Like an aging beauty queen lacking any other skills, my 2015 Auction Item Guide™ (“What sold for lots of green in 2015”) was desperate to hang on to her glory. But over the holidays, I ripped off her crown and showed her the door. Meanwhile the new 2016 Auction Item Guide™ (“These stole the scene in 2016”) took over the reigning duties and made herself at home on my website. You can now get the new Guide AND participate in a “pop-up” auction procurement training class, "How to get 2016's ... Read On >
Blog Post
Dispersal of auction centerpieces when they are rented *and* donated
It is Thanksgiving week in the United States, which means it's a short week for many. I can sense the eagerness to get out of the office, so here's a short, helpful idea to finish out our month. Centerpieces can be a source of stress for gala chairs. I've been involved in discussions around the size and cost of a centerpiece. Once I witnessed two gala chairs in a feisty debate about the style of the centerpiece. A friend of mine tells a hilarious (?) story about how live fish were used ... Read On >
Eleven options for fundraising auction venues
A client called last week. Her preferred benefit auction venue is booked, and she's on the hunt for a new space that will hold 200-250 guests. "Can you point me in a few directions?" she asked. Here in the Washington, D.C. area I have a list of interesting venues to meet her guest count. But as this blog is read by auction planners from across the globe, I'm going to be more general. Changing your venue is an easy way to give a facelift to your benefit auction and it comes with the ... Read On >
What’s wrong with online silent auctions this spring?
Every year my spring season is filled with school auctions. Many of them run online auctions in conjunction with their live events, and the majority this year have complained of lower revenue with the online auction. So what's up? If you're running an online auction and looking for ways to avoid a downfall, here are a few thoughts I've gathered from conversations with my clients. Four tips for online auctions 1. Marketing your online auction is critical. One of my clients commented ... Read On >
How to use sealed bid in your silent auction
In February I was working with a new client who was sharing information about their live auction items from the prior year. The conversation went something like this: Me: So you sold a home irrigation system in the live auction last year? They: Yes. It's worth nearly $4000, so we put it in the live auction to get more money for it. We sold it for $1600. I think we had 3 bids. Me: We can find a better way to sell it. And we did find a better way. This year we sold that ... Read On >