What is "Broken Spoke Fundraising"? - George Wooden, BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising

 

Years and years ago, as our country grew, people began settling in various locations across this great country of ours.  As these locations grew, so did the need to build towns, cities and states.  Construction was a booming business and as time went by, new innovative building techniques arose.  Small houses changed to sky scrapers, outhouses changed to indoor plumbing and it goes on and on. 

Today, technology changes daily and what was innovative today, tomorrow will be outdated.  Building techniques and requirements now demand precision and laws around it have turned into Rules and Regulations in regard to Building Codes and permits. 

When pagers were the new hot item with a car phone in a bag for your car, has now turned into everyone carrying a computer the size of a small card in their pockets – everything worldwide is right at our fingertips.

However, the same is not true in the charity fundraising world.  Many charities or non-profits have not kept up with the times.  They still operate decades behind with outdated information and the reason is, there is no set of rules other than what the IRS publishes.  There is no source of information that charities can go to in order to learn what’s new and innovative.  There isn’t a Rule Book or Standard Charity Code.  There is nothing for a charity to go to other than the tried and true “Error of our ways” or studying and learning from our mistakes.

There is a common term which I use quite frequently called “Broken Spoke” fundraising.  What does this mean?  Well, it’s when a charity copies or duplicates another charity’s fundraising event without knowing if the fundraiser they are copying was successful or not.  They then repeat it but miss something the other charity did (a broken spoke) and their event fails or the result is even less successful.  But yet, they will not go back and study it to see where they went wrong. 

In my area of expertise, Fundraising, successful methods change day to day.  Plus doing it day in and day out, while speaking to my counterparts across the country teaches me and our staff on what’s “Hot” and what’s not.  Making a thousand mistakes but studying them and adopting new tactics and techniques offers our clients the ability to be at the forefront of a successful fundraising wave.

As an example, I recently met with a charity who has a large group of supporters is planning a fundraiser in the coming months.  When I asked them what their “Net Profits” were, it was dismally low – nearly not worth even doing the fundraiser.  Being inquisitive, I asked them what they were doing at the event to raise money.  That is when they described 1970’s fundraising methods which are so outdated and ran into the ground plus it costs them 50% of the funds they are raising.  Why you ask?  Because they simply do not know any better.

In reality, charities are made up of people.  These people are not fundraisers and live a full-time life, have a full-time job, with full time commitments and a full-time family – however at least once a year, they are asked to fundraise.  When fundraising is simply the single most important aspect a charity must do outside of their missions, they appoint someone with no fundraising background to hold the single most important aspect function of their charity.

The other issue which is prominent still, which is one of those “Old Rules” or a charity myth that can easily be dispelled is that everything must be “FREE.”  The evidence of success is all around them with large scale, multimillion-dollar fundraisers happening frequently.  However, they refuse to follow those successful tactics.

Along with the “Free” approach, many charities believe that being 100% volunteer is a badge of honor.  However, what they fail to understand is that in order to grow, you must have a full-time staff.  With a full-time staff who are salaried, you are able to attract the best and brightest who can take your charity to new heights. 

What’s the moral to this story – you must change with the times.  You must follow techniques and tactics that other much more successful charities are doing.  You must know what “Success” is and acknowledge what “failure” also is.  You must be your very worst critic in order to grow.  Learn from your mistakes, talk to professionals who know the correct paths you need to follow.

You must learn from success; you must learn from your mistakes and your must want to get better while attracting the people who can help you make that happen. 

If not, you know the old saying “The definition of insanity is repeating the same thing over and over but expecting different results.”  It’s simply up to you.

If you would like more information or if I can help you in any way, please contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com or call me directly at 443.206.6121.  We would love to help you.

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"Broken Spoke Fundraising" - Unknowingly repeating unsuccessful fundraising tactics

I’m sure you’re familiar with the old saying “Repeating the same thing over and over expecting different results.”  Well I’m going to introduce you to a whole new phrase which applies to the charity world – “Broken Spoke Fundraising.”  These two sayings have a lot in common because they address the same issue which many charities like yours are experiencing.  But you don’t know why you are having problems.

So imagine this – you and a friend or loved one are a part of a charity who has a fundraising event coming up in a several months.  You are invited to go to another charity fundraiser which a local charity is hosting.  You have little experience hosting a fundraiser since you only do one or two a year.  But while you’re there at the fundraiser you were invited to, you take mental notes on what they are doing to raise money.  You think to yourself “We will do these things at our event.”  Now, what they are doing seems like a great idea and also appears successful – so why not do them at yours right?

