One thing I have never been told by anyone is that I am a slow talker.
When it comes to running a benefit auction though; I have had the experience of an ill-timed or poorly-paced program. In general, it is getting more and more difficult to grab and hold onto people's attention. Between socializing, drinking and having the need to constantly check our phones; the hired help had better be pretty entertaining up there on stage. It then becomes even more important to keep the night's scheduled events starting and ending on-time. If your auctioneer is doing what he's been hired to do and your auction has started when it was supposed to, why is the night dragging on? You can probably blame it on your choice of Master of Ceremonies, or more commonly known as the MC.
For a lot of planning committees, the MC is often an afterthought; though he shouldn't be. The MC is as integral to the success of your benefit as is the auctioneer. It has been my experience that an inexperienced, unprepared, or easily distracted master of ceremonies who sometimes ends up partying along with the audience just a bit too much; may be the root cause of a seemingly never-ending night of fundraising. The other integral piece is the live auction. What can be done in about an hour by an effective and seasoned benefit auctioneer, can sometimes drag on all night because of bad hiring in talent or something important missed by the organizing committee.
So if you have an MC who reads directly from the program, speaks slowly or just simply isn't paying attention; this can set the tone to the evening and lead to huge problems with your event! Your auctioneer cannot get the bidding started until the MC is done with his spiel. It looks easier than it is and how well your auctioneer and master of ceremonies can work together also matters. So take the time to choose a good MC. Ask your auctioneer who he has worked well with and ask him for some recommendations. I have a few whom I work really well with that I would be happy to share with you
Remember, your auctioneer always follows the MC like the second chapter of a book. So make sure your MC doesn't lose your audience at hello.