Thoughts, Impressions and Idea’s from the 2013 NAA C&S

Having just returned a couple nights ago from the amazing National Auctioneer Association Conference and Show in Indianapolis, I had to brain dump all my thoughts here and share them with you. First off, the NAA C&S is an annual meeting of over 800 like minded auctioneers from all facets of the industry from Real Estate, Collectibles to Benefit Auctions. It is also home of the International Auctioneer Championship, which I had the pleasure and pain of competing in (More on this later). There were so many fresh ideas and energized auctioneers that I couldn’t help myself from learning from them all to help benefit you, my clients and future clients. By learning new techniques and tactics to be used in auctions I consult with and conduct; I can help maximize returns for your event and ultimately your organization.

First off, I was lucky to meet at least a dozen fellow amazing Benefit Auctioneer Specialist’s from around the nation. There’s only 170 or so of us in the USA and having this concentration was great. They were kind enough to let me pick their brains on what was working for them, new ideas on how to conduct a more successful Fund-A-Need, great auction item ideas and what is are the new trends in the Benefit Auction World.

I also attended some awesome classes specifically for benefit auctioneers. One class was about creating a better bidder experience; how we can involve more of the attendees at the event and beyond by using online bidding technologies.  I attended a fun class titled: “Death of a Benefit Auctioneer” ultimately ways to not fail my clients and how to keep them happy and coming back for more. You will directly benefit from all of these lessons by noticing improved customer service and larger donations at your auctions.

All day Friday was the International Auctioneer Championships. By competing with 100 of the nation’s I got to see where I fit in the grand spectrum of professional auctioneers and am happy to say that I felt I was in the top 25%. Only 15 contestants made the finals and I just missed the cut. But I did get to relax and enjoy the contest and see some amazing auctioneering go down. It made for a long day but a very fulfilling one and has me excited to compete next year and possibly bring home the trophy!

The National Auctioneer Association put on a great show and the level of professionalism and kindness will be unmatched. If you want to find out what the difference between a regular auctioneer and a NAA auctioneer I urge you to head to www.auctioneers.org to learn more about the great organization that I am a proud member of. After the conference I got to visit the Indian State Museaum where a boyhood passion of mine was exhibited…The Star War’s Exhibit.

With this I say: May The Force Be With You!