Schools
At The Taste of Rappahannock, Nessa’s Irish roots show through.
“The live auction was so much fun. Such energy; such drama. You did a damn good job; the auction was a hell of a lot of fun!
Ron and Karen attended the Flint Hill School auction and enjoyed watching a female auctioneer work the crowd.
Ignore Beyonce and “all the single ladies” jamming in the background to hear Ron share, “You did something we hadn’t heard before. You were personable; you energized the audience, and you were extending an offer to the bidders to do more than just bid.”
Karen adds, “You elicited so well. You encouraged people.”
At this Bollywood-inspired school auction, Michelle talks about Sherry being “auctioneer-y,” but doing it in a non-threatening way that made it fun.
Steve’s wife mentioned that he’s a trial attorney and has a lot of experience in front of groups.
His comment?
“You controlled the crowd,” he said
“… as a female!!” his wife adds.
Kudos to Sherry Truhlar and Red Apple Auctions for helping us achieve success at our fundraising auction this year–including helping us to offer an event full of activities, games, and fun!
From the first face-to-face meeting, through the subsequent phone calls and email messages, Sherry offered a tremendous number of ideas–from ticket pricing to best auction items to look for to ideas for games and other activities.
At the event itself, Sherry’s performance was a perfect mix of professional auctioneering techniques and down-to-earth rapport with the guests. I heard nothing but compliments from our guests.
In addition, I was blown away by the amount Sherry was able to raise through the special appeal (Fund a Need), something we had never before included in our auction. I would never have thought our guests would have been so forthcoming after having purchased a ticket and perhaps bid on other items!
I am also convinced that our bottom line would not have been so great, had we not had the help of Red Apple Auctions.
Thanks Sherry, for helping us achieve success–and have such fun in the process!
Betty Heiney
West Nottingham Academy (Colora, MD)
At this public school foundation auction, this couple stopped me to talk about their “list of auctioneers.”
I wanted this year’s Key School auction event to be the best yet, so I reached out to my contacts on LinkedIn to get recommendations for a top-notch charity/benefit auctioneer.
Sherry Truhlar and Red Apple Auctions came highly recommended by several sources.
From the start I felt that Sherry was the right choice for the school. She kept the auction co-chairs on track by helping them set deadlines, make decisions and stay calm. And, as a result, the event ran smoothly, the bidders were engaged, and we raised the bar considerably with a new fundraising record.
My advice for those thinking of hiring Sherry and her team at Red Apple Auctions…. go for it! If you’re lucky enough to fit into her schedule, you’ll be happy you went with the best.
Thomas H. Gimer, Esq.
Francis Scott Key Elementary (Washington, DC)
Jane Bowling-Wilson
Headwaters Foundation (Sperryville, VA)A happy client since 2010!
Nonprofits
Bruce, a Board member for a Louisville, KY-based charity, missed the 2013 gala but had heard others talk about the auctioneer. In 2014 he did attend and made his way to my table after the event.
“This is the best auction scenario I’ve ever seen,” he said, “You were genuine, real, caring … and we had phenomenal results.” Bruce estimates that he’s attended about 50 galas before, and they are “pretty bland. But you are not bland! You kept it going. It was just phenomenal.”
Cheryl contemplates what made the auction different this year.
She liked “the energy and vitality … maybe it’s a female auctioneer? The way you followed up with everyone to keep it going. One of the best auctions we’ve had and I’ve been coming to this for the last 10 years.”
Stacy
Since 2010 when I first began working with Stacy, I’ve received these yummy cookies after her auction. This auction had experienced sliding revenue and apprehensive donors before we started working together.
Darleen oozes Tennessee friendliness, doesn’t she?
She’s attended “hundreds” of auctions (her best friend is an auctioneer) so clearly loves them. She appreciated how I was cunning (AKA a bit cheeky) with the audience.
Sue and Dina are co-workers at a hospice facility in southern California. We chatted on our way out the door to the check-out area.“I don’t know what you know about hospice,” said Sue, “but [your performance] made me believe you know a lot about it. That might not be true.”
“Effective [presentation],” added Dina, “but not in the least high pressure.”
