School Auction Blog

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Types of donations needed: Event settings – table, chair, linens, silverware, glassware; entertainment, MC, caterer, music, lighting, porta potties, alcohol, silent auction items, etc. This is needed for a gala fundraising event for college scholarships for our seniors and other school assistance.

Depends on your time line for the event, but usually asking works. Get a couple of people with the time and grab the yellow pages/business pages from your local telephone company.

Ask to speak to someone in their public relations or community relations department. Tell the person what you are doing, what is needed and by when. Then offer to come speak with them in person – make an appointment, don’t just drop in on them.

Here’s where your ‘team’ should split up the calling:
1 person calls caterers.
1 person calls large hotels (Marriott, Sheraton, Hilton, Hyatt, etc.)
1 person calls large non profits (American Heart Association, Cancer Society, etc.)
1 person coordinates the visits and does a ‘follow up’ series of calls to anyone that shows the least bit of interest to schedule the interviews.

Next, there should be one person who puts together a simple packet of information that includes: Who the program benefits (the people the scholarships will benefit); What items are needed; When the donantion will be needed (a draft of the event program will work); Where the event will be held with dates (this gives them some idea of a time line for their staff to work with).

What will really get them onboard? Tell them as a sponsor, their company’s information will be included on either a program or in some way they will benefit by getting involved. It doesn’t have to be a big thing either. I’ve used napkins donated by a printer with the name of a large hotel on them which got press coverage for – yep, the hotel and our event.

Since you’re not begging for money, you should have more than enough sponsors ready to pitch in.

Good luck.

My school is haveing a silent auction & we have to make a bed & breakfast themed gift basket. Please write your ideas of what we should put in it.

Luxurious bath items are a good idea, but I’d avoid pre-scented ones as some people are allergic to fragrances.

Buy some unscented bath gel or liquid castile soap. (I use Dr. Bronner’s peppermint castile soap myself, which makes a great shampoo too. If you can’t find either or can’t wait for it to be shipped, you can shave a bar of hypo-allergenic or unscented glycerin, cocoa butter or coconut oil soap into flakes and mix them with warm water; see link below). You’ll want to package the bath gel or liquid soap in screw-top bottles that hold about 4oz each with room to add essential oil and be able to shake the bottle to combine the oil well. Then include 2 to 4 vials of essential oils, and a card explaining that a few drops can be added to the soap for a custom scent.

Common essential oils that may incite a skin reaction on sensitive skin include basil, bay, birch, black pepper, cassia, cinnamon, citronella, clove, costus, cumin, fennel, fir, geranium, ginger, lemongrass, lemon verbena, melissa, myrrh, oak moss, oregano, parsley, peppermint, pimento berry, pine, wintergreen and all citrus oils (grapefruit, lime, orange etc.); these should be avoided.

Essential oils not on that list that work well in bath products include bergamot mint (not bergamot, which is a citrus oil, this is a mild herb in the mint family with a bergamot-like aroma), catnip (another mild mint unlikely to trigger allergies), chamomile, eucalyptus, jasmine, lavender, lemon balm, linden, mullein, rose, vanilla, violet and ylang ylang. You might want to avoid "flowery" or "girly" scents in case the winning bidder is male or intends to give the basket to a guy or a (straight) couple; "unisex" scents include allspice, balsam, cardamom, cedar, hyssop, juniper, marjoram, neroli, nutmeg, rosemary, sage, sandalwood, thyme and vetiver.

To go with the liquid soap, you can include a bottle of unscented / hypoallergenic hand lotion, body oil (mineral or almond oil), shampoo and/or hair conditioner, which can be scented with the essential oils the same way. (Some bath gel is suitable for both hair and body use.) You may be able to find attractive matching empty bottles to repackage all these liquid products in, and hand-lettered labels make a nice, B&B-style touch. The essential oils can be added by the auction winner to any of these products as well as the liquid soap, too.

You might also include either a large, plush washcloth — a big enough one can double as the basket liner — or a loofah, natural sponge or "bath puff". (You may hear that natural sponges and loofahs go moldy, but I’ve had one of each for 9 years without them molding or wearing out, even in a humid climate.) Other items that would complement the soaps and oils/lotions could include bath salts, body powder, a nail-scrubbing brush or a pumice stone.

In addition to (or instead of!) bath products for the B&B basket, you could put in things for the bed and/or things for breakfast. Suitable bed gifts could include a potpourri sachet (a fabric bag of herbs like lavender or chamomile to go under the pillow or between the sheets), a soft mask for blocking light out, or 2-4 high-thread-count (at least 500-count) or microfiber pillowcases. The suggestions for "pillow" chocolates or mints were also good, and many stores sell individually wrapped elegant candies.

For the breakfast element, you could include 1 or 2 mugs along with a selection of teas (try to include some herbal and some with caffeine, but nicer blends such as Darjeeling, Earl Grey or a green or white tea) and some of those single-serving coffees that are in a teabag-like filter. Premium hot chocolate packets are also nice, but avoid powdered instant coffees. You could also include some tea biscuit-type cookies.

Another nice touch for breakfast would be some gourmet jam (especially homemade; I don’t make jam myself but buy it at my local farmer’s market) and/or honey. Raw local wildflower honey or a fancy variety like eucalyptus, heather or tupelo, or a spreadable honey, are all nice "special" alternatives to regular clover honey. Local ingredients are great for the bed and breakfast theme since many B&Bs use local products for their guests.

On that note, any specialty in your area can go in the basket. In New England that might be a small box of maple-sugar candy, in Alaska it might be birch syrup or salmonberry jam, in New Mexico it might be smoked chiles. Supporting local businesses always helps your community, and some may even donate products if they know it’s for a charity auction.

