Morgan Hopson ’11 was just 2½ when she began playing the violin. “I think I first saw it on Sesame Street, and I kept bugging my parents about it.”

Her mom found an early childhood music program at the Suzuki Music Institute of Dallas, and they made the 75-mile trek from Bonham, Texas, multiple times a week.

Wanting to play the violin in college and cut a path in the music industry, she auditioned for the TCU School of Music. Faculty Germán Gutiérrez and Curt Thompson were especially struck by her talent.

Morgan Hopson started playing violin when she was 2 1/2. Courtesy of Morgan Hopson

“We granted her a full tuition scholarship based on the successful audition she presented to the TCU String Faculty,” said Gutiérrez, professor of orchestral studies. “She was also a brilliant student with a good academic record. I am so glad to see how the students grow and develop into great professionals and citizens. Morgan makes us all very proud of what we do at TCU.”

Interested in the business side of music, Hopson earned two degrees: in marketing and in music. Her plan was to move to Nashville, Tennessee —Music City, USA — and pursue studio work while juggling a job at a production or publishing company but then another career path called her name. A marketing contest took Hopson, then a senior in the Neeley School of Business, to Oklahoma where she met family friend Craig Buford ’78, a real estate broker and auctioneer, for lunch and shared her Nashville dreams.

Buford, president and CEO of United Country-Buford Resources Real Estate & Auction, remembers that lunch meeting well. “She was telling me things she was doing and things she had learned, and they were all things I knew enough about to know our company needed them but we hadn’t spent the time, effort or money to learn some of them. I said, ‘I don’t know what you’re planning, but if you think this would be a possibility for you to come work a little while or a long time, then come on board with us.’ ”

Hopson was intrigued. She had committed to a TCU School of Music summer internship following graduation, which gave her time to explore the new career prospect. She found an auction school in Dallas and enrolled.

“I didn’t know anything about the auction industry. So I went to auction school just to learn about the business so that I would be able to market more effectively, and I really enjoyed it,” she said. “There are so many similarities between being a musician and being an auctioneer as far as being on stage and being able to evoke emotion out of your audience and connect with them. So that was kind of a natural fit for me, and I’ve been doing it for about eight years now.”

Maximizing Profit

As director of marketing at Buford’s company in Oklahoma City, Hopson manages marketing campaigns for farm and ranch, hunting and recreational properties as well as luxury real estate. She is licensed as a real estate associate and as an auctioneer.

Morgan Hopson graduated with two degrees: in marketing and music. Courtesy of Morgan Hopson

“Selling real estate at auction can maximize price,” she said. “In a traditional market, you have a price ceiling and you’re going to negotiate with your buyer and you’re probably going to come down. The beauty of an auction is that you can set a reserve, or minimum, price. Only the seller and the auctioneer know the reserve of that property. If you have two people there who really want that property, the sky’s the limit. There’s no telling what might happen.”

Hopson oversees the company’s national and international marketing campaigns for its properties, helps manage a dozen real estate associates and consults with nonprofits and associations to help them through fundraising goals. She is also one of the company’s auctioneers, specializing in real estate and fundraising auctions.

“She’s one of those individuals who is not only smart and a hard worker — she has a tremendous work ethic,” Burford said. “People love her and she makes friends wherever she goes and represents her company tremendously well.”

More Than Fast Talking

There’s much more to auctioneering than lightning-fast articulation. It’s one component of a comprehensive marketing campaign. “I would say that less than 10 percent of what we do is getting behind the mic. There’s a lot of detail that goes into an auction before we get on the block: consulting, strategy, contracts, marketing. We’re businessmen and women; we just happen to be in an industry where we transact business at a fast pace,” Hopson said.

The secret to success? Listening.

Morgan Hopson won the National Auctioneers Association’s 2019 international championship in New Orleans, and she’s also the 2019 Texas State Champion Auctioneer. Courtesy of Morgan Hopson

“For me, it’s about investing in our clients and really listening to their goals and objectives. The more I’m able to get to know them and can relate to them, the more effective I am behind the mic. It’s like playing the violin and performing — you want to be able to evoke emotion from the audience.”

The discipline required to perfect the craft is another similarity between a concert violinist and an auctioneer. “The dedication to practice and the preparation that’s involved to perform and deliver at the highest level — I did that with the violin and I do the same thing with my chant,” she said. “Every day we are trying to make improvements to our chants. Whether I’m at a real estate auction or a benefit auction, I’m constantly trying to make tweaks and adjustments so that my audience is responsive — the same as you would with an instrument, preparing for a concert.”

Auctioneers have a three-part chant. “At the beginning, I’m stating what I have. Then I’m telling you what I would like the next increment to be. Then I’m actually asking for that next increment. So, ‘I’m bid 20. Now 30. Would you give 30?’ ”

Hopson conducts about 40 auctions a year, which includes real estate, nonprofit and now aviation auctions. She is lead auctioneer for Fort Worth-based Assent Aeronautics, which held its first private fly-in aircraft consignment auction in December.

“To be a part of something from the very beginning, to be a part of the team that’s making history, it’s truly an incredible opportunity and experience. It’s going to be exciting to watch Assent continue to grow and expand for years to come,” she said. “As far as we know, no one else in the world is conducting strictly aviation auctions. People are selling planes at auction, but they’re mixed in with other assets.”

Texas and World Champ

In 2015, Hopson competed in the Texas Auctioneers Association’s state championship. After chanting her way to third place, she was encouraged by two past international champions to compete at the highest level. “I was kind of hesitant. I didn’t know if I was ready to jump into the international contest. They said, ‘You’re going to get a lot of out it. It’s going to change your life.’ And they were right. It helps you build friendships and relationships with other people in the contest. You are in a community of auctioneers who are trying to better themselves and help better their competitors.”

For her first go at the international contest, Hopson was just shy of making the finals. “That just fired me up to think maybe I could do this; maybe I am ready for this contest.”

Hopson continued to compete in state and national contests over the next four years. In the state competition, she placed among the top five her first three years, was runner-up in 2018 and was crowned champion auctioneer in 2019.

During her first two years in the women’s division of the National Auctioneers Association’s International Auctioneer Championship she didn’t make the finals, but she took third place in 2017, was runner-up in 2018 and won in 2019.

The award-winning auctioneer specializes in farm and ranch land, hunting properties and luxury real estate but also does charity auctions. Courtesy of Morgan Hopson

“It’s not just about winning a contest for me,” she said. “Obviously it’s a great stepping stone for my career and something I’ve worked really hard for, but it also helps us to continue to build and promote the auction industry and make an impact on other auctioneers.”

As the reigning international champion, Hopson serves as an ambassador of the National Auctioneers Association, traveling, speaking and teaching at conferences and conventions around the country.

“The auction industry is extremely unique because your peers and competitors are constantly rooting for your success, lifting you up and encouraging you to reach your full potential,” she said. “As a first-generation auctioneer, I’ve experienced that firsthand. There are so many people in this industry who have lifted me up and poured into me that I’m really excited to give back and do that for other members of our association.”