13 Tips for Your Live Auction Fundraiser

1.  Always have your professional auctioneer help you with putting the live auction items in the best order.

2.  Live auction should be no longer than 45 minutes, but preferably 30 minutes.  It takes approximately 2-3 minutes to sell each item.

3.  It is very important to schedule the live auction early in your program. You want the bidders awake and energetic

4.  We recommend having the live auction during dinner.

5.  At events where there is little to no seating for the bidders it is very difficult to get the best results from your live auction.
 
6.  Make sure you have recorders in place to write down the winning bidder numbers and amounts (We recommend having 3 recorders, pre-designing the recorder sheets, and allowing us to meet with the recorders prior to the beginning of the event).

7.  Find out if any of the items can be sold twice and let us know.
 
8.  Inform us if any of the items have reserve/consignment amounts.
 
9.  We recommend utilizing professional bid spotters (ringmen) during your live auction (1 ringman per 100-150 guests is optimal).

10.  Allow your professional auctioneer to set starting bids and control the increments of the auction.

11.  Make sure that the house lights are brought up and spot lights down so that your auctioneer can see the bidders.

12.  Be careful with consignment items in your live auction.   

13.  Consult with us before choosing consignment items as they can many times take a lot of revenue out of your auction.  We can recommend good consignment companies that we trust.

Written by Mike Grigg, AARE, BAS of Elite Auctions & Fundraising Services

How to Raise More Money from Your Donation Web Pages

When it comes to raising money from your donation pages I think every bit of advice can help.  Here are some suggestions from the blog of John Haydon's: "19 Ways to Raise More Money From Your Donation Pages."

This should get your donation page on track:

1. Ditch the vintage PayPal button
2. Write a powerful headline
3. Use fewer words - Only focus on your story and your call-to-action
4. Limit paragraphs to 2-3 sentences
5. Use pictures
6. Use white space to direct the eye
7. Remove the sidebars and navigation menue
8. Reduce steps to donate
9. Only ask for what's required
10. Write copy in second person narrative - The word "you"
11. Pick on call to action
12. Repeat the CTA three times
13. Use bullet points and numbered items
14. Use big fonts
15. Use big buttons
16. Keep it above the fold
17. Make it mobile
18. Optimize your donation pages for search engines
19. Create a seamless donor experience across all marketing channels

Written by Tracy Karbus of Elite Auctions & Fundraising Services with information from John Haydon.

What's in it for them... and you?

When it comes to creating outreach materials it is so easy to become overwhelmed by the pressure of meeting and exceeding goals that one can forget about the receiver of the solicitation.  Here are a few donor focused tips to ponder as you take a swim in the ocean this summer:

1.  Ask yourself, if this was sent to me how would I respond?

2.  Get into their heads, their hearts, and what makes their world spin (Yes, you have to do homework on this one).

3.  Make sure you're offering a solution to the problem as the donor understands it, not as you do.

4.  Make sure this applies to all of your outreach, not just the written word.

5.  Now, go for a swim, climb a mountain, read a good book, or just unplug at least once this summer.  You need to re-energize your batteries too.

Written by Tracy Karbus Fundraising Consultant with Elite Auctions & Fundraising Services

Why use an auctioneer that is a member of the National Auctioneers Association?

After attending the 65th annual National Auctioneers Association Conference and Show in Louisville, Kentucky from July 8-12 the professionalism and integrity of the industry really showed itself.  While attending, auctioneers are discovering the latest concepts in their industry through classes, educational opportunities and speaking with auctioneers from all over the country.  We learn what is working and what is not, what is legal and what is not, and new ideas that only a select handful of auctioneers even know about.  Several auctioneers compete in a bid calling contest that put them in front of other professional auctioneers that critique their skills and ultimately make them better bid callers.  

Not only are auctioneers willing to share their stories of success, but auctioneers have designation courses that they can take to better their knowledge of each category of the auction business (i.e. fundraising, real estate, livestock, automobiles, etc.).  Auctioneers that go the extra mile and spend their hard-earned dollars to attend conference and show really care about offering the best services to their clients and have a passion to promote the auction industry as a whole.  

I sure would be careful in selecting an auctioneer to run my auction.  Members of the National Auctioneers Association (NAA) are integrity driven and really do care about the auction profession.  Remember, when selecting an auctioneer for your next fundraiser make sure they are a member of the NAA and are well versed in fundraising auctions.  "You wouldn't want a volunteer doctor conducting your surgery, so why would you have a volunteer auctioneer in charge of your fundraising auction where every dollar matters."

To discover more about Elite Auctions & Fundraising Services visit our website at EliteFundraisingAuctions.com.

Written by Mike Grigg, AARE, BAS of Elite Auctions & Fundraising Services