auctioneer

Sep 26

Pet peeve of fundraising auctions: Pointing

One of the first lessons I learned at the Missouri Auction School was on the subject of pointing.“When inviting bidders to bid,” the instructor said, “use an open palm. It’s an invitation for the bidder to give you more money.”“Don’t point!” he emphasized, “It’s rude.”A quick way to separate the professional fundraising auctioneers from the amateurs is to watch their fingers.Get the full story in today’s video.To me, pointing is obnoxious.Am I overreacting?If ... Read On >

Jun 29

[Video] Should you promote the benefit auctioneer?

Yesterday I received this question from a client. Again this year, we are thinking about putting a Smartphone Auction card in our invite and on the back, adding information about two or three exciting live auction items with details about our auctioneer (you), including maybe your photo. We are trying to inform our guests that we have a new auctioneer. Here is what we were thinking we could say: "We’re putting together an exciting array of auction prizes, including X, Y, Z, and more! ... Read On >

Sep 29

[VIDEO] Embarrassing your auction donor with a (too) high opening bid?

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 auctioneers ... Read On >

Jul 07

[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. 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 I start the bidding. It matters where I finish the ... Read On >

Jun 02

Salut! Wine auctioneer Sherry Truhlar raises money for symphony

Welcome to wine week! Every post this week ties to alcohol. Here's the post explaining it. Last month I headed to Texas to work with the Amarillo Symphony Guild at Vintage Amarillo, the organization's fundraising wine auction which supports symphony programs. And how cool is this -- I made the paper! From our outfits, you can likely gather that it was a 1920's theme. You know why I like working as a wine auctioneer? Wine is one area I have to study in depth, and I love learning. The wine ... Read On >