Today more and more organizations from local schools and churches to national nonprofits are utilizing auctions to raise needed funds. By planning ahead, you can accurately determine how much you’ll need to raise through auction revenue to reach your goal. I can help you plan your event to get most out of the available time.
Here are some valuable tips to help ensure a successful event:

Up to start 11-12 months ahead, interview auctioneers early and get a contract signed! Ohio law requires you contract with a licensed auctioneer to call your live auction.

Secure a venue, recruit volunteers, procure items, and organize and publicize a unique event. An auctioneer must consign all items that are not donated!

Secure a venue, recruit volunteers, procure items, and organize and publicize a unique event. An auctioneer must consign all items that are not donated!

Before starting, outline auction goals and estimate all preparation and associated costs.

Pick a venue where your guests will feel comfortable, and determine what entertainment, decorations, theme and food will help create a good environment.

While many things can be donated, there will still be hard cost involved

Utilize ticket sales and sponsorships to cover these costs

Establish a committee of dedicated volunteers divided into areas of responsibility including procurement, silent auction, live auction, decorations/set up, entertainment, invitations, volunteer coordinator, publicity, registration, check out, item pick up, and clean up.

Be upfront with your time commitment to staff and volunteers, plan for one volunteer for about every 10 guests.

Develop a timeline outlining key activities, deadlines, and who’s responsible.

Seek attention grabbing items, consider budget, interest, uniqueness

Send a “Save the Date” card six months before your event, and invitations six to eight weeks in advance. Target vehicles that reach your key audience, whether it’s a school flyer, local newspaper or wine trade publication.

your volunteers and staff for their hard work and dedication. And thank each attendee and donor

Host a post-event meeting recapping what went well and what can be improved for next year

Benefits auctions has many rewards and risk. Don’t take on this decision too lightly. Everyone gets excited about an auction, what can seem simple can turn to nightmare quickly.

Preparation and planning are key to any event. A bad event can loose patrons, insult gift givers and volunteers if profits are not realized. If you don’t have a good body of support behind it, don’t do it.

Considerations:

  To have an auction you need people to buy and items to sell. They go hand in hand, but you need the right people and the right items to make it work.

People?

  You need at least two bidders for each item. You will your items to appeal to the masses, to get more bidders to bid on item, driving up the price. The critical mass seems to be around 225-450 for optimum yield. Each person can know they make a difference in this range rather than being lost in a crowd.

You need your board and committees to make a commit to get the right people there, personal invitations might include the question, what kind of items would you be interested in purchasing at the auction this year? Know your audience.  Know their purchasing power, what they can afford.

Budget:

The event expenses should be covered by admission tickets, so all auction items are donations for profit.

It is reasonable to plan to get 50% of value of item at auction. So if you need to make $10,000 you need to solicit $20,000 worth of items to sell. This should be the minimum amount to be raised in a live event.

You should start by determining how much money you need to earn and work back into budget. Members will not be happy to find you ask for $100,000 just to set $50,000 in the bank.

Determine the amount of money being raised by admission sales – expenses to get estimate raised from event sales, take this amount away from the amount need to get the amount need from auction sales.  Divide this amount by number of committee members and board to come up with amount of goods or services expect to be raised by each member.

Location

Pick a location that is convient to mailing list, a place people know they can go and have fun!  Make sure there is room for guest, food, entertainment and auction items.