FundClass Archives:

Special Events

Edited Digest of FundClass Topic #04, July 1997

This topic brought discussion on a broad range of good ideas and perplexed questions. It was nicely facilitated by Christine Scott, who posed several general questions to start things off . . . some of which were addressed, and some never gotten to. . . and some of which were later answered by Christine, in response to a questioner, and coming from the vantage point of her own experience. Let's begin with her answers:

What were your best practices?

1. Use of a segregated committee (i.e. not your Board of Directors) dedicated to one event (not necessarily, but not exclusive of, fundraising). These are the folks who have responsibility for managing and executing the event.

2. Use of a subcommittee structure for the different aspects of the event. For example, our Wine Festival Steering Committee was broken up into the following committees: logistics, decorations, banquet, tasting, special guest speakers, ticket sales, auction, etc.

3. Stewardship/Appreciation of Volunteers: this is HUGE. People say they don't want/need to be thanked. Thank them anyway. As often as you can. When you think you've thanked them enough, keep going! Especially, thank them publicly. . . plaques help, or if you're having a formal dinner, have them stand up for a moment. [Ed. note: wouldn't it work well to have an "after the event" event, a dinner, say, for those who worked so hard to make the event a success, and combine this appreciation feast with a debriefing of what worked and what not to do next time??]

4. Always, PLAN and MONITOR. . . and don't be afraid to take some risks. Our very successful Wine Festival (which attracts nearly 3000 people) is held in the heart of the bible belt . . . imagine the response of local folk when we proposed the idea . . . but because we had done enough planning and feasibility study, we felt confident that the event could succeed. And it did.

What were your biggest mistakes?

1. Trying to do it all myself. . . feeling the need to have a finger in every pie. . . Advice: delegate, delegate, delegate! Don't get caught up in the "how to's"; pick good people and let them do their job.

2. Too much staff time dedicated to events. . . just like me, staff burned out on events. Use volunteers to do most of the work. It is important for staff (and here I mean not just fund development staff, but anyone who works for the organization) to feel involved in the financial well-being of the agency -- after all, who can sell the mission better than they? -- but they have work to do already, and will burn out fast if you ask them to take on too much more.

3. Not using a vice-chair structure. . . we started out by asking the same person to chair a committee or subcommittee for as long as they could/would . . . and we burned 'em out. You need to keep an influx of new people, preferably ones who will train under the 'old' chair. Have a standard rotation policy, for example: a chair serves one year (or two, or whatever you decide), and the vice-chair takes over the chair for the next term, training his/her vice-chair in turn.

Same old thing, or new?

One early discussion was on the question of whether to keep on, year after year, with the same type of event or to find ways of keeping your event fresh and new, to keep people coming back. It was agreed that attendance tends to drop off after a few years of the same type of event, and that keeping it interesting is important . . . but people also talked of the benefits of a "signature event", one that happens every year and that people in your community associated with your organization. The compromise of keeping the same type of event, but with some new elements, seems to make sense.

One suggestion is to keep 'new blood' rotating on the committee structure. Don't let the same person chair the event every year, unless there are new people chairing the subcommittees . . . you're likely to get the same event every year; and it's not enough to say "it worked last year, and the year before that, so why should we change?" We live in a society that demands "New and Improved" everything . . .

Events as "Black Holes" for staff

One of the most-often mentioned problems with staging special events is that they tend to be "black holes" of time and energy for staff, and for volunteers as well, of course. But the problem for development directors is that all their other work gets neglected for the duration . . . and if your organization does two events a year, and each takes a couple of months of concentrated effort, that's a huge hole in your schedule.

Having good volunteers, and a properly structured organization for the special event, is vital. Setting up a steering committee to execute the event seems to be the best way to approach this question. The committee meets regularly, makes decisions, keeps in touch with the Board of Directors and others in the organization, and so on. . .and within the steering committee, subcommittees for each element of the event.

