Recently, my team and
I met with a charity who is asking for our help. We are always humbled when we are asked so
meeting with them was our pleasure.
However, after speaking with them at length, I soon realized that trying
to get them to change their unsuccessful methods was going to be
difficult. In fact, one of the member
who we met with pulled me aside and said “Don’t even try getting them to
change, you’re fighting a losing battle.”
So the question remained, so how are we supposed to help them if they
refuse to change?
So in order to help
you, the reader of this Blog, here are some signs and symptoms that will help
you to determine if its time to see a Fundraising Doctor:
“Stuck in Rut”
Symptoms:
#1 – Are you willing
to change the place or venue where you are holding your event? The
#2 – Do you keep your
ticket price low thinking that it will attract more guests? Many believe this but in reality what happens
is, by lowering your ticket costs, your guests will be more than likely to
attend…eat, drink and leave without ever bidding on anything or donating in
anyway.
#3 – Are you still
utilizing old fundraising methods to raise money? Are you still doing 50/50 raffles, Wheels of
any type or still filling your Silent and Live Auction with donated items? If you are, you are using very old ways to
raise money which have been beat to death.
Of course people love these raffles and the reason is, everyone loves to
win money. Do you know how profitable
these raffles are? How much work does it
take to get the prizes and what is pay off?
Understand these raffles have been used for years.
#4 – Do you believe
that your charity should use only donated items in your fundraising event? Are you and your charity convinced the “Way
to go” is to only utilize donated items in your live and silent auction? Unfortunately, its fact that donated items
are only bringing 1/8 to 1/4 of their retail price in Silent & Live
Auctions across North America. The
reason is honest and simple but are you willing to listen and be open minded? The reason that donated items do so poorly is
for three (3) reasons: 1 – Your guests
are local people, attending a local event with items donated by local
businesses. If they wanted those items,
they would have gone and bought them themselves. 2 – Today, businesses are bombarded by
charities asking for donations. Each
charity believes that they are the only one asking, however, every single local
charity has asked the same business owner.
The business owner has to be concerned about keeping their lights
on. If they do donate, they donate
something they can afford to get rid of and that isn’t selling in their
stores. 3 – Many charities believe Gift
Cards and Gift Certificates are incredible auction items but ask yourself this…how
many times have you purchased a gift card for yourself at face value – OR – How
many Gift Baskets did you give away to your family or friends for the
holidays? The answer to both is
none. Understand this – EVERYONE is
looking for a deal. Yes they will
purchase your donations but at an extremely low cost. Rarely will any pass 50% of their retail
cost. Have you thought about how that
would negatively affect the donor if he or she found out their donation did so
poorly? Do you think they would donate
again?
#5 – What was the “Net”
or Profit from your last event? Do you
know what your event “Netted”? Now be
honest with yourself like so many who are suffering are – what was your “Net
Profit” which means how much after paying the bills did you walk away with, not
your “Gross”….your “Net”? How many
guests did you have at your event? Here
is how you can tell if your suffering – The “National Norm”, which is just the
beginning of successful fundraising, for successful fundraising is $100.00 a
head, net. So what that means is for
every guest who paid for a ticket, that person equals $100.00. So if you had 500 people, you should at the
very least had a “Net” of $50,000.00.
Did you? If you didn’t, oh boy,
you’re really sick.
#6 – Do you have an
unqualified or inexperienced person in charge of planning and hosting your
fundraiser? Do you have a volunteer or
someone on your staff who only plans one event for you a year? Are they proficient and know the current
fundraising trends? If your answer is
yes…well, your suffering.
If you answered yes
to any of these questions, seek the advice of your fundraising Doctor soon,
call today and schedule an appointment.
If you answered yes to two (2) or more, you are suffering from “Acute
Fundraising Delirium.” Good news though,
there is a cure…it may be painful, but you will definitely be cured.
How to Fight and Cure
“Acute Fundraising Delirium.”
First, you should
understand you are not alone so don’t be ashamed. Many charities are suffering and need help
but to prideful to ask. So here is the
way to cure what ails you. But before I
give you the cure, here are some points to understand so that you won’t come
down with it again.
The Venue you host
your event in is vitally, VITALLY important to your ultimate success. People love to go to a very nice place with great
food. Affluent or Wealthy people like to
be around others who have the same financial status…it’s a known fact. About your ticket, your ticket price should
be high enough to “Ward Off” the grazers, meaning people who are coming just to
eat and drink and leave. The reality is “a
cheap ticket gets you cheap people.”
Your ticket price should be high enough in order to be a “Financial
Hurdle.” If they can pay the ticket
price which you are profiting from, then they can also afford to donate or bid
on items. In your fundraising event, you
should be using four (4) fundraising platforms – Live Auction, Silent Auction,
Raffles and a direct ask for financial donations. With raffles, donated items are perfect for
this platform and will bring 10 times their retail because everyone likes to
win. Do not do raffles where you are
EVER giving money away as a prize or raffles that take too long to play. Your donations are perfect for raffles but
you should acquire consignment items for your Live & Silent Auction because
people like exciting things such as Travel Packages, Experiences, Hard to Find
Memorabilia etc. These are incredibly
profitable if used correctly and the reserve or cost is increase at least 20%
to ensure you profit 100% of the time.
Your charities “Net” should equal the national successful fundraising
norm of $100.00 a head “Net” proceeds.
There are methods to ensure you match this on your next event. If you have a volunteer or inexperienced
person in charge of your fundraiser, don’t fall for the “Oh I’ve held several
events and I’ve helped with many” plea – because you don’t know if the events
they were a part of were successful. You
need to find someone who is an expert fundraiser. There is an old saying that goes like this “If
you think hiring a professional is expensive, wait till you hire an amateur.” Oh so very true…
The CURE
BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is North America’s #1 charity fundraising firm in a “One Stop Shop”
convenient setting. BW can help you with
everything. BW is the fundraisers for
New York Cities and Washington D.C.’s elite as well as professional athletes
and celebrities while also helping the White House, the Armed Forces charities,
the NFL / MLB & NHL with their fundraising along with 1,000’s of charities
each year. We pride ourselves at normally
raising 1.5 to 3.5 times the national norm while also helping our clients host
impressive, professional events. BW also
proudly has the largest inventory of consignment items such as Charity Travel Packages, 100% authentic autographed items, Décor and beautiful jewelry which
is all provided at absolutely “NO RISK” to charities across North America. BW works with charities large and small while
specializing in helping small groups grow their fundraising to incredibly
successful levels. If you are suffering
and need a doctor, there is only one Doctor to call to cure your problems, BW
Unlimited Charity Fundraising at 443.206.6121 or go to our website at www.BWUnlimited.com.
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