The Benefits of Hiring an Auction Consultant: Strategic Guidance and Support to Build Successful Fundraising Events
For decades, nonprofits of all shapes and sizes have relied upon special event fundraising – auction fundraising in particular – to cover a substantial portion of their operating budgets. To be sure, there are more straightforward ways to raise money, some of which are marginally cheaper per dollar raised. But unlike an annual fund, a major gifts effort, or a capital campaign, auction fundraising provides donors with a way to give that is at once philanthropic, social, and collaborative. An auction is fun. Or is it?!
From the perspective of nonprofit staff and volunteers, the word “auction” elicits a wide range of reactions – a sigh, a shaken head, sometimes all-out panic. We hear frequently from organizations whose auctions, by force of inertia alone, have become nearly unmanageable; the time, work, and stress associated with them eclipsing the actual or perceived benefits of holding them at all. Spend a couple of hours with any nonprofit staff person, board member, or volunteer who has been around the block a few times and you’ll undoubtedly hear an Auction Horror Story.
This is where an auction consultant comes in. They will help relieve the tension between the undeniable benefits of auction fundraising and the reality that too often, an auction takes up more organizational oxygen than it should. An auction consultant will show that while auctions are complex organisms with many moving parts, they can also be accomplished systematically rather than haphazardly, can have well-defined and achievable goals, and can avoid becoming so complex as to be overwhelming.
Auction experts like our C2Auctions consultants offer personalized service, dedicated to your and your organization's success, and will provide strategic guidance, assurance, and professional support as you manage various stakeholders and work to achieve your fundraising goals. Key ideas include:
● Building a Strategic Budget: You will receive guidance on how to build a strategic auction budget: Assessing what net auction revenue is needed to help your organization accomplish its strategic goals and what gross revenue is reasonable based on the capacity of your audience.
● Sponsorships and Ticketing Packages: A carefully considered approach to sponsorship and ticketing can help your organization maximize these powerful revenue streams.
● Silent and Live Auction Strategies: Building an auction is both an art and a science. Your approach should be driven by data, but also by your knowledge of your organization’s constituency.
● Planning of Fund-A-Need: While Fund-A-Need efforts often appear to be spontaneous, the most successful ones are actually anything but. Let your auction consultant share best practices, strategies, and pro-tips to make your Fund-A-Need more successful as well as less anxiety-causing and stressful to you and your organization.
Contact us at C2Auctions to find out more about how we can help you make your next fundraising event successful in a joyful, efficient, community-enhancing, and institutionally-sustainable way!