So, here's the thing on minimum bids.
Minimum bids do not work. They do not increase the selling point of your item, and have the exact opposite effect! You do not get more for your item by putting a minimum bid on them, statistically you get less -- much, much less.
The person who originally created My Group Auctions, Jeff Greenspan, as well as myself (and likely others) have gone through a lot of data and analyzed it. And, you've probably noted this anecdotally at auctions, too. If you have a minimum bid, fewer people get involved in the bidding, and the item is much more likely to either not sell, or sell at or around the minimum. Starting it lower engages more bidders, increased the perceived value, and overall increases your selling price. You're more likely to sell for more without the minimum. (Similarly, auctioneers who start auctions at a higher price may be helping the club move things around, but they're doing a disservice to the sellers -- however, this effect is /much/ less severe than the minimum bid effect).
We've all seen it happen -- "Minimum bid $20, anyone? No one, no, what -- just sell it? OK, start at a buck! <A minute later> And sold for $38 to the gentleman in the neon green goulashes."
The only time a minimum bid has any potential benefit is when you have a Cheapskate Auction -- no one is bidding, everything is selling for a few bucks. Your item with a high minimum bid, in this case, will simply not sell. That might be preferable to selling it for a nominal price. While it prevents the item from selling at all, it doesn't net you anything more. Pun not intended.
Realistically, the best idea would be to allow a "reserve price," which is kind of like a secret minimum bid. If you put a reserve of $100 on an item, and the final bid is for $85, the winning bidder has the option to take it for $100. If they say no, it's a No Sale. However, this is -really- convoluted to do, and not something a club like this would likely ever be able to implement.
