5 Ways To Increase Bidding On Silent Auction Items

Obtaining items for a silent auction is not always easy. It takes a lot of leg-work, phone calls, and even traveling around in order to secure items to sell at auction. You don’t want any of your silent auction items to be ignored after you have worked hard to obtain them. You will need to make sure the items are displayed in a way that grabs the bidder’s attention. The following five tips will teach you how to strategically place your auction items, make bidding a fun and easy experience, and ultimately make a profit.

Strategically place your silent auction items

Use the same philosophy large retailers use when they set up displays to help display your silent auction items. You may want to walk through some local department stores to see how they set up areas and what items they add to make displays attractive. You should also look at how much space separates what is being displayed from other items in the area. Use the concepts you pick up from the retail displays and make sure your tables are comfortably separated so bidders can easily walk through them. Try and add some color to the room and the displays such as tablecloths, balloons, colored signs, or anything that will grab a bidder’s attention.

If you plan on having a refreshment stand at the auction, make sure it is located on the far side of the room. Bidders will have to walk past the silent auction items to get to the refreshments. You can also use your organization’s theme to decorate the room and make people more aware of what they are supporting.

Make bidders aware of different item displays

While the bidding may be silent, the room definitely won’t be at your silent auction. You will want to keep people’s focus on the items out for bidding. Often times, people get distracted visiting with other bidders, so you should be active in reminding them of the different items available. If time is running close to the end of the auction, you should entice bidders to check their offers. It is a good idea to keep the crowd updated on big ticket items. Let people know how much time is left and how high the bidding has gone. If there are some items that are receiving fewer bids, announce those too and get people interested in raising the bids.

Use a catalog to list silent auction items

Create a simple catalog and use pictures and unique wording to make the items as attractive as possible. Place the catalogs in different areas of the auction for guests to look through. If there are dining areas where you hold the auction, make sure you put some on the tables. If you have too many items to list, then choose 20 to 30 that you think are the most interesting to put in the catalog.

Make the bidding fun and easy

You want people to be able to easily place their bids at your silent auction. Your displays should include everything that bidders need to know about each item. Also, you should have plenty of bid sheets and pens located by each item. Make sure the lighting in your area is good so bidders can have a detailed view of the silent auction items they are bidding on.

Have volunteers who can answer questions

A great idea is to have some volunteers walking around so they can answer any questions bidders may have. These volunteers can watch for people who seem to be undecided and engage them in conversations about items as well. You can receive some good feedback on how the auction is going when volunteers listen to conversations among the bidders. These volunteers can also help replace pens and sheets should they run low on any table, among other duties.

Holding the attention of bidders is important at every type of auction. If you would like more information about attending or holding an auction, call the experts at High Plains Auctioneers at (806) 244-6776. You can also Contact Us by email for more information about our services and view our upcoming auctions to see what we have available.