To encourage social media posts at your fundraiser (and perhaps promote an auction sponsor), consider a photo selfie frame. I've written before about the many ways photography can be used at fundraising auctions to provide an entertainment outlet. Here are two ways nonprofits are using photo selfie frames. ================= 1. Photo selfie frames can cross-promote your nonprofit and another organization. ONEHOPE Wine has a photo selfie frame its Boston representatives take to its ... Read On >
Sponsorship
Using the auction bid paddle as a sponsorship opportunity
Some nonprofits will print a guest's bid number on both sides of an auction bid paddle. The benefit of this approach is that regardless of which side of the paddle is shown to the auctioneer, the bid number is viewed. Another idea is to sell the space on the back of the bid paddle. The back of the bid paddle can be combined with other benefits and offered to a single sponsor at a high commitment level, or it can be sold as a standalone benefit to a company underwriting a specific ... Read On >
Reusable auction bid paddle sticks: Good for storage and sponsors
I have an old video (it was my first video ever) that educates on what makes for a good fundraising auction bid paddle. It's hideous. It has all the markings of a first-time video, including awkward speaking, less-than-perfect audio, and bad hair. But the content is good. Even 9 years later, people comment on the video, thanking me for the information that helped them decide on a good bid paddle for their fundraiser. One idea the video doesn't share is the idea of reusable bid ... Read On >
Unique fundraising auction venue: car dealership
Earlier this month I headed to Florida to again work with a Boys & Girls Club whose fundraising auction venue is a local car dealership. Clearly this dealership is a good partner of the nonprofit, greatly inconveniencing itself to transform its space -- sales floor, customer waiting area, service bay and lanes -- into a festive venue to host a sit-down dinner for just under 200 guests. Attendees begin the evening with a reception and silent auction in the service bay and customer ... Read On >
Find Your Name Boards: Recognizing guests at large events (trade show, association and conference auctions)
Traveling fills my imagination with new ideas. I'm still writing about stuff I saw after last month's journey west. Before flying home after the fundraiser, I saw that the 2016 Honolulu Marathon -- the 4th largest marathon in the United States -- had a free trade show. The Hawaii Convention Center was just a short jaunt from my hotel, so I visited. Recall that I already wrote about how this trade show used a Graffiti Wall, which is an idea I've already seen used at a Florida benefit ... Read On >