How Auctioneers and Charity Fundraisers Benefit Auctions and Charitable Events? Going, Going, Gone Several variables play significant roles in the successful conduct of an auction. The choice of an auctioneer is one of the crucial variables that can make a decisive difference to the profits of an organization. The notion that celebrity or 'Daddy' auctioneers can always deliver the goods better is, slightly if not highly, fallacious. Celebrity auctioneers do have their charm, but professional auctioneers and charity fund raisers have proved to be more efficient and successful in garnering better bids and raising larger funds. Professional charity fund raising auctioneers know the nuances of auctioneering and raise more money than it's thought possible. More often than not they exceed the fund raising goals. Benefit auctioneers start working form the planning of the auction to the final raising of the funds stage and rise above the normal expectations. The amount of money raised can double when professional fund raising auctioneers are in charge. They minimize the chance of errors that an amateur auctioneer will be prone to make due to inexperience. With the help of professional auctioneer, items just vanish off the table before the attendees say, 'gone'! Statistics favor the case for hiring a professional auctioneer. The perception of auctions is changing and people interested in selling and buying real and personal property are now making auctions the first choice. The National Association for Auctioneers reports that the auction industry has been growing at a healthy rate over a period of four consecutive years. In 2007 it grew by 5.3% per annum and the total live auction volume stood at $270.7 billion. A study by Harris Interactive in 2004 points out that:
There are plenty of ways how professional auctioneers benefit fund raising charity auctions. But before that here is the interesting history of auctions. Interesting History Auction, as is well known, is the process of selling and buying anything by accepting bids for it. The highest bidder takes the item. This process of selling and buying might have existed for ages, from the time of the advent of the barter system. But recorded history documents that auctioneering started in Babylon way back in 500 B.C when women were auctioned for marriage. The history of auction is interesting. Auctioneering took place in Babylon once in a year and people bought women on condition of marriage. Attraction was the deciding factor and the more attractive a woman was the higher the price she was sold for. Unattractive women were sold for negative prices, which meant that they had to pay a dowry amount to be accepted into auction or repay the amount after marriage. Auctions were prevalent during the Roman Empire and business agents or professional auctioneers as we call them now facilitated the sales of items of soldiers and rich men. Marcus Aurelius put his heirlooms and furniture up for auction that lasted for two months. Spoils of the war were put up for auctions in the USA by the conquering army’s colonels. Therefore we still find the unofficial title of “colonel” being used by some auctioneers in the USA. Historically speaking, professional auctioneers have been active from the very beginning as it’s an elaborate art to sell something openly by attracting bidders and managing to raise the highest possible price. Auctioneers have lent their skills in auctioning items in battlefields, coffee houses, and taverns in the past. They have evolved as the process of auctioneering has changed with time. Now professional auctioneers are usually trained in the process of auctioneering that involves legal and practical aspects. Auctions are of different types. Demand auction is something that’s popular where buyers offer their bids for a good being sold. Supply auction is the reverse of this and sellers offer a good that the buyers request. An auction is said to be closed when the bids offered are kept a secret from auction participants. Normally, the auctions we see in movies, benefit auctions, and fundraising charity auctions are demand auctions that are also open auctions. Again there are live and silent auctions. Live auctions are where the presence of an auctioneer becomes indispensable. Whatever the type of live auction, professional auctioneers handle them with consummate ease. What Goes in to the Making of a Professional Auctioneer Passion for auctions would be the quickest answer. But beyond that there are education and license requirements that authenticate the professionalism involved in auctioneering. A professional auctioneer is a qualified person in auctioneering, typically extrovert, with salesmanship qualities, and a bit of an entertainer. A professional auctioneer is an amiable person and a sales man that adopts fair and open practices, often in the live presence of a multitude of people. As a person in charge of the auction proceedings a professional auctioneer follows strict procedures just like a doctor or a lawyer does while conducting his business. Professional auctioneers have strong ethics and are respected icons in the field of marketing. The following designation programs prepare professional auctioneers to be qualified to obtain licenses:
Additionally, the following certificate programs also help new auctioneers and auction staff.
The license requirement varies from state to state. The state of Illinois stipulates that Illinois auctioneers should have a license. Chicago auctioneers and the rest of Illinois auctioneers sit through an examination to qualify for getting a license for auctioneering. . The Benefits of the Expertise of Professional Auctioneers
Professional benefit auctioneers should be hired for the above mentioned reasons. Organizers may still have questions about their necessity. Here are some more reasons why professional fundraising charity auctioneers benefit better. Why Hire a Professional Auctioneer When You Have a Volunteer There may arise times when volunteers are willing to do auctioneering for you. This is good news if the auction is a small one involving very few items and the attendees not keen on bidding high on them. Taking the help of a volunteer is a good idea if the volunteer has a wide network of friends and acquaintances that may turn up as attendees. Organizations should never opt for professional auctioneers in such situations. But when the auction is of medium or bigger sized, then it is prudent to hire a professional benefit auctioneer rather than trust a volunteer’s ability. The first reason for doing so is that with professional auctioneers attendees will be less inhibited. A volunteer will not be that comfortable with the audience and will not be able to elicit the best response in terms of bids. A volunteer will not be smart enough to cover up the inhibitions of the attendees like a professional auctioneer can do. Professional auctioneers on the other hand will turn any gaffe in to a good positive joke with their entertaining talks and ways. They have the ability to draw people out of their shells and prod them to higher levels of bidding with subtle gestures and encouraging words. It makes sense to hire a professional auctioneer when huge amounts are involved. Why Hire a Professional Auctioneer When You Can Get a Celebrity Celebrities are amateurs in the art of auctioneering, despite their capacity to draw crowds. Drawing crowds is one thing and selling to them for higher bids is another. The presence of a local celebrity is definitely beneficial to auctions. There is no denying that. But a celebrity can hardly substitute a professional auctioneer. Imagine that you have invited a basketball star to a live auction to do the job and the poor guy can hardly talk in public. Even the most garrulous TV actress will find tough to compete with a professional charity auctioneer as she will not understand the nuances of the process completely. Celebrities usually turn up on the auction day with only the knowledge of the auction objective and have little idea of what has gone in to the auction planning and strategies. If your organization can afford it then a celebrity and a professional auctioneer should both be put on stage to make the auction a great success. While the celebrity presence draws and keeps the crowd, the professional auctioneer will raise the hammer prices to amazing levels. To sum up, the benefits of hiring professional auctioneers are very clear. They ensure:
Barring auctions of small sizes, all medium sized and big auctions should benefit from the services of professional auctioneers. For professional auctioneers bring in the required skills to make auctions successful and fun events.
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