I recorded this video a few minutes after getting off the phone with a potential client. She and her committee weren't fond of their previous auctioneer. "She started with a high opening bid," she said. "Too high. And then in order to get anyone interested in bidding she had to drop it down. Way down. It was so embarrassing to our donor." The subject of where to start the opening bids on your live auction items can be a divisive topic. I've observed a discrepancy between what many ... Read On >
Live Auctions
[VIDEO] Where to start your opening bids in the live auction
Every year I'll be asked by a few auction chairs, "Sherry, let's review the opening bids on these live auction items. Where shall we start them?" In this video and the post that follows it, I've addressed why you shouldn't care about opening bids. https://youtu.be/e32PMbixJGE?si=9rM1-E4u74E6A4ST Here's a conversation I'll have with some clients each year: "Sherry, this item is worth $2500. Where are you going to start the bidding?" "Start?" I'll counter, "It doesn’t matter where ... Read On >
VIDEO: Your Fund a Need auction advocate
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 ... Read On >
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. ... Read On >