Generally speaking, I'm not a fan of comparing the numbers of your benefit auction to other events. Results vary by region, guest capacity, the cause, the type of event, and other factors. Furthermore, unless you are able to see all of the data and how a charity is tracking its results, numbers can be misleading. Highly misleading. But on the other hand, many Auction Chairs are curious. They like auction statistics because they learn what others charge for tickets, for instance. Or how ... Read On >
trends
Creative event names for your auction gala fundraiser
I love word play. Thoughtful poems and good song lyrics beg for me to memorize them. And when rhymes are tied to rhythm in a rap, remembering lyrics is even easier. But word play isn't just for music. I recall listening to Sam Horn (the speaker, not the baseball player) sharing a story about her book title, "Tongue Fu! How to Deflect, Disarm, and Defuse any Verbal Conflict." What a great name. Kung fu conjures ideas of self-defense, and Sam ingeniously used the same alliteration ... Read On >
The 10 Latest Fundraising Auction Trends
Last week I presented at Gail Perry's (of Fired Up Fundraising) events course. My topic was "Latest Fundraising Auction Success Trends: What in-the-know Auction Planners are Buzzing About Now." I commented on 10 trends in the fundraising auction industry, providing stories, context, and additional resources so participants could do a deeper dive on subjects of interest to them. Though I'm not going to provide commentary and resources in this blog post (you had to be in the course to get ... Read On >
Fundraising auction trend: Food trucks
Over the last two weeks, you might have seen some of the publicity surrounding the predictions made in the 1985 movie, Back to the Future. In the movie, the lead character Marty McFly travels to the future date of October 21, 2015. I've read articles and seen video clips of late-night television show skits about the predictions made in that movie. Thirty years later, some prophesies came true (or nearly so); others were off the mark. Today's blog post follows this theme. ========== In ... Read On >
Charity Auction Trends 2013: gift bags, technology, and trucks
Heads up! I published this article weeks ago in my e-newsletter. Only today am I re-posting it here, on my blog. But not every article from there makes it over here. So, subscribe to Benefit Auction Ideas (it's free) to get great content delivered to your in-box. +++++ Trends in the benefit auction world don't change as often as fashion, so upfront I'll admit that the three I identified in 2012 still hold. (Read Charity Auction Trends 2012 here.) But after working with over 100 onsite and ... Read On >