"column": {"name": "Linehaul"}, "value": "1500.00"}
{"column": {"uuid": "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef0123456789"}, "value": "1500.00"}
{"column": {"standard_field": "logistics.linehaul_cost"}, "value": "1500.00"}
Bidding on multiple columns
An item may have more than one supplier-input column (for example a linehaul cost, a fuel surcharge, and a lead time).
Provide one entry in bid per column. Columns within a single bid may be identified by different means.
{
"sourcing_event": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
"item": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111",
"bid": [
{
"column": {"name": "Linehaul"},
"value": "1500.00"
},
{
"column": {"standard_field": "logistics.fuel_surcharge"},
"value": "120.00"
},
{
"column": {"uuid": "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef0123456789"},
"value": "14"
}
]
}
Each column is bid one-shot at its value unless it carries an initial_multiplier — see
Dynamic bidding for how that interacts with a multi-column bid.
Dynamic bidding
By default each bid is a single, one-shot bid placed at value. Supplying an initial_multiplier greater than 1.0
instead enables dynamic bidding: the opening bid is placed at value * initial_multiplier and is then automatically
decremented towards value over successive bids.
initial_multiplier is configured per column — it is set on the individual bid entry it applies to, not on the bid
as a whole.
{
"sourcing_event": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
"item": "11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111",
"bid": [
{
"column": {"name": "Linehaul"},
"value": "1500.00",
"initial_multiplier": "1.15"
}
]
}
Info
initial_multiplier only applies where value is numeric, and requires smart bidding to be enabled on the account.
If omitted it defaults to 1.0, placing a single bid at value.
Note
Dynamic bidding is currently supported on a single column per bid: at most one entry in bid may carry an
initial_multiplier greater than 1.0. Any other columns in the same bid are placed one-shot at their value.
The job result
Once the job reaches COMPLETED status the bid has been placed. Unlike event creation, the place bid job does not
return a created_entity: the placed bid is identified by the sourcing_event and item supplied in the request.
{
"id": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
"type": "PLACE_BID",
"status": "COMPLETED",
"created": "2026-04-23T12:00:00.000001Z"
}
If the bid cannot be placed — for example the event is not open for bidding, the item or a column cannot be resolved, or
a value is invalid — the job reaches FAILED status and the reason is reported in the errors field.