In May I worked a gala for a group here in the Washington, D.C. area. During our wrap-up conversation, the Gala Chair commented that a good friend of hers accompanied her to the event, eager to spend money. Upon arrival, she learned that the group's auction checkout procedures didn't include taking AMEX. They'd opted against setting up an AMEX account. She couldn't buy anything. Our assembly listened to the story and then one of the women explained. "The Board has repeatedly ... Read On >
Registration & Check-out
How to accelerate your benefit auction checkout line
UPDATE: The telecourse mentioned is over, but the content is still valid. To learn a simple manual auction checkout process, get auction checkout training here. Keep abreast of future calls by subscribing to Benefit Auction Ideas. ++++++ As I write this, I just returned from a benefit auction. The gala was the non-profit's first and it earned an "A." But one area we'll be perfecting before next year's event is the registration and auction checkout process. Checkout is a timely ... Read On >
Use signage (a bid board) to let silent auction bidders know they won
Here's one of the most common questions you'll hear from auction guests: "How will I know if I won anything in the silent auction? If I didn't win anything, I don't want to stand in the check-out line." How can you easily let bidders know they won? Relaying winning bidder information should become part of your silent auction checkout process. One option is to invest hundreds to thousands of dollars into technology so you can text or otherwise alert your winners, but that's a big ... Read On >