As of this very moment, it is going to be all of the side effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, legislation I believe will continue to affect the auction industry. Public awareness and understanding of the services and benefits of utilizing NAA professionals will remain an ongoing and important topic that the NAA can be proactive in being at the forefront to help NAA members in their businesses.

Personally, I would like to see us continue to the focus for higher level education. Advocacy is going to continue to remain important for our industry along with promoting the auction method of marketing to be the first choice of sale, not as a last resort. Offering opportunities in the future for support staff of auction businesses I believe is going to provide a growth and advancement in the industry as a whole, too. Historically, we have focused on the proprietor of the businesses, but in today’s world we as owners need to be aware of what we don’t know and be able to have resources available to support staff so they succeed in their positions. I believe there is also an opportunity to bring more people into the NAA that practice similar methods of sale that utilize a component of competitive bidding and have them included under our umbrella. Membership numbers have continued to decrease year over year and we have to pay attention to that moving forward as the NAA will need to be adaptable as well.

I believe that the auction method of marketing is alive and well. With technology always evolving, it has become easier than ever to expose people to the auction method and further to engage them to participate as a seller or buyer. The auction method in many ways can survive in many different economic states and we are positioned many times to solve a problem for a client. It will continue to change, that I feel confident about.

My wife and I joined the NAA right while we were in auction school at the recommendation of Mike and Lori Jones. That same recommendation was affirmed upon returning from auction school by Rob and Sue Doyle. They proceeded to take us to our very first conference and show in Nashville, Tennessee, where multiple people encouraged us to get volunteer and get involved to network and learn from others. That was the single best decision in our professional careers which has paid for itself many times over. For any new member or someone coming back to the NAA, I would always suggest to volunteer first and make yourself available. This alone provides opportunities to network and learn from others and spark new ideas that a member can take back to their business.