Record-breaking year for thesaleroom.com

ATG’s art and antiques portal thesaleroom.com delivered a bumper year in 2018, setting record numbers of auction registrations, new bidders and hammer value.

thesaleroom.com attracted a phenomenal 1.7million auction registrations in 2018, up 200,000 year on year (YOY). This was, in part, driven by the 12% YOY increase in visits per user. Advancements in site features, functionality, data analysis, security, digital and email marketing have played a significant role in driving this wider customer base and increased activity.

Auctioneers have benefitted from the increased exposure of the platform to international bidders, with bids placed in 126 countries and 15% of auction registrations coming from international bidders. As well as the breadth of market, it is also notable that this international audience have a propensity to drive hammer value, accounting for 21% of hammer value. The US market was an area of considerable growth, 19% YOY growth in US bidders saw them make up 20% of the international bidder market on the platform. As the world’s largest arts and antiques market, the US represents a continuing growth opportunity for thesaleroom.com.

thesaleroom.com international bidder market

A focus on strategic digital marketing initiatives has increased the exposure of thesaleroom.com to new bidders. Increased levels of investment across paid search, display advertising and email marketing has seen auctioneers benefit from over 800,000 auction registrations from bidders new to auctioneers, accounting for nearly half (46%) of registered bidders.

The development of the mobile optimised live bidding app has also opened up the bidding audience, with 48% of visitors to the platform coming from mobile devices. This trend is only predicted to increase, the latest Art Basel report highlighting digital channels as increasingly important for accessing new buyers. With this in mind, thesaleroom.com has also made the platform mobile and tablet responsive, ensuring whatever device the bidder is accessing the platform on they enjoy an optimised view, tailored to the device. This has meant simplified pages for mobiles, focusing on the key actions, allowing the bidder to move through the auction with ease and reducing ‘noise’.

Mark Holdaway, Head of Art and Antiques at thesaleroom.com added: ‘2018 was a record year for thesaleroom.com and our customers. As a result of the continued heavy investment in marketing, analytics, technology and service we continue to build a market leading platform for bidders and auctioneers alike.’

If you would like more insight from thesaleroom.com Annual Review, contact Mark Holdaway on markholdaway@antiquestradegazette.com.