If you're interested in running a Fund a Need auction, today (June 23) at 3 PM Eastern time, I'm offering a live webinar called Fabulous Fund a Needs. (Buy the DVD here and you'll be registered for the webinar today). I've written before about them. A growing portion of my business is devoted to doing nothing but the delivery of these speeches. And that's the sub-section I'm writing about today ... the trend of skipping a live and silent auction and just offering a Fund a Need. Each year I am ... Read On >
Live Auctions
Three ways a Los Angeles auction incorporated high-end wines
Welcome to wine week! Every post this week ties to alcohol. Here's the post explaining why. A few benefit auctions I conduct each year aren't known as wine auctions, but they have such a stellar collection of wine available that the lots could easily be sold in a wine auction and fit right in. This Los Angeles, CA gala is one such event. In fact, the ~300 guests aren't just treated to great wine lots in the auction, but they get to enjoy exquisite wines in several ways throughout the evening. ... Read On >
Where does a wine auctioneer learn about champagne?
Welcome to wine week! Every post this week ties to alcohol. Here’s the post explaining it. Where does a fundraising wine auctioneer go to learn about champagne? Drinking it often is a good start. But to more fully appreciate the bubbly, this past Monday (June 1, 2015) I headed to class. This just wasn't any class. I went to the Champagne Master Workshop & Tutored Tasting organized by the French Wine Society. Peter Liem, one of the world's experts on champagne, led the course. My ... Read On >
This wine auctioneer is drinking moonshine
It's wine week! What is wine week? This week I've devoted every day of my blog to a wine-related post. Or something close. I'm celebrating a birthday soon so it seems proper to have a toast. In honor of the big day, every post this week will discuss something about wine or some other beverage (like moonshine) worthy of being poured into a glass and raised during a toast. This past weekend I sampled moonshine (or sweetshine, as they call it) at Bloomery Plantation in West Virginia. I spend a ... Read On >
Which sells better? Two different descriptions from identical auction packages
An identical item was sold in two different D.C. charity auctions in different years. Of the two item description examples, which do you prefer? (I changed the donor's name.) ================== Don’t Fake It, Make It Private cooking class for 10 at the acclaimed ABC Cooking School You and 9 guests will be guided by your chef instructor in creating a fabulous three-course meal. From 'Classic French Cuisine' to "Sushi' and 'Summertime Smoking and Barbecue,' the reward is yours when you sit ... Read On >