Ever since the Internet became the place to advertise auctions, auctioneers have used it to advertise such including advertising themselves — with pictures of the auctioneer and/or videos where the auctioneer is talking about the property.
However, as we suggested in the title, auctioneers only have limited space and time to get potential bidders’ attention and a picture or video of the auctioneer isn’t what most bidders are looking for …
Bidders want to see the property and if I have to wait to see what is up for auction, or can’t see what’s up for auction, I as a bidder move on. On the Internet, “moving on” takes about 0.01 seconds and now I’m looking at someone else’s auction.
Certainly, when the auction event is over, it’s time to potentially promote ourselves, with pictures or videos of the auctioneer and/or team involved. It’s entirely appropriate for auctioneers to promote themselves to future sellers after the auction.
We wrote about this premise before noting that most are looking at the Internet on small portable devices, where space and time are even more precious: https://mikebrandlyauctioneer.wordpress.com/2023/08/03/auctioneer-or-the-property/.
Further, for the most part, seeing is far more engaging than hearing. You can tell me about the two-acre pond, or even better show me the two-acre pond. Of course, on a mobile device, sometimes I can’t watch but want to hear — so maybe both [options] are appropriate.
Similarly, one of my go-to news sites on my phone now allows me to read the article — and/or listen to the article — which makes me far more engaged. Incidentally, on this news platform, there’s (of course) no picture nor video of the author on my screen.
Agency duty requires that we auctioneers put our client’s interests before our own. Advertising you instead of the property might suggest you are putting your own interests ahead of your client’s. What might a seller claim if the auction went poorly and the advertising was primarily your face instead of the property?
Finally, should anyone be able to find a picture or video of any auctioneer? Absolutely every auctioneer should make this information available somewhere — where it isn’t substituting for the proper marketing of the client’s property.
Mike Brandly, Auctioneer, CAI, CAS, AARE has been an auctioneer and certified appraiser for over 30 years. His company’s auctions are located at Mike Brandly, Auctioneer, Brandly Real Estate & Auction, and formerly at Goodwill Columbus Car Auction. He serves as Distinguished Faculty at Hondros College, Executive Director of The Ohio Auction School, and an Instructor at the National Auction Association’s Designation Academy and Western College of Auctioneering. He has served as faculty at the Certified Auctioneers Institute held at Indiana University and is approved by The Supreme Court of Ohio for attorney education.
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