But here’s the catch
-Many auctions, including GoDaddy’s have no guarantee of attracting these bidders
-Even if the bidders are there, a couple things happen. First, they get fatigue. Second, they usually had a soft budget for the auction. If they’ve bought $1M worth of domains before mine comes up, I’m not going to get top dollar.

[...]  Godaddy is asking its customers to provide feedback on  how the company can improve its Signature Auctions,  after the first round saw pretty poor results.  This request  is one of the smartest moves I’ve seen from one of the big domain companies. Most companies would probably have tried to put a positive spin on the results, which may have made them look foolish.  Because of their humble appeal, I will offer my advice to improve their next Signature Auction. 1.) Better Names at Reasonable ReservesGodaddy should do what it takes to ensure there are good quality domain names on auction with low/reasonable reserve prices. They should seek out domain owners and cut deals with them to guarantee certain prices will be achieved (lower commissions, sales price guarantees, bid on behalf of Godaddy’s internal portfolio…etc). The better the quality names at reasonable reserves, the more likely it is for buyers to show up and bid. Conversely, the more wealthy buyers that are present, the more likely it is for domain sellers to list their names at reasonable reserve prices.Sellers are reluctant to put their names on auction at a lower reserve because if there aren’t enough buyers, they’ve created an artificial price ceiling for their domain names. Hypothetically, a $500,000 name with a reserve price of just $100,000 might not sell if an interested buyer doesn’t show up. If that’s the case, the domain owner has created a price ceiling that isn’t realistic because it probably would have sold for $500,000 in a different venue.2.) More Publicity In the days leading up to the auction, there didn’t seem to be any publicity for the auction. It was almost like Godaddy wanted to have a soft opening, but when they chose that route, bidders didn’t show up (or if they did, they didn’t bid). Godaddy needs to publicize their next auction as much as possible. I suggest the following:     – Purchase impressions in all the domain forums and domain blogs     – Buy related Adwords     – Email entire database of current customers     – Ask Bob to blog about the auction to generate buzz     – Issue press releases touting the high profile domain names     – Give coupon credits to VIP customers3.) VIP InvitationsThere are quite a few people who are known for bidding aggressively at other live domain auctions. Senior Godaddy executives should go through their rolodexes and do what they need to make sure these bidders show up. Godaddy might even want to ask them what types of names they are looking to purchase, and they should make sure at least some of these types of names are on auction.— The better the auction results are, the more likely it will be that people will want their names listed in future auctions. The better the names in auction, the more likely it will be that buyers show up and bid.  The second round will be much more successful than the inaugural attempt because Godaddy was smart enough to ask for advice from the domain community. [...]