Auction Video Podcast Episode 1 – Auction Flex

Posted on 27 July 2009 | by Aaron Traffas, CAI, ATS, CES | Leave a comment

The first episode of the Auction Video Podcast features Brandon Harker from Auction Flex. We recorded the Auction Podcast Episode 9 with Brandon to discuss Auction Flex, but this year they debuted a monster new feature. The upcoming version of Auction Flex will feature self-check-in kiosks that will allow customers to register themselves for live auctions. The auctioneer can require a picture and / or a credit card swipe before registration is allowed.

Learn more about Auction Flex at www.auctionflex.com.

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Auction Video Podcast

Posted on 26 July 2009 | by Aaron Traffas, CAI, ATS, CES | Leave a comment

We took some time during the 60th International Auctioneers Conference and Show in Kansas City to roam the trade show floor to talk with the exhibiting vendors about their products and services. We didn’t make it to every booth, as some had already packed up by the time we started on Saturday, but we saw several familiar vendors and products as well as some exciting new offerings.

Starting tomorrow, we’ll be releasing these short video clips as part of the Auction Podcast. If you already subscribe using iTunes, Miro or other podcasting software, you shouldn’t have to do anything differently. If you don’t subscribe, you’ll also always have the ability to play the videos from the Video section or the Auction Podcast page.

Posted in announcements

The end of the FAQ

Posted on 24 July 2009 | by Aaron Traffas, CAI, ATS, CES | 4 comments
This entry is part 1 of 3 in the series All things must end

We’ve all seen websites that list frequently asked questions, or FAQ. Continuing in our series All Things Must End, we’re going to show that FAQ are training wheels from when the web was new and have no place on modern websites that are properly designed.

Training wheel
Image via Wikipedia

While there isn’t really anything inherently evil about a FAQ in and of itself, the problem comes from the fact that website designers actually now build these lists as a primary means of content delivery. They don’t wait until users actually start asking questions and compile a list, they realize a function of the website isn’t clear or explained properly and arrive at the solution of fixing that problem not by fixing the website but by including the solution in the FAQ.

FAQs also present a usability problem. If a user is curious about a specific issue and looks to the FAQ for the answer, he has to do a Jeopardy and actually formulate a question. The odds that his question is listed exactly the way he formulated it are pretty low, so he has spend time looking at each entry comparing it to his question to see if it comes close to matching.

The best way to avoid the throwback to the 1990’s that comes with including a FAQ on your site is to be sure that the website is easy to use and the content is easy to understand. If you anticipate that someone may ask a specific question, redesign the page so that the answer to that expected question is made obvious by the page content.

If you have a page that is designed to be strictly informational, don’t phrase the topics in the form of a question. Rather than the FAQ-style approach of a paragraph titled “How do I bid?” use the less-patronizing and more professional heading “Placing bids”. The content in the paragraph is the same content that would answer the question, but that same content can answer the question of “When can I bid?” and “Where do I bid?”. It’s easier for the user to understand, faster for him to find and doesn’t require that you call the page a FAQ.

Finally, if you build a good website that’s straightforward and easy to understand and you actually do get a bunch of users asking a specific question, don’t put that question in a FAQ. Use that feedback as a reason to reexamine your website pages and fix whatever part isn’t clear that is generating the questions.


By consciously avoiding the FAQ and fixing underlying problems, your website will be more usable, professional and accessible and you’ll have fewer questions asked about your company and processes.

Posted in design, websites | Tagged , |

Auctions on Twitter were bound to happen

Posted on 23 July 2009 | by Aaron Traffas, CAI, ATS, CES | Leave a comment

twitterauction

A bid being placed for a Twitterauction

We frequently write about Twitter and its many benefits. We frequently visit our sister site at AuctioneerTweet to see what auctioneers are saying on Twitter. Today, however, we noticed something new. Actual items are now being sold on Twitter using the auction method of marketing.

Walt Kolenda, better known as AuctionWally, has conducted several Twitterauctions, as he calls them. “So far they’ve been pretty successful, small items so far. Sold about 75%!” Said Kolenda, “Items that didn’t sell didn’t get bids. I won’t do reserves at these auctions.”

The mechanics are simple. Terms, pictures of the items, as well as very good descriptions, are posted on his site at auctionwally.com. In order to place bids on the items, all that is required is a message sent to his Twitter account before the bidding closes.

