In case your group or nonprofit has ever hosted a silent public sale earlier than, you know the way partaking and profitable these fundraising occasions will be. Nonetheless, you doubtless additionally know that the public sale planning course of is very concerned, which can appear daunting regardless of the potential for an enormous payoff to your mission.
Thankfully, you may make it a lot simpler to set up a profitable silent public sale by breaking the method down into smaller steps. On this information, we’ll overview 5 of probably the most vital actions it’s good to take within the months main as much as your group’s public sale— let’s dive proper in!
1. Solidify Your Occasion’s Logistics
By selecting to host a silent public sale quite than a reside public sale, you’ve already made one key logistical choice about your nonprofit’s occasion. Another concerns you’ll must take note of up entrance embody:
The occasion’s date and time.
Whether or not you’ll host the public sale in individual, nearly, or in a hybrid format.
What occasion venue you’ll use in case your public sale is in-person or hybrid.
Which varieties of fundraising software program you’ll want, akin to registration instruments, cell bidding options, and live-streaming platforms for hybrid or digital occasions.
Occasion personnel wants, together with employees and volunteer roles.
Whether or not your public sale can be a standalone fundraiser, embody different revenue-enhancing actions like raffles or text-to-give, or be paired with one other fundraising occasion akin to a gala or golf match.
Your group’s funds for upfront occasion prices.
Your public sale’s fundraising and supporter engagement targets.
As you finalize all of those logistical particulars, ensure that your complete occasion workforce is on the identical web page in regards to the plan and their obligations inside it. Moreover, seek the advice of different stakeholders, akin to your nonprofit’s board (who might want to log out in your occasion plans and funds) and management (who could have strategic enter in your public sale’s targets and timing).
2. Procure Public sale Objects
Apart from logistical planning, merchandise procurement is probably the most concerned side of planning a silent public sale. It’s vital to steadiness securing inventive, high-value objects that enchantment to your target market with preserving upfront prices as little as attainable so you’ll be able to unfold out your occasion funds to cowl your different wants.
That can assist you begin brainstorming your prize checklist, Winspire outlines the highest 10 varieties of charity public sale objects as follows:
Trip packages that embody quite a lot of actions, lodging, and transportation preparations.
Present baskets constructed round totally different themes and packaged in an aesthetically pleasing manner.
Occasion tickets for skilled sports activities, concert events, musicals, or different performances.
Celeb memorabilia signed by well-known athletes, musicians, or actors.
Paintings and antiques, particularly objects made by native artists.
Certificates for providers starting from spa experiences to dry cleansing.
Household-friendly actions akin to amusement park passes or kids’s museum memberships.
Nice meals and drinks, which can embody bodily items (like a espresso sampler) or experiences (like a cooking class).
Common know-how akin to new smartphones, health trackers, or online game methods.
Excessive-end items like designer purses or small, high-quality kitchen home equipment (blenders, air fryers, and many others.).
Of those public sale merchandise concepts, trip packages are sometimes probably the most difficult to obtain, however there are consignment public sale merchandise suppliers your nonprofit can work with to seek out bucket-list journeys that align along with your funds. To safe the remainder of your prizes, search for nonprofit reductions and solicit in-kind contributions from people and companies.
3. Safe Company Sponsorships
Company sponsorships may also help offset your group’s occasion prices in lots of areas, from merchandise procurement to venue charges. These partnerships are extra widespread than you may suppose—companies of all sizes are sometimes keen to help native nonprofits’ fundraising efforts to present again to their communities. In return, your nonprofit will normally present sponsors with free publicity to assist them entice new prospects and enhance their reputations as socially accountable corporations.
When approaching native companies about sponsorship alternatives, flexibility is important. Create a system of fiscal sponsorship ranges so your companions can select how a lot to present and perceive what co-marketing advantages they’ll obtain based mostly on their contribution. Moreover, supply a number of choices for in-kind sponsorships—whereas some enterprise homeowners will doubtless be pleased to donate public sale objects, others may want to supply a free occasion area or contribute different providers (for example, a restaurant may supply to cater your occasion without charge).
4. Market Your Public sale
As with a lot of your nonprofit’s initiatives, a multi-channel advertising method will broaden your attain and maximize participation in your silent public sale. Promote your occasion utilizing the next communication strategies:
Your group’s web site. Add your public sale to your on-line calendar and create an occasion touchdown web page to function the central info hub for members.
Electronic mail advertising. Along with sending devoted e-mail blasts about your public sale, embody blurbs about it in your month-to-month e-newsletter (in case your nonprofit has one).
Social media. Align your auction-related posts with every social media platform’s format—for instance, you possibly can use the Occasions function on Fb, design branded graphics for Instagram, and make a brief vertical video announcement for TikTok.
Print communications. Complement your digital advertising efforts by posting flyers round your neighborhood and mailing customized occasion invites to potential VIP company, akin to main donors and board members.
In your whole advertising supplies, embody a hyperlink or QR code to your on-line registration type for comfort. Additionally, embody images of your most respected public sale objects to get supporters enthusiastic about bidding on them.
5. Put together for Occasion Comply with-Up
When your silent public sale closes, you’ll must take a number of actions promptly, so begin fascinated by the way you’ll execute these actions earlier than you start. First, set up clear checkout procedures to make sure all prizes are paid for and go dwelling with the proper winners.
Then, arrange methods to gather knowledge in your occasion. NPOInfo recommends monitoring marketing campaign metrics like:
Occasion attendance, in addition to pre-registration numbers vs. day-of ticket purchases.
Income raised in whole, from several types of public sale objects, and thru totally different features of your occasion.
Moreover, plan the way you’ll present your appreciation for everybody who made your public sale attainable: members, volunteers, sponsors, and occasion employees. Promptly thanking these people makes them really feel valued—and, subsequently, extra prone to keep engaged along with your group. Create follow-up message templates earlier than your public sale so it’ll be simple to ship them inside 24 hours of the occasion’s finish.
By placing in effort and time beforehand, you’ll guarantee your group’s silent public sale runs easily and set your self as much as obtain your targets. Bear in mind to collaborate along with your employees, sponsors, and supporters all through the planning course of to create a memorable expertise for everybody concerned, and when it is time to discover a venue, browse EventUp for quite a lot of distinctive areas. Pleased fundraising!
