Going once, going twice, sold!

Brian Damewood always planned on a career using his voice.

But after a year working in broadcasting at a Lynchburg television station, this fast-talking 2008 graduate of the School of Communication within the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences took his delivery, tone, and pace and placed a bid on success in a rather unique field.

He decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and become an auctioneer.

“I was around it my whole life, and I didn’t really want to have anything to do with it — mainly because that was kind of my dad’s thing,” Damewood said. “I wanted to do my own thing. I wanted to create my own path. As I got older, I started to realize that the auction business is a great business to be involved in.”

Today, Damewood serves as an associate auctioneer for Damewood Auctioneers, a company that his father, Craig, started in the mid-1970s. Located in Purcellville, Virginia, just outside of Leesburg, the company auctions off land, antiques, tools, artwork, equipment, automobiles, and pretty much any other good in an open, transparent environment.

For the Gen Z crowd, auctioneering is the craft of selling of items through a process in which a person, known as the auctioneer, hosts an event and solicits bids from customers on goods in real time. Online sales, mainly through eBay, play a major role in today’s marketplace, but there is still a place for an art that dates back centuries.

Auctioneers are mostly associated with their “chant,” a rapid-fire combination of numbers, words, and sounds.

“Will you go, will ya bid? Will ya bid $20? $20 now, how about $25? There’s $25. Do I have $30? $30? $30? We’ve got $30. Will you give me $40? $40? $40? There’s $40. Who’s gonna give $50? $50? $50.”

Their words often blur together, sounding almost like gibberish to untrained listeners. But those words serve a purpose – to create excitement and coerce customers to dig into their pockets and spend money.

Auctioneers are a combination of entertainer, salesperson, and keen observer. In simpler terms, they are performers, the rappers of the sales world.

The video below, courtesy of Hero and Heart Film Co., is one of Damewood serving as an auctioneer at the 2024 STEM for Her’s  Elevate Her Gala fundraiser held April 25 in Tysons Corner, Virginia.

“It takes years of practice,” Damewood said of being an auctioneer. “I would say I practiced four or five times a week, but I do at least four auctions a week now, sometimes five or six, and I don’t really practice as much anymore. I do listen to some tape because I have to give myself some vocal rest.

“You just find a different riff that works for you and for your own style. You have to figure out what works for your own body type and your throat and the way your voice sounds. An auctioneer can’t necessarily mimic another person’s chant because their throat might not be able to take it. You’ll wear yourself out. You have to figure out what octave you need to sell in. Sometimes, you’re selling for an hour or two hours at a time. You can’t lose your voice. You have to learn to breathe properly. Your practice is how you’re able to complete those sales over the long haul.”

Damewood’s weariness of the media industry got him involved in a career in which one gets something for nodding. His tiring of journalism’s focus on crimes and constant conflicts led to a discussion between him and his father about a career change. Craig Damewood wholeheartedly endorsed the idea of Brian joining the family business, and Brian ultimately ended his broadcast journalism career after two years.

The move was a perfect fit. Damewood’s family connections gave him a background in the business, and while at Virginia Tech, he earned a minor in real estate, which culminated with an independent study on real estate auctions under Leon Geyer, professor emeritus of agriculture and applied economics. So Damewood entered his new role well prepared.

Not long after joining the business, Damewood decided to attend the Worldwide College of Auctioneering in Mason City, Iowa, to enhance his auctioneering skills. Though not well known among the general population, the college could be considered as Harvard for auctioneers. Students spend a week attending auctioneer classes and training courses that prepare one to manage and sell at auctions. In addition, they receive hours of other online resources.

Not long after completing his coursework, Damewood not only continued working for the family business, but also entered the world of competitive auctioneering, starting in 2011.

“I was encouraged to enter competitive auctioneering early in my career because it makes you hone your skills,” he said. “You’re pitted up against other professional auctioneers. You examine yourself. Think of it as a sports coach or athlete watching film. It makes you look at what you’re doing and constantly trying to get better.

Competing means doing more than just the chant. Competitors get judged on cadence, stage presence, clarity, vocal pitch, and how they come across during an interview session. Auctioneers get asked numerous questions about items and need to provide concise information to customers, so the interview portion is important to a contestant’s score.

“During competitions, you’re really assessed on your knowledge of the auction industry and the way that you present yourself,” Damewood said. “The International Auctioneering Championship is a great championship because it really assesses the complete auction professional. As auctioneers, we get set in front of potential clients, customers, and sellers and sometimes you’re asked some questions that put you on the spot. It’s all about how you respond.

“At the International Auctioneering Championship, you’re in a room and there may be several hundred of your peers in that ballroom watching that interview. They ask you some pointed questions, and you have to think fast on your feet. You have to be articulate, and you have to be able to give a direct and concise response.”

In both 2017 and 2021, Damewood came in second at the International Auctioneering Championship sponsored by the National Auctions Association.

Last July, he broke through and won the world title at the event held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

“Finishing second those two times was a little frustrating,” he said. “You get that close, and it’s something you want to accomplish. To have won that was special.”

His championship led to a whirlwind year in which he traveled to various National Auction Association conventions for speaking engagements and helping with continuing education efforts for professional auctioneers. His championship precludes him from competing in further International Auctioneering Championships.

That doesn’t mean Damewood has closed bidding on other competitions – he cited the World Automobile Auctioneers Championship as being on his radar. But his focus remains centered on being the best auctioneer possible to help his family’s business.

That means not only honing his chant, but more importantly improving his knowledge of various industries, including livestock, automobiles, art, real estate, and even fundraising. In fact, he once auctioned a dinner cruise on golf legend Jack Nicklaus’ yacht for $150,000 as part of a fundraiser.

“What makes someone an effective automobile auctioneer is not going to make them necessarily great at selling high art,” Damewood said. “The things that you have to do to be an excellent livestock auctioneer are totally different than maybe if you’re selling real estate.

“The most important thing to being a successful auctioneer is not necessarily having a great chant. There are plenty of auctioneers who make a lot of money by just calling bids and facilitating auctions and that’s a wonderful skill to have. But to be a truly successful auctioneer and professional, you need to have a strong product knowledge and a strong knowledge of your customer base.”

Damewood feels privileged to work in the auctioneering business, helping his family’s company and providing for his own family.

He has no plans for a second career change.

“I feel pretty privileged to do what I do,” he said. “To make a good living partly just calling bids at auction and facilitating the auction is a real privilege.”