Kolenda says he doesn’t see downsides, but just as there is much more to a traditional auction event than simply calling bids, the same is true for Twitter. “…there are definitely certain details you have to take care of,” he says. “You can’t just throw one out there and expect bids.” He’s published an eBook, entitled “How to do Auctions on Twitter“. From the order page:

By the end of this eBook you’ll know exactly how to set up a Twitter auction, how to promote it, the other tools you’ll need to make it profitable, the types of items that will sell, how to invoice and how to accept payment.

You can follow AuctionWally on Twitter at @auctionwally or @twitauctioneer.

We have mixed feelings about the process. While it seems like a new and intriguing method of accepting bids, it seems limited in the amount of items that can be sold per period of time as well as the direct labor involved. What are your thoughts? Does this method sound like something you’re going to try? Let us know in the comments.

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2009 NAA Hall of Fame Inductees

Posted on 19 July 2009 | by Aaron Traffas, CAI, ATS, CES | Leave a comment

Overland Park, Kan.July 18, 2009 – The National Auctioneers Association (NAA) inducted three new members into its Hall of Fame: Marvin E. Alexander, CAI, of Martin, Tenn.; Larry Latham, CAI, of Las Vegas, Nev.; and Stephen D. Lewis of Morehead, Ky. The three inductees were honored at the 60th annual International Auctioneers Conference and Show in Overland Park, Kan. during the President’s Gala.

Marvin E. Alexander, CAI – Martin, Tennessee
Marvin E. Alexander became a professional auctioneer in 1963 when he founded his business, Alexander Auctions & Real Estate Sales in Martin, Tenn. In those days, Martin said he carried around a set of speakers, a calculator, and pads of clerking sheets when he bid-called. Now, the daily operations in the profession have changed drastically, as they rely more heavily on technological agents, but Marvin learned the work necessary to excel at the craft. Today, Marvin commands a mobile office, equipped with office machinery, sound equipment, and wireless clerking and cashiering systems for auction day.

Marvin specializes is in real estate, including industrial and commercial property, farm and development land, acreage tracts, and residential properties. In additional to being an NAA member and past board of director, Marvin is a member of the Tennessee Auctioneers Association, which he served a term as president, and Tennessee and National Realtors Associations. In 1989, Marvin won the International Auctioneer Championship (IAC) competition, and the All-Around World Champion Auctioneer competition in 1997.

Marvin is heavily involved in several community organizations, including the Goodwill Shrine Club, the University of Tennessee Rodeo Booster Club, and various high school, 4-H, and booster clubs.

Larry Latham, CAI – Las Vegas, Nevada
Larry Latham has dedicated his life to the sale of real estate, either by auction or private treaty. Larry began his career as a real estate auctioneer in the early 1980s. In 1984, he graduated from the Certified Auctioneers Institute (CAI) at Indiana University in order to expand his auctioneering prowess. Soon after, he was elected the first treasurer of CAI. In addition to being a leader within the association, Larry was a leader and a voice for the profession in Washington lobbying on behalf of the profession in Congress.

Prior to Larry entering the industry, real estate auctions were generally conducted on-site, which only allowed for one unit to be sold at a time. Realizing that selling real estate piecemeal was inefficient, Larry began gathering large amounts of auction-goers into hotel ballrooms and conducting large scale auctions. He marketed the properties and displayed photographs of the real estate and was able to successfully sell hundreds of properties at a single auction. During the Savings and Loan crises in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Larry was instrumental in selling large amounts of real estate for the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

By the mid-1990s, Larry sold his real estate auction business to Chase Bank and began work as a full-time real estate developer. Larry recently re-entered the auctioneering world in 2008 and created AmeriBid, a real estate auction company whose success includes the disposition of over 150,000 properties.

Larry has four daughters and one grandson.

Stephen Lewis – Morehead, Kentucky
Stephen Lewis was raised in the fast-paced world of auctioneering. His late father, NAA Hall of Famer C. Roger Lewis, established the successful auction company C. Roger Lewis Agency in 1958 in Morehead, Kentucky. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Anderson University in Anderson, Indiana in 1972, Stephen returned to Morehead to join the family business. The firm specializes in real estate auctions, as well as commercial and estate liquidations.

Stephen has served a term as a president for the Kentucky Auctioneers Association. Since 1985, he has served on the Kentucky Board of Auctioneers Licensing Board. A member of the NAA since 1973, Stephen has served the association as a treasurer and director. Currently, Stephen is a member of five professional organizations and sits on the Board of Trustees for three philanthropic organizations.

Stephen and his wife, Jan, have two daughters and three grandchildren.

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