The problem is this – you honestly do not know if what they are doing or did do was successful.  What appears popular could have not been a successful way of fundraising.  As a real life example, charities all across the country have been doing a raffle called a “50/50” for decades.  But…have you taken time to think about it?  Let’s say you sell $5,000.00 worth of raffle tickets.  The prize which you give away is $2,500.00.  Why on earth would you give away ½ of your earnings?  Charities hope and pray that the winner donates the money back but after a three (3) year study by our company BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising, 83% of the time the winner does not donate the money.  As a professional fundraising event planner, those odds are bad and we do not ever do raffles or games which give money away as a prize because we are there to raise money, not give it away.

So, you start planning your fundraising event and utilize the ideas you saw at the local fundraiser you attended.  You don’t know if what they did was actually successful even though it appeared like it was.  But while planning it, you didn’t take the time to go and speak to the charity and get the full run down of how the raffle works and what you need to run it – so you miss something when repeating it.  In reality, the fundraising tactic they used wasn’t successful and when you do yours, you missed something making it that much more or less successful.  You now broke a spoke in the wheel which already had broken spokes to begin with.

Then you go through your event and wonder why what you did, did not produce what you thought it would but you decide to move on until next year.  You figure “Well, we will try it again and it will be different” – it’s not.  You begin to repeat the same things over and over and over again, hoping and praying or expecting different results – which never comes.  In fact, you spend days, weeks and months out of your full time life only to not be as successful as you want to be. 

This is what I call “Broken Spoke Fundraising.”  You truly can’t copy what others are doing for many reasons:  #1 – You don’t know if what they were doing was successful and #2 – You don’t realize that people are tired of the same old things. 

Another saying which holds very true is “Everything has a shelf life.”  What this means is…if you don’t change things or evolve, what you are doing will eventually die out and fade away.  In today’s society, people tend to get bored quick.  When you’re planning your next fundraising event, think of innovative fundraising platforms which are different and exciting.  Get away from the old 50/50’s and wheel’s…and do something that people will have fun with. 

More importantly, don’t copy what another charity is doing if you don’t have all the facts – which seldom do.  Most charities just accept what money came in and move forward.  Be smart and plan to be successful.

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising would love to help you plan your next fundraising event and provide you and your guests with new, innovative, exciting fundraising tactics which not only your guests would love but will be extremely successful.  Contact us today at www.BWUnlimited.com. 

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American Charity Fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  BW can help you plan, manage and host an incredibly successful event which has a diverse amount of fundraising platforms which your guests will love time and time again creating a unique fundraising event that they will come back to each year but will also tell their friends.  Let BW help you by contacting us at www.BWUnlimited.com.

Why events fail to be successful the 2nd year - Sophomoric Syndrome

There is syndrome, believe it or not, in the charity fundraising world that is symptomatic with groups or volunteers who are successful one year but not the next and here is the reason or cause why it happens -  It’s called the “Sophomoric Syndrome.”  

Wikipedia defines the “Sophomoric Syndrome” as when ones effort fails to live up to the standards of the first effort.

Before we go any farther, ask yourself these questions to determine if you are suffering from the "Sophomoric Syndrome"?

#1 - Are you putting forth the same effort as you did last year?

#2 - Are you posting your event and telling everyone how incredible your event is going to be on the Social Networks such as Facebook?

#3 - Are you talking to all of your friends, the same ones you did last year?

#4 - Are you going out looking for donated items and sponsors as you did last year?

#5 - Are you attending Committee or Team meetings like you did last year?

If you answer NO to any of the above questions, than you need to see a Fundraising Doctor immediately.

A very close friend and former Regional Director of an outdoor charity, Scott Berg, told me about it years ago.  Scott has worked with 100's of volunteer committees and has seen it all while having a wealth of knowledge surrounding committees and fundraising.  What happens is simply this – Let’s say for practical purposes that a charity or group holds an event one year and they work their butts off on it.  Their event is successful (moderately or highly successful) and they sit back proud of their accomplishment.  However, the following year, they have to start over again.

Because they were successful the previous year, they believe that their previous success will allow them to coast with their next event.  They believe tickets will be sold much easier, financial donations will be much easier and getting donations will be much easier to obtain.  Furthermore, each and every team member will also think that the other members of the group will pick up their slack.   In the end, everyone on the team or group slows down.

