When you are throwing an annual gala fundraiser for a non-profit, it’s important that the organization’s mission stays front and center. People need to know who you are, what you do, and what part their support plays in the big picture. But you still want your event to be fun so that people remember they […]

How you start the evening will have a direct effect on the rest of the night.  Consider that your guests have just been herded into the ballroom even though they were having a great time socializing with friends in the reception/silent auction area.  They arrive at their tables and lo and behold there’s a new […]

The most valuable live auction lots in a fundraising auction are the unique, exclusive, impossible to find elsewhere packages that make a crowd bid with wild abandon. So far this year I have sold over 1,000 lots at fundraisers across the country, and these are the 10 charity auction lots that stand out strongest in […]

It may seem obvious that you should set goals for your fundraising auction, but some organizations have trouble determining appropriate goals based on their audience and the number of lots. I once worked with an organization holding an inaugural gala. I was brought into the process just two weeks prior to the event and focused […]

One of the most common questions I get asked when working with auction committees is what items should be included to raise maximum funds for the organization. The answer? It depends on your audience. A luxury golf package may be worth thousands of dollars, but it will only sell well in your auction if you […]

For those of you not familiar with table auctions, it’s a very popular revenue enhancer at many events.  The way it works is, you place an inexpensive centerpiece  at each table then mark a chair or place setting to decide who the “auctioneer” is and then conduct a mini-auction at each table to bid on […]

Some of our national clients who have offices in major cities across the country often have regional Gala’s with live auctions at each one. Each event has it’s own local connections and donors who offer wonderful access lots for the auction, but after offering them year after year the luster has worn off and the […]

Fund-A-Need, Raise the Paddle, Cash Call, Adopt a Family are all names for the same process of simply asking the attendees for cash during a fund-raising auction. Recently one of our clients credited us here at Reynolds & Buckley with inventing this process.  I wish I could take the credit!  Rather I absconded with the […]

A successful fund a need is a magic moment. The auction stops, the crowd quiets, an emotional story is told, and then BOOM! The whole crowd is swept up in an avalanche of pledges that brings everyone together in support of a common cause. It is the emotional cornerstone of the evening; it is inspiring, […]

At a recent planning meeting where we were discussing repeat auction lots for an event, it came out that one of the donors felt seriously slighted because their lot was never redeemed. A buyer had paid top-dollar for the lot at the auction, and had yet to cash it in with the expiration date looming. […]