Time and again guests ask clients if I’m a new employee. “She must be,” they say, “she knows SO MUCH about us.” You’ll find my extensive preparation and authenticity serves you well in live auctions and Fund a Needs.
Remember Jenny’s number from the 1980s? “Jenny, Jenny, who can I turn to? 867-5309?”
This nonprofit has a similar number. They don’t move without dialing 1 800 ASK SHERRY.
I like people who mean what they say and say what they mean. This supporter at a Montgomery Hospice gala didn’t mince words! Plus she’s pretty animated.
“I’ve been going to these things for 20 years,” she says, “You are the best auctioneer I’ve seen!”
After Red Apple Auctions’ debut in Baltimore in 2011, Rick, a guest at the American Heart Association gala, spoke with me.
“The auctioneer had a lot of charisma and a nice way with the people”
Charlie is a businessman in Annapolis, MD and also runs a foundation. At this community college foundation gala, he explained that it wasn’t just about being an auctioneer, but being an entertaining auctioneer. It’s the two elements together that make the difference in his mind.
You made such an impact on our group.
To quote Monica, my co-chair, “If Sherry organized a cult, I’d join.”
Like most groups, we had fallen into a rut, doing things the same way, year after year. We were doing things that made all the sense in the world to us but didn’t translate into dollars. When we decided to hire you as our auctioneer, we had some skeptics (you weren’t cheap.)
In past years we always had an auctioneer donate his or her time to run our Live auction. Nice for our budget, however, they never had anything to offer except for “going once, twice, sold.” You came with a boat full of ideas, enthusiasm, and charm.
You completely revamped our whole event. All those skeptics are now dedicated fans of yours. We even had some of our guests request your information for other events.
Now when people ask me about the success of our event I simply say, “hire an expert and listen to them.” With the hard work of our committee and board and the guidance from you, we had our most successful gala ever. And, everyone had a blast!
Thank you so much for your support along the way. If ever we were challenged by something, we knew you were only a phone call away with a spectacular idea. Your knowledge of what would work and not work was spot on. I know that our event was not perfect, but it was successful and fun. We can work with you on perfection for next year, right?
Jennifer Harris, Auction Co-Chair 2009
YWCA Annapolis (Annapolis, MD)
I knew Sherry and her team would be perfect for this particular event. The benefit wasn’t your typical sit down dinner so I really needed someone who could be flexible, analyze the event program and hit the ground running. My event was quite unique due to its intricate sequence of events: a champagne reception, couture fashion show, followed by a “green” reception for a very exclusive and intimate group of 150 people.
Our program itinerary called for an almost impromptu special appeal for cash. With Sherry’s guidance we raised just about $7,000.00 in ten minutes!
For over two weeks after the event I heard things like, “The event was elegant and appealing. Sherry maintained the positive energy and excitement (after the fashion show) while soliciting the bigger donations. I think due to her appealing presence, what is normally a dreaded part of an event (the fundraising) was actually fun.” and “Wow! She was amazing, a true master at work.”
I’ve discovered that “asking for money” can be challenging, but every member of the Red Apple Auctions team does this well. One of the Red Apple Auctions team members handled the raffle at my auction and raised over $500.00 in half an hour!
It is clear to me that the entire team takes pride in mastering all fundraising aspects, but the finesse of their polished auction team during the live portion of an auction is incredible! Trust me! I have seen them all in action!!!
I also appreciate the effort that Red Apple Auctions puts into analyzing their client’s needs. Staff and even the owner herself graciously stop in or call to check on me periodically. She requests input and shares her enthusiasm, growth, and any new services/information/literature they have. I have even been surprised with unexpected gifts!!! What a treat!
In any case, I often remark on how blessed I am to have found Sherry. I can honestly say that there is no possible way one could overlook how hard she works to satisfy all of her clients. She has a wealth of knowledge for your event, too – this I’m sure! Her attention to detail and willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty has never ceased to amaze me.
Red Apple Auctions is unlike many other companies that lack the attention to detail, good nature (always friendly, always smiling) and humility that every member of the Red Apple Auctions family exudes. Red Apple Auctions is a motivated, fun loving, likable, and trustworthy company; I proudly recommend them to you.
Aaron L. Machado
Independent planner (Washington, DC)
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