However, the opposite is true.  Even though everyone knows the event and loved it, the team or committee still must put in the same amount of effort if not more so.   

Furthermore, if the team slows down, the possible guests will not see the same amount of effort and they will react negatively to it by not purchasing tickets.

No one is immune from the “Sophomoric Syndrome.”  However, great leaders will ensure to motivate their team or committee to strive to make their event much much better while encouraging them to get out there and put in the work.

Again, no one is immune.  This even transcends into the business world.  Successful people don’t just sit back and coast because they have reached their goals – not at all.  The opposite is true – in order to be successful, you must work hard to maintain it.  You have to put in the effort to maintain your success and work even harder to keep positive momentum flowing.

Just remember, each year, you have to put forth maximum effort to get maximum results.  Do not let boredom slip in or it will spell disaster for whatever you are trying to accomplish. 

The cure for “Sophomoric Syndrome” is – believe that every year, your event is BRAND NEW again and put the effort into it to ensure its successful.  If not, you will see a marked change when it comes to time to make a deposit into your charities bank account.

To learn more tips, tricks and fundraising success trends, follow us here, on Facebook and watch our video’s.  If we can help you, contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com.

If you think its expensive to hire an Expert, wait till you hire an Amateur.

I say this all the time so just like everything I say, its become a part of my script.  The reason it’s became a part of my script is based upon its meaning and importance.  So here it is:

“If you had a bump on your neck with spiders crawling out of it, would you go to your mechanic or a Doctor?  If you were building a house, would you get advice from your Doctor or talk to an Architect or Contractor?  If you had serious legal issues, would you go to your Contractor?”

Obviously, the answer is No – simply No, you would seek the advice of an expert. 

However, when it comes to fundraising, we as charities commonly make the mistake of asking someone with no experience in fundraising and no understanding of it. 

Unfortunately, fundraising is not just something you “Wing” especially if your charity or organization truly needs to raise money to pay for your activities or mission.  Why place something so vitally important in the hands of someone who is not an expert?

Fortunately, there are experts across the country – Charity or Benefit Auctioneers and/or BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising which is truly the only Charity Fundraising Event planning business in the world.  BW does not plan weddings and birthday parties – we only plan fundraising events. 

If you go to an event planner, the event planner will have a background in planning birthdays, weddings and Bar Mitzvahs and they are the experts in their fields.  If you’re getting married, don’t come to BW because we will look back at you with an empty look but we won’t say “Sure, we can do it.”  No, we will tell you to find a wedding planner.

Yes, a Charity Fundraising Event such as a Gala is an event – but the importance of the event is the fundraising capability and result.  Event planners look at the actual event, however, with a fundraising event, the event begins months before with ticket sales and finding financial sponsors.  There are elements inside a fundraising event in regard to the fundraising platforms that you must know and have a depth of knowledge in.  The Why’s and How’s are the most important.

In summary, if your charity truly needs to raise money – seek the help of an Expert, an Expert Fundraiser whether it’s BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising or some other person or company, get the assistance of an expert – don’t leave it in the hands of an amateur. 

There is a very famous saying that is so incredibly true – “If you think an Expert is expensive, wait to you hire an amateur.”

If you, your charity or your organization needs help, please contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com or email me at George@bwunlimited.com.

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American Charity Fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  BWUCF is the only full service, charity fundraising event company in the world with an extensive resume in regard to hosting highly successful charity fundraising events.  If we can help you, contacting us is free at www.BWUnlimited.com.

How do you get above the crowd noise of charities?

Have you ever been to a stadium with screaming fans, a packed restaurant where you can barely hear or a concert with extremely loud music?  I’m sure you have.  You can’t even hear yourself talk and definitely can’t hear the person next to you. 

Well, what do you think is going on in the charity world?  Now imagine this – can you imagine being at a stadium filled to the top with standing room only and even people in the parking lot, the hallways etc. and all of them add up to 104 million people in one place.  Can you imagine that.  Now add this in – all of them are screaming at the top of the lungs – their screaming would drown out all the other screams until its an unrecognizable roar.  Now, add this, there is some Rockstar standing on the field, surrounded by millions of people and everyone is trying to get his or her attention, it would be impossible to pick out one voice.  But what does that have to do with fundraising?

