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Be a Certified
Charity / Fund Raising Auctioneer
By:
Rich Haas
- Auctioneer - Real Estate Broker - Appraiser - President and Owner
Learn the 22
steps for successful Charity and Fund Raising Auctions for
churches, schools, civic groups, service clubs and others, for a
commission.
There are more than 300,000
charity auctions a year in the United States alone and many more
in Canada and other countries that raise more than $18 Billion
annually.
Charity and fund raising auctions
are a unique and lively way of raising money for non-profit
institutions and is one of the fastest growing areas of the
auctioneer profession.
Auctions are the preferred method
as the most appropriate fundraising tool for churches, schools,
civic groups, service clubs, hospitals and many other charities.
People attending enjoy the opportunity to purchase a wide
variety of items in a short time while donating money to the
fund raising event. Most organizations have talented people
within their volunteer core but they need an organized plan
(the 22 steps only taught at our
school) for a successful money making fund raising
auction. This is where you come in as a
Certified Charity Fund Raising
Auctioneer. Auctioneers are paid a percentage of the total
dollars generated, usually 5% to 15%.
Continental
Auctioneer Schools charity fund raising auctioneer course is the
only training devoted to providing all of the
information and solutions facing groups in the task of
implementing a successful fund raising auction event. Persons
completing our course will learn all of the tools needed to
implement and conduct a successful charity fund raising auction.
In the past, auctioneers did not
charge for their services at charity auctions. It started out
years ago when benefits were small fund raising events. There
certainly wasn’t anything wrong with this, but times have
changed. The auction volume has increased from hundreds to
thousands, and even hundreds of thousands of dollars. In general
the auction profession’s views have not changed. I can show you
another market for your auctioneer services and help you realize
that charity fund raising auctions are big business.
There are many reasons auctioneers
gave their services away. I know of no other professionals who
give so much for nothing. I have been doing benefits for a fee,
my entire auctioneer career, and I will try to analyze some of
the reasons I hear against charging a commission for your
skills, services and time. Some feel that doing free auctions
will bring them other auctions. I have found it doesn’t pencil
out. It’s like spending a thousand dollars on advertising in
hopes of getting a five hundred dollar job.
Another reason is publicity. Most
often, newspapers do not print the benefit auctioneers name or
his / her company name. When newspapers are covering an auction
that I am doing, I make it a point to let them know I charge a
fee. I not only get my name in the paper, but I am frequently in
a featured article. At an out of town auction I was interviewed
by the local paper. The next day the headlines read, “Local
Charity Auction
Imports Professional Auctioneer”.
If I had lived in that town and donated my services, they would
not have even mentioned my name. When you charge for your
services, they are asking you what to do. When you do not charge
or do it for free, they are telling you what to do.
Forget about defensive publicity.
That’s when the auction company does the job for nothing because
he or she is afraid the competition will do it and get their
name in the paper. If you continue to work for free you will
fail in this business…
When setting your fee, determine
what of your services should be charged for. It is no longer a
case of providing auctioneering services for the evening, but
offering a package of your services for your fees. With our
training you can provide your clients with a list of what they
need to do, and a list of your services you offer and explain
how your services and only your services will make their fund
raiser a success.
You fees must give you a return
on your investment of time and energy. Most professional
auctioneers charge for charity auctions just like they would for
any other auction.
Show me any other professional who
gives away their services. When you do that $100,000 charity
auction for the blood bank and a month later your spouse has
surgery and needs blood, do they let you go for less than $500 a
pint. Tell me you’re not brainwashed.
If it sounds like I am trying to
convince all auctioneers to stop giving away their services,
You’re right.
Rich Haas all rights reserved |
