Cancelling your Gala Auction? Think hard before you do!

Why should you even have a Charity Benefit Gala? We get this question a lot and some Organizations have cancelled or done away with their Galas altogether with a rationale of saving money and resources. They even think they will be viewed in a more positive light than their peers in the non-profit community.

The Rationale normally goes something like this:

“With Online Auctions and E-mail fundraising getting so popular why should we engage in the time, trouble and expense of putting on a big Gala? We can raise the same money by taking items, putting them in an online auction and selling them. Utilizing Facebook and other E-marketing techniques we’ll send out our message and generate direct support that way. People will appreciate we are being good stewards of our money and support us even more!”

This can be a very tempting rationale but it is incredibly short sighted. You may save some labor and costs one year but you will find your revenue begins to decrease in the next 5 years because you are not filling your pipeline with new prospects and supporters.
Yes galas are labor intensive and some volunteer committees will do almost anything to avoid actually asking people for money.
(I have been hearing the “Really Nice Letter’ argument since 1989 when I started in Profesional Fundraising.)

Galas and Special Events are needed and are extremely valuable to your financial health both in the short term and the long term. Lets take a look at the 7 levels of financial engagement in any organization, Associates, Affiliates, Supporters, Donors, Loyal Donors, Major Donors and Planned Givers and how Special Events affect the long term.

Associates are folks who know about your Organization, have a good feeling about you but not much more. Affiliates are those individuals that cheer for you from the sidelines, identify with your goals but are not involved. You want to turn these individuals into supporters.

Supporters are those that actually contribute something. Time, Talent or Treasure, and you want all three. The Gala Auction is the perfect time to turn these individuals into supporters. I have already written extensively on the “Paddles Up” or “Fund a need” in an earlier post so I will not delve back into the details now, but with that technique and 600 attendees at your event you have turned at least
300 individuals into supporters even though they bought nothing at the Live or Silent Auction. And all 600 who attended have now been exposed to a heartfelt appeal about your mission and what you do.

Now it’s time to take those supporters and move them to the next level, Donors. Donors that contribute without an event or tournament but because someone asks them, someone who they know and trust.They know your mission, and they know and trust the volunteer that is asking them. Because they attended your event.

From there some become Loyal Donors that contribute each year on a regular basis. A good way to take Donors and turn them into Loyal Donors is to ask them to help with the Gala or event, and exposing them even more to the mission and the reason funding is needed. This is an especially good technique if you want to move them to the next level, Major Donors.

Now a select group of Loyal Donors can be moved up to Major Donors. This takes time of course and relationship building but a gift of $10,000 or $20,000 annually is worth the time, don’t you think?

Finally a few Major Donors become Planned Giving Donors, the top of the pyramid. Bequests, Charitable Remainder Trusts, or Endowment Gifts of $100,000 or more are substantial gifts that provide financial stability for your Organization in the long term.

You need to keep your pipeline filled with new supporters and start moving them up this pyramid of support. The Gala Auction enables current donors and supporters to bring new contacts into your sphere in a fun and exciting way.

Don’t abandon it!

Questions? Call us at 512-369-3391 or visit our website at www.sherri.dev