What would YOU like to see in a online auction?

sycks22 · #1 12-18-2017, 03:01 PM

I'd love to see all AH's end in a lot by lot basis. I realize this has been discussed in the past a lot. I'd also enjoy the cheap / free shipping that most AH's have adopted.

Mark70Z · #2 12-18-2017, 03:11 PM

1. No seller fee
2. Reasonable shipping/free shipping
3. Low buyer premium
4. Quality photos of the item
5. An auction end time
6. PayPal option
7. Quick turnaround

packs · #3 12-18-2017, 03:16 PM

Paypal option is a good one. I don't like being held hostage by my payment.

oldjudge · #4 12-18-2017, 03:19 PM

I'd like to see proper English.

1952boyntoncollector · #5 12-18-2017, 03:24 PM

I like to see honest descriptions of wrinkle/creases. After the auction i would like to know what was not actually paid for and is being returned to the consignor or put up for another auctions.

Also want to see some type of username (can be coded etc) so i know who the unique bidder but dont know who it is so can see if its just between me and one guy or many guys and also fights shilling... plus can see if an item was not paid for..i can see who the bidder was (can be coded etc)

frankbmd · #6 12-18-2017, 04:21 PM

How about some unidentified lots. Let the bidders do their own homework.

Aquarian Sports Cards · #7 12-18-2017, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark70Z

1. No seller fee
2. Reasonable shipping/free shipping
3. Low buyer premium
4. Quality photos of the item
5. An auction end time
6. PayPal option
7. Quick turnaround

How do people think businesses work? so basically you want him to collect almost no fees and have stellar customer service. Have collectors really gotten this spoiled that they think that's a viable option? Combine that with the guys who want cheaper lots (which I agree with) that take nearly as much work as expensive lots while generating less revenue and basically you guys want auction houses to be charities. I'd like to poop gold coins too, but c'mon man.

EDIT: And yes, Leon, I realize your first post was facetious, I wonder if other people do though!

Topnotchsy · #8 12-18-2017, 07:29 PM

- Make sure website is easily searchable (not like Hunt etc)
- display actual price with BP (like heritage)
- only items authenticated by respected 3rd party authentication (or at least be very clear on what is and what is not authenticated and by who)
- accurate titles (If mears says that they cannot State it was used by the player don�t refer to it as �Player x game used� etc)
- offer PayPal/CC options (I don�t mind paying a small premium that way though I�m not convinced it�s cheaper for the auction house to have to staff people to deal with checks and the like)

keithsky · #9 12-18-2017, 07:41 PM

No hidden reserves. If you need a reserve on an item mention it. I think Iconic Auctions are the worst for that. Not sure anyone ever wins anything because most of it is on ebay then ends up back on there.

rhettyeakley · #10 12-18-2017, 07:58 PM

I prefer to see auction houses run by people who know a great deal about the subject matter, in fact I would consider that an absolute necessity.

Being a relative newcomer to the field doesn�t give anyone a free pass to open an auction house, what exactly would you provide to your consignors? Not trying to be rude but you have asked some pretty rudimentary questions over the past few months and not sure why you think this would be a great idea. Again, if you you decide to take this on I wish you luck I just don’t know that this would be a successful venture for you.

Aquarian Sports Cards · #11 12-18-2017, 08:54 PM

One of the first things they teach you in Auctioneer school in PA. The most important tool an auctioneer has is product knowledge.

x2drich2000 · #12 12-18-2017, 09:01 PM

I didn't see anything regarding the types of consignments you are looking to have which I think that would plays significantly into the details of what I would expect/want, but overall I think everything can be generalized by 2 words: transparency and integrity. Low buyers premium doesn't mean a thing if people are getting shilled. Shipping that is fair, even if it is more than the postal rate, as long as we know we aren't going to be screwed and represents the packaging that is required. An honest representations of the item, which includes very clear picture(s), a description when necessary to point out a flaw that can't be seen, and accurate titles. Clear communication on what you expect the item to sell for before taking the consignment.

Like Rhett said, the person behind the auction house plays a big part. There are a lot of reasons LOTG, REA, Sterling, etc are so popular, but I think it really comes down to the owners of the business. Each of the owners has spent years/decades building their reputation and contacts within the hobby. I'm also not trying to be rude, but I would seriously ask yourself how well known are you in the hobby and how will that impact your ability to gather consignments and for people to trust you with their consignments.

DJ

EYECOLLECTVINTAGE · #13 12-18-2017, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhettyeakley

I prefer to see auction houses run by people who know a great deal about the subject matter, in fact I would consider than an absolute necessity.

