I want you to think about the term “Fundraising Auction”.

A “Fundraising Auction” is an event where items of value are gathered, and then sold in a competitive bidding situation, either in a Silent Auction format, or in a Live Auction format by a Live Auctioneer. And since typically the best items are saved for the Live Auction, arguably it is the Live Auction that should generate a significant portion of the proceeds in any Fundraising Auction.

So why do so many non-profit groups consider the Fundraising Auctioneer to be the least valuable component in a Fundraising Auction?

The Hosting Facility gets paid.
The Printer gets paid.
The Caterer gets paid.
The Liquor Store gets paid.
The DJ gets paid.
The Florist gets paid.
But the Auctioneer … the individual who is expected to raise the lion’s share of the event’s proceeds… is expected to work for Free. And is usually under-appreciated for the professional services he/she provides.

I’m not trying to underscore the value of the invitations & programs, food, booze, music, and decorations. All are important in their own way. But each of these are “Expenses”. It is the Auctioneer who is going to bring “Revenue”… and thus, the “Profits”… into any event. Which is the ultimate objective of any Fundraising Auction.

Here is a real-life example of how under-appreciated the Auctioneer can be. In two comparable events we worked last year, during the dinner portion of the event one non-profit group sat the Auctioneer (me) at a table with the DJ, the Interns, the Volunteer Staff, and other event “Help”. The 2nd non-profit group sat the Auctioneer (me) directly next to the CEO of their organization, where we chatted about how important the pending revenue would be to their organization. Which group do you think valued the services of the Fundraising Auctioneer more?

Don’t ever under-estimate the value that a professional Fundraising Auctioneer can bring to your event. The Auctioneer adds value as a pre-event consultant. And the Auctioneer can change an event from a moderate to a huge success.

A Case Study Once I was scheduled to call an Auction for a major local non-profit group. They represented a very good cause and they had a strong and dedicated following. Their event was sold out, quality Live & Silent Auction items had been solicited, and the Special Pledge Appeal had been choreographed and was ready to go. The facility was first class, the appropriate caterer was booked, and the food was ready to cook.

But quite unexpectedly, some unseasonably inclement weather forced the event’s cancellation. Despite all of the committee’s hard work, cancelling the event was the proper decision considering the circumstances.

So the Event Committee scrambled to re-schedule the event for the following weekend.

They confirmed with the Hosting Facility.
They confirmed with the Caterer.
They confirmed with the Liquor Store.
They confirmed with the DJ.
They confirmed with the Florist.
Since they already had the Mailing List of those scheduled to attend, no new invitations had to be printed as all were contacted by email or telephone. So with everything in place, the group went ahead and re-scheduled the event for the following weekend.

But guess who they failed to confirm? You got it… the Professional Auctioneer. They thought so little of the Auctioneer’s contribution that they “assumed” that the Auctioneer would be available and at their beck and call.

But the Auctioneer already had another Fundraising Auction booked for that date with another non-profit group. It was only hour away from the re-scheduled event, and things could have been easily worked out. All Group #1 had to do was start their event one hour earlier, or one hour later, than the Group #2, and the Auctioneer could have helped both groups on the same day.

But because Group #1 failed to anticipate a possible Auctioneer conflict, because they failed to confirm with the Auctioneer before re-scheduling their event, their preferred Auctioneer had to bow out and they had to scramble to locate substitute “Volunteer” Auctioneer only days before their event.

And it cost them.

Learning Points

The Live Auction is usually where the profits are made at any Fundraising Auction.
A Professional Fundraising Auctioneer can be vital to the success of any Fundraising Auction.
The better Fundraising Auctioneers usually get booked quickly.
You need to recognize the important contributions that a good Auctioneer can make to your event.
Michael Ivankovich is a Bucks County Fundraising Auctioneer based in Doylestown PA, and serves the Great Philadelphia PA area. He has been a professionally licensed and bonded Auctioneer in Pennsylvania for nearly 20 years, has been named Pennsylvania’s Auctioneer of the Year, and has considerable experience in conducting Fundraising Auctions. Michael loves helping groups raise needed funds for good causes and one of his specialties is the “Special Pledge Appeal” or “Fund-A-Cause Appeal” which usually enables clients to double their revenue in a single evening.

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What is the single most useful tool that a person can use to have the best home based business? The answer is KNOWLEDGE! What sets Robert Kiyosaki, Donald Trump, Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs or Bill Gates apart from everyone else? KNOWLEDGE! Am I sounding like the Wizard of Oz right now? Ok… it was Courage but you get the idea…Do you think that any of these people just fell out of bed one day and said “I’m going to invent a computer today” or “I’m going to invest a bunch of money in stuff that I don’t know anything about and make a killing because I am lucky”? These people are exceptional because they have the drive, determination and knowledge to take the best home based business ideas and turn them into empires.I know that a lot of people are hurting right now and more people than ever are looking for the best home based business idea so that they can feed their families, build a life and find some security somewhere in there. The truth is that you have it within you but you need to find the knowledge first.Do you know what? All the elements are in place for you to be exceptional and to find the best home based business idea and run with it. What are the elements? It starts with drive. If you are searching on the internet for the best home based business right now, you have the drive. What is driving you is where some of the best ideas ever come from… necessity.The next element is determination. This is a tough one for most people right now because they think they are determined but really don’t have a clue what that means. For instance, if you were exposed to the very best home based business in the world RIGHT NOW would you know it? Would you cast it aside thinking there was a better idea out there waiting to be found? The problem with searching for the best home based business is that you just might find it and then you won’t know it when you do. You have to be determined to find what you are looking for and you MUST be open to new ideas and then ACT in order to succeed! The men that I mentioned earlier are ALWAYS OPEN to new ideas and constantly determined to find them. The difference between them and most other people is that they take action when they find that best home based business.Finally, there is knowledge. Knowledge is the single most important part of finding the best home based business. In order to be successful, any good business person has to become an expert at their craft. They accomplish this by doing research, studying and training to make sure that they have more knowledge than their competition.My advice is to be open, determined, driven and especially knowledgeable so that you can recognize, find and act upon the best home based business for you and live a better life.For more info, visit: http://kellynorris.com/articles/the-wizard-was-right-knowledge-is-the-best-home-based-business/