Traditions for auctions have changed over the past century. Before many modern forms of technology, an auction would often be a big event, held in a large, open area where many people could gather. The person running the auctions, or the colonel, would auction one item at a time, and the people attending the auction would bid.
While these traditional auctions do exist, auction methods have greatly changed over the past couple decades. The introduction of the telephone allowed people to bid over long distances, opening up public auctions to a larger group of people. Though the introduction of the telephone was significant, the internet arguably changed the world of auctions the most.
Being able to rank high in the "search" on the internet is critcally important for an e commerce site. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is necessary and all good webmasters recognize that it is a critical and necessary part of every website. As webmasters realized the importance of high search ranks, more of them started gaming the system, using techniques that the search engines, esp. Google, did not like. Sites caught attempting to garner ranks outside of Google’s guidelines were hit with the dreaded google penalty, which devastated their search performance. Even sites that never attempted to trick search engines can run afoul of their rules, since these rules change over time without any notice from the engines. It is a challenging situation to say the least for both new websitesn and old.
Recently I was involved in the creation of a new website aimed at alcoholism therapy. Making the site seo compliant, visually arresting with strong and powerful messaging took months. Now that LifeBac is live, the gaol is to reach the people who want to change their relationship with alcohol. LifeBac shows people with a drinking problem that there is a way to beat their drinking problem and return to a normal life without the requirement of abstinence or “recovery”. LifeBac emplys the modern methods of combining medication to remove cravings, with behavior change to rewire habits that can help people rebuild their lives, their careers, their health. I think that the program is great. Now the challenge is to get as many people to the online site as possible.
Now as far as auctions are concerned, the internet greatly facilitated the practice of auctions. Because many websites are available all around the world, online auctions are widely accessible to the public. The ability to bid online greatly increased the popularity of auctions. Online auctions are great places to look for good deals and for fine artwork, antiques, and other items that are difficult to find.
As well as allowing more people to participate, the internet also allowed for greater variety in auctions. Anyone can auction anything they would like, from paper clips to rare collectors items. Before the world-wide web, this was not practical, partially because all the items in one auction had to fit in the area where the auction was taking place and because people were physically attending the auction. Now, because of the internet, participants don’t have to physically attend the auction and the items don’t have to be in one place. This allows for auctions that last days or even months. During this period of time, unlimited numbers of items can be sold.
Though auctioning over the internet is widely popular today, traditional auctions still exist. The Rose Hill auction preserves these rich traditions.
The Rose Hill Auction is more traditional in its nature, and it is a great place to find beautifully preserved artwork and antiques.
Tad Tanaka writes for SDN and is a budding seo, having helped sites remove the dreaded google penalty along with getting businesses to rank well in the search.