My dear friend Christie King (pictured here with her equally dear late brother Scott King — just as I remember him with that somewhat sarcastic smile) recently asked a similar question.
Christie asked, “What is your ‘free’ auctioneer costing your fundraising event?” I invite you to read more here: https://ckingbenefits.com/blog/2018/06/01/what-is-your-free-auctioneer-costing-your-fundraising-event/
Her article reminds me of my youth when my father and I were visiting a farm supplier. This vendor asked my father, “Are you trying to save money or make money?” He went on to say that if saving money was the goal, “Don’t buy anything — see how much money you just saved?”
Today, we ask a similar question: “What does your free [or nearly free] auctioneer cost you?” It’s certainly not that professional auctioneers cannot donate their services, but otherwise, if you’re using a free celebrity, board member, officer, or other non-professional auctioneer, are you in essence “Getting what you’re paying for?” We would offer, you probably are …
Why not use that same free celebrity for your dental work, surgery, or legal consultation? No, you use dentists, doctors and attorneys for those jobs — but auctioneering — anyone can do that? Professional auctioneers are highly skilled in all the facets of this method of marketing and fundraising.
Bid calling alone is a highly skilled technique, besides product procurement, marketing, display, order of sale, disclaimers, terms and conditions … and in fundraising auctions a myriad of other techniques for additional profits.
In any type of auction are you or someone with little training suitable to conduct that auction? What about latent versus patent defects, recalled items, contracts, forms of payment, necessary state and federal forms or disclosures and related laws? Without proper training and experience, you may as well hire your celebrity to do your dental work as well.
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, RES Auction Services and Goodwill Columbus Car Auction. He serves as Distinguished Faculty at Hondros College, Executive Director of The Ohio Auction School, an Instructor at the National Auctioneers Association’s Designation Academy and America’s Auction Academy. He is faculty at the Certified Auctioneers Institute held at Indiana University and is approved by the The Supreme Court of Ohio for attorney education.
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