Having those people keep good notes of what they do and what works well is a theme that was discussed quite a lot. Several particpants felt that asking volunteers to do even more work was not reasonable, but several who've tried it (taking good notes) said that it works fairly well. . . not everyone complies, of course, but whatever you get is better than nothing, and that after-event debriefings often just didn't happen. One suggestion was that if you're using a steering committee format, minutes should be taken and kept, just as at any board meeting. -- When the same folks come back to produce the same event year after year, keeping records is not quite as important -- but if it's different people every time, having at least some idea of what works and what doesn't is imperative.

Types of events

Several questions emerged as to what events are most successful, and how to choose what type of event to produce . . . these are difficult questions to answer for any given organization, of course . . . regional differences, abilities of your staff and volunteers, what's already going on in your community, all are factors. One interesting thought on this subject is the idea that you don't necessarily have to do something that on the surface seems to "go along" with your organization's cause. . . choose something that will appeal to the people in your community, and if that brings in people who have not before been involved with you and your cause, so much the better!

Reasons for events

Most of the discussion focused on special events as fundraisers, but several participants mentioned that events are held for many different reasons in addition to raising money:

• to recognize current donors and/or volunteers
• to cultivate donors and prospects
• to promote and market your organization and cause
• to build your mailing list (more on this idea)
• as stewardship tools for larger donors
• to get people involved in your organization who'll be attraced by the type of event you hold (but wouldn't be by other means)

How effective are events as Fundraisers?

Several participants are questioning the whole idea of special events as effective fundraisers . . . the amount of time, energy and money that goes into an event just do not balance the money raised. Additionally, many fundraisers are seeing that their communities are burned out on events . . . the saturation point was reached some time ago, and unless you can come up with something truly new and different, people just don't respond.

It's also true that too many nonprofits depend on events for far too much of their fundraising, even going so far as to plan another event whenever money falls short . . . this is not a stable way of planning for budgeting. Cultivating individual donors, as well as corporate/foundation grants, is a must. Special events can help in those areas, and produce some funding, too, but cannot carry the major funding burden for the vast majority of nonprofits.

Several participants talked about a better approach: look at each funding need you have, and match it to the development activity you'll use. (One participant credits Kim Klein for this philosophy.) In other words, if you need a computer, it probably makes more sense to look for someone who'll donate one, or who will match funds for one, than to hold a "we need a computer" raffle or walk-a-thon.

Put best by one participant: "Cost effectiveness is the key: by cultivating a donor well, giving them a good experience during the solicitation process, and then setting up a good stewardship plan, you develop a healthy relationship with that donor. It then becomes easier later on to go back and ask for something else that interests the donor. "

How long does it take to plan an event?

One questioner asked if ten weeks was an appropriate length of time for planning a special event dinner. . . the answer was: maybe!

In large urban areas, you may have to book a hotel/restaurant/conference center as much as a year in advance. . . and knowing how much time you need to plan isn't enough; you're going to run into other people's schedules as well as your own. For instance, if you're going to solicit items for a silent auction, give yourself as much time as you can possibly get. . . some businesses will say that their budget isn't prepared yet, or they don't have items in stock right now, or whatever . . . you need to give them lead time. . . and next year, you'll know when is the right time to approach them!

Generally, try to have an organizational meeting, and your committee chairpeople committed, at least five-six months in advance of the event. . . planning takes longer than you expect!

Silent Auctions

Some ideas on silent auctions ('silent' as opposed to 'live', where an auctioneer runs the sale; in silent auctions bidders fill out a form for each item on the table(s) they're interested in; others come behind and 'up the bid', again in writing; bidder #1 may go back and bid again; and so on, until the closing time for bids . . . highest/last bidder wins):

Silent auctions may be used in conjunction with live auctions, especially when you've so many things to auction that time doesn't allow an auctioneer to properly offer all of them. In that case, choose the lower value items, or those which lack a visual element (gift certificates, hotel pkg, etc) for the silent auction table. Then set up the table(s) to maximize the sales appeal of each item: create a description for the bidding form that fully identifies the features and benefits of the item; include photos, brochures, etc. Unbox items that can be used and demonstrated (don't forget extension cords and batteries) and have volunteers standing by to show the items (as well as monitor the bidding activity). And, make sure the volunteers know, in advance, how to operate anything they will be showing.

