In this episode of the No Reserve Podcast presented by BidWrangler, Tim Peters, CEO of BidWrangler, sits down with Mark Manley, the President of Wiregrass Auction Group. Listen in as the episode explores the complicated landscape of bankruptcy auctions and strategies for success.

Key Points:

Complications with Bankruptcy Auctions 

Mark, an experienced auctioneer and the President of Wiregrass Auction Group, shares insights into bankruptcy auctions and their complexities. He shares how he broke into the bankruptcy space, working with attorneys and clients, dealing with failed deals, and determining asset liquidation.

Strategies for Success

Mark suggest strategies like personal calls with registered bidders, which are crucial for successful auctions. He emphasizes leveraging relationships, education, and persistence to achieve success. 

Quotable Moments:

"Bankruptcy is not something most people want to talk about, but it is a part of the auction industry where we can be really useful.”

"Personal calls with registered bidders are crucial for successful auctions. It helps uncover obstacles and increase buyer confidence."

"The best way to succeed in the auction industry is by leveraging relationships, education, and persistence."

Links Mentioned:

BidWrangler

Wiregrass Auction Group

PACER

In this episode of the No Reserve Podcast presented by BidWrangler, host Tim Peters offers valuable insights and strategies for auction professionals. We welcome today's guest, Linford Berry, founder of Mountain Valley Auction Group, to share his journey from startup to success. Highlighting the role of his background in diverse industries, Linford emphasizes the importance of relationships and trust in the auction business. He discusses his company's growth and evolution over time.

Key Points:

Transition to Online:

Initially aiming for simulcast auctions, Mountain Valley Auction Group transitioned entirely to online auctions in 2019, which proved beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic, enhancing efficiency and expanding their reach.

Minimal Infrastructure, Maximum Collaboration:

Despite being a small company with minimal infrastructure, Mountain Valley Auction Group thrives through collaboration with other auctioneers and companies. This collaborative approach extends their reach, marketing efforts, and operational capabilities, contributing significantly to their success.

Diverse Background: 

A diverse background in various industries — including dairy farming, poultry farming, and landscaping — provided Linford valuable experience and skills applicable to the auction business.

Importance of Relationships: 

Linford emphasizes the role of relationships and trust in attracting opportunities in the auction industry, highlighting that many initial auctions came from established connections.

Marketing Strategies: 

Benefits of a marketing approach focusing on social media, email marketing, and leveraging customer data to target niche buyers effectively.

Challenges and Rewards:

Time management emerges as a significant challenge due to the multitude of tasks involved in running an auction business. However, Linford finds joy and fulfillment in helping clients and exceeding their expectations.

Quotable Moments:

"People do business with people they like and people they trust."

"Our online auction system has allowed us to be more efficient."

"One of our biggest keys to success has been collaborating with other auctioneers."

Links Mentioned:

BidWrangler

Mountain Valley Auction Group

In this episode of the No Reserve podcast presented by BidWrangler, Tim Peters hosts Andrew Brockenbush, the CEO and Founder of Beefy Marketing. Brockenbush shares his journey from working at Apple to starting his own marketing firm. They discuss SEO complexities, debunking misconceptions and emphasizing key factors for organic search rankings. They also discuss different AI tools and the benefits they can bring.

Key Points:

From Apple to Beefy Marketing

Andrew discusses his journey from Apple to founding Beefy Marketing and its evolution over the years. He goes into search engine optimization and focusing on organic search rankings on search engines like Google.

Introduction to AI tools 

Andrew introduces tools like Chat GPT for creative tasks and Uber Suggest for keyword research. He emphasizes the importance of evaluating the relevance and impact of SEO strategies based on individual business needs and goals.

Quotable Moments:

"SEO is much bigger than just putting a keyword on the back end of a page builder and hoping that you're going to rank on Google because you did."

"Buying backlinks not what it used to be. You shouldn't be buying links or participating in links schemes. We're looking for true value."

Links Mentioned:

BidWrangler

Beefy Marketing

In this episode of the No Reserve podcast presented by BidWrangler, host Tim Peters welcomes John Nicholls, President of Nicholls Auction Marketing Group. Tim and John discuss the evolution of auctions from traditional live events to modern online platforms. They also emphasize the convenience and efficiency of online bidding, contrasting it with the challenges of traditional live auctions held under tents in extreme weather conditions. Listen as they share insights on the importance of collaboration, mentorship, and ethical business practices for young auctioneers.

Key Points:

Shift to Online Auctions:

Tim and John highlight the preference for online auctions due to their convenience and flexibility compared to traditional live auctions. John discusses the benefits of online bidding, such as the ability to preview catalogs online and bid from anywhere, anytime.

Adapting to Technology:

Encouraging auctioneers to embrace modern technology and stay updated with industry trends. Tim and John stress the importance of advocating for collaboration, seeking mentorship, and learning from established professionals in the industry.

Ethical Business Practices:

John discusses the importance of having high ethical standards, returning communications promptly, and treating customers with respect. He encourages participation in industry associations and continuous learning to improve auctioneering skills and stay competitive.

Focus on Impact:

Tim and John emphasize the significance of making a positive impact, helping people, and focusing on customer service over purely financial gains.

Links Mentioned:

BidWrangler

Nicholls Auction Marketing Group

In this episode of the No Reserve podcast presented by BidWrangler, host Tim Peters is joined by Andy Harbick. Together as the co-founders of BidWrangler, they discuss their journey building their online bidding platform. They delve into principles that allowed BidWrangler to aggregate demand effectively, resist quick gains, add value to the platform, and embrace strategies benefiting the entire community. Additionally, they highlight the significance of automated testing in ensuring software quality, developer responsibility, and continuous improvement, reflecting on the complexities of mobile-centric operations, technical challenges with app development, and evolving platform policies.

Guest Background

Andy shares his background, including experiences at Amazon and Rosetta Stone.

Starting BidWrangler

Tim and Andy discuss the genesis of BidWrangler, which evolved from a Startup Weekend event in 2013 at James Madison University. They also discuss challenges faced in transitioning from a prototype to a functional, market-ready platform. They also share challenges with mobile app development, including platform compatibility and app store policies.

Evolution of Technology

Tim and Andy share the complexity of managing platform policies over time, leading to improvements in app deployment. They also discuss stressful aspects of early-stage operations, including dealing with scheduled and asynchronous jobs at scale.

Quotable Moments:

"We built a foundation, an architecture, and a platform that then allowed us to continue to build more and more components on top of that to serve auctioneers' needs."

"We learned a ton. We talked to a lot of people that had a lot of opinions about what we were doing right, what we were doing wrong, and we came back and ended up asking for advice."

Links Mentioned

https://bidwrangler.com