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Charity Auction Ideas!
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Hi People! I am holding a Charity Ball In Lincoln In Nov for the SANDS charity who support people who have lost a baby during pregnacy or a few days after birth! I am trying to get some auction prizes together but am getting stuck!! I gave a letter to local businesses and got not a lot so need to look at wider companies!
Does anyone have any idea of any kind of companies I could get in touch with!!
It wll be so so helpful xx Thank you xxx
Does anyone have any idea of any kind of companies I could get in touch with!!
It wll be so so helpful xx Thank you xxx
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Comments
Firstly, good on you for organising the ball for such a great cause. As a fundraiser myself I know how hard it can be to find the time to dedicate to an event like a charity ball so SANDs are lucky to have you! :thumb:
For an auction, you need to think about finding some items which are “priceless”, ie, you can’t just buy them in a shop. Having a lot of small items is good if it means that people will have a lot to bid on and will be getting things cheaper than retail value, but people aren’t generally going to bid any higher on, say, an ipod than they could buy it for on the high street.
If you are looking for lots of small items, it’s best to start local as you’ve been doing. Instead of writing a letter and sending it out to hundreds of companies, why not try making a list of local restaurants, hairdressers, spas etc and going to talk to someone face to face, telling them what you’re up to and why you feel so passionately about the cause. It’s a lot harder to ignore someone who’s actually there than it is to throw away a letter! If you’re going to approach big companies, call up their head office and ask to speak to someone about your question. They probably receive a lot of letters every day so again, that personal contact is important. Tell everyone you approach that they will be thanked on the night, which will give them some nice publicity and show them as a charitable organisation! Having a quick browse on the internet, I found this thread. As the thread progresses further down the page, there are a lot of people posting contact details and saying they have prizes available! That may be worth a go and as it’s from a “mums” board, they will most likely be sympathetic to your cause.
For bigger items, depending on how much money your guests will be spending, it may be worth looking at services such as Our Price. They will provide one-off, signed memorabilia pieces which you can then auction on. These have the benefit of being unavailable elsewhere and will really leave the bidders feeling as though they’ve got something special but classic albums will range between £300 and £600, so it ain’t for everyone! The upside is, if an item doesn’t reach its minimum bidding price, they will simply take it back at no charge and if it does, every pound above that amount goes to the charity.
Do you know and celebs, or have any contacts who do? Does SANDs have any contacts? If so, try and get in touch with them and ask them to donate something. It doesn’t have to be big or expensive, just something signed, or an item of clothing, or even a doodle could fetch loads if there are some fans in the room! If the ball will be near a local football club, you could ask them to donate a signed shirt or photo.
Phew! :crazyeyes Sorry, have gone on a bit there but I hope some of it helps. Good luck with the rest of the organisation and let us know how it goes!
Considering the theme, companies like Mamas & Pappas, Nestle, Waitrose or Nivea might be interested in some branding. Have a think about what your audience are like and target specific companies
If you can get one big company to do something , it will make things much easier for getting more companies.