Dairy Auctioneers
BY JOSEPH KEEPHAYER
National Auctioneers Magazine
December 1989
Used By Permission
CINCINNATI, Ohio If you
are interested in auctioning dairy
cattle, it is essential that, in addi
tion to knowing the value of the
livestock, you also understand the
motivation of the people for
whom you’ll be selling.
That was the message of C.
Sherman Allen and Howard J.
Hammond, two of the speakers at
the Agribusiness Council Work
shop at the 1989 Cincinnati Con
vention.
“It’s an inept sale manager who
determines all livestock auctions
can be run on the same format,”
said Hammond, a professional
pedigree announcer and former
sale manager from Corry.
For example, the auctioneer
should recognize that the farmer
who is preparing for retirement
has likely invested a great deal of
effort in making every aspect of
his operation a success. “You’re
going to have to go the extra mile
with this man,” Hammond said.
“His cattle require a little more
preparation, a lot more advertis-
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ing, a little better catalog.
“When you go to the part-time
fanner, the second-income farmer
or when you’re working an auc
tion that is lender-motivated, this
man probably hasn’t been nearly
as meticulous.” Hammond said.
“In order to book that auction,
you’re obviously going to have to
get your pencil a little sharper.
The lender is going to be very
critical of what you charge for a
commission. The farmer doesn’t
want the extra hassle of having a
fitting crew there 10 days before
the auction, having a photography
crew there two months before the
auction, and having a lot of pre
auction activity around the farm.
In some cases, he may even be
embarrassed about having the auc
tion.”
In the purebred business, club
consignment auctions are very im
portant to participants as a means
of showcasing their livestock to
the rest of the country.
“In a consignment auction, you
have to understand that your ex
penses are going to be a lot high
er,” Hammond said. “When
you’re selling a 400-cow dairy
and get the pace rolling, every
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Must Know Seller’s Motivation
once in a while you can drop a
cow off quickly to keep people
awake.” That isn’t possible in a
consignment auction, where each
animal is individually owned.
When you are selling pedi
greecd cattle, you must be able to
credibly present the pedigrees.
“My work in the sale business is
analyzing these pedigrees in a
manner to accentuate the auction
eer,” Hammond explained, “keep
ing the auction moving ahead and,
hopefully, getting a little money
out of the cattle for the farmer.”
There are a variety of ways by
which you can learn of potential
auction situations, but Allen be
lieves one of the best is to stay in
touch with lending institutions. “I
keep in close contact with my Pro
duction Credit Association and
my local bankers,” the Conneaut
Lake auctioneer said. “I know the
loan officers. Every time I go by
the PCA building. I’m in there.
You have to get out there and
know what’s happening in your
community.”
Where should the auctioneer
and client hold their first meeting?
“I prefer to go on that farmer’s
farm immediately, so I know what
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I’m getting into,” said Allen. “I
subscribe to our DHIA magazine
for Pennsylvania, and it tells me
every herd average in the state of
Pennsylvania—if the farmer’s on
test. I go to that book and see
whether he’s a 16,000-pound herd
average or 12,000-pound herd
average. Immediately, I can have
a little indication about what kind
of a manager he is.”
Allen doesn’t pursue a commit
ment from the farm operator until
after he inspects the property and
understands the reason for the
auction. “I don’t pull out the con
tract and want him to sign on the
dotted line within the first couple
of seconds,” the auctioneer said.
“I like to go talk to the gentleman
or the lady and see why they’re
selling. Once I’ve made my per
sonal appraisal, I can tell what
kind of an auction I can conduct
for that farmer.”
Alternatives might include
holding an on-site auction or mov
ing the animals to another facility,
Allen said. Another decision to be
made involves whether to sell in
side an existing facility at the
farm, rent a tent or conduct the
auction under the open sky.
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Your support staff is extremely
important, Allen said, and you
may want to consider the services
of a breed association to assist
with the auction.
“The Pennsylvania Holstein
Association will clerk a county
club consignment auction and take
care of all the paperwork for $lO a
head,” Allen told the auctioneers
in Cincinnati. “That’s in our area.
Your area may be different In my
opinion, I don’t want the head
aches at a consignment auction for
$lO a head, and I highly recom
mend it*
When it comes to ring person
nel, Allen believes they can be as
important to the success of the
auction as the auctioneer.
“A ringperson can set the cattle
in for you and make your auction
move along. They can keep the
bidders’ attention and make sure
you get back to them, especially if
you have a large crowd.
“I hire ringmen who I know buy
cattle,” Allen said. “Basically, you
guys might call them dealers ...
If you have someone who you
know has an order of cattle, it may
pay you to have that person there.
(Turn to Pago A3B)