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Purple Carpet Event Blog
Posts in the ‘Silent Auctions’ Section

Silent Auction Fundraiser Raises $1 Million Despite Tough Economic Climate
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Wednesday, March 31st, 2010

In the current economic climate, fundraisers face a tough challenge: Trying to garner financial donations when donors simply don’t have as much to give.

And yet, that didn’t stop Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston from raising $1 million at its annual “In Party” silent auction fundraiser.

In a recent BizBash article, the hospital’s three secrets to success are revealed:

1. Keep it Simple. Organizers of the silent auction fundraiser moved away from overly elaborate decorations. Instead of expensive floral centerpieces, paper rectangles spanned each table, spelling out the party’s themes: innovation, inspiration and incredible care.

Continue Reading: Silent Auction Fundraiser Raises $1 Million Despite Tough Economic Climate

12 Must-Read Tips for Event Planning
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Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Large-scale events – from silent auctions to shareholder meetings – require careful planning, monetary resources and manpower. And a few tried-and-true tips for event planning don’t hurt, either.

In a recent podcast and whitepaper from promotional product retailer 4imprint, Paulette Wolf and Donielle Levine, authors of the book “Event Planning Made Easy,” offer what they consider the first and most important tip for successful event planning:

Establish the 5 “W’s” and 1 “How.”

One by one, those 6 elements include:

1. Who are the guests or attendees?

2. What is the event being planned?

Continue Reading: 12 Must-Read Tips for Event Planning

Silent Auction Event Puts Brands on the Big Screen
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Monday, December 28th, 2009

Brand Integration Silent Auction Event Not all silent auction events are created equally.

But the upcoming Inaugural Integration Auction, Scatter Categories 2010 – hosted by Brand in Entertainment (BiE) – is truly in a class all its own.

You won’t find luxury vacation packages, department store gift certificates or state-of the-art flat screen TVs at this silent auction event. On Jan. 20, corporate and ad agency representatives will gather to outbid one another for the chance at integrating their brands into the hottest upcoming films and television shows.

Continue Reading: Silent Auction Event Puts Brands on the Big Screen

13 Essential Elements of Successful Fundraising Events
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Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

Tips for Successful Fundraising EventsWhether hosting a fundraising event for a school, church, non-profit organization or any other entity, certain planning requirements remain the same. In a recent post on The Fundraising Authority blog, several steps were identified to incorporate into planning. We’ve added to the list to create the 13 essential steps of any successful fundraising event.

1. Determine the event’s purpose. Is the goal to raise funds, gain publicity or develop a presence in a new market? In some cases, events have a combination of goals. For example, a charity dinner might be hosted to gain publicity for a non-profit organization, with a secondary purpose of raising funds.

Continue Reading: 13 Essential Elements of Successful Fundraising Events

Maximize Fundraising at Your Next Event
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Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

For charity organizations, a down economy presents a conundrum of sorts: the worse the economy, the greater the need for fundraising donations—and the greater the difficulty in securing them. When brainstorming fundraising ideas, it’s vital to consider how to maximize fundraising ROI.

But which fundraising ideas produce the best results? And which donor groups should be targeted to gain the most return?

Blogger Norman Olshansky, of non-profit consulting firm NFP Consulting Resources, presents some useful statistics to maximize fundraising (based on “Fund Raising: Evaluating and Managing the Fund Development Process” by James Greenfield) in a recent post.

Continue Reading: Maximize Fundraising at Your Next Event

5 More Ideas for How to Run a Silent Auction
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Monday, October 5th, 2009

Silent Auction IdeasIn December 2005, Associated Content offered twelve ideas for how to run a silent auction with the article Organize A Silent Auction.

Despite being nearly four years old, some ideas in the article are timeless, including:

  • Set a deadline for items to be entered into the auction
  • Ensure you have sufficient lighting wherever the auction is to be held.

In the four years since this article was published, silent auction software built into hand-held Communicators from IML has ensured the success of hundreds of silent auctions.

Continue Reading: 5 More Ideas for How to Run a Silent Auction

Unique New Fundraising Ideas Heard on the Purple Carpet
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Thursday, October 1st, 2009

Unique Fundraising IdeasA recent article in Profit Quests Fundraising titled “A New Trend in Fundraising,” details both the history, and per its title, unique new ideas in fundraising.

In regards to historical fundraising, the article offers an interesting history on the emergence of fundraising galas and events.  When discussing new trends, the article cites new philanthropic support companies, like eTapestry.com and Kintera.com, “that have put an electronic twist to the old fundraising methods.”

At IML, we’ve seen hundreds of fundraising events achieve unprecedented success when using new technology to support unique fundraising ideas.  Below, are two of the best:

Continue Reading: Unique New Fundraising Ideas Heard on the Purple Carpet

Audience Response Keypads From IML Pit Gala Attendee vs. Gala Attendee
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Friday, September 25th, 2009

On May 21st of this year, a silent auction held by poverty fighting organization Robin Hood helped generate over $72 million for residents of New York City in need. Remarkable about this silent auction was that not a single prize was up for bid.

Before the event, Robin Hood engaged with IML to rent audience response keypads to be held in the hands of each gala attendee. Spurred along by emcee Jon Stewart, and celebrity attendees Anne Hathaway, Eli Manning & Brian Williams, attendees were encouraged to donate simply by entering pledge amounts into their keypads.

Continue Reading: Audience Response Keypads From IML Pit Gala Attendee vs. Gala Attendee

Audience Response Systems Transform Red-Carpet Events Into The Purple Carpet Experience
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Tuesday, July 7th, 2009
IML Table

Photo Credit: Tiffany Oelfke

When you host a corporate meeting, fundraiser or silent auction, you risk rolling out a red carpet no different from any other in the eyes of your audience.  If you are renting out a conference center, in fact, you may be rolling out the exact same red carpet.

In helping thousands of organizations and non-profits host successful red-carpet events, audience response systems company IML has learned that audience interaction is key to a memorable gala or meeting.

Using our systems, organizations and non-profits have hosted red carpet events that have resonated so strongly, the shade of the red carpet transformed into a deeper shade of purple.

Continue Reading: Audience Response Systems Transform Red-Carpet Events Into The Purple Carpet Experience