Last week I presented at Gail Perry’s (of Fired Up Fundraising) events course.
My topic was “Latest Fundraising Auction Success Trends: What in-the-know Auction Planners are Buzzing About Now.”
I commented on 10 trends in the fundraising auction industry, providing stories, context, and additional resources so participants could do a deeper dive on subjects of interest to them.
Though I’m not going to provide commentary and resources in this blog post (you had to be in the course to get those), I thought you might be curious to see what I discussed.
As you review the list, it’s important to realize that an old idea in your part of the world might be a new trendy idea to someone living elsewhere.
For instance, consider the activity of a Dessert Dash.
Dessert Dashes have been run on the West Coast for years but never been popular on the East coast. In fact, it took 12 years before I ran my first Dessert Dash in Chicago last fall and in Washington, D.C. this spring! To those nonprofits, the Dash was new. But out West, that activity wouldn’t be a trend.
If you’d like me to present this topic or portions of it at your next conference, philanthropy day, or volunteer showcase, let’s talk.
I’ll be addressing some of these during upcoming presentations at these popular AFP conferences:
- Planet Philanthropy in Fort Lauderdale, FL on June 19, 2018
- The Bridge Conference in Washington, D.C. on August 1, 2018.
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10 Latest Auction Success Trends
1. Moving the auction to a day other than Friday or Saturday
2. Trying different formats instead of the traditional sit-down dinner auction
3. Greater sophistication in sponsorships and approach
4. Altering a traditional layout or venue to meet specific goals (refresh an event, focus the audience, generate energy, etc.)
5. Changes to Paddle Raisers / Fund a Needs to create more levity and interaction
6. Swapping out traditional auction items
7. A continued shrinking of silent auctions
8. Using a professional fundraising auctioneer for your auction and paddle raiser
9. Investing in the most appropriate technology for your event style
10. Techniques to make every guest feel like a VIP
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Auctions are constantly evolving — or should be.
If you’re in a competitive fundraising area where all nonprofits seem to be running events, being ahead of the curve with a trendy auction is powerful.
If you need an event re-boot, let’s chat.
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