Caesar with a Smartphone

Caesar with a Smartphone                                        So if Caesar had a smartphone (take a close look at the picture, what’s that in his hand?) what would he do; I bet he would have researched the Ides of March and got the heck out of Dodge. Seriously though, I have previously discussed social media in reference to the antiques and auction industry as in which platforms would be the most advantageous for the industry to increase their visibility, especially with Millennials and other tech savvy groups. We have seen how Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and other big houses are adapting to new generations with new money and different ideas of objects d’art. In In my last blog I ended with Brimfield’s  Brimfield Flea Finder as the one and only smart phone app for Brimfield and that is our topic this time the mobile social media application and its effect on the industry.

                                  Charity Auctions and Apps

Let’s transition from that large flea market to other auctions and the devices and apps that are used to increase their presence, revenue, and placate their new demographics. I’d like to add a note here about the auction industry; we are talking here about subsets of the industry, antiques, collectibles, and art. There are other subsets of the industry of which charitable auctions are also an important venue. These auctions have their own devices hewn by technology to increase their presence and donations to their cause. Usually these types of auctions are silent auctions and there are two different devices the smartphone type  used for specific auctions and a universal type for more general information. These are the same type of device but the intent is different. I have a third type specifically set up for silent auctions. The reason for the digression here is that before we become totally elitist in our ideas of what the auction industry is it is important to note what is out there, it may interest many of you if you are involved in charity work. One more note of clarification; if can be sold or traded it can be auctioned, even intellectual property.

                                             Back to the Elite     

Here we shall return to what was the original premise of this rambling story, real art and antiques. The subject of fine arts and historic antiques which broadens from art to furniture to porcelains, and fine ceramics (latter two we in the business call smalls, jewelry is in a category all its own) are the traditional backbone of large auction houses; most recognizable being Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and Skinners. Particularly fine art, not necessarily old as in Andy Warhol, has always been the most popular objects for investment or simply collecting (most to just say I have one of his/her paintings or sculptures). I mentioned in a previous blog that Instagram is leading the pack with its on line auctions of sometimes very expensive art. There are others that I feel need mentioning here they are Artsy and 1stdibs . These “small houses” are making inroads into the fine arts market mostly on the Internet with their online auctions. 1stdibs has a network of more than 2000 dealers in 17 countries, Artsy’s site displays works from more than 500 museums including the Louvre in Paris and the National Gallery in London. The purpose of this and the social media capabilities are to create a larger audience who want to make fine art part of their daily lives says Sebastian Cwilict COO of Artsy. This is all well and good for e-commerce, but where do Caesar and his smartphone come in you may ask.

                                      He Came, He Saw,He bid

An article from IBISWorld Industry Research Reports from 2015 states several related predictions. With the release of Apple’s iOS App Store and Google’s Android Google Play have launched Smartphone App developers industry to new heights. Christie’s launched its iPhone app in 2010 allowing browsing of 450 auctions in over 80 categories. Other’s like Spectrum Wines, a California auction house of fine and rare wines using the power of mobile bidding to collectors. There are apps for cattle bidding, auto shops, car auctions, energy and technology all stimulated by the new generation’s needs. Yes there is an app for that too. All these apps and mobile devices that connect to the Internet have a predicted revenue increase of 43.3% to $12.6 billion by 2015 and then a 25.8% increase in 2015 alone reported by IBIS. With the advent of mobile devices and a plethora of apps, e-commerce is thriving. How does the auction and antique industry benefit from the social media applications, as just a dot on the e-commerce time line it is coming back from the great recession thanks to its investments in the multitude of apps that exist not just for auctions, sales of fine antiques, and collectibles but in areas of fund raisers. What would Caesar say, all roads lead to Rome, come on, buy something, bid on something.