Introduction
If you’re thinking about fundraising through an auction, you’ve come to the right place. Mast Auctioneers has helped hundreds of organizations raise millions of dollars for their causes. And yet, some nonprofits think that volunteer-run auctions are the only way to raise money for charity. We’re here to tell you why having an expert auctioneer at your event will help boost the total dollars raised for your charity!

Fundraising auctions with professional consultants and auctioneers raise more money than auctions run by volunteers.

The most important factor in determining the success of a fundraising auction is how well you price your items. If you overprice your items and sell them for less than they’re worth, your organization won’t get as much money for them and fewer people will want to attend the event. On the other hand, if you underprice an item or sell it at its true value, then people will be happy with their purchases but not so happy that they will buy anything else!

This is where an experienced auction consultant comes into play. We can help you price each item so that you get the best possible return on investment while also attracting a crowd of buyers who have money to spend and are interested in bidding on new items.

In addition to pricing expertise, hiring a professional auctioneer also can help increase attendance rates because attendees know the auction will run smoothly and be enjoyable. Professional auctioneers are there to assure everything runs smoothly and efficiently without sacrificing quality (or customer service).

Work with your auctioneer to market your event effectively.
Marketing is not just about advertising. It’s about building a buzz, creating energy, and making the event memorable!

The team at Mast Auctioneers are experts in marketing. We know how to generate excitement for an event, so we can help you market your nonprofit auction with that same enthusiasm. When it comes to marketing, auctioneers have what it takes to make your auction a huge success: storytelling, enthusiasm, and expertise!

Make sure your auctioneer is an expert in nonprofit events.
If you’re thinking about hiring an auctioneer for your nonprofit event, you should make sure that they have experience in this area. Auctions can be tricky business, and it’s important to know how things will go down before the event starts.

Make sure that your auctioneer knows all of the rules of the game. They need to be familiar with what constitutes a bid (more than just saying “I bid $10!”), as well as how much time is left on each item up for bidding (and what happens if someone bids after time expires). Also remember that if someone bids out of turn or makes any other mistake during the bidding process, it may not count towards their final bid amount.

Conclusion
Professional auctioneers know how to interact with an audience and create excitement. They have the perfect combination of enthusiasm expertise that will help you raise more money for YOUR charity or nonprofit organization. So when it comes time to raise funds for your organization, remember this simple rule: don’t try and do it yourself! Contact us instead!

Hosting a big charity auction is an exciting event! You may be ahead of the game when it comes to planning your location, the exciting theme, and various ideas for big-auction items to raise the most money possible. But how do you use those hot items to draw people to your event? The biggest secret to having a successful charity auction is to have exciting items and secure those items early for donors to think about and build anticipation for your event through marketing strategies. 

What do the People Want?!

Before you start collecting your big-ticket items, you will want to contact big donors and see what packages they would be the most inclined to bid on. You could prompt them by asking what travel packages they would be interested in and what they would be willing to bid on. Another option is to send out a survey of what items they are interested in. If you are lucky, this could even give you a commitment to purchase before your event. 

Make it Exciting

While people love gift baskets and collectibles, the experiences are where you will make your money. These activities are priceless and will bring a lot of attention to your charity auction. You can advertise sporting events, day trips, vacations, etc. Use flyers, social media posts, and email campaigns to show these once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. This will build momentum and draw more of a crowd to your auction. 

Advertise Your Auction Items

A MUST in charity auctions is giving sneak peeks. This will help donors to start thinking ahead of time about your items and why they need to be in attendance. This will also help them to mentally prepare to bid on larger amounts. Donors are more likely to spend more money if they have had time to budget and think it over. Someone who is put on the spot the day of may feel differently about spending thousands of dollars on the big-ticket items. By sending out sneak peeks through various marketing strategies, you are sure to put a thought in the back of your donor’s mind that will build excitement up until it is auction day. 

Sell an Experience 

Travel packages are guaranteed to create some interest. Donors may even get competitive to win the prize for themselves or their families. Most people who fit the profile of high net-value donors have a budget specifically for leisure travel. Wealthy 50+-year-olds are going to bring the cash to purchase these types of Experiences because they have the time and money set aside to do so. Bidding on a travel experience that they were already planning to take and giving that money to a good cause is going to be a win-win for them. Another way to make a couple extra thousand for your nonprofit is to sell the experience multiple times. You can conduct normal bidding, but then sell to the top two or three bidders.