A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN AUCTIONEER
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ROD SMITHERAM
South Australians would be familiar with Rod Smitheram ’ s face from conducting in-rooms for his office Ray White Glenelg . The seasoned auctioneer and sales agent spends his days selling and managing his listings then often completes all auction related tasks in the evening . He enjoys selling but said auctioneering is his passion .
“ I am very fortunate to list 100 per cent of my own listings for auction so I can focus on improving my own skills ,” he said .
“ I love and am very grateful for the opportunity to represent our office and our agents in this space and I really balance my time by getting in early , getting organised and working ahead of the game with my admin team , Karlee Somerset , to make sure we are always on the ball .”
Rod was drawn to auctioneering before actually selling . He said before he began to sell , he chose the auction method and decided to auction all his listings . With the support of his colleagues he was able to continue his progress , eventually gaining his auctioneer ’ s licence .
“ I simply love auctioneering for the opportunity to give people the chance to give their best ,” he said .
“ It ’ s a clear process and I love the fact that our buyers leave our auctions thinking they got a chance to give their absolute best . This is what real estate is about for me .”
ROD ’ S TOP TIP
The best advice I ’ ve been given is to be yourself . Don ' t be someone you ‘ re not . Let who you are out for all to see . Focus on the property because that ' s why you are there .
ALEC BROWN
Don ’ t just take our word for it that Alec Brown from Ray White Canberra is one of the country ’ s leading auctioneers . Alec was the first to represent the ACT in the finals of the Australasian Auctioneering Championships and has an awards list a mile long .
One of the most exciting things about being an auctioneer for Alec is that there is no average day .
“ There ’ s no doubt the best days are loaded with back-to-back auctions , or a packed afternoon or evening of in-rooms , but that said even if it ’ s a single mid-week on-site there ’ s nothing better than suiting up and swinging the gavel ,” he said .
It ’ s not all fun though , outside of the auctions themselves , there ’ s a fair bit to do for Alec including training to research and his personal favourite - the auction strategy meeting with the vendors .
In his first formal training session with now Ray White Queensland CEO Jason Andrew , he said it was like he was showing him fire for the first time .
“ When I started in real estate I always aspired to be an auctioneer - it seems like one of the defining aspects of real estate in Australia ,” he said .
“ I see auctioneering as a responsibility to your agents and their clients , you need to bring your A-game and do your best to help facilitate the best outcome .
“ And if I ’ m honest it ’ s also a thrill to perform , I want people to walk away having a positive experience whether it ’ s selling a house or calling a charity auction .”
ALEC ’ S TOP TIP
‘ You ’ re only as good as your last auction ’ - you can ’ t always control the outcome and success of an auction but you can make sure you ’ ve represented the agent and brand to the best of your ability .