FAIRBURY - KWBE and Ol’ Red 99.5 have been holding radio auctions for over 30 years. It’s your typical auction, but over the phone, and over the air.

Trevor Steinmeyer is a host on radio auction.

“People basically call in and bid on items against other listeners, and like any other auction, the winner gets the item,” Steinmeyer said.

Randy Bauer is a co-host for the show, and he credits the southeast Nebraska sales staff for making radio auction possible.

“We just do the fun stuff,” Bauer said. “The sales staff has to go out and round up all the merchandise.”

The show runs from 1:00 PM - 6:00 PM. In that time frame, the station receives large numbers of calls each and every time they hold the show. 

“For the full 5-6 hours we do this, we get thousands of calls from our listening area, from Pawnee County stretching all the way up to Crete and all over the place,” Steinmeyer said.

All those callers are looking to find a low price on a quality item.

“Every once and awhile you can snag a great deal,” Steinmeyer said. “You can get like $1,000 worth of seed for like 600 bucks. That’s a pretty good deal if you’re a farmer.”

The show also auctions gift cards and various hardware and houseware items, even collectibles. When the show first started, they didn’t receive many calls. However, now with the use of cell phones, things are much different.

“With cell phones, as you can tell, the phone rings a lot,” Bauer said. “Especially when there’s a bargain to be had.”

The final radio auction of the year is next Thursday from 1:00 PM - 6:00 PM on Ol’ Red 99.5, and KWBE, 1450 AM and 94.7 AM.