Being a relative newcomer to the field doesn’t give anyone a free pass to open an auction house, what exactly would you provide to your consignors? Not trying to be rude but you have asked some pretty rudimentary questions over the past few months and not sure why you think this would be a great idea. Again, if you you decide to take this on I wish you luck I just don’t know that this would be a successful venture for you.

I would respond to this by saying, I would offer absolute amazing customer service to both consignors and buyers. I have spent many years in sales and learned how important customer service and transparency is.

Nobody is too big or too small when it comes to being treated with respect and having their concerns answered.

I believe that shipping should be lightning fast, as should payouts, and emails should be answered almost immediately during an auction.

I am from a newer school where being constantly accesible is the norm and would translate that over to this model.

Still scratching the surface on ideas and how things would be done, but I like the ideas and hope to fill a void from the customer service point of view that the industry seems to be lacking.

drcy · #14 12-18-2017, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhettyeakley

I prefer to see auction houses run by people who know a great deal about the subject matter, in fact I would consider than an absolute necessity.

+1 A good auction house should be experts in the material #1.

Shoeless Moe · #15 12-19-2017, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by keithsky

No hidden reserves. If you need a reserve on an item mention it. I think Iconic Auctions are the worst for that. Not sure anyone ever wins anything because most of it is on ebay then ends up back on there.

Dead on about Iconic, gotten to the point I don't even look at their auctions. I'm sure it's all in-house bidding or hidden reserves.

One of thee worst in the business.

vintagerookies51 · #16 12-19-2017, 12:53 PM

I've always thought of doing this someday, but probably very far into the future (if this is still a hobby). Would be so cool dealing with hundreds of pieces of baseball history all day

Snapolit1 · #17 12-18-2017, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

How do people think businesses work? so basically you want him to collect almost no fees and have stellar customer service. Have collectors really gotten this spoiled that they think that's a viable option? Combine that with the guys who want cheaper lots (which I agree with) that take nearly as much work as expensive lots while generating less revenue and basically you guys want auction houses to be charities. I'd like to poop gold coins too, but c'mon man.

EDIT: And yes, Leon, I realize your first post was facetious, I wonder if other people do though!

Auction houses aren�t non profit charities. If their fees are disclosed stop doing business with people whose standard terms you don�t like.
My pet peeve is long delays in shipping. But that horse has been sufficiently flogged I think.

Aquarian Sports Cards · #18 12-18-2017, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

My pet peeve is long delays in shipping. But that horse has been sufficiently flogged I think.

Now that I can get behind 100%

sb1 · #19 12-19-2017, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark70Z

1. No seller fee
2. Reasonable shipping/free shipping
3. Low buyer premium
4. Quality photos of the item
5. An auction end time
6. PayPal option
7. Quick turnaround

Quite happy that I believe I fit 5 of the above 7,(1,2,3,4 &7). On #5 having each lot end individually comes close to that, which we started using several years ago. I don't ever see Paypal as an option at my 12 1/2% buyers premium(which it always has been, another post was in error stating it was 10% at one time).

Further I pay the consignors the second Monday after each auction ends(or before). While I do have the low budget advantage to enable the low BP of no employees, it does get me behind on shipping ocassionally. Other than that the model seems to work. Will I ever be as big as Heritage or REA? No...that was never the goal when Leon and I started the business, it was to give the smaller guys a place to consign their material without it all being tossed into one lot and the smaller buyer to buy cards one at a time under $50-100 and not have to buy an entire group for a single card. Also for sellers we tried to provide an alternative of not having to go the ebay route and spend all of the selling time of scanning, listing and packing, and paying 13-15% of the take to ebay/paypal.

Thanks for the kind words from the folks that both buy and sell through my auctions.

Scott

www.brockelmanauctions.com

Aquarian Sports Cards · #20 12-19-2017, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

Quite happy that I believe I fit 5 of the above 7,(1,2,3,4 &7). On #5 having each lot end individually comes close to that, which we started using several years ago. I don't ever see Paypal as an option at my 12 1/2% buyers premium(which it always has been, another post was in error stating it was 10% at one time).

Further I pay the consignors the second Monday after each auction ends(or before). While I do have the low budget advantage to enable the low BP of no employees, it does get me behind on shipping ocassionally. Other than that the model seems to work. Will I ever be as big as Heritage or REA? No...that was never the goal when Leon and I started the business, it was to give the smaller guys a place to consign their material without it all being tossed into one lot and the smaller buyer to buy cards one at a time under $50-100 and not have to buy an entire group for a single card. Also for sellers we tried to provide an alternative of not having to go the ebay route and spend all of the selling time of scanning, listing and packing, and paying 13-15% of the take to ebay/paypal.

