The annual auction held by the Bahamas Hotel Association (BHA) has “exceeded expectations” this year, with its Executive Vice-president Frank Comito attributing its success to a decision to offer the bidding online.
The auction is powered by the Bahamas #1 website, BahamasB2B.com.
Mr Comito told a local newspaper that placing the auction online increased the level of transparency not only for locals, but for other persons around the world.
“It’s been our first year doing it that way, previously it was not virtual until this year,” Comito said.
“We’ve been doing it for a number of years but not [virtually] and we’ve been getting people visiting it from all around the world.”
The “Holiday Silent Auction” lists a variety of items open for bidding, including flights, hotel stays, cruises and restaurant bookings, among other things. Mr Comito said that there are around 200 listings in total, and is optimistic that persons will take advantage of the offerings before the auction closes at midnight on December 19.
The auction follows the standard process and users have the choice of locking in their bid by placing a “guaranteed bid,” which reflects 66-75 percent of the market value of the item. Winning bidders are responsible for contacting the donors to receive their item unless noted otherwise.
“The neat thing about it is you can bid and you can actually lock in a bid, and that secures the item,” he said. “There, are really some good items left, people are using them for Christmas gifts or for their own personal use.”
The BHA executive vice-president is encouraged by the initial response and how the public has adapted to using the virtual option.
“For our, first year doing it online and doing as well as we’ve done in any year, it’s about the same,” Comito said. “We think that we’ll grow into it. This has given us an indication that people are finding it fun to bid this way.”
The auction can be accessed through the BHA’s website at www.bhahotels.com or direct access on bahamasb2b.com.
