Re: [GSAS-board] Plant auction

["Seattle_Aquarist" <Seattle_Aquarist@comcast.net>]

Hi All,

I am not sure this is getting us anywhere.  It doesn't make sense to me to
attempt to change everything 5 weeks prior to the scheduled date.  In
addition, I would not look forward to attempting to run it without Erik (our
IT specialist), Paul (one of our plant experts), and Steev (photographer).
Possibly it would be more productive to try to maximize our returns for the
originally scheduled date?  

Looking for ways to increase efficiency, minimize "dead time", auctioneer
emphasis on the higher ticket items, and overall promotion of the event
might prove more productive.  For example I like the idea of "Buy It Now"
tables for more generic items (maybe a couple of tables with "$5 and less"
and "$5 - $10").  If we set those tables up away from the auction area the
disturbance to bidding, runners, auctioneer should be minimal.  

In closing I believe if we promote the event effectively, make sure we have
adequate space (both for people and tables for items), have everything
packaged and ready to go, start on time, and maintain a good auctioneer
tempo we will probably realize more than enough to meet our needs.

Just my opinion!

Roy 

-----Original Message-----
From: gsas-board-bounces@thekrib.com [mailto:gsas-board-bounces@thekrib.com]
On Behalf Of Erik Olson
Sent: Tuesday, January 05, 2010 10:59 AM
To: GSAS board members and alumni
Subject: Re: [GSAS-board] Plant auction

Sure Clay, always happy to crunch more data...

April Auction, Check-ins:

10-noon:        56 
noon-1:         22      (first hour)
1-2:            3

Plant auction, Check-ins:

Before 7        39
7-8             16      (first hour)
8-9             1

Nope, nothing to see here folks.  The vast majority checked in before 
the auctions started, and there was a trickle in the first hour, but 
essentially no stragglers after that.

   - Erik

On Tue, 5 Jan 2010, Hess, Clay A wrote:

> I am not sure the histogram is complete.  Do we monitor when people show
up too?  Because I do know the audience changes over time in both
directions.  New people show up, other people leave.  Just an observation.
> Clay Hess
> 787 Fuselage Systems Integration Manager and Team Leader
> 425-931-4322
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: gsas-board-bounces@thekrib.com <gsas-board-bounces@thekrib.com>
> To: GSAS board members and alumni <gsas-board@thekrib.com>
> Sent: Tue Jan 05 10:21:13 2010
> Subject: Re: [GSAS-board] Plant auction
>
> On Tue, 5 Jan 2010, Phil Lacefield Jr. wrote:
>
>>>> I certainly won't participate if it's moved to a Saturday.  I know I'm
>> sounding like a broken record... we already devote a ton of time at the
>> normal meetings to auctions, and the general auction is crazy long.
>>
>> Now see, I don't get that.  Isn't that the whole point of the Feb meeting
is
>> a plant auction?  And if it's grown to the point where it needs to be
>> longer, and our only choice is Saturday, why wouldn't we want to move it
>> there?  The auctions make us a LOT of money, as we've seen, and the more
>> money we have the more cool speakers we can fly in from elsewhere. I
think
>> our membership really digs the auctions, both the after-meeting ones and
the
>> big ones, simply looking at the attendance proves this.  Why not give the
>> membership more of what they want? And who cares how long the auctions
are
>> if the items up for bid are good, everyone's happy AND the GSAS makes
money
>> to support things throughout the year?
>
> I am stating that *I* care how long the auctions are, and that I will not
> participate in a second Saturday auction.  I am not even sure I have the
> stomach to participate in the one in April this year.  I really don't want
> to rehash it, but it's a lot of work, and *not* every member is interested
> in sitting around for 5 hours.
>
> I attribute the increased attendance at the auctions to the increased
> publicity for them, not to the increased hours.  You have to look at the
> attrition over time to really get a good picture of whether folks like
> "more".
>
> Here's a rough histogram of when bidders checked out at the
> April auction:
>
> hour of auction       # of checkouts
>
> 11:00 hour    6
> Noon hour     3
> 1 PM hour     3
> 2 PM hour     13
> 3 PM hour     8
> 4 PM ~ 4:45   16
> stayed to end 24
>
> And in last year's plant auction:
>
> begin - 7:59          4
> 8:00 - 8:59           14
> 9:00-9:43             14
> stayed to end (9:44)  22
>
> Only 1/3 made it until the end last April.  Lots of people trickled out in
> the second half.
>
>   - Erik
>
>

-- 
Erik Olson                                                        Sent from
my crusty old Linux box
erik at thekrib dot com
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