• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About
    • About RAA
    • Meet Sherry Truhlar
    • What makes us unique
    • Reviews/Clients
    • Press
    • Licensing
  • Contact
  • Client Login

Fundraising gala auctioneer Sherry Truhlar

  • Services
    • Onsite Auction Services
    • Virtual Auction Services
    • Fund a Need Experts
    • Consulting
    • Onsite workshops
  • Products
    • $10 Trainings
    • On Demand Webinars
    • Books
  • Speaking
    • Why Sherry
    • Keynote and Other Topics
    • FAQs
  • Blog
  • Free Resources
    • Webinar: COVID-19
    • Virtual Gala Cheat Sheet
    • Newsletter
    • Auction Item Guide™
    • Recording: Porch Parties
    • Benefit Auction Case Study
    • Blog
  • Store
You are here: Home

Silent Auction Tips

Bloomerang hosted me on a complementary 1-hour training where I taught five simple ways to boost silent auction revenue. This free webinar got a lot of “thumbs up” in emails and Facebook. (Scroll to read the unsolicited reviews.)

This covers the basics …THE BASICS … of silent auction marketing. If you aren’t doing these five things, I’m way concerned that you are missing out on a lot more.  So first, watch the video.  Then click to Silent Auction Marketing Savvy to get the FULL STORY on how to ramp up your silent auction. 

Pour yourself a coffee, grab a pen, and settle in to take notes.

Bloomerang_Facebook_comment_Simone_Georgieff

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Thanks Steve – got some great ideas and certainly motivational – thanks so much for hosting the webinars.

  • I just wanted to let you know that this afternoon’s webinar was fantastic- a lot of helpful tips and information.

  • Had to leave webinar early. Thanks for making the webinar available so I can review later. LOVED the content I was able to listen to. Loved the presenter as well. One of the best I’ve heard on a webinar! The addition of seeing her on video was helpful. One of the many questions I have is how do I help a board member understand that his donation of treasures is not what our guests are looking for in the silent auction. He was offended that the items he donated last year received donations way below their value. I also feel bad that they didn’t do well and would rather we use an auction site or some other means to get a meaningful donation for the items. Thoughts?

  • Thanks, Steven. Took copious notes and will talk about them at our next “Winetasia” meeting.

  • I wanted to thank you for todays webinar. It was very informative and perfect timing for our annual Gala event. My director and I gleaned from this webinar several valuable changes that we will be sure to use this year for a better outcome.

  • That was informative. Reinforced some things, clarified others, gave me some new ideas. And gave me a clear path to prioritizing the key elements when planning not only a silent auction, but the whole thing.

  • I was so inspired by Sherry – I spent most of my afternoon reading the materials on the Red Apple web site – good work. Thank you.

  • We enjoyed Sherry’s webinar immensely! Thank you so much for sending us the link.

I presented this webinar on 4Good a couple weeks later.  Here’s what attendees said:

  • We are having our auction in 2 weeks and will use all your ideas.
  • One of the best webinars I have participated in! My event is in a few short weeks and I will definitely put some of these ideas to use.
  • Excellent! The hour went by too fast.
  • The webinar was very good. I was taking notes; maybe more information could go in the slides.
  • She was wonderful.
  • Really amazing and informative.  Looking forward to looking at the website to learn even more!

About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

Silent auctions are often the “shopping” area of a gala. Guests browse, taking only seconds to judge if they should bid.

If your committee can keep attention on details up until the bidding opens, there are rewards to be had. Browsers become bidders.

Here are three videos with some silent auction tips and how-to advice for your committee to review. From fun in the auction to amazing table set up, the payoff is a more successful auction, and that’s what everyone wants.

Silent auction entertainment? Maybe. For the 20-something crowd

Come to your senses to sell silent auction donations

How to display silent auction items at your benefit auction fundraiser.

I’d love to hear about your most popular silent auction item. What did your committee procure that turned browsers into excited bidders?

Leave any comments below.

About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

Primary Sidebar

Connect with Me Here

What auction planners say

Sherry, oh, Sherry! You were an invaluable asset to this year’s gala. With your assistance we were able to add so many new elements that truly made a difference in taking our event to another level. This year was the most successful yet! Everyone loved you and the amazing energy that you brought to the event. We look forward to having you again in 2018!

Krystal Fenwick
Read more testimonials

Thank you so much for the outstanding job you did for us on April 1! I have received so much positive feedback from so many who attended. You even earned Sister Suzan’s (our Vice-Principal) seal of approval! Safe travels to all your many events and thank you for making our biggest fundraiser of the year our best ever!

