The Trojan Evaluation
Go¨teborgs Auktionsverk
Issue 34 | March 2015
Agency
Milk
Creative Team
Account Executive Anna Reynold Production Managers Bjo¨rn Lind Jessica Forsman Art Directors Kristofer Salsborn Axel Tagg Copywriters Anders Malm Anders Holmstrom
Production Team
Art Directors Kristofer Salsborn Axel Tagg Copywriters Anders Malm Anders Holmstrom
Date
December 2014
Background
Go¨teborgs Auktionsverk was Gothenburg's largest auction house. Like any other sales house of that sort, they depended on a constant supply of valuable goods and antiques for their forthcoming auctions. Usually the best way of doing this was by getting a valuation expert
into people's homes where he/she could spot what was of interest and put a value on it. Often it is the stuff that people think isn't worth anything that turns out to be the most valuable.
Idea
Peder Lamm was one of the most famous experts in art and antiques in Sweden. He was asked to scan property websites and examine the photographs of the interiors of houses that were up for sale. Frequently he was able to spot items in the photos that could be of real significance.
When he found something, the image was downloaded, the interesting item was circled and then it was put on a postcard and mailed to the homeowners asking if they wanted to sell more than their house.
Results
In the month of the campaign, valuations of items were up 144% compared to the same period the previous year.
It is difficult to know quite how many objects have been sold at auction this way because many have been identified but not auctioned yet.
Our Thoughts
The debate about data and privacy is often shrill. The fact remains that many people give away remarkable information about themselves without even thinking about it. This is an example of that. Some people might think it’s a bit creepy, an auction house peering through their photographs for glimpses of treasure, but I think it’s a brilliant connection between people who are in a mind to sell and people who want to buy. At its simplest, that’s all the web is, the means by which people who might never normally encounter each other can be connected for mutual benefit.
Clever stuff from those wired Swedes.