It’s no surprise that online auctions are so successful in schools because they have a built-in base of support. To fund these programs, get more parents involved, and attract new families, the school runs an annual fundraising auction. The chair of the auction committee, Cynthia Turner, was familiar with online auctions through other activities, and suggested adding an online component to the program. best items for silent auction allow event organizers to generate revenue prior to their event day.
It is straightforward to sell your products with the timer counting down on the auction. This fully hosted online auction software will have your products online in a single business day. ReadySetAuction can make several processes like guest management and donation tracking easy for your next online auction.
Look around and see if anyone or any group is prepared to donate open space for your nonprofit. Go one step further and ask the author to record a storytime session to gift to the highest bidder, so they have an exclusive personalized version only for them. Another way to include a book reading if an author can’t make it to the winner’s home is to have a virtual book reading.
Like any event, running a silent auction is a hefty undertaking. Here are some of the basics organizations should consider when planning and running a silent auction. Take into consideration major factors like the scale of your silent auction, how you will procure items, your budget, and your auction staff’s experience.
Remember that your auction items are one of the biggest factors in determining the success of your auction. The more creative you are in sourcing auction packages and the more valuable the auction attendees perceive these items, the more successful you’ll be in your fundraising efforts. That’s right, not all auction items have to be donated, and you are shortchanging your organization if you aren’t willing to consider purchasing items for bidding.
It also is very helpful to set a target amount of funds your PTA wants to raise by the end of the auction. Meal kit delivery services are something not everyone would sign up for themselves. If you want to garner attention at your next auction, consider a year-long subscription to a meal kit delivery service as an auction item. Sometimes after a long day at the office, you don’t want to get home and still prep and make dinner for your family. Additionally, you can get a few volunteers and coworkers to form a chore team, whose time can be auctioned for chore services during a set period.
However, tiered paid packages offer more advanced features and support for larger organizations. Using Bonfire, you can create high-quality apparel using your own design or by choosing from their library of thousands of free fonts and graphics. Create a unique design in record time and display a popular set of auction items at your event.
Online auctions have eliminated all the limitations of live auctions. Buyers now don’t need to spend their time and money to remain present at the location where the auction is being conducted. Similarly, sellers are not required to spend time and money to arrange space and seating arrangements for the bidders. Moreover, the audience that sellers can target in case of live auctions is quite limited compared to online auctions. Thus, live auctions have now transformed into online auctions with the help of technology.