Way to go REA!!

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by ruth-gehrig

My most favorite online auctions are "live" in the sense that lots are presented and close lot by lot. None of the major sports auctions use liveauctioneers but I believe Hunts Live auctions use invaluable.com which is similar. With liveauctioneers typically auctions with a thousand or more lots will close over a few days. I can track my lots and bids through the app and will get notified when outbid and even the day of the auction to remind me of the start time. Sometimes I can watch the auctions that I'm interested in but if I'm busy or working I dont worry about it. As long as I've thrown a bid on a lot I'm interested in I'll get a phone notification 15 minutes before my lot comes up. Some of these auctions can be attended live. I dont see why some of the big players in the sports auction arena dont take this approach.

Can't speak for other auctions but there are a number of reasons. First liveauctioneers is on someone else's platform which isn't attractive to those of us who have nightmare situations on similar software. You are giving up control of the process to a corporation that may or may not get back to you in an emergency, solve problems quickly etc.

2nd 3000+ lots even at only 2 minutes per item would be more than 4 days. I'd be terrified of people losing interest, missing items they wanted etc.

I do live auctions as well, and I'm a big fan of them as a buyer too, but there's a reason that most sports auction houses run variations on the same theme. It has worked, and appears to be the best way to get the most possible bids. You will continue to see tweaks, and maybe someone with little to lose may attempt a paradigm shift, but it would be very odd to see a massively successful company scrap a system that is working.

[ruth-gehrig]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

Can't speak for other auctions but there are a number of reasons. First liveauctioneers is on someone else's platform which isn't attractive to those of us who have nightmare situations on similar software. You are giving up control of the process to a corporation that may or may not get back to you in an emergency, solve problems quickly etc.

2nd 3000+ lots even at only 2 minutes per item would be more than 4 days. I'd be terrified of people losing interest, missing items they wanted etc.

I do live auctions as well, and I'm a big fan of them as a buyer too, but there's a reason that most sports auction houses run variations on the same theme. It has worked, and appears to be the best way to get the most possible bids. You will continue to see tweaks, and maybe someone with little to lose may attempt a paradigm shift, but it would be very odd to see a massively successful company scrap a system that is working.

Points well taken however...
5000 auctioneers trust liveauctioneers alone. I'm not saying an auction company needs to use it just saying I like the format. Auctions on liveauctioneers typically get through about 60-100 lots an hour so 2 minutes per lot average isnt happening. My other primary collecting interest of automobilia almost exclusively uses this format, some with a live auction attendance as an option. I can live with both formats to cover my interests.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

I do a little over 100/hour live, and there are guys who are faster. Even 100 lots per hour (which I don't believe an actual simulcast could possibly do, but maybe a "live" internet auction can) is 30+ hours for a major auction. That's a lot of pay because you have to have people watching at all times.

Also one of the biggest auction platforms out there, with more users than liveauctioneers, crashed AGAIN this week, completely screwing auctioneers who had auctions ending. So the amount of people using a service isn't relevant to me. I'm not casting aspersions on liveauctioneers, it's just when you aren't in control of what runs your business it's a scary feeling.