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Senior Member
Went to a Ritchie Brothers auction yesterday. It seems to me that they are trying to generate as much confusion as they can.
When you bid at a live auction, your eyes and ears are on 3 things. One is the price on the screen, one is trying to decipher what the auctioneer is saying and the last is the body language of the bid catcher.
The price on the screen seems to change back and forth from "bid" to "ask" because the amount goes up and down. The auctioneer is talking at 100 MPH with 8 pieces of bubble gum in his mouth. The bid catcher is talking to you with body language, which usually means someone is not accountable to what he says.
One thing that you don't usually see clearly is the other bidders. You rely on the bid catcher to signal when you have been outbid, but that just seems a bit vague. Did the other guy actually outbid you or is the bid catcher trying to get you to bid against yourself??
Bidding online is easier, IMO. First of all you don't have to figure out what the auctioneer is babbling and second is that you don't have to figure out what the bid catcher is saying with hand signals and third is that the current price is always bid so you don't have to try to figure out whether it's bid or ask.
In business and politics clear, plain language is the best way to communicate and when one party is deliberately trying to confuse or go over your head, he is a crook. Adding to this ambiguity, RB is using a fast pace to add to the confusion.
My advice would be to plan ahead by looking at the junk a day or two before the auction, then do your bidding at home on your computer.
When you bid at a live auction, your eyes and ears are on 3 things. One is the price on the screen, one is trying to decipher what the auctioneer is saying and the last is the body language of the bid catcher.
The price on the screen seems to change back and forth from "bid" to "ask" because the amount goes up and down. The auctioneer is talking at 100 MPH with 8 pieces of bubble gum in his mouth. The bid catcher is talking to you with body language, which usually means someone is not accountable to what he says.
One thing that you don't usually see clearly is the other bidders. You rely on the bid catcher to signal when you have been outbid, but that just seems a bit vague. Did the other guy actually outbid you or is the bid catcher trying to get you to bid against yourself??
Bidding online is easier, IMO. First of all you don't have to figure out what the auctioneer is babbling and second is that you don't have to figure out what the bid catcher is saying with hand signals and third is that the current price is always bid so you don't have to try to figure out whether it's bid or ask.
In business and politics clear, plain language is the best way to communicate and when one party is deliberately trying to confuse or go over your head, he is a crook. Adding to this ambiguity, RB is using a fast pace to add to the confusion.
My advice would be to plan ahead by looking at the junk a day or two before the auction, then do your bidding at home on your computer.