STREAMLINE YOUR LOGISTICS

ARTA for Auction Houses​

ARTA removes friction from the entire purchase experience—from pre-sale through delivery—for highly variable, high-value goods.

The highly variable, high-value inventory auction houses sell and procure can limit the ability to increase sales without increasing operational costs. Obstacles like irregular shipping costs, varying customs requirements, and rising customer expectations around the post-purchase experience can inhibit growth. Our auction house fulfillment solutions and end-to-end global services cater specifically to unique, high-value items. We reduce friction by bringing together disparate parts of the fulfillment process to streamline your workflows while providing the post-purchase experience modern buyers expect. 

“ARTA sources white-glove shipping services and other trusted quotes in addition to providing automated communications to our buyers across a multitude of sales. Their assistance allows Bonhams to deliver exceptional customer service throughout our post-sale process.”

Carly Babione, Post-sale Service Manager at Bonhams

We accommodate every item type, from jewelry to furniture to fine art, meaning fewer platforms and processes to manage internally. A single integration lets you combine item and shipping costs into one single transaction, providing customers transparency and minimizing surprise. 

We return quotes instantly to provide transparent pricing as early as the product detail page and throughout the checkout process. We also support tracking updates, automate buyer notifications, insure valuables, and provide international customs guidance from a single dashboard so you can offload administrative tasks and focus on scaling your auction house.

ARTA empowers your business with:

  • Instant quotes 
  • Frictionless customer experience
  • Fewer buyer queries
  • Streamlined customs clearance
  • High-value insurance
  • Centralized processes

ARTA solutions for auction house fulfillment

ARTA provides solutions to multiple auction house challenges in one easy-to-navigate dashboard.

Auction house logistics & customer experience

Save time with instant quotes for auction house shipping

Regardless of shape, size, weight, or value, our API returns instant quotes in under two seconds, providing bookable transit speeds and delivery options for customizable fulfillment solutions. Registrars and other staff can request shipping information and receive instant pricing across all our service tiers—no more waiting days for a quote. 

Our instant pricing can be leveraged in different ways. 

Registrars can generate pricing instantly on their end and add it to the invoice. Alternatively, they can integrate ARTA’s software at checkout. With a custom integration, the buyer will see shipping options upon winning a sale, allowing them to book their preferred shipping method and pay for the item in a single transaction.

Whether you pack your inventory personally or require especially skilled delivery, you can book confidently, knowing your needs will be accommodated.

Improve the buyer experience with more transparency

Happy customers are more likely to become returning customers—and who doesn’t want to know where their order is and when it’s going to arrive. ARTA Tracking provides transparency along the way for each shipment. From the moment an order is booked to the time it arrives at its destination, buyers can track each shipment with a unique tracking URL. This means fewer order inquiries and more repeat purchases.

Automate customer communications

Manual emails take time. To solve this, we automatically relay key information at each shipment milestone via email. ARTA Emails communicate collection timing, shipment schedule, customs requirements, online tracking, and cancellations.

ARTA Emails can be customized to automatically be sent to clients and other parties of your choosing. Our email automation allows staff to focus less on administrative duties knowing that clients are being updated behind the scenes.

Avoid shipping delays with electronic customs documentation (ECD)

To export objects to another country, commercial invoices are required by customs, which commonly need details like harmonized system (HS) codes, origin country, power of attorney, and tax IDs. These international requirements are often confusing due to their variability, and understandably so. Nevertheless, incorrectly drafted documents can significantly delay shipments.

Our ECD streamlines commercial invoice generation and automates the export process for efficient international fulfillment.

Available customization

Boost revenue with adjustable margins

Integration via API or Shopify app allows auction houses to customize how they display pricing. Give buyers visibility into shipping pricing when they are considering a bid, and let staff invoice customers for all costs at once. Avoid surprise costs, long quote times, and checkout dropoff for a better bottom line.

Optimize the eCommerce experience with integration options

An ARTA integration via API or Shopify app allows auction houses to customize how they display pricing. Give buyers visibility into shipping pricing when they are considering a bid, and let staff invoice customers for all costs at once. Avoid surprise costs, long quote times, and checkout dropoff for a better bottom line.

Maintain a consistent brand experience with white labeling

Provide a seamlessly branded experience by white labeling every part of the ARTA fulfillment process, including booking, tracking, and emails with logos, images, and colors. You can create a custom domain for ARTA-hosted pages and add custom reply-to addresses for email notifications to ensure your buyer’s experience feels consistent.

Getting set up with ARTA

ARTA can be leveraged in a couple of different ways. Auction houses can opt for API integration, an eCommerce platform integration app like Shopify, or move forward without any integrations, using our fulfillment technology directly through the ARTA Dashboard.

Auction houses that integrate via API or Shopify app can build out shipping options and tracking details into their site, creating a seamless, completely branded experience for their buyers. An API integration requires time and technical resources; however, this option provides auction houses with the greatest flexibility and customization options. 

While we recommend integrating with ARTA, we know that’s not always an option. You can also log directly into the ARTA Dashboard to manually pull quotes, manage booking, and create white-labeled notifications for tracking.  

During your ARTA integration process, we’ll happily support batch uploads. Batch uploads help auction houses manage large quantities of quote requests all at once. We can collect these requests simultaneously and provide instantly bookable quotes. These quotes are accessible via the ARTA dashboard to support our clients with ARTA benefits and services pre-launch.

ARTA’s end-to-end fulfillment solutions enable auction houses to connect sellers and buyers and easily move unique items worldwide.

Learn more about how ARTA can empower your auction house.