I'm often asked for charity auction gift bag ideas and here are some thoughts rooted in examples from the for-profit sector. This is a clever corporate marketing technique that can be adapted to your charity auction to ensure your gala leaves a warm, lasting impression in the minds of your auction guests. To set this up, here are two stories. Story #1: The unexpected message in a bag. I bought a pair of shoes at Shoe Woo. When I got a home and took the shoes out of the bag, a ... Read On >
Marketing
Benefit Auctions v. Online Nonprofit Contests: Where’s the payoff?
Recently a number of my benefit auction clients have been participating in online contests for nonprofits. Most of them are not feeling "warm and fuzzy" when the contest ends. "Don't even mention the word "Pepsi" to me," said one, who was exhausted after coming *that* close to winning thousands in the Pepsi Refresh challenge, only to lose by a handful of last-minute online votes to a competing nonprofit. Then she said something I've also heard from others: "With so much time having been ... Read On >
Here’s an easy charity auction tip – Use surveys
Charity auction tips don't get much simpler than this ... survey your guests after your gala. I was reminded of this recently while listening to the radio. On a recent morning show, the DJ was asking his co-hosts and callers about their preferred superhero power. "If you could have one superhuman power," he'd ask, "What would it be?" Flying and invisibility were popular, but so was the ability to read minds. The ability to read minds would be handy at your auction, wouldn't it? You could ... Read On >
Live items should be on an auction schedule
If you're searching for some fundraising auction ideas that have an impact on the live auction, this is a simple but good one. Sometimes auction catalogs are misplaced before the live auction begins. Other times a catalog isn't printed. Some groups print a catalog, but forget to include the live auction items. Other groups can't include their live auction items into a catalog because the items weren't yet confirmed by the printing deadline. Whatever the reason, guests should have ... Read On >
Free publicity for your nonprofit, thanks to The Chronicle of Philanthropy
Anyone who follows me knows that we here at Red Apple Auctions are fans of LinkedIn. It's rich with great information on ideas and people. (I recently sent a LinkedIn connection to one of my clients who was soliciting a nonprofit auction donation from the producer of a popular TV show.) Here's a recent gem we spotted for our Washington, D.C.-area readers. Peter Panepento, Web Editor for the Chronicle of Philanthropy, is offering the chance for you to star in a Chronicle of Philanthropy ... Read On >