Item idea: Printer’s plate from a newspaper
Last night I worked an auction for a smaller-sized school in Maryland.
While walking the silent auction area with the auction chair, she pointed out an item I hadn’t seen sold in prior auctions. It was a metal printer’s plate from The Wall Street Journal. The plate was the image from the newspaper’s front page. (I wanted to include a photo of it here for you, but I got caught up in other tasks and – dang it – forgot! Sorry, friends.)
The auction chair had contacted a friend of hers who worked at the newspaper. She asked for the front page printer’s plate from November 5, 2008 — the day the world learned that the United States had elected its first African-American president. For Obama fans, history buffs, or new junkies, I thought this was a neat piece of history!
The Auction Chair told me that she found these plates relatively easy to obtain, even without a contact at the paper. Multiple plates are often made of each front page.
The school’s crowd was fairly conservative so the Obama election didn’t excite those guests, but I still think this is a great concept for any group looking for unique auction item ideas, especially as a silent auction item
My recommendation is that if you know of someone who works at your local newspaper (The New York Times, The Miami Herald, The Washington Post, etc.) start with your contact first. But if you are truly “cold calling” the paper and don’t have a lead, ask for the Community Relations or Marketing department.
(c) 2009 Red Apple Auctions LLC
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