Thanks for the kind words from the folks that both buy and sell through my auctions.

Scott

www.brockelmanauctions.com

I hope it didn't get lost in my post how much respect I have for you. I think you do it right, to the point where I don't understand how you can do it!

sb1 · #21 12-19-2017, 01:14 PM

In response to Scott's post above Barry's

No not at all.

Firstly I don't do it to make a living, could I? yes, I would just have to get more consignments and do more auctions, which would be more travel and shows, being in TX rather than the NE I am at a huge disadvantage, to the proximity and cost of attending most of the shows. So I rely on my network of consignors and the several new ones I get each auction for material. My advantage there is my long time in the hobby as a collector, so many people are familiar with me on that basis and choose to sell thru me, by shipping to me and not dropping off at the shows.

By and large the format works, it would just need more volume to be my only source of income, as it does generate a profit each auction. Keep in mind I am also really tight. I reuse a lot of mailing boxes and take advantage of postal flat rate boxes and use Collectible private insurance etc. You won't get a fancy triple boxed single card wrapped in tape with my name on it

Stampsfan · #22 12-19-2017, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

For every hour of that, there are five of scanning and five more of shipping, not all that glamorous or entertaining

+1.
Sounds like most small businesses, where you're working more hours than you ever expected, spend too many hours dealing with a small few unreasonable customers, and at the end of the day, find you're making way less per hour than you should, given teh workload.

Stephen, I admire your dreams, but you're not exactly coming into this with eyes wide open, and a fresh new idea. Like many fresh faced, it always appears to be much easier than it actually is. And much harder to complete.

It's one thing to sell some items on eBay, quite another to run a production like a full fledged auction house. Perhaps even start with getting some software written or purchased that will properly run the auction side of the business first. Integrate that software with your accounting software. Set up an agreement with FedEx to get your items shipped to you and from you under your insurance. Get a storage facility with the proper 24 hour security, where you can store your consignments. Work on marketing and promotion to get your consignments, and a solid customer base.

This is just off the top of my head, and I know nothing about how the auction business works. But of course, I could easily run one. As Fr@nk Burke++ said in a post, "I want to be an architect. What kind of pencil do I need?" (I use that line now, it says it all)

To prove your grassroots ideas to everyone, and your "StickToItNess", stick to your first venture here which was trading up a paper clip (or something) for a '52 Mantle. When you complete that task, I'll believe in the seriousness of your next venture, starting up an auction house.

Snapolit1 · #23 12-19-2017, 02:21 PM

I think the largest impediment to become truly knowledgeable in this field is that to really know, I think you have to have years of experience of items actually in your hands. I think there is only so much you can learn by looking at pictures on the Internet. Others may disagree. Trying to be an expert in cards or memorabilia by just looking at scans on the Internet seems to me a lot like try to be a good doctor but never actually laying hands on patients.

EYECOLLECTVINTAGE · #24 12-19-2017, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stampsfan

+1.

To prove your grassroots ideas to everyone, and your "StickToItNess", stick to your first venture here which was trading up a paper clip (or something) for a '52 Mantle. When you complete that task, I'll believe in the seriousness of your next venture, starting up an auction house.

Thanks for the post. I am currently having the 1954 bowman set auctioned off at heritage in a few weeks. I am still going to trade up to that Mantle. I wasn't looking to launch a auction in the next month I was thinking more a year or so.

Hopefully I can get this mantle by then.

mechanicalman · #25 12-19-2017, 03:36 PM

A question I would ask the OP or anyone interested in this path, why does the world need yet another AH? There's already at least 20 AHs, each offering some derivation of the same theme. Do you guys realize how many more cards we'd all own if we didn't have to pay a 12.5-30% margin for someone to broker our transactions?

Why not think bigger and create a different model to facilitate the buying and selling of cards and memorabilia? Think of a BST on steroids, where you create a platform that allows for a high volume of transactions between buyers and sellers with the "house" just taking a small cut (3-5 pts) in exchange for programming and managing the platform. Sellers can manage the "marketing" of their goods and their own shipments. Sellers and buyers could be vetted by the platform and kept honest by higher levels of transparency you'd find on eBay. PayPal still offers Buyer protection, or an escrow service could be used for high-value transactions.

Obviously, I haven't thought through all the details here, but I'm not personally interested in starting a business card related business. But if I was, I wouldn't focus on the equivalent of launching a better taxi company; I'd shoot to launch the equivalent of Uber.

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