The Auctioneer’s Show
January 26, 2010
I had a conversation this week with an acquaintance that had attended an Absolute Auction this past weekend for several tracts of land. Her question to me was regarding the traditional Auctioneer’s countdown. “Oh, the countdown,” I thought. She told me she became very aggravated because it seemed every time the Auctioneer started the countdown, one of the groundmen would say “Wait a minute, wait a minute” then get another bid, hence delaying the countdown. The Auctioneer would then calls for bids and after a couple of minutes; the Auctioneer would start the countdown again. Low and behold, the same thing would happen. Yes, I’ve been there and done that. Let me try to explain.
The traditional Auctioneer’s countdown will go something like this: “Going once, going twice, third and last call…going, going, gone!” Why do we need a countdown? Well, while it may seem somewhat dramatic, it is very necessary. Much of the time, this is when the bidding really takes off and the professionals can sometimes intimidate the newbies! The pressure becomes very intense because the countdown is truly the “Call to Action”. The countdown is a tactic. After all, the last bid is the only one that counts, right? An Auctioneer wants the last bid to be the best bid.
Many bidders “lay back” (auctioneer talk) until the countdown begins. There is nothing like the feeling of throwing in a bid when the Auctioneer says, “Third and last call”. The adrenaline pump is extreme for both the bidder and the groundman/woman. And for the Auctioneer calling the countdown…well, it just feels good. It feels good, that is, if you’ve achieved a good selling price. On the other hand, if you are the Auctioneer calling the countdown and you know your selling price is below expectations, it’s the worst feeling in the world. That is, though, the nature of the beast.
As Auctioneers, we want to win them all and lose none. We work for the seller and we will work that countdown and sometimes just wear it out until we feel we have gotten every dime we can get. While an Auctioneer’s countdown may sometimes seem like a “show”, it is our business to get the most money we can for whatever it is we’re selling. Moral to this story…it worked for my acquaintance. She and her husband bought the tract of land they came to buy.
