Since I started BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising, the very first thing that I saw that I knew was a problem
was that “Donations” truly don’t cut it.
Now if you know me, I am the charity fundraising “Dose of Reality”
guy. Most times, people don’t know how
to take it because we live in a very politically correct world. But reality is reality folks and here it is.
Many people in the charity
fundraising world, including those who are in the business of working with
charities, somehow believe that accepting consignment items in their auctions
are a bad idea. They are completely
wrong and honestly are not as educated about the “Myth vs. Reality.”
The reality of donated items
is this. Businesses are bombarded
constantly with charities asking for donated items. When they donate, they donate items they can
either afford to give away or items which are not moving in their stores. This is reality. So then charities take these items and put
them out on the auction block.
I have seen some awful things
happen and have heard some horror stories about
Donated items are NOT, and
again I don’t care who tells you otherwise, bringing very much in any Live or
Silent Auction. Stop for a minute, think
about the person or business who donated it…do you really think they don’t
care? Yes they certainly do because if
the items sell tragically cheap, what does that say about their business?
Remember, local people attend
your local event with items donated by local businesses. If your guests wanted that stuff, they would
go there and buy it themselves!!! This
is common sense. Gift Baskets – oh my
gosh, Gift Baskets. This is the “staple” in charity events. How many gift baskets did you give away to
your family and friends for Christmas? I
bet NONE.
Let’s talk about consignment
but before we do, I want to show you a VERY real life example of why it works
and a HUGE charity that only relies on items which are purchased for
events. That’s right, they do NOT rely
on donations.
Ducks Unlimited. Ducks Unlimited is the KING of charity
fundraising. They have over 1,500
chapters across the world and do at least 7,500 fundraising events each
year. Ducks Unlimited, along with
several other outdoor charities have it figured out. These charities are ALL in the outdoor sector
of non profits such as:
National Wild Turkey
Federation
Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
National Rifle Association
Delta Waterfowl
And several more….
They send out a catalog of
items to their chapters for which the chapters, staffed by volunteers, purchase
all of the items in the catalog. That’s
right I said “PURCHASE” not consigned like BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising
offers.
Now, with this in mind –
Ducks Unlimited’s net revenue (That means total profit) was
$194,000,000.00!!! You can’t argue with
that!!!
Folks – you need to change
your mind set about consigned items. Noone, not you, not your friends, not your
guests or your supporters want leftovers or junk. There are ways to reduce your costs so that
you make top dollar.
Not only can you get awesome
consigned items from us like autographed items but you can also get travel
packages from us at www.CharityTravelPackages.com.
Yes, you think that if you
get something donated, you keep 100% of the money…but 100% of what? 1/8th of what its worth? Seriously!!!
You can go to your local
providers and ask them if they would consider consigning items to you. They will be very happy to and most likely
donate items as well. They get to be marketed.
You can not argue with the
numbers. Your guests want great
items. Are you paying for the food? The Drinks?
The Venue? Are you paying for
anything else? Then why do you then rely
on free stuff to help you raise money?
Tell me why in the comments
below why you think this is a bad practice…..I want to hear it.
Contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com, we would love to
help you.
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