These are the current statistics of the “Crowd Count” or how many charities there currently are in the United States:

Current registered U.S. Non Profits:    104 Million

Many charities have chapters:              50 Million chapters (*sub charities)

Benefit Fundraising Events:                 50 Million (**non charities)

Total rounded evenly:  200 Million charities – This ladies and gentlemen is your competition.

(* Sub charity means an entity raising money separately to give to the mother charity – NAACP, Ducks Unlimited, Chamber of Commerce etc.)

( ** Benefit Events are events held for a cause such as someone is sick and family and friends are raising money to pay hospital expenses, a house burns down, a storm hits and cause damages)

If there were 10 people involved in each charity, there would be:

2,000,000,000 = 2 Billion people

With all of these charities screaming to potential donors while other charities use their donor money to produce TV Commercials, Ads, in store donation drives etc., how in the world do you get your charity even noticed “Above the Crowd Noise”?

How to get heard above the Crowd Noise

With 200 million charities fighting to get potential donors or supporters attention, many of which are the same fighting to get the same dollar – how do you get noticed?

This is a very real life story and a charity client of ours asked.  So here is the answer whether you like it or not.

The reality of it is this.  People have become “numb” to being asked to donate or hearing this charity and that charity.  So now, they drown them out.  Every single person has their “Pet Charity” or the one they like and support and then they don’t care about the others no matter how hard you try to get their attention.  They just don’t care.

The Solution

About 50% of our clients listen to us in regard to this approach and the other half, well they don’t and their event fails because simply put – they put themselves back in the crowd noise. 

You have to accept the fact that there are other charities out there that are exactly like yours, your forcing people to pick.

So how do you get heard above the crowd noise?  You don’t get in the crowd!!!  You take a completely different approach and here it is.

What do we all have in common?  We all like to eat, well we have to, but we all like to eat, drink and have a great time with our family and friends.  We all like to go to nice places and either win stuff or just relax and have fun. 

When you are advertising or talking about your “Fundraiser”….you DO NOT refer to it as a “Fundraiser.”   When you are posting information about on the Social Networks, you DO NOT talk about your charity!!!  Now I understand that you absolutely love your charity and you do have your supporters, but the goal here is to attract NEW supporters and guests right?

In order to get above the crowd noise, you come at them from the angle of this incredible event with awesome food at a fantastic place, with great items to win, how fun its’ going to be, the live and silent auction and raffles if you plan to do them.  You take that approach.  Everyone loves a great party right?  Well, tell them about this great party you are having…not the charity.

You may disagree but the events we plan, manage and host that our clients do exactly what we tell them routinely have over 500 people there.  It’s all about building excitement, building “Hype.”

You have to use a very descriptive “WOW Factor” description when talking about your event in order to gain their attention.  Furthermore, you need to post and repost and repost over and over again.  Albert Einstein proved that people need to see something seven (7) times before they react.

Be excited, give them the WOW factor and not “It’s going to be great, good food, drinks etc.  Wanna buy a ticket?”

Follow my advise and watch what happens…success!!!

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising would love to help you plan, manage and host your next event and give it the “WOW Factor” it deserves.  Contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com.

Momentum: Why are ticket sales like a Freight Train? www.BWUnlimited.com

Have you ever seen a Freight Train that seems to extend for miles of cars?  I have and I’ve thought “How in the world do you get this thing up and moving?”  Can you imagine the weight of not only all the cars but the contents as well? 

Slowly the engine at the front will start pulling, the tension builds as each car gets pulled and finally, they as a group, become one and start to move slowly.   But the longer the engine pulls, the faster the entire train becomes until they are running at full tilt – speeding like a freight train and nearly unstoppable.

So what does this have to do with fundraising?  Well, sit back and let me explain.  The slow Freight Train analogy is the same as your ticket sales engine.  I always tell my clients to focus on their “Ticket Sales Engine” first and foremost, getting it up and running at full tilt.  The reason why is, if you do the appropriate things to get it up and running, it will run by itself while you and your team focus on something else.

It’s a scientific fact that people must see something “7 TIMES” before they react to it.  
Can you imagine in the old days of marketing, having to do a mailer that many times to grab people’s attention, it would have cost a fortune. 

But today, what is the biggest tool charities or fundraising event planners have at their disposal?  WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!!!  You got it right, yup…the Social Networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.

