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You are here: Home / Blog Post / How many clerks spoil the benefit auction broth?
Aug 20

How many clerks spoil the benefit auction broth?

Sherry Truhlar 2 Comments

Benefit_auction_clerkEver heard the phrase, “Too many cooks spoil the broth?”

At a benefit auction, you need someone to record the sale prices. That person is typically called a clerk, secretary, or recorder. Although an auctioneer could clerk his own benefit auction, it slows the sales process and isn’t a best practice.

The auction clerk stands or sits near the auctioneer at the front of the stage.  Oftentimes the clerk sits right next to me, while I stand at the podium.  

This is not a stressful job, but many nonprofits seem to think it is. I think it’s because they’ve put the wrong person in the role of clerk.

The clerk is someone who has good hearing and can focus. She’s not drunk, and ideally, hasn’t been drinking. She should be an accountant or finance-type … someone who recognizes the importance of recording a number correctly. She’s comfortable sitting on stage with the auctioneer, and just as comfortable interrupting the auctioneer (when needed) to confirm a sale price. She listens to the auctioneer, and doesn’t really pay attention to the audience.

Charity_auction_clerkThat’s it. It’s not that difficult.

The clerk has all the power. The auction can’t (or shouldn’t) move forward until the clerk has recorded the winning bid number and the sale price. In fact, at some auctions when the clerk is obviously nervous, I’ll verbally confirm with her after each sale.  

“Did you get that, Debbie? Are you ready?” I might say.

Sometimes a nonprofit believes that having two or three clerks is a better idea. 

“We’ll station them around the room. If Shelly misses it, Robin can get it,” they tell me.

In theory, the plan sounds good.  In practice, it fails.

What more often happens is that Shelly misses the number but doesn’t want to interrupt the auctioneer. “Robin probably got it,” she hopes. And Robin, who didn’t hear it either, hopes Shelly wrote it down.

Later they both realize neither has a number. They ask the auctioneer, who has no clue what they are talking about.

When you assign a one-person job to two people, you’re merely giving them a cop out. It’s a case of too many cooks in the kitchen spoiling the broth.  

If only Shelly (or only Robin) was the clerk, she would take her job seriously, realizing that she alone was responsible for accuracy. She ‘owns’ her job. If needed, she has no  hesitation stopping the auctioneer to confirm a number because she knows no one else can save her.  

Clerking is a straightforward volunteer role. When you divide it among two or more people, you’re increasing the odds of an error.

When I’ve seen clerks get flustered, it’s inevitably due to a poor practice. The group has multiple clerks … they station them at the back of the room … and they tend to be people who would rather “be social” than work.

easy-first-auctions-volume-3-book-5In my Easy First Auctions webinar, you’ll be learning about critical roles like this. For instance, what volunteers do you need, and what are they doing? Auction volunteer descriptions are one of the first tasks that you – an Auction Chair — will need.  (And you get those, in the course.)

We’ll cover how to make your first few auctions EASY. You’ll learn the best practices to start in Year #1 of your auction, which then enables you to lay the foundation for strong growth in the following years.

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Copyright © 2013 Red Apple Auctions Co. All Rights Reserved

About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

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Comments

  1. dean mccurry says

    August 21, 2013 at 10:51 AM

    Call me Sherry…catch up

    Dean 214-783-8064

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      August 21, 2013 at 2:10 PM

      Dean, I’m Ashley and posting here, just so you know. Sherry is in Kansas for a couple of weeks to be with family.

      Reply

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Sherry, oh, Sherry! You were an invaluable asset to this year’s gala. With your assistance we were able to add so many new elements that truly made a difference in taking our event to another level. This year was the most successful yet! Everyone loved you and the amazing energy that you brought to the event. We look forward to having you again in 2018!

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Thank you so much for the outstanding job you did for us on April 1! I have received so much positive feedback from so many who attended. You even earned Sister Suzan’s (our Vice-Principal) seal of approval! Safe travels to all your many events and thank you for making our biggest fundraiser of the year our best ever!

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I was very fortunate to have Red Apple on board for my first auction. Working with Sherry was invaluable. She provided guidance at every phase of planning, from procurement on forward – and she challenged us to make our event more ambitious and more successful at every stage. Thank you, Sherry!

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Oak Hill School (Eugene, OR)

If your auction needs to upgrade, call any auctioneer you find on Google. But if you want your auction to be impressive, meaningful, and profitable, you need to call Sherry.

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The auction was entertaining .. proactive … the crowd was involved and felt a part of it,” he said, emphasizing, “The entertainment value was huge.

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2012 Oakcrest Anne and CarolinaSherry, personally, I can’t even begin to tell you the immense amount of positive feedback that I received having YOU (and Darby) there with is this year!… Read The Rest “Anne Livaudais Knudsen, 5th year gala co-chair”

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Geri said: “Great job of getting potential donors in the room to step up to the plate and not feel guilty or bad about it. They actually wanted to give more … and that’s not something I’ve seen in many other auctioneers.” 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 The following… Read The Rest “Geri”

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Most product & consulting remarks are found on their respective webpages, but I’ve listed two below so you’re assured my products are as spot-on as my auctioneering.   Not only was our 2013 auction a blast, but our Washington, D.C. public school raised $67,000 — that’s $25,000 more than last year! The evening went… Read The Rest “Carolyn Kahn-Hall and Andrea Del Vecchio”

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