Understanding The Auction Chant

It takes experience to fully understand the melodic chant of an auctioneer. The chant you hear during an auction actually has many names including bid calling, the auction cry, or the cattle rattle. The fast-paced speech can make it hard to understand just what the auctioneer is saying. Experienced bidders get to know this chant and its various parts over time. Although the auction chant can be difficult for newcomers to understand, a few quick tips should set you on the right path.

A breakdown of the auction chant

The main part of the auction chant is the repetition of two numbers. The numbers represent the monetary amount being offered in the sale of an item. The first number is the amount a bidder has offered for the item, or the have. The other number is what someone needs to bid to beat the offer, also known as the want.

Between the numbers are filler words. These words string together two bid numbers and are used to make the rhythmic chant. A few things the auctioneer may say include, “will you give me two?”, “will you give me now?”, and “will you give me three?”. These phrases are typically used around 70-80% of the time.

A third number must be kept in mind as the the auctioneer is chanting, although it is not spoken aloud immediately. This number, known as the next, is the next amount the auctioneer will use as the want.

The final bid

The auction chant will continue until the item is sold. Once the current bidder appears to be the highest bidder and the bidding has nearly stopped, the auctioneer will say “going once, going twice, sold.” This is an indicator that the bidding has officially ended for that item. You must pay close attention to what the auctioneer is saying. You don’t want to miss your chance to bid because you were confused about the price. As you gain experience, you will be able to understand the auction chant more clearly and get some great deals.

Auctions are very fast paced, so it can be easy to get caught up in the excitement and over-bid for an item. To learn more about how to bid at auctions, contact the experts at High Plains Auctioneers today. You can call us at (806) 244-6776 or Contact Us by email for more information about buying items at auction. Don’t forget to check out our Upcoming Auctions to see what we have available!