How To Sell Your Equipment Via Auction

Better Service | Better Scale | Better Results

Introduction

Businesses and owners of used machinery and equipment have a variety of sale methods to choose from when looking to dispose of their surplus assets. This article delves into the fastest and most effective way to sell your assets – the auction platform. As a seasoned machinery & equipment appraiser, I can guide you in how to correctly price your equipment for this platform, to ensure you receive the best possible return on your assets.

The questions usually asked when owners are considering selling via any platform are:

1.How much can I sell my assets for?
2.How long will it take to sell my assets?

The answers to these questions are multi-fold. It can depend on many factors, such as the urgency of the sale, the age, condition and specialised nature of the assets, the demand for the asset, the current market conditions, and the economic climate. Covid-19 has also come with a whole set of new challenges to keep in mind, such as cross border sales and ease of viewing the assets.

Do not overprice

There are a few reasons why owners tend to overprice their items. It could be that you have formed a bond with the item and thereby overestimates its value. A second reason could be that even though the asset is now a second-hand item, you expect close to the price you purchased the asset for. Owners further want to add the cost of repair and maintenance to the selling price, causing the number to climb.

Another aspect to consider, is that many buyers on the auction platform are dealers, brokers and/or resellers looking to increase their stock-holding for resale. These types of buyers need to consider the cost of dismantling, refurbishment, relocation and holding costs. If you overprice your assets, you will scare these potential buyers away.

Standard versus specialised equipment

Standard equipment that can be used by a greater segment of the market increases the buyer pool and can result in better return. However, when equipment has been modified to fulfil a specific requirement, you sit with a niche target market - which reduces the buyer pool, and your asking price might have to be lowered to attract buyers.

The market & economic climate

A bit of market research can go a long way. It can shed light on whether there is an over- or under-supply of that asset group within the market. If there is an oversupply, it is crucial that you price your assets accordingly. Keep in mind you are selling your asset “as-is, where-is”, and while this is the benefit of selling via the auction platform, the price must correspond accordingly.

Due to the current economic climate, certain sectors have seen an oversupply of assets as Covid-19 has affected many segments of the market. Holding on to your assets and waiting for a better price may take time. Remember that if these assets are non-performing, surplus or redundant, then selling them and purchasing assets that add value to your bottom line would add greater value to your business.

Navigating the Auction Process

Auctions are usually the best way to quickly turn assets into cash. An auction creates a competitive bidding environment, often driving the purchase price up as bidders compete against each other. Working with a professional auction partner can save you valuable time and resources. Whether you are looking to sell assets in a local market or have assets across a range of locations nationwide, or worldwide, you should partner with an auction company with global reach and a vast buyer base.

Be sure to select an auction partner capable of the following:

Appraising the assets to determine market value.
Using proven marketing and sales strategies to maximise recovery.
Handling all aspects of the process, including transportation and storage, marketing, sales, buyer vetting and customer support, and payment processing.

This is where AllSurplus, Liquidity Services SA’s online global marketplace, steps in. It is the world’s leading marketplace for business surplus, ranging from heavy equipment to industrial machinery. Liquidity Services has completed over $8,5 billion in sales transactions for over 15,000 sellers, with reach into almost 200 countries.

Conclusion

Without a consistent, best-practices-driven investment recovery program, your organisation may be leaving millions of Rands in savings and sales proceeds on the table. By following the actionable guidelines in this paper, you can implement a program that maximises ROI and turns you into an investment recovery hero at your organisation.

It’s possible to build, implement and continually manage an investment recovery program entirely in-house. But, for most organisations, enlisting an outside partner is a more effective solution. Investment recovery is a highly specialized and non-core process and most organisations lack the time, expertise, proven processes, resources and second-hand market access needed to achieve desired results.

An expert partner will not only work closely with you to maximise value for your surplus through strategic redeployment and sale, it will also help you develop and implement a winning program from the ground up. It will partner with you to execute proof-of-concept pilot projects, help you champion the program to all necessary stakeholders, provide asset management software to optimise redeployment and standardise asset management, maximise recovery for surplus sold while ensuring regulatory compliance and deliver the metrics needed to help you continually justify your program to the C-suite. By managing all these areas, an expert partner will minimise your required time and resource investment in the program, freeing up your organisation to focus on core business.

About Liquidity Services

Every organisation has surplus – assets or inventory no longer required. Liquidity Services (NASDAQ: LQDT) works with clients to ensure surplus is intelligently transformed from a burden into a liquid opportunity that fuels the achievement of strategic goals. Our superior service, unmatched scale, and ability to deliver results enable us to forge trusted, long-term relationships with over 9,000 clients, including Fortune 1000 and Global 500 organizations as well as government agencies. We are the proven market leader in delivering smart surplus solutions.

About AllSurplus

Every organisation has surplus – assets or inventory no longer required. AllSurplus is the world’s leading marketplace for business surplus, ranging from heavy equipment to industrial machinery, powered by the most experienced and trusted company in the surplus industry: Liquidity Services with over $8 billion of completed sales for over 14,000 sellers, with reach into almost 200 countries and territories.