Emerging Trends in the Auction Industry
2022 Auction Trends Across LiveAuctioneers
More Auction Houses Growing their Businesses through Online Auction Aggregators
A larger number of auction businesses are shifting to the online auction space through strategic partnerships with online auction aggregators such as LiveAuctioneers. By offloading the burdens of paid bidder acquisition, technology costs and upkeep, customer support overhead, software innovation and payment processing to online auction aggregators like LiveAuctioneers, auction houses have been able to streamline their businesses while reducing operational costs.
Some trends seen in auction houses who use online auction aggregators:
• Increased online-only auctions that are more narrowly curated, and generally with fewer lot count
• Deeper adoption of live-streamed auctions to grow engagement and maximize hammer prices across an online bidder-base
• Use of automation tools to manage functions like bidder approvals, payment collection, and photo retouching
More Buyers Seeking A More Sustainable Way to Shop
• Increased interest in secondhand items. Consumers are expected to spend $353.9 billion on secondhand items by 2030, driving a 153.5% growth from 2020.
• Financial responsibility. 74.6% of secondhand buyers are inclined to shop used items to save money.
• Preference for sustainable products amongst young buyers. 62% of Gen Z and millennial buyers prefer to buy items from sustainable brands and retailers
Data Sources:
GlobalData
World Economic Forum
Auction Houses Attract More Gen Z and Millennial Buyers than Ever Before, Engaging The Next Generation of Auction Buyers
As more young, technology focused buyers choose to buy at auction, the industry experiences a growing demand for a seamless online purchase and payment experience.
Millenial and Gen Z buyers’ affinity for technology largely shapes their purchasing habits and buying expectations.
These younger buyers seek:
• Electronic and flexible payment methods
• Instant gratification
• Financial responsibility
Auction Houses Making Deeper Investments in Digital Advertising
A growing number of auction houses are achieving impressive sale results and returns of investment through digital advertising, leading to deeper investments in this area with reallocated funds previously used for traditional media.
Popular digital advertising strategies include:
• Directly-engaging high-value buyers through email marketing solutions
• Gaining brand awareness across auction aggregators and social media presence
• Generating buzz across online news and media sites
• Optimizing search engine strategy using online auction aggregators
