The future is here, people! Gone are the days of having to hook up a trailer to your truck, scout out local auctions, hope you find the piece of machinery you need at a price you are willing to pay and hauling it home with you. And sellers, no more waiting for auction day! Live online auctions are here to save everyone time, hassle and disappointment!
Now technology is entering the world of auctions allowing for much easier buying and selling of products world wide. Putting large items such as industrial equipment and used machinery on the market is no longer a painful process thanks to live auction broadcasting. Auctions can now take place in people’s homes – really all you need is a computer and internet access! In this article, we’ll discuss what live online auctions are, what the benefits are, and what they mean for the sales and procurement of industrial equipment.
So What is a Live Online Auction?
A live online auction is an auction that is being conducted solely from a website. The hosting website will often set up a time for the auction to be broadcast through their site and invite or allow participants to join the auction at the set time. During the live online auction, participants bid in real time, or live bid, on the items for sale.
It’s a lot like a normal auction except bidders click a button instead of raising their bid card and you can do it from the comfort of your home or office. There is a set time limit for bidders to go against each other. These limits can be a few hours or even weeks or months. At the end of the time limit, or if the live bids stop rising, the auction is then over and the item goes to the highest bidder – just like a normal auction.
What are the benefits of a Live Online Auction?
You know the phrase, “Work smarter, not harder”? Live Online Auctions are the way to work smarter when buying and selling items at auction.
1. Less time lost to set up.
The automation of an auction broadcast gets rid of all prep work and organization needed to set up a normal auction. Websites, such as Exapro, do the work for you. You can simply register online and you’re good to go.
2. Reach larger audiences
Live online auctions can be broadcast nationally or even internationally. In one live online auction, you can reach thousands more potential buyers and sellers than you ever could visiting normal auctions for an entire year. Good auctioneer sites will have large audiences ready to buy and sell to make sure you can always find what you’re looking for whether it is a specific price point, piece of equipment, or an interested buyer.
3. Longer time frames
Usually taking longer is a bad thing, but in the frame of live online auctions, longer auction times means more time to find the perfect buyer for your sales item. In an online auction, you can see live bids coming in and can decide when the price you want has been reached. Finding the perfect price can usually take more than the five to fifteen minutes allotted at a normal auction.
4. You still have support. In fact, you have even more support!
Though thousands of people use websites to live bid in online auctions, a good machinery auction company will still get you one-on-one customer service. Several use a commission based system so the goal is the get your items sold as efficiently as possible. Since these companies are based online, a good auctioneer company will always have someone available to answer any questions you have during the live auction process and sometimes can even handle parts of the process for you!
5. No heavy lifting
Otherwise known as the “pajama factor”, this perk of online live auctions comes from the fact that you don’t need to load up your car and drive anywhere to attend. In fact, you can stay at home in your pajamas! All you need in a computer with access to the internet and you are ready for the live online auction.
What Does This Mean for Buying/Selling Industrial Equipment?
There are a few obvious bonuses to selling machinery and industrial equipment through live online auctions. No more lugging giant machines around to local auctions! The machinery doesn’t need to move an inch until it has been officially purchased. The time and hassle this saves sellers is unbelievable. And buyers don’t have to run from auction to auction hoping that what they need will be available at a decent price. Now you can place your live bids directly from your home or office!
Broadcasting the auction online also means a larger audience of buyers and sellers. With thousands of listings and registered buyers, it’s easier than ever to find the perfect piece of equipment or buyer. It’s like attending an auction with everyone in the country who is interested in what you are selling! Or entering an auction where every available piece of equipment you’re looking for has already been gathered for you to choose from. Who doesn’t love that kind of convenience?
Technology continues to revolutionize the way we buy and sell and machinery auctions are no exception. With live online auctions, you can now buy and sell equipment with ease, comfort, and efficiency.
