Can We Move Our Stallion Service Auction to a Different Platform?
Can we move our stallion service auction to a different platform?
Yes, and it is a smaller job than most associations expect. Usually it is mostly a copy job.
I bring it up because I talk to associations every year who are unhappy with where their auction lives and stay put anyway, because moving sounds like starting over from scratch in the middle of their season. It generally is not.
What actually has to move?
Less than you would guess, and most of it is information you already have.
Your stallion listings. Names, owners, breeding fees, photos, descriptions, any conditions. If you have run an auction before, this exists somewhere, even if it is a spreadsheet and a folder of pictures.
Your bidder list. Your dates and settings. Opening, closing, increments, how extended bidding works.
That is the bulk of it. Nobody is rebuilding anything from nothing. We do this move most years for somebody, and we help with the data side rather than handing you a blank screen and wishing you luck.
Is it too late to move for this season?
Depends on your dates, but later than you would think.
We can have a new auction site up in under a week. If the listings are coming from a previous auction, we are mostly moving information from one place to another rather than creating it. We have one going live the first part of October that came over exactly that way.
The honest constraint is the same one every auction has, which is your stallion list. If your stallions are lined up, the platform side is fast. If they are not, that is what you should be working on regardless of where the auction ends up living.
How do we decide if it is worth switching?
A few questions worth asking about whatever you are on now:
Can you get your own bidder list out of it, today, without asking permission?
Does it cost you a percentage of what you raise? Ours does not, and never has.
Can your bidders use it on a phone without fighting it, since that is where most of them are?
When something breaks on a Friday night during your auction, does somebody answer?
If those answers are good, stay where you are. Genuinely. Switching for its own sake is not worth anybody's time, and I would rather tell you that than sell you something.
Frequently asked questions
Do we have to change our website too?
No. Plenty of associations run their auction on our platform with their main site elsewhere.
How much does it cost to move?
The move itself is part of getting set up, not a separate line item. We quote the auction platform up front and there is no percentage of sales, so a bigger auction does not mean a bigger bill.
What if we are mid-season?
Then finish your season where you are. Moving during a live auction is a bad idea for everybody. Get set up for next season instead, when there is time to do it right.
How long have you been doing this?
We have been running online stallion auctions since 2007. Since 2020, when we started tracking totals, auctions on our platform have raised over $11 million for associations, including $2.3 million in the 2025 season across 29 auctions.
Let us talk
If you are on the fence about where your auction lives, call or text me at 979-217-1544. I will give you a straight answer about whether moving is worth it, including when it is not.
Tom Bruch has built websites since 1998 and is the owner of Big Sky Internet Design.