A rose … er, an appeal by any other name is still an appeal.
A prospective client called me a few days ago. “We conduct a silent auction, a live auction, and a reverse auction,” she said.
A reverse auction?
I had to smile. Perhaps more than any other activity during an auction fundraiser, cash appeals are called a variety of names.
Let’s describe it so we all understand the activity: An appeal is a direct request of the audience, asking them to make a cash donation to fund the organization.
During an appeal, the crowd is – in effect – giving a group gift to the charity. “Here’s our money,” the audience cries in unison to the organization, “Live long and prosper!”
So what are the names I hear for appeals?
I’ve heard at least 17 different names:
- Cash appeal / Appeal
- Paddle Raisers / Raise the Paddle
- Gift from the Heart
- Dutch Auction
- Mission Call / Mission Moment
- Fund a Need / Fund an Item / Fund a Program
- The Challenge
- Love Offering / Love Gift
- A Bid Down
- The Shakedown (a tongue-in-cheek reference, and my personal favorite)
- And now … The Reverse Auction
Which sounds good to you? Perhaps regional differences play a role here.
Generally speaking, what you call an appeal isn’t a problem, unless you are calling it a different name all of the time.
Select a name, and stick with it. You and your auction committee should always refer to it by that name so you, other committee members, and your guests do not become confused.
If you conduct an appeal, what do you call it?
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Comments
I just discovered you today, I am thrilled!
Can you explain what the terms mean, I am new to fundraising and need help, what does the term Reverse Auction mean?
Thank you,
Carolyn Arambula
Diector
Welcome to the site!
To answer your question … in this blog post, the term is another word for an appeal.
But in commercial auctions, a reverse auction refers to when the suggested bid price is quite high (so high that no one is likely to bid) and is slowly lowered in price. The first person to bid is the winning bidder who buys the item.
This technique is the opposite of a “regular” auction, where the bidding begins low and is advanced in price as people bid. The last person bidding (i.e. the highest bid) is the winning bidder.
Finally … if you haven’t yet, I encourage you to sign-up for the “Benefit Auction Ideas” e-newsletter here. It’s fresher content than what I write for the blog, and you’ll automatically receive our popular Auction Item guide, which lists some top donation ideas.
Enjoy reading!
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