Winters in the northwest are typically less chaotic than those on the east coast. While we tend to avoid the epic blizzards, it’s still not much fun to run tedious errands on a soggy, windy, muddy, overcast day. Thanks to the annual KGY and KAYO Big On-Air Radio Auction, you can stock up for spring in your stocking feet.
The first Saturday in February brings a flurry of deals and steals for 95.3 KGY and 96.9 KAYO listeners and participants. From 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. on February 6, more than $100,000 in local goods and services will be auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Whether you need Valentine’s jewelry for your sweetie, Go Kart passes, dinner on the town, or a clean, moss-less roof, this is the clearing house for you. Interested bidders can view available items online but check back frequently, new merchandise is added daily.
Register early for your Quick-Bid number to make buying easy. By filling out a simple online form, you’ll receive a unique identifier for auction day. Auction items are sold by phone call only so having preregistered simplifies the process both for buyers and radio staff.
When the hour of your chosen item arrives, radio personalities will read the details and specific identification number over the air. Bidders then call the station and provide their Quick-Bid number and the ID of the item they’re bidding on. KGY/KAYO staff will verify the item’s continued availability and current rate. Winning bidders may begin paying for and collecting their items at the station Monday, February 9 at 9:00 a.m.
KGY/KAYO Radio’s General Sales Manager Heidi Persson is excited that “participating businesses, items, pictures, and descriptions are up for viewing on our websites now with new items added daily. We have a big increase in new participants this year.”
“Food is always a hit,” adds Persson. “Bid on certificates from Thurston County restaurants like Mercato’s, Ricardo’s and Saigon Rendezvous, Pierce County favorite’s like Amici’s & Alfred’s, and Eddie’s Chicken Fingers, a Shelton food truck.
Persson encourages bidders to not forget the jewelry; it is almost Valentine’s Day. “Auction favorites Panowicz Jewelers is back with another premier assortment of fine jewelry and S.T. Kluh Jewelers is in for a second year,” says Persson.
Other items include indoor skydiving packages, baseball games, hotel staycations, mountain bikes, cars, BBQ grills, and gift certificates for goods and services across Western Washington.
Last spring, the boyfriend of a station staffer called in to bid on a gorgeous diamond ring. But because calls are answered randomly, he worried his girlfriend would pick up and ruin the surprise engagement he had planned. Thankfully, by pre-registering his purchase was anonymous and he proposed—with his newly won ring—after the auction closed. Watch for the same ring, offered again by S.T. Kluh Jewelers this year.
Persson explains that with no minimum required bid, items typically sell for 50% of their retail value. Merchants are paid full value in radio advertising and for many local businesses this event brings in many new customers.
Do be patient when calling, however, this auction is a labor of love for radio staff. It’s all hands on deck, all day long, with items tracked on a massive wall board and phones ringing off the hook. Each call means verifying several factors for each sale and this is where preregistration makes things much easier.
Anything that doesn’t sell on auction day is later listed online or posted to a board at the station’s offices.
While it’s a crazy, hectic, exciting long day, the annual On-Air Auction is addictively fun. Last year I walked away with five yards of driveway gravel, four tickets on the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad, and a roof-cleaning treatment. The previous year I won a gift certificate for a tattoo…you never know what you’ll find.
Contact the station with any questions or if you’re a business wanting to participate in future events. KGY/KAYO Radio offices are located overlooking Puget Sound at 1700 Marine Drive NE.
To listen to all the action and bid, tune in 95.3 KGY, 96.9 KAYO or streaming online at www.KAYOfm.com. To have fun and save big, the bid number is 888-529-0969.
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