I advise my clients to “Post Post Post” their event flyer…over and over and over again.  What else?  “Tag Tag Tag” all their friends no matter where they live.  Also, to invite their entire friends list to their facebook event page.

Now – here is a little secret about Facebook event pages – Don’t be fooled by people either saying they are coming or not joining whatsoever.  The reality is, a Facebook Event page is yet another way of marketing your event.  You have to constantly tell people about your event, over and over and over again. 

Ok, I can hear your thoughts “But George, people are going to get sick of seeing it and will complain” – You’re right…the people who don’t support you or aren’t coming may complain, but WHO CARES!!!  That’s the way you find out “Whose in and whose out.” 

So back to the freight train story – you have to build positive momentum around your ticket sales and here are a few tricks that you will find helpful:

#1 – Post your event flyer:  But post it with a “WOW this event is going to be absolutely incredible” type of description.  Nobody, absolutely no one likes boring!!!  Tell them how awesome it’s going to be and why – the food, the music, the venue, the stuff…whatever.  But DO NOT focus on your charity.  Why should you focus on your charity?  Because the EVENT will sell the tickets in mass.

#2 – Selfie Ticket Sales pictures:  Every single time someone buys a table, take a picture of them handing you the money or the check and post it saying “Johnny Rottencrotch just purchased his table of 10.”  That tells other people that tickets are selling and they want to be in the limelight too…they want you to post a picture of them.

#3 – Don’t give early deals:  This is just confusing – Keep it simple stupid.

#4 – Tickets will not be sold at the door:  Not only is a horrible practice to offer tickets at the door but if you’re hosting it at a great venue, they will want to know your guest count.   Telling people you will not sell tickets at the door while giving them a deadline, will spur them on to buy tickets.

#5 – DON’T COMPLAIN:  Never – EVER – Never Ever complain about low ticket sales.  Do you know why?  Because that will just tell the world your event is a failure.  Don’t scream at people, cuss at them, yell or blame them for not supporting you.  Just don’t do it.

#6 – On-Line Ticket Sales:  I’m neither for nor against online ticket sales platforms.  Buuuuuut…it’s not the “Cure All” to ticket sales.  In fact, it’s most ineffective.  People are lazy.  If someone says “Hey John, I’d like tickets to that awesome event you’re hosting” – DON’T tell to go online, go to this facebook or website, then over there, then click whatever and buy their tickets.  After the first two (2) sentences, you lost them.  They are lazy – Have tickets with you at all times.  When someone asks or the opportunity arises…SELL THEM TICKETS!!!

If you follow the steps above – your Ticket Engine will be up and rolling like a freight train.  But, if you think otherwise or the classic “I just don’t want to bother people” – you will be sitting in an empty room come event day.

If you would like to learn more about how to build “Ticket Sales Momentum”, contact BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising, we would love to help you.  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American Charity Fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  Contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com.

5 Highly Successful Tips to go from a ZERO to a Fundraising HERO!!!

The following tips are for both novice and expert fundraisers.  However, if a Novice follows these tips, he or she can immediately appear to be an Expert or the Champion of Champion Fundraisers.   Fundraising is highly competitive since there are nearly 200 million fundraisers across the United States.  With that many fundraisers going on across the country, you must be noticed in order to be successful.

If you are an experienced fundraiser, meaning you have held or were a part of planning or hosting a fundraiser before – here is some information that will test the fact if you were successful or not.  Remember, you are only lying to yourself if you truly don’t answer the question. 

What was the “Net” (Profit after paying all the bills) of you event?  How many guests did you have at your event?  

FACT:  The beginning of successful professional fundraising in North America is $100.00 for every guest – 300 people = $30,000.00.  Do the math for your event and what is the answer.  If it does not equal the same result above, your event was not a success.  Depending on just how much of a discrepancy there was, that is just how truly unsuccessful you were. 

Here are 5 tips & tricks that will take from ZERO to a HERO Fundraiser:

#1 – BUILD A TEAM – The single most important task that you can do is to build a large, motivated team to help you.  “Build it and they will come” – The larger your team or committee is, the easier it will be to sell tickets to your event and also acquire financial sponsors and donated items.  To be successful, like playing “Tug of War”, the larger your team, the stronger you are and the easier all the tasks will be.  Anyone can help, ask everyone you know and ask them to ask and recruit their friends.  People outside of your charity can help.  Everyone wants to be a part of something exciting and big, everyone wants to be on the “Winning Team.”

