Donors and Sponsors for Fundraising Auction - Guide

Finding Donors / Sponsors for your items

Probably the single greatest task for your organization prior to holding your fundraising auction is finding the sponsors for the items in the auction. We include ‘donors’ with this definition of sponsors, because in the end they are both the same. Patrons will either fully donate an item they will make, or purchase, or provide, or patrons will sponsor items that are consignment. Either way these folks are critical to your success.

Here are our suggestions for finding and securing donors/sponsors.

• Network.  It’s all about who you know, or who anyone else knows. This is the time to talk to friends, local business owners and former contributors. Be sure to pull in as many volunteers in this effort as possible. If you pull in enough people, you’ll find that ultimately everyone knows everyone, through degrees of separation.

• Close:  You must be able to ‘close’ the deal. You must ask for the donation or sponsorship. If you’re too shy to ask people for donations then assign the task to others. Asking for donations or sponsorships is difficult because we are not in the habit of asking strangers, (or even friends) for favors that cost money. If any on your team of volunteers are in a sales function at work, rely on them. They generally have the skill set needed to aggressively ask.

• Don’t wait for the last minute. This is a critical function for your auction event and should be accomplished several months prior to the auction.

• Be specific about what you want. Be sure that the donor/sponsor understands specifically what they are committing to.

• Be sure to explain the benefits and ‘rewards’ to the donor or sponsor. Donors/sponsors want to be recognized. Be sure to provide credit to them for their contribution. This is often accomplished by having an acknowledgement letter next to the item auctioned or giving credit in the auction catalog or the auctioneer giving credit to the donors and sponsors as their items are auctioned.

• Be creative. If a specific item is very expensive but could be a marquee item, (like a vacation package, or a piece of art), then try to bundle several sponsors together. Have multiple donors/sponsors sign up for a percentage of the consignment cost, giving them all credit at the auction.