National Auctioneers Association
State of the Auction Industry Amid COVID-19
April 22, 2020
On March 25, 2020, we released the first State of the Auction Industry Amid COVID-19 report, showing data on effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the unprecedented number of event cancellations. Surveys are continually improved to gain the most accurate, relevant data for the industry. This week we introduced a question about the size of business our respondents are conducting. The majority – 55% – reported companies with less than five employees. Another 29% reported five to 10 employees. We also amended the question about economic stimulus participation to include those who chose not to participate. That resulted in showing that 40% of respondents do not plan on participating. Finally, we asked respondents to tell us if they are seeing a drop in asset values. Though one-third said they were not currently conducting auctions, 30% said they are seeing a drop, and 37% said they are not. Our next report will be released on May 6, 2020.
Contact Hannes Combest, FASAE, CAE, Chief Executive Officer hcombest@auctioneers.org Media Inquiries Erin Shipps, Director of Marketing & Communications eshipps@auctioneers.org
Please contact us if you did not participate in this survey and wish to be a part of future surveys.
Methodology The National Auctioneers Association sent a 29question survey built in Survey Monkey via email to 7,346 member and non-member contacts. The survey was also distributed through a targeted Facebook ad. The association received 186 responses. Raw data was collected and tabulated using Survey Monkey.
Compliance
Job Status
17%
18%
82%
Yes
Mostly
83%
Full-time
Part-time
<1% reported â&#x20AC;&#x153;noâ&#x20AC;?
Are you following CDC guidelines?
Are you a full-time auctioneer?
<1
1-5
6-10
Years
How long have you been in the auction industry?
11-20
21-30
30+
0
10
20
30
40
50
# of respondents
60
70
How many employees are in your company or the company you work for?
Are you planning to participate in the federal governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic stimulus program?
Employees 105 90
Economic Stimulus
# of respondents
75 50 60
40
45
30 20
30
10 15
0
0 30+
20-30
10-20
5-10
<5
Payroll Protection Plan
Loan
Expanded Unemployment Program
No
Rural
What type of market(s) are you typically operating in?
Small Town
Small City
Mid-sized City
Large City
0
20
40
60
# of respondents
80
100
Benefits
Real Estate
Personal & Commercial Assets
Marketing & Management
What is your primary source of income?
Contract
Benefits
Real Estate
What is your secondary source of income? *26% of respondents chose N/A
Personal & Commercial Assets Contract
nt iq ue s an d
A
C
ol le ut ct o/ ib M le ot Fu s o nd rc ra yc i si le ng s /C ha Re ri t B cr an y ea kr up ti o tc na Bu y l Ve sin Es es hi ta cl sL te es iq /P u er id so at He Fa na io rm av n l Pr /R y o Eq an pe ui rty pm ch/ Liv e In nt es du /C to st ck on ria s l /M tru ct an Re io uf G st n a au ov c r er tu n m ant ri n g Eq en ui tS pm ur pl en In us t te /S ll e ei ct zu ua re s lP ro Fin C pe om e rty A m rt/ er Je ci w Re al el Re sid ry a en lE ti a sta lR te ea La lE nd st at Re e al Es ta te
A
# of respondents
NAA Member Yes
Respondent Statistics No
10%
90%
Which assets do you market?
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
What percentage of your sellers or clients are canceling their summer auctions or events? Decision to Postpone
Cancellations
% of respondents
30
Client
20
Both
10
Auctioneer
0 0%
<10% April 1
10-49% April 8
50-79% April 15
80-99%
100%
April 22
Respondents seeing zero summer auction cancellations dipped lower this week, while those in the mid range and 100% cancellation levels saw increases. Responsibility for decisions to postpone has remained consistent.
Seller Questions Should I reschedule and when? When will you be able to sell my assets/hold live events/galas? Will the government allow us to have the auction? What liabilities exist? Will this affect turnout, participation? Will this affect buying, prices and values? How are other sales going? Are you still accepting consignments? How safe is it, what steps are being taken to ensure safety? How do we move to virtual/online? Will online only auctions do as well as live? We are online only, so nothing has changed. Clients are not asking questions. 0 April 8
April 15
20 April 22
40
% of respondents
What are your sellers or clients asking regarding COVID-19 and the impact to their auction or event?
60
Seller Confidence Positive reinforcement Providing guidance Giving reasonable timeframes/realistic alternatives/flexibility inâ&#x20AC;Ś Keeping in contact, following up, informing Discussing pros/cons of postponing vs. canceling Showing recent auction results/sales data Counseling on benefits/success of virtual live/online only auctions Assuring we have tools/knowledge to conduct online auctions Providing more options for previews and pickups Using SignUp Genius for scheduling and pickups Encouraging back-up plans Staying calm Not currently conducting auctions We are online-only so nothing has changed 0% April 8
April 15
10%
April 22
20%
30%
40%
50%
% of respondents
What are you doing to give sellers confidence to move forward with an auction?
60%
70%
How are most of your buyers or donors behaving in your market?
Buyers & Donors 80 March 25
70
April 15
April 1
April 8
April 22
% of respondents
60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Adapting
Frustrated
Worried
Too Early to Tell Same as Usual
Declined
No auctions
This week saw the highest percentage of respondents who reported buyers are frustrated and the first reduction in buyers who are adapting and understanding. The current climate of the public wanting to get back to normal life could be contributing to this shift.
