What More Can You Do?
What More Can You Do?As you and your committee begin planning the logistics for your next charity auction event, perhaps the time is right to make a few changes to update your presentation to make your event more financially successful and more engaging to your donors attending the event.
Six Charity Auction Tips
- Is your venue “auction friendly”? Ensure that your guests are not only seated comfortably but that the room is set up in a style which will allow your auctioneer the greatest opportunity for conducting a most successful bidding process.
- Will your auctioneer be heard by all in the room – it would be advantageous to rent your own sound system along with a sound engineer in order to provide balanced sound throughout the room vs the sound system provided by many venues/hotels which is many times far inferior.
- One of the keys to a successful silent auction is ensuring that the checkout process goes smoothly. Perhaps consider closing the bidding prior to dinner to allow your checkout people ample time to put the checkout process in place for an effortless end to the evening.
- Do your donors expect you to place their items in their “most favorable position” in both the live and silent auctions? Try asking your Auctioneer for advice – auctioneers are experienced in staging donations to bring in the highest bids possible.
- Consider encouraging those of your guests who have not won anything in either the live or silent auctions to give a cash donation at the end of the evening. Have your volunteers make the rounds of tables to collect these donations adding many more dollars to your event results.
- Do you keep close attention to your event timetable schedule? Doing so will provide a smoothly running event with an atmosphere for competitive bidding.
Give these suggestions a try and watch your auction event thermometer reach new heights.