Hope this helped — and good luck with your school auction!

Author: Chris Carver

We all remember the long arduous days of selling gift wrap and candy door-to-door for a local school fundraiser, unsure if you were going to be able to raise enough money and get the “prize” you longed for. Those days have come and gone. Fundraisers have moved away from the door-to-door selling model and more towards non-traditional methods that prove to be more effective, efficient and successful.

Online Fundraising and Donations

The internet has played a tremendous role with charitable online shopping sites. These shopping sites allow parents and students to raise money for their school by making purchases online. The shopping site passes a portion of the commission to the shopper’s school of choice and allows parents, faculty, students, alumni and family to make online donations when purchasing items from their online student web store. These donations can be easily collected and tracked using the web or some type of school fundraising software.

Get Parents Involved

Involving parents and PTA members is critical to the overall success of the fundraiser. Parents have a wide network of colleagues and friends to spread the message much faster. Encourage parents to host a dinner auction at a local restaurant with all proceeds going to the school. Parents can also ask their employer for donations or even possible sponsorships.

Corporate Sponsorships

Imagine the food and drinks at Friday night’s football game sponsored by a local business. It’s a great way to involve the community and an even better way for the company to advertise to hundreds of prospective customers: parents. Ask a local business if they would sponsor promo items and sports giveaways. In exchange, you simply place their logo on the signage and other promotional pieces for instant advertising.

Rewards Programs

Visit your local supermarket regarding any rewards programs they may offer or participate in. Some grocery store chains offer a percentage towards the school of your choice or money back for receipts. And don’t forget to promote and advertise such programs to students, parents and family. Most grocery chains honor rewards program throughout the country, so what better way to get the grandparents involved from afar!

Go Green!

Help improve the environment while raising money for your school. There’s no need to print anymore. Instead send all communication through email and utilize your school management software. Get cash for trash, and teach students the importance of recycling!

• Recycle household items for cash: water bottles and aluminum cans

• Cash in your pennies: take your loose change to local grocery store redemption machines

• Cell phones and printer cartridges: Collect old cell phones, and used printer cartridges – many recycling companies pay anywhere from .50 cents to $5.50 for higher end cartridges

With today’s technologies, fundraising can be easier and more organized than ever before. Explore different web and school administration software programs, communicate with parents, encourage community involvement and talk to your local grocers about rewards programs. With all of these options, your next fundraiser is sure to be a success!

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/education-articles/school-fundraising-software-going-beyond-the-traditional-campaign-623823.html

About the Author:

I sincerely hope this article makes your choice of school administration software easier. Chris Carver is the general manager for ActiveEducate, part of Active Network ActiveEducate provides class registration software to over 3000 schools and school districts nationwide.

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Author: Melissa Peterman

Whether large or small, you want your school fundraiser to be a success. Thinking proactively about everything that could possibly go wrong can actually be positive thinking. Here are a few ways to make sure you have thought of everything before throwing your next school fundraiser.

1. Ensure The Right Plans Are All Agreed Upon In The Beginning

   Make sure that who ever is helping you get organized, remember that you are all on the same team, reaching for the same goals and to keep each other informed, especially early on. Have set meetings, make people accountable and decide on your goals early. To truly have a successful school fundraiser, seek the advice of other school fundraising organizations and gain insight and tips from their previous successes.

2. Don’t Have Your School Fundraising Event The Same Night As Another Charity Event Or In The Same Week If You Can Avoid It

   Oftentimes you won’t be able to know when another school charity event will be going on ahead of time, but, if you have the means to avoid another fundraising event that is happening the same day, week or month as yours, (providing that it is in the same vicinity or attracts the same types of people), it is to your advantage both turn-out and financially speaking to have the date all your own.

3. Don’t Promise What You Can’t Deliver

   If you advertise that a celebrity will be there to greet people and they don’t show up or if you promise free food and it costs money once they get there, you most likely will have poor fundraising results, not to mention the fact that these people probably won’t come to any of your events again.

4. Give Donors Accurate Information On How Their Gifts Will Be Used Right From The Start

   If you have a silent auction, golf tournament, a raffle or any other type of portion of the fundraiser where you have asked donors to donate gifts in exchange for advertising, be clear on all details from the beginning. They are doing you more of a favor than you are doing them, so it’s wise to be clear and detail oriented from the beginning. After all, if this school fundraising event goes well, then you will want to ask the donors back for a second time.

5. Have Back Up Plan For Your Back Up Plan

   As stated before, anything that could possibly go wrong- could. Therefore discuss back-up plans with your school fundraising committee/ team and make back up plans for your back up plans. Don’t just assume the one restaurant who thinks they can donate sandwiches will. Get the golf course, VFW hall or gymnasium space agreement in writing. Give every donor a deadline two weeks before they actually should deliver. When you are prepared for the worse, you will feel relief knowing that should something go wrong- you have your bases covered.

6. Don’t Underestimate Your Volunteers

   Always make sure to send thanks to your help. In the end, it’s the overwhelming support of the people who came together to make your school fundraiser a success. Early in the planning stages, make a point to budget for thank-you gifts, and write thank-yous in any programs that you make. Also, volunteers are there because they want to be put to work and help out. Create a list to give to a volunteer coordinator to delegate jobs. Just because you are organizing the event, doesn’t mean you need to do everything. Delegation is key to keeping your charity event running smooth.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/things-your-organization-should-consider-before-throwing-your-next-school-fundraiser-667874.html

About the Author:

About the author: Melissa Peterman is a web content specialist for Innuity. For more information on organizing school fundraiser , go to ProFund Golf.

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