By: Charles Roman

1.)  Place it in a shop. - (Auctions are #1  resource  for  shop owners to stock their shelfs).

2.)  Place it on eBay or other on line auction.  - (Over 125 million users are registered at eBay).

3.)  Sell it at a yard sale. - (You receive a lot less,  but you can sell most items ).

4.)  Post ads in local newspapers & bill boards.  - (This is good  for large items like furniture - bill boards best, only about 10% of items listed in newspaper ad sell).

5.)  Sell at flea markets or trade shows.  - (This is especially nice if you live in the country or a remote area).

6.)  Don’t sell at all – just fill up the garage – because one day that pile will make you a million!  - (When your dead you can't spend the money either, and I'm yet to see a  hearse pulling a u-haul).

7.)  Sell to people that have already told you they want what you purchased. (By far the best way to sell).

First off, filling up the garage is not’t going to give you a steady cash flow.  The other options are better ways to sell things that don’t sell to your buyer, you had before you bid.  I will explain later.  I learned this lesson the hard way.   I was at an auction when a trailer full of about 300 ceramic molds came up on the block. You did not’t get the trailer, but you got the molds, a kiln, and several other goodies unique to the ceramic industry. I did not’t have a buyer, but this was a steal! The high bid was at only $5.00. I went back & forth with the high bidder, he finally let me have them all for $30.00. I was going to make at least $5.00 per mold – I was going to make $1500 off a $30 bid. I was one excited dude for the rest of the evening, until reality set in over the next nine months. Long story short – the 75 ceramic dealers within 5 states around me, wanted a list of what I had, only 3 showed up for my open house, and they only wanted 4-5 pieces at .50 cents to a buck apiece. I did not’t even make my bidding price. Not to mention the labor, equipment, time and money to; haul, clean, sort, and contact the ceramic dealers. After giving the molds away, so I could have my garage back, I realized the real money I made on this deal was the lesson I learned.

     Over the next several months I pondered on the question – How can I find a buyer before I go to the auction? No one is going to give me money and say “Here go spend this on whatever comes up at the auction”. I began to ask my friends and family “I’m going to an auction on Wednesday, are you looking for anything?” Sometimes I’d get a response like “yah! If a Microwave, or stereo comes up – I’ll pay $25 for a nice one”. I began to make a few dollars, but it still wasn’t enough to pay the bills. (It was during this time period my mother called me one day and said Hey Mister! Do you think you can find me a desk?)

    Think about it. If you have the buyer first, you can:  1.) ask the buyer what they would pay (avoids over bidding & increases profit margin). 2.) Look up the value in price guides or online. 3.) Shop other For Sale ads & other stores to find the value, 4.) You don't have to have your money tied up in inventory.  (buy & resell right away) 5.) You can decide your top dollar before you bid. 6.) You can decide which auctions to go to, and do research before the auction (saves gas & running around). 7.) Sell for less then customer said they would pay - or less then your competion and you have  a very good repeat customer. After all, this whole series has been about making money at auctions - not buying STUFF. The buying stuff comes as an added benifit, but should never be your primemary goal when going to the auction. 

     As time went on I continued to watch and collect the wanted ads. After a while I noticed some collectors would run ads for things they collect. I’d staple these ads on a 3x5 card, and file the cards by what the person collected. (Course much of this was before we had computers). When I received my auction notices, I’d score them. The auction received one point for each item on the flyer, which was also in my file. The auctions with the highest scores are the auctions I attended that week. The thing I noticed about collectibles and collectors is that if they collected something today – they collected the same thing 2, 5 and 10 years later. But they were always willing to pay fair prices, and I did not’t have huge commissions or listing fees. (And some of you fuss when we ask for $2 or $3 for their information). Today with over 10,000 collectors on our list, we’re starting to invite them to our web site to tell you, what they have already told us.  If in doubt, when we got an auction catalog we would call the collector and ask what they would pay for such & such.  I like most others, just want a fair price for the items offered.  If I have only a few collectors for an item, I'd take the best offer. If I have a lot of collectors for an item, I’ll list the item on eBay or other online auction, and invite the buyers to the auction. The bottom line is the final buyer determines the real value.  I've seen many people list things on eBay at book value, and when the auction is over the item didn't sell (which 75% of items listed on eBay don't sell). Today we have collectors from all over posting their collectible wanted ads on our web site - now you too have access to an endless list of  buyers before you go to the auction.

     While the money from auctions is great, God has blessed me with many other blessings that I wouldn’t have had if I did not’t know the secrets of auctions. And I hope money is not the only reason you learn the secrets.  He has used this as one way to multiply what I have, as Jesus had taught in the parable of the talents (Mathew 25:14).

     Story One: After 20 years of marriage, my x wife decided she was going to go off with someone else. When she left she took the living room set, the bedroom set, the kitchen set, etc. She did not’t even leave me a pot to cook for the kids. By attending some of the hidden auctions, I refurnished the house for less then $200, with quility furniture & decor.

     Story Two: A good friend of mine told me about some young adults from her church. The couple was not married, and she was pregnant. The parents on either side did not’t like the other’s mate. In fact the one father said to the young lady, if you bring that kid around here “I’ll kill it”. The couple had nowhere to get help. Again at one of the hidden auctions I bought over 15 (black trash) bags full of baby to toddler clothes (about 4 years old), a crib, a jumper, car seat and other baby items. I picked up the whole batch for a buck and gave it to the couple.  The Thank You card I received from that unknown couple, is perhaps the best thing I ever got from auctions.