Diane Albano, Director of Development
St. Joseph Academy Catholic High School (St. Augustine, FL)
Read more testimonials

Sherry is flexible and easy to work with. She gives honest feedback and advice throughout the planning and implementation process. Without a doubt, Sherry and Red Apple Auctions has helped take our annual fundraising event to the next level.

Beckie Middendorf, Development Director and Janet Gulla, Development Coordinator
St. Henry District High School (Erlanger, KY)
Read more testimonials

Sherry is “on board” from day one of auction planning, works closely with our steering committee and is only just a phone call away. The night of the auction, we toss her the keys and let her drive the event! We are never disappointed!

Charly Ryan, Director of Institutional Advancement
The Academy of the Holy Cross (Kensington, MD)
Read more testimonials

I was very fortunate to have Red Apple on board for my first auction. Working with Sherry was invaluable. She provided guidance at every phase of planning, from procurement on forward – and she challenged us to make our event more ambitious and more successful at every stage. Thank you, Sherry!

Pete Goldlust, Director of Development
Oak Hill School (Eugene, OR)
Read more testimonials

If your auction needs to upgrade, call any auctioneer you find on Google. But if you want your auction to be impressive, meaningful, and profitable, you need to call Sherry.

Erin Banda
2016 NYUMBANI Board member
Read more testimonials

The auction was entertaining .. proactive … the crowd was involved and felt a part of it,” he said, emphasizing, “The entertainment value was huge.

Darrell, a long-time attendee
Read more testimonials

We plan on booking Red Apple Auctions much earlier for our next event so we can take advantage of more of the pre-event offerings.

Nicole Carr, Director of Grants and Special Events
The Ivymount School (Rockville, MD)
Read more testimonials

Sherry, personally, I can’t even begin to tell you the immense amount of positive feedback that I received having YOU (and Darby) there with is this year! Some of the tidbits: You added EXCITEMENT and ENTERTAINMENT… You added EXPERTISE and FUN… You helped the evening FLOW, in a wonderful and positive direction… You were FUN,… Read The Rest “Anne Livaudais Knudsen, 5th year gala co-chair”

Read more testimonials

Aren’t KK and Michael a cute couple? They liked that I “moved the crowd along … kept the crowd engaged but wasn’t obtrusive or invasive. We were able to talk but still keep track of what was going on.”

Read more testimonials

You have NO idea of how many people came up to me (I know Julie as well) and said, ‘That auctioneer was incredible … she engaged the crowd, … she got the bidders to bid without being rude/pushing, … I loved observing her, I just watched her, … she did a great job.’ It was… Read The Rest “Staci Meruvia”

Read more testimonials

Geri said: “Great job of getting potential donors in the room to step up to the plate and not feel guilty or bad about it. They actually wanted to give more … and that’s not something I’ve seen in many other auctioneers.” The following year, she herself ‘stepped up’ and became one of the gala… Read The Rest “Geri”

Read more testimonials

Irene attended one of my New Hampshire auctions and assumed I must be a radio personality — until I started to chant that fast talk. “I’ve been to this event before with a couple of other auctioneers,” she said, “Your ability to get personal with people in a way that isn’t intimidating — men, women,… Read The Rest “Irene”

Read more testimonials

Most product & consulting remarks are found on their respective webpages, but I’ve listed two below so you’re assured my products are as spot-on as my auctioneering.   Not only was our 2013 auction a blast, but our Washington, D.C. public school raised $67,000 — that’s $25,000 more than last year! The evening went off… Read The Rest “Carolyn Kahn-Hall and Andrea Del Vecchio”

Read more testimonials

As a former Fox News Anchorwoman, I am often called on to perform at auctions. So, I know first-hand that auctioneering can be a difficult job. Sherry Truhlar is one of the best in the business. She is skillful at managing an audience and keeping them focused on the task at hand – which is… Read The Rest “Cynthia Steele Vance”

Cynthia Steele Vance
Guest at The Potomac School 2014 auction (McLean, VA)
Read more testimonials
Read more testimonials

home | auctioneering | consulting | free item guide | about

 

Red Apple Auctions Co., PO Box 6066, Arlington, VA 22206
Toll free: 888-474-0838 | Email: Info@RedAppleAuctions.com | Copyright © 2005 - 2020

 

Sherry Truhlar • Charity Auctions • School Auctions • Fundraising Auctions • Auction Galas • Benefit Auctions

 

Terms of Use · Privacy Statement