How has your live auction attendance been affected? 50
% of respondents
40
30
20
10
0 Lower
All Canceled
Mostly Canceled
March 25
Transitioned to Online April 1
Normal
April 8
Increased April 15
No auctions
N/A
April 22
Two weeks ago we shifted this question to reflect that some auctioneers were not cancelling, but rather not conducting new auctions at all. This 48% is reflected in the no auctions answer. This correspondingly brought down the number of cancellation responses.
Challenges with Preview/Load out Scheduling
Canceled/Postponed
Decreased Results
How has your online bidding participation been affected?
Decreased Traffic
Increased Results
Increased Traffic Online bidding has seen a 9% jump in increased results and a 7% boost in increased traffic. Challenges have subsided slightly with preview and load out.
Just Started Online
No Significant Effect
N/A 0 March 25
April 1
April 8
April 15
April 22
10
20
30
% of respondents
40
Are you currently seeing a drop in asset values? Affected Assets Asset Values
Land real estate Residential real estate Commercial real estate Fine Art/Jewelry Intellectual property Government Surplus/seizures
30%
34%
Restaurant equipment Industrial/Manufacturing equipment Heavy Equipment/Construction Farm/Ranch/Livestock Estate/Personal property Business liquidation Recreational vehicles
37%
Bankruptcy Fundraising/Charity Auto/Motorcycles Antiques and collectibles
Yes
No
Not currently conducting auctions
0%
5%
10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%
% of respondents These results may be skewed because of a fault in the survey. The next report will show the most accurate data.
March 25 April 15
April 8
April 1 April 22 In Person Radio
How are you communicating to your community regarding auction or event cancellations?
Signs Newspaper Direct Mail Website/App Phone Text Social Media Email Through nonprofit 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
% of respondents
70
80
What vulnerabilities are you currently seeing in your market? Vulnerabilities % of respondents
80 60 40 20
on e N
e s/ In
ns e Lo ss
of
Se
Bu sin es
ll e rI
on -e N
co m
cu ri t y
l ss e
nt ia
un ds ss et sa re
m y on o Ec n
Bu ye rF A
ar o Fe
fF a
ce -
to -
Fa ce
fU nk no w
In te ra ct io ns
e O nl in to
M ov in g ar o Fe
C
an ce
ll a tio ns /P os
tp on em en ts
0
March 25
April 1
April 8
April 15
April 22
Vulnerabilities have declined in most responses this week with the exception of moving to online, which increased 28%.
What new opportunities are you seeing as a result of COVID-19? Opportunities 40 30 20 10
N
sk ill s /
ot hi ng
ew
N
tra in in g
ng es ha C N
A
ss et
pp ra i sa ls
s Bu ye r C
on su lti ng /A
ew N
in g
In ve st m en ts Bi zD ev el op m en M or t e Fu tu re As se ts
M ar ke tin g/
ew
Se
lle r
s/ Ex pa nd
N
ew
Te c
M ar ke t
h
0 O nl in e
% of respondents
50
March 25
April 1
April 8
April 15
79% of auctioneers continue to see many opportunities during this time. Online auctions remain at the top of the list, followed by the increasing impression that those efforts will result in new buyer pools.
April 22
How are you or the company you work for responding financially for the business?
40
20
e
A
dv er ti
si n g
M or
su al sa sU
tu ni tie s
fo rO
W a
tc hi ng
Bu sin es
in g Ho ld
pp or
Pa tte rn
ou rs H nd ff a
St a
Ex pe ns es Re du ci ng
M in im i zi ng
/H al tin g
In ve st in g
on se rv
in g
0
C
% of respondents
60
Auction business owners are looking for opportunities more than any time since March 25. While they are still conserving, there was a reduction in halting expenses and reducing staff in the last week.
March 25
April 1
April 8
April 15
April 22
March 25 April 15
April 8
April 1 April 22
We've Gone Virtual
Are real estate closings currently being affected as a result of COVID-19? 9% more respondents reported no problems yet with their real estate closings. 20% still remain affected.
Unknown
Nothing Yet
Slowed by Other Industries
Expect Changes
Definitely Affected
N/A
0
10
20
30
% of respondents
40
Bank Response 50 45
% of respondents
How are you seeing banks respond to the COVID-19 crisis?
40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 25-Mar
1-Apr
8-Apr
15-Apr
Status Quo
Hesitant to Lend
Major Changes
Unknown
Minor Changes
Busy with PPP loans
22-Apr
This week, most respondents reported fewer changes and problems previously noted with their banks as 46% now report Payroll Protection Program loans taking over bank capacity.
What are your non-profit clients doing because of event cancellations? Non-Profit Clients
% of respondents
40
30
20
10
0 Still Evaluating
Exploring Options
Rescheduling
March 25
Canceling
April 1
April 8
Online Auctions
Other Fundraising Efforts
April 15
Unknown
N/A
April 22
The percentage of respondents reporting that non-profit clients are moving to online auctions has risen 9% since March 25. While rescheduling and canceling are still extremely prevalent, we continue to see increases in other opportunities.
Exploring Options
What other fundraising methods are you and/or your nonprofit clients currently utilizing?
None/Waiting
Direct Donation Campaigns
Telethon
Online/Virtual
N/A
0
10
20
30
40
50
% of respondents Online/virtual auctions continue to rise in popularity with a 6% jump in respondents utilizing those methods since our last report.
March 25 April 15
April 1 April 22
April 8
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