I spent the last two days with Hannes Combest, President of the National Auctioneers Association (NAA), at the ASAE Springtime Expo gala in Washington, D.C. The first night of the event, ASAE hosted an event targeting young professionals, which nowadays are also called Millennials because of their birth year. The reception reminded me of a trend I've seen with regards to fundraising auctions. Many of the galas I work have a population in the age range of 45+. Some galas skew much older. ... Read On >
Benefit Auctions Blog
Schedule the benefit auction BEFORE the headline entertainment
Are you planning on holding an auction fundraiser with headline entertainment? If so, pay heed to your scheduling. The order of events dramatically affects how much you raise in your benefit auction. Here's an example. For the past two days, I've been representing the National Auctioneers Association (NAA) at ASAE's Springtime Expo in Washington, D.C. (ASAE is the membership association for association staff members. NAA is a member of ASAE.) ASAE has decided to incorporate a benefit ... Read On >
Why are you having a benefit auction? (Be honest.)
Imagine the scenario ... You've agreed to chair the benefit auction for a charity in your hometown. The ball is rolling and in a few months, guests will all gather to your event. You've got lots of ideas, but might feel overwhelmed. You've heard that many benefit auctioneers are booked months in advance, so you've decided to call a few today to get an idea of their services. Stop. Don't pick up the phone until you're clear about one point. You'll save yourself and the benefit auctioneer a ... Read On >
Tips for including a modest amount of hotel sleeping rooms into your auction contract
When I worked as an event planner, I read event management magazines to keep abreast of remodeled hotels, unique venues, trends in meetings, and other tidbits. As an auctioneer reading those same publications, I like to keep an eye out for how my clients might use key information to help them in their planning. Among my clientele, hotels are among the most popular of auction venues. But for obvious reasons, hotels prefer to give deals to clients who book sleeping rooms as part of their ... Read On >
Mastermind in California for benefit auction business
Though I am a benefit auctioneer based in Virginia, I travel a lot. And I enjoy it! Six times in February and seven times in March I was on a plane or train headed off to work or visit clients. Most of that travel was along the East Coast, but this trip was out West ...to California! Earlier this year I was in Los Angeles for a related business conference, but this is a new group. This trip is part of a 12-month Mastermind program focused on using new media (the Internet) in a business ... Read On >