What does everyone think of Steerplanet's new online auction service?

Bidding is now underway for the first online sale hosted by Steerplanet.  Looks like several bids have already been placed.  Just wanted everyones opinions so far.

We are very excited to be on the calendar to have Steerplanet host the online auction for the Texas Maine Anjou Association in conjunction with the State Preview Show on April 27th in Ft. Worth, TX.  We are doing a little twist since there are going to be cattle consigned from multiple breeders.  All the cattle will be available for viewing at the breeders prior to the sale, then all the cattle will be on display at the show on the day of the sale. 

That being said, I am really looking forward to hearing how the bidding experience was using mobile devises such as iPhones, iPads, Androids, etc.

Ha, I missed seeing your topic and just started a topic shortly after you asking for feedback.  I will delete my topic and post the contents in here.

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If you haven't noticed yet, we are currently having Steer Planet's first auction that ends on Monday at 7:00 pm Central Time.  I would appreciate if take a look at the link below.

http://sales.steerplanet.com/category/328/Matt-Lautner-Cattle-Online-Semen-Auction-Ends-225-700-pm-Central.html

I am very interested in getting feedback on what you like and what needs to be improved.  The end goal is to build a system that provides a VERY affordable way to sell your cattle through an online sale.  It is a very different approach as you actually manage your own sale, add your own lots, run reports, and collect payment from the buyer at end.  I provide the auction environment, support,  and advertising on Steer Planet.

I ran a survey last year and out of 125 respondents, close to 90% said they would be interested in this type of auction. 

I do believe it has some inherent advantages:
1.  Low Cost - small fee per lot
2.  Pool of Bidders - as of our first auction, over 840 people are registered in the auction/classifieds system.
3.  Free Advertising - we will advertise your sale for free on sp. 
4.  Feed listings on your site either through RSS or full layout, registration, etc with the Remote API.
5.  Very easy to use.  All 27 lots in this auction were done in about 45 minutes.
6.  Custom - can tailor specific fields, functions to fit your needs.

I don't believe this will be everyone, if you want someone to manage each aspect of your auction, this won't be for you.

The thought in the back of my mind was to build a system to bridge the gap from having your Private Treaty Sale in the field and having your sale online.


Future Improvements in the Works
1.  Mobile Bidding through an App or Responsive Design for mobile viewing
2.  Countdown Timer
3.  SMS Text integration for bid notifications - high bidder, out bid, time left

(thumbsup)

looks nice... are you going to have an occassional "consignment sale" for smaller lots (ones and twos ?)... would they be grouped similarly...one auction  show heifers... next auction steers ... next embryos etc.. then if gets busier even more specific groupings?... shorthorn embryos etc

jbzdad said:

looks nice... are you going to have an occassional "consignment sale" for smaller lots (ones and twos ?)... would they be grouped similarly...one auction  show heifers... next auction steers ... next embryos etc.. then if gets busier even more specific groupings?... shorthorn embryos etc

Click to expand...

Yes, I believe in having consignment auctions for SP Members, possibly on a quarterly basis or whenever there is enough cosigners.

It is has been something that has been kicked around on for years and I think it could be a success.

My only issue is that it notified me when my bid was placed, which is great, but did not notify when I was outbid.  I would prefer an email when outbid, so I don't have to babysit the auction.

nkotb said:

My only issue is that it notified me when my bid was placed, which is great, but did not notify when I was outbid.  I would prefer an email when outbid, so I don't have to babysit the auction.

Click to expand...

It is setup to send out bid notifications, I essentially run a cron job every minute that processes all emails.  There is nothing backed up in the queue right now.

Can you check your spam folder and let me know?  I want to make sure there isn't a problem that I am missing.  Thanks.

First auction in the books. Overall I think it went extremely well - all 27 lots were sold and Matt was happy with the entire process.

I have an entire list of new features and updates that will be integrated to constantly improve it.

Here is a list of upcoming auctions:
3/24  –  Road to Purple Sale Online Auction
4/27  –  ZNT Cattle & Consignors Online Auction
10/28  –  Jones Club Calves Online Auction

If you are interested in trying it out, click the link below to fill out a short request for more info.