Over the next couple months, we are going to explore live auction item ideas. One big priority for me as a fundraising auctioneer it to ensure that my clients have a varied live auction line up, but before I unveil the items, I want to discuss why it is important to have a varied live auction.
Having too many like-items lowers each item's value.
It is so important to have a varied live auction lineup because it creates competitive bidding. It may seem amazing when your committee comes to you with news that they have secured not one, but two trips to Mexico, a condo in Costa Rica, a resort in Disney AND a B&B in Ireland, and you are not wrong for being exited! However, having 5 trips in one live auction will lower the value of each trip significantly. Knowing they have another trip coming up, their incentive to keep bidding goes down. Unless all 5 trips are completely different and unique opportunities that they could not find absolutely anywhere else, the bidding will lose its competitive edge.
Variety provides opportunities to engage as much as the audience as possible.
This is key. You want you live auction lineup to engage as many people in the crowd as possible. The sports lovers, the animal lovers, the wine lovers, the beach lovers, the mountain lovers, the book lovers...you get the picture. If they don't have something they see in your program for them, you are going to lose their attention. Why is this bad? Because when they aren't paying attention, they are either leaving or talking. If they leave, they are not going to participate in other major revenue generating activities (like the fund-a-need, and if they start talking, they will become incredibly distracting and you are at risk of losing your entire audience's attention.
Variety is fun.
Duh. People like variety. They like to be on their toes. They like to see different items and feel engaged and energized and variety of auction items will help create a buzz! Remember, the more fun they have, the easier it is for them to give.