Cigars sell.

You might not like smoking.  You might like pipes but not cigars.  You might smoke cigarettes, but hate cigar smoke.

It matters not.

Unless you’re the big spender procuring and buying ALL of the items at your nonprofit auction, check any righteous attitude you hold and do what’s best for the cause — procure some cigar-themed goodies to raise cash for your charity.

The February 2012 issue of Cigar Aficionado (which landed on my doorstep last weekend for no apparent reason) lists the best cigars of the year.  Maybe your local cigar shop will donate a few?

The issue also reviews what is presumably the largest cigar celebration in the world, The Big Smokes.  The Big Smokes are held in Las Vegas in late October and New York City in late November.  It might be worthwhile to send an email to the organizers to see if you can get two complementary admissions to either event.  Build a package around it.

And what about accoutrements?  Humidors, cutters, a subscription to the magazine … all of those sell at auctions.  (The above photo is from one of my auctions last fall.  The humidor was the first item to receive a bid in the silent auction.)

See what you can procure and watch how quickly it disappears from the silent auction table.

©2012 Red Apple Auctions Co.  All rights reserved.

P.S. If you’re seeking other item ideas for your nonprofit silent auction, claim your free copy of “What Sold Like Heaven in 2011.“  It’s hot off the press!

If your committee can keep attention on details up until the bidding opens, there are rewards to be had. Browsers become bidders.

Here are three videos with how-to advice for your silent auction committee. From fun in the auction to amazing table set up, the payoff is a more successful auction, and that’s what everyone wants.

Silent auction entertainment? Maybe. For the 20-something crowd

Come to your senses to sell silent auction donations

How to display silent auction items at your benefit auction fundraiser.

I’d love to hear about your most popular silent auction item. What did your committee procure that turned browsers into excited bidders?

© 2011 Red Apple Auctions Co. All Rights Reserved.

P.S. I share how-to advice twice a month in my ezine.  Get ideas delivered right to your inbox when you sign up here.

Inexpensive reading glasses tucked into wine glasses were scattered throughout the silent auction.

A few weeks ago I was in the kitchen of a busy Rockville, MD home.  Prior to starting the procurement meeting, the six Moms and I chatted about all sorts of matters, including being over the age of 40.

If you’re organizing a high school silent auction, it’s likely that your auction guests are nearing or hovering around that age.

If you’re a non-profit silent auction, some of your guests may only vaguely remember their 40th birthday party.

So if you want us to bid …  be kind.

Here are three ways to pamper the “forty-wonderful”and older crowd at your next silent auction.

1. Reading glasses

Inexpensive, fun reading glasses seem to be sold everywhere these days.  Pop a few into some wine glasses and place them around the silent auction area, as they did at this wine event I worked.

2. Lighting

This silent auction used candlelight to illuminate the bid sheets and descriptions. Adding bright electric lights would better show the items.

Hotel lighting is often a few degrees too dim.  Sometimes it’s because the hotel has inappropriate lights for a silent auction.  Other times it’s because the organization (wrongly) thinks softer lighting is appropriate for the reception.

I could spend a long time talking about this point and giving examples.  I’ll refrain and simply encourage you to brighten the room.

(For more articles on lighting, you might also like to learn about using gobos or LEDs in your next silent auction.)

3. Large font on silent auction descriptions

Such simple idea, yet rarely followed.

Increase the font on your silent auction descriptions.   Make it easy to read the display from a distance of a few feet.

• This is 12-point font and difficult to read in dim lighting, especially after drinking a cocktail.

• This is 24-point font and easier to read, even after drinking two cocktails.  Don’t you agree?
  

Which font size would you prefer as you walked by the silent auction tables?

Make friends with the over-40 crowd.  They are entering their prime earning years and have more cash to offer than some other segments of the population.

To enjoy other silent auction strategies, click to get your F-R-E-E Benefit Auction Ideas ezine.

© 2011 Red Apple Auctions Co.  All rights reserved.

Give them a listen! This band offered to play a set at your next function.

Your silent auction donations have a better chance of selling for more money when guests enjoy experiential shopping.

For inspiration, let’s look at my old stomping grounds:  corporate marketing.

Have you noticed that for-profit entities are quick to give away samples of their products?  They want to convert window-shoppers into paying customers.  (Make no mistake:  your silent auction has a lot of window-shoppers.)

A visit to your local shopping mall proves the power of the sensory experience.

Consider these common examples:

• Bath and Body Works invites browsers over to their in-store sink where they encourage you to use their exfoliation products and lotions.

• As you walk through the food court, at least one vendor will offer you a toothpick of a juicy morsel (bourbon chicken is common) so you can taste the product before you commit to buying lunch.

• A walk through the fragrance counter can leave you with several different perfumes spritzed on your arm.  You can smell them all, before you commit to buying a bottle.

Give it a taste! Try this strudel before you buy it.

Businesses know that you’re more likely to become a paying customer if you experience a product using your five senses –  taste, touch, sight, smell, and sound.

They are happy to give you a sample of their product because they know you’re more likely to buy after your enjoy it.  Let’s incorporate that philosophy into your silent auction displays.

For instance:

• When cookies are for sale, can you offer guests a sample?
• If a scarf will be knitted for the winning bidder, can guests touch the quality of the yard and feel how soft it will be against their skin?
• Does that chocolate cake up for bid offer a scent so heavenly that your guests can smell it across the silent auction room?
• Does the string quartet have a CD of their latest work playing?
• Is your visual display of the item fetching to onlookers?

The harder you believe an item will be to sell, the more important it becomes to draw guests in.  Your silent auction donations will perform better when offered in this multi-sensory shopping environment.

P.S.  This is the tip of the iceberg.  Get unpublished content in my FREE Benefit Auction Ideas.

© 2011 Red Apple Auctions Co.  All Rights Reserved.