I enjoy sharing my knowledge and stories of the auction business. My goal for article is to help folks get the absolute most out of their auction experience.
Whether your fresh out of the package or a seasoned dealer I think I can offer something in this article to help you with your auciton adventures.
There may be as many reasons to attend auctions as there are types of auctions to attend. Maybe you want to attend an auction to buy items for re-sale on eBay, or some other market. Maybe you want to furnish your home with wonderful antiques, or you want to furnish your home as inexpensively without sacrificing quality.Some folks are just looking for a fun night out. With a little perseverance all these things are possible.
There are antiques and estate auctions, auto auctions, overstock auctions, absolute and no reserve auctions, real estate auctions, specialty auctions where only one genre of items are sold, tailgate auctions, live auctions, online auctions, sealed bid auctions, silent auctions, charity and fund raising auctions and many more.
Can you really buy for pennies on the dollar at an auction? You bet! Many times I've seen folks buy and re-sell at the same auction on the same night for a good profit, although be advised, this should only be done after the auction is over.
There are a lot of ways to find an auction, but here are some tips on how to find and attend the best ones.
Visit the genre of shops in the area that apply to the type of auction you want to attend. IE: If your looking for a good antique auction to attend, stop in the local antiques shops and ask for what there are for good auctions in the area. Sounds obvious right? But listen to what they don't say as well as what they do say. Oftentimes when a dealer speaks poorly about an auction he or she attends, it may be likely that they are trying to keep a good thing secret. Think for a moment, why would a dealer keep attending a lousy auction?
Newspaper ads: I personally like to find ads in the classified ad section rather than flashy display ads. Flashy ads are usually indicative of an auction that will be high priced, may have reserves, (a set price on an item), and usually an enormous crowd. While any auction can be profitable to attend, it is usually best to steer clear of the glitzy ones, at least for the beginner.
Here's the minimum you want to find out before you go. If there is a phone number in the ad, call and ask for the terms of the sale. What forms of payment do they accept? Is it an absolute auction? An absolute auction is one that has no minimum or reserve bids on items. These are the best auctions to attend! Is there a buyers premium? A buyers premium is like a tax that everyone who makes purchases at that auction must pay above the winning bid price. Most auctions these days do charge a buyers premium, 10% is not unreasonable but I feel much more than that is greedy, and the auctioneer that charges over 10% is counting on most bidders not doing the extra math as the bids quicken in pace.
A fair auction will have ample time to inspect the merchandise, usually at least 2 or 3 hours. Find out when inspection starts and make sure to attend! Never attend an auction if you can't make the inspection, not unless your prepared to gamble. Most auctioneers sell at a rate of about 100 items per hour, which is why they sell "as is". They simply don't have the time to give a detailed description of all the items. Since almost all items at auction are sold AS IS, there are sure to be some damaged, refinished, fake and incomplete items at any given auction. Beware of any auctions that offer very little or no inspection time.
Good auctions will usually have 150 to 400 lots. A lot may be one item or a group of items. The exception to this are specialty auctions, auto auctions, real estate auctions etc.
When you attend your first sale, take note of the 1/2 dozen or so dealers that buy the most often. See if you can find out about other area auctions they attend.
When you do find an excellent auction, attend it as often as possible. By frequenting good sales, you help increase the bottom line of that business. It's difficult for many auctioneers to keep the quality of merchandise consistent, so good attendance certainly helps. And when an auctioneer gets to know you as a buyer, he/she will go out of the way to accommodate you, to keep you coming back.
Attend an auction this week, it's one of the only market places where you can set the price.
Thanks for reading and have fun.
If you?re new to eBay, first it is helpful to take a look around eBay and see what is selling. Finding what is popular will help you when choosing products to sell. Take a look at several sellers with a good reputation and a long history. You can learn a substantial about how eBay works from these sellers.
Next, choose your products. It is helpful to choose products that are already selling or to choose a niche to make your items stand out more. You can begin to choose products by just finding items in your home that you don?t use anymore.
When listing products, be sure to include lots of pictures and interesting descriptions. Remember to be truthful, but also be detailed and lively in your descriptions to get buyers excited about your products. Be sure that you include clear pictures, particularly from several angles. Remember that buyers can?t hold the product so pictures and descriptions are the only way they have to decide about whether to buy or not.
When listing products, try to list more than a few items. Buyers will often look through all your items and may buy an alternate item or buy several of your items. If you are selling a niche item, such as antiques, it can be particularly helpful to list several items.
Remember to list products at a reasonable price. People go to eBay to find deals. You may not make a profit on every item, but as you learn what is selling, you can make more money. Remember that bidding wars may make you a profit in the end, but buyers will start bidding if they see a reasonable price.
Finally, it is crucial to keep your customers satisfied. The best eBay sellers have a long feedback list with positive comments from happy customers. If you can keep your customers satisfied, they will keep coming back. I can personally attest to this. The way to do this is to ship the items fast and make sure they arrive safely. It is helpful to double-bag an item or use a box with stuffing so that the product arrives in one piece. Immediately after payment ship the item, and then ask for feedback from the customer so that your rankings continue to improve. Buyers are more likely to buy from proven sellers so keep selling and you?ll get there.
As you get more experienced, it may be a good idea to use a dropshipping company for product sourcing. You can set your own retail price and buy wholesale from dropship manufacturers. Try to use an eBay certified dropshipper like the company.
Now that you know some tricks and basics about eBay, get selling!