#2 – PLAN TO BE UNIQUE – Do not copy last year’s event or even worse, an event you attended before.  The reason you don’t want to copy another event is solely based on the fact that you truly don’t know if that event was successful or not.  Just because something appears to be one thing, it can be the exact opposite.  Plan your event based on…your event only.

#3 – SOCIAL NETWORKS – If you are not on Facebook or Instagram, you should be.  If you are one of the very few people who think that the social networks are foolish, you’re not in the right arena.   Find someone who can help you take advantage of the networks.  Remember, advertising or marketing here is 100% free.   You can pay to boost your posts, but it’s not necessary….there are definite and successful ways to utilize the social networks (especially Facebook) to absolutely maximize the exposure of your event without paying a dime.  Advertising on the Social Networks is absolutely and highly effective.  You can also advertise what is in your Live & Silent Auction, your sponsors and donors.

#4 – FREE VS. PAID – This topic is not popular because most charities are still thinking in the “Old School” charity way of thinking.  Believing that you should get the food for free, the place (venue) you are hosting your event, entertainment and all the items for free or donated is exactly counterproductive to your success.  Do you recall the popular saying “You get what you pay for”?  The people or donors you want to attract will not be attracted to a “Less than” event where everything is for free.  You want to host your event at a very nice place with great food – not at a free place with free food.  Many charities still believe that the items on the Live & Silent Auction should or must be donated.  However, if you just think for a second, you’ll figure this out on your own.  If you go out, go crazy getting tons of donated items, think about where your items came from?  I would bet from the local area…the same area in which you are hosting your event.   The attractiveness of the items is not that spectacular because in reality, your guests are “Local People, attending a Local event with items donated by Local businesses” – if your guests wanted those items, they would have gone to those businesses and bought it themselves.  People are looking for a deal.  You must have items which people get excited over, not a $25.00 Gift Certificate to a restaurant nearby.  Charity guests will not and never ever pay face value despite what people think.  In order to attract high bids, you should have items which will attract extremely high bids.  Acquiring “No Risk” consigned items at your event will definitely make you money.   If you are paying for the food, the bar, the band or DJ or anything, why aren’t you doing the same thing for the items which you are utilizing to fundraise?  For some reason, charities tend to shut off their thinking when it comes to this.  Go back and read Tip #2 – be unique.  Having high profile items and experiences at your event will make your event much more noticeable.

#5 – HIRE AN EXPERT – Do you allow your neighbor to diagnose your medical problems?  No.  Hiring an expert will have a very high pay off.  The best in the business will never be free, they are the power players.  If you want to win the game, don’t you want the best players?  Professional Auctioneers who know and fully understand charity fundraising as well as Charity Fundraising Event Planning & Management companies will seriously have a huge impact on your final financial result.  This investment is absolutely the best decision you can make.  A professional fundraiser will also guide you through the myriad of mistakes toward a huge success – making you look like a HERO instead of ZERO.  In our lives, we want the best when it comes to Doctors, Lawyers, Builders etc.   Ask yourself this – are you an expert fundraiser?   If you are an accountant, mother, father, mechanic, doctor, store manager full time but once a year, you are asked to be a fundraiser – do you know the current fundraising trends?  Have you ever held an event that was highly successful?  Consult with an expert and hire the one you believe will help you the most.  That expert can help you raise $100,000.00 instead of $10,000.00.

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American Charity Fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising plans incredibly successful fundraising events across the country on a daily basis and has been for 10 years.  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising can help you plan, manage and host your event as well as provide you with high profile items for your Live & Silent Auction such as Worldwide Travel Packages, autographed Celebrity & Iconic Sports Items, Beautiful Jewelry and incredible Décor on a “No Risk” or consigned basis.  We would love to help you go from a ZERO to charity fundraising HERO, contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com. 

"The Reality of the Reality of Donated Items"

If you are a fan of mine or read my blogs, you repeatedly have heard me say repeatedly the same things over and over again.  As with most things I say, the lessons I am trying to teach come from real “Honest to Goodness” mistakes I’ve made or have seen made over the vast amount of years I’ve been involved in fundraising.

I am always incredibly inquisitive about why charities have the beliefs they have and why they do what they do.  What do I mean by “Do what they do”?  Well, what I mean is simply this – charities believe that donated items will bring close to if not higher bids than what they are worth.  Or, why they continually put items in a fundraising event which will not have the return they believe.

