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Online auctions are more popular than ever, selling multiple items to multiple buyers, from the comfort of one location & many times the buyer will not ever even have to leave his or her home! This is a modern convenience for everyone! As a company though, maybe you are seeing that your online auctions aren’t getting as much bidding as you have hoped, or that possibly multiple items are going through the auction process without being sold at all. So, how do we address these issues? Turns out, just a few simple changes could make the world of difference when it comes to ensuring that you have a successful online auction.
Utilize your resources to advertise
Online auctions can be easy to advertise – so utilize your resources. For example, Facebook is not only a great way to push out graphic-based information, create events for your auction, & make albums filled with product photos, but you also can utilize the paid advertising portion. You can now target in-depth audience selections for an extremely reasonable price. Facebook will also provide easy-to-read stats & numbers for you to see how your ads are doing. Email marketing & social media on any platform is a great way to grow your auctions reach, used correctly it can exponentially help your efforts! If you need help reaching more people through organic or paid traffic, read more about our services here!
Know your bidders…or POTENTIAL bidders
To sell your items online, one of the best things you can do is get to know the people you are trying to sell to. It’s important to know the general guideline of who WANTS to buy this specific item or type of item. Once you know who would want to buy these items you can gear your advertisements specifically for them, this could include anything from social media graphics, to text font & size on your website feature, to any paid advertising that you might want to invest in. With a specific audience in mind, it’s much easier to target your ideal customer with things you know are proven to work with any given demographic.
Consider the experience (mobile & more)
In a world where eBay, amazon, & Facebook marketplace exist, it’s fairly…no…extremely important to focus on how to set yourself apart from any other platform to buy things online. Focus on what makes yourself unique & how you can tap into that, maximizing your efforts. People love convenience, but they equally value authenticity & uniqueness. For example, a few years ago, a gun owned by the notorious gangster, Al Capone was auctioned off in West Michigan! Not often does an opportunity like that come up, this auction was highlighted by news stations across the globe (click here to read news coverage.) This auction caught the attention of many people just based on it’s extremely unique nature. You don’t have to sacrifice profit to set yourself apart, find the things that make your company different and highlight them, while also focusing on how to make the experience unique. Offer mobile bidding, send a fun follow-up email after purchase, and create edgy bid notifications to capture your bidders. Find what works for you to create your successful online auction, and capitalize on it!
Evaluate Auction Visual
Visual is everything in the world of auctions – it’s important to get your visual on track for the brand you are trying to attain. Your auction presentation should be consistent, professional, simple, & to the point. Your items should be featured in the same way, we even would suggest going as far as having the same background to all the auction items to create the uniformity that is most pleasing for your bidders. Not only is your on-site visual important, but we suggest that all of your social media platforms would be consistent with your website as well, when bidder traffic is coming from any social media account, they should have no questions as to whether you are the same company, the brand, design, & ambiance should flow from one to the others.
These are 4 simple things to think about as you maximize your online auction efforts & create a successful online auction. To learn more about planning and marketing your auction, check out our blog on auction marketing. Looking for advice for live auctions? This blog will give you tips for a successful live auction!
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