Ok – so the best examples are real life stories or real life examples right?  Well, I hate to admit but over the weekend, I saw most of what I preach against happen at an event which we were a part of. 

What most charities do not know is this – the larger, more profitable charities don’t even deal with small donated items.  They know these items are not profitable and only go after Sponsors and large items which are always on their live auctions.  They educate themselves because in the end, they are evaluated on their fundraising successes on a continuing basis.

So at this event we were a part of – prior to, we had begun to help their founder but our tactics seemed extremely counter intuitive.  But because she believed in what we were saying, she allowed us to do what we are known to do.  In her many donations, we found a basket which was better than most.  Because of the quality of items and that we also believe that a smaller scale fundraising event should not be all of our items – we placed this basket in the Silent Auction.  If I were to guess, the retail value would have been well over $200.00.  But as you hear me say over and over and over again, donated items only bring 1/8^th to 1/4  of retail in any Silent or Live Auction.  Well, it brought only $65.00 – exactly what I say day in and day out.  Proof positive.

Then, another issue which I address all the time is donated Vacation homes as well as locally donated items.  I tell our clients continually how if someone can get a vacation home either given to them free or less, they will not bid on those items.  Same with locally donated items, if you live close-by to a store which donated items in the fundraising event you are attending, you’re not going to bid to the retail value – you and everyone else is looking for deal 100% of the time.  This is always correct at every single event we do.

So, after the event was over and we were packing up to leave, I overheard a friend of our client say to her “I wasn’t going to bid on that because I can use it for free” about a Vacation Home which was in the Live Auction.

I literally fell out of my seat yelling “Oh my God”….in fact, I said to my client “Remember that, we will talk about it tomorrow.”

Folks – people do not want donated items.  If you are solely relying on donated items, you will see the inevitable result – that everyone is looking for a deal.  People are NOT and will NOT bid on items anywhere near what they are worth despite the fact that they are attending a charity event.  This NEVER EVER happens!!! 

People bid with their wallets, not with their hearts.  It’s sad, gotcha, but it’s the truth.  Wake up to the reality of fundraising.  Fundraising is a treacherous place to be.  There are monsters under the bed if you go looking. 

If you understand the reality of the reality, you will make the right decisions which will always prove to be profitable. 

On another note, smaller charities believe that consigned items (like ours) pull money away from their donated ones.  This cannot be farther from the truth, in fact, they pull money out of the crowd that would not have been spent otherwise.  This is the same belief as previously stated above – that people pay full retail for donated items (Fantasy and Myth).  In fact, the profit they make on our items at the starting bid far exceeds the highest bids on the donated items.  I challenge anyone reading this to see how people will win items at very low levels for the donated items but will bid on our items which the starting bids are much much higher. 

Your guests DO NOT walk into your charity fundraiser with blindfold on and a pocket full of cash, throw the money up in the air and spend it blindly.  This ideal or thought process can’t be further from the truth but for some reason, charities think this way.  Your guests bid on items they want and will bid heavily on them.  However, if the items have a known retail, they are looking for a deal and will not bid anywhere near the retail.  However, on items such as ours or another provider, these items have no known retail causing your guests to make incredibly high bids over and over and over again.

This my friends is the “Reality of the Reality of donated items.”  I am not saying do not go after donations and only use consigned items, I am saying if you are going after donations, to use them in a way that they have a certain high profit return.

If you would like help with understanding the reality of charity fundraising and how to use your donations in such a way that they have a very high return, contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com, we would love to help you.

Understanding how to play the charity fundraising "Game"

Most people have no clue how large the charity “Marketplace” truly is.  I routinely ask new clients I meet with how many charities do they think exist in the United States.  2,700?  10,000?  100,000?  No – there are an unbelievable 104 Million charities.  If you then remember there are at 10 people involved with every charity, the number goes astronomical.

Synopsis:

There are 104 Million registered U.S. Non Profits.  Most popular charities realize that growth comes from opening “sub charities” in other areas of the country, these “sub charities” are called “chapters.”  Chapters not only spread the mission of the charity but they also are a highly successful fundraising method – basically the children of the charity feeding the mother. 

With that in mind – the 104 Million registered U.S. Non Profits grow to 150 million counting the “Sub Charities” in the equation. 

There are two types of fundraisers:

a.    Charity fundraiser – A registered 501(c)3 Non Profit – Basically a charity business.

b.    Benefit fundraiser – When a community comes together to hold a fundraiser     for someone or something in order to help them.  The IRS allows for an unregistered group to host one (1) fundraiser a year for a cause which is deemed non-taxed.  These types of fundraisers are routinely for an ill child, a storm damaged community or a family hit with an unseen tragedy.  These are called “Benefits.”  These “Benefit” fundraisers are not tracked nor are they counted in the 104 million.

With the above in mind, going from 104 million registered U.S. Non Profits, adding the sub-charities/chapters, the number rises to 150 million fundraisers.  There are an untold number of Benefit fundraising events going on but we know they are going on constantly.  Adding 50 million benefit fundraisers a year, the number rises to 200 million fundraising entities holding fundraising events each year.  So how do you still out above the crowd?

200 Million Fundraising entities in the United States, each needing to fundraise each year to keep their mission going with only 50 states in the nation. 

Fundraising competition is ridiculous!!!

The “Fundraising Myth”:

Most charities or fundraisers simply have no idea about the above number.  Each understandably believes that they are an “Island amongst themselves.”  They believe that their charities mission or why they are hosting a benefit fundraiser is more important than any charity in existence.  They believe that everyone will want to be a part of it and everyone will want to donate to their upcoming fundraiser.  They believe that everyone will want to come to their fundraiser.  With that belief, they advertise their fundraiser with the name of the charity because that is what is going to attract people to their personal mission.  They sit back and wait….and wait….and wait.

The “Donations Myth”:

Many charities believe that because their charity or benefit is so important and valuable, that businesses and individuals will line up to donate.  They also believe that if they ask, businesses will donate high end items such as Harley Davidson motor cycles, cars etc.  If they do donate, they donate items which will bring the retail price or higher because people will want to give and pay above the retail price.  They believe that every business they approach will say “Well, what do you want or what can we give you.”  Same holds true with sponsorship – companies will flip open their checkbook and say “Okay, how about $10,000.00?” 

The “Reality of Fundraising”:

Forget the myth above – it’s entirely 100% false.  Do you remember the amount of charities I reported above?  There are so many charities out there with everyone screaming, paying for marketing etc. that everyone chooses a “Pet Charity” or a charity they believe in and give to that one if any at all.  The citizens of the United States are also bombarded with charities asking for money.  Everywhere they go, they are asked to give.  They become “numb” to being asked for money which makes them numb to the mission of the charity so they tune it all out.  No matter where you turn, someone has their hand out – right?  Right.  People are not paying attention.  Here is the hardest part to understand and comprehend – people don’t care because of this.  They just can’t – its reality.

The reality is that people involved with charities “Hit Up” businesses constantly. Everyone is asking for donations and businesses can only give so much – they have to worry about keeping their own businesses afloat and their lights on.  If they give, they give something they can afford to give away – most likely something that is not selling in their stores.  But we as charities believe that those items will bring full retail or above – this never ever happens. 

Donated items are only bringing 1/8 to 1/4 of retail across the county in any Silent or Live Auction – People are looking for a deal and will not get anywhere near the full retail value – here is why:

Local People – Attending a Local Event – with items donated by local businesses = If your guests wanted those items, they would go buy them, themselves.

No one attends a charity event looking for a “Teeth Cleaning”, “Will preparation”, “Home Inspection” or “Botox Treatments.”  Items like this sell for an embarrassing low amount of money. 

Businesses donate because they want a return on their money.  They want “drivers” into their businesses.

The Solution:

Understanding all of the above, charities need to understand that it is vital to not act like the “Norm.”  They must plan their fundraising events as events and not as fundraisers.  They must stand outside the crowd.  They also must have a plan to give businesses what they want as well as their guests.  They must have a plan to utilize their collected donated items in a platform which will bring much more than 1/8 to 1/4 of retail. 

How does a charity plan an event which will sell out?  How does a charity raise well above the norm, more than they have ever raised?  How do they stand out in a crowd of millions? 

If donated items do not bring a lot of money in a Silent or Live Auction – then what should they do? 

Solution to the Solution:  

A charity must spend money to make money.  Fundraising events must evolve, change year to year.  They must be exciting and fresh and be more about the event and less about the charity.  This will bring people to your event and to your charities mission.

Are you ready to grow and be more successful, if so, contact us today.

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American charity fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop.”  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is known across North America for planning fundraising events which have ridiculous successful results – not only financial but charity growth year after year.  Contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com.