Silent auctions may also be held when the program schedule doesn't allow time for a live auction; some people also prefer silent auctions for other reasons (no need to find a good auctioneer, and some bidders are more comfortable with the silent auction procedures -- but don't forget how much fun a live auction can be!)

Some other tips: displaying good jewelry is probably a mistake. Even with volunteers tending tables, jewelry tends to be lifted, or other small valuable items tend to disappear. . . . if you have several tables full of items, resist the temptation to arrange them by category (sports, gardening, jewelry, etc). Intermixing items means a higher yield because every potential bidder is seeing every item. If you categorize, then people with an interest in sports items will look only at that table, and may never see another item that could interest him as well. . . . Consider including a "guaranteed purchase price" on the bidding form: this is an amount that will guarantee the purchase of an item to a bidder at a premium price (typically 125% to 175% of the value of the item); this works well for those bidders who are willing/expecting to spend a certain amount of money during the evening, and doesn't want to go thru a long repetitive bidding process (some people's fun is other people's boredom, right?).

Too many things happening at one event?

One participant asked if it's possible to do too many different things at one event . . . "for example, a golf outing with two raffles, or a dinner with a raffle plus a silent auction? I worry about turning people off by asking too much. People have probably already got it in their minds how much they're going to spend, so all a raffle does is shift the money around. . . but my board is convinced people will get excited and give more."

Answer: In many cases, you can never hit them enough to get the monies they intended to spend! For example, at a charity auction: if the prospective attendee list was put together correctly, those who attend are going in order to support the organization, rather than looking for a good buy . . . and come with a set amount of money they're willing to spend at the event in support of the organization. Your job is to give them enough opportunities to do just that . . . if not everyone can successfully bid at an auction, you need to offer other options. . .

Inviting donors to an event

Getting the right people to an event is important. Most organizations begin with their donor list; depending on the event, you may want to invite everyone, or perhaps just the top givers. . . even if you're planning a large, community-wide event, you may want to send personal, special invitations to your best donors.

Consider asking your Board, volunteers, staff, etc. to give you the names of ten of their friends who are not currently involved with your organization. Then, have an addressing party, at which those people add a short note and sign invitations to those people whose names they gave you. Or, create a label that says "This invitation was sent to you at the request of", and fill in the name. Use clear labels so it'll look more like it was printed on the invitation. And another tip: use stamps, even if you bulk mail; it looks so much better and personal than preprinted or metered mail.

Partnership-ing

One participant noted that "one thing I like about special events is that there are wonderful opportunities for partnerships, not only with local buisenesses, but also with other nonprofits." This should be food-for-thought for everyone . . . what other nonprofits in your community do you share causes with, even partially? Would it make sense to hold a joint event, "get more bang for the buck" perhaps? Or is there something, like a health fair, for instance, that you could get all the nonprofits (and maybe for-profit businesses?) that have anything to do with health care in on . . . thus putting on a truly spectacular event, but sharing the work/$$ load. Or, for some large event that you can't do by yourself, think of getting another nonprofit or two involved, even if your causes don't have anything in common, and bill it as a "combined charity event" . . . that would have the benefit of allowing you to educate people who've never been involved with your cause on the importance of doing so.

Remember that partnership can mean more than just nonprofits. . . how about a partnership with local media? Ask for the help of your local tv or radio stations; ask that they provide a "liaison" who will sit on your Board . . . get someone involved, he/she will become an advocate for your organization. . . . And remember to spend some money on advertisement in your local media; don't always ask for 'freebies'.

"Partnership" is a word we're hearing more and more often . . . foundations and government agencies that offer grants are increasingly looking for partnership arrangements between organizations in a community. This is definitely a subject worth some thought.

Fundraising vs Fund Development

While this is a topic we've covered before, it continues to perplex some folks, and we had a couple of good answers this time:

1) Fund raising is instant gratification -- with a built in problem: sometimes you step over dollars to pick up dimes. Fund development is a program philosophy, where you look at your long-term funding needs and create major gifts programs to fund them.

2) Fund development properly includes anything you can do to generate a source for funding: donor research; grant research; procurement for special events; establishing corporate giving programs; developing relationships with funders who share an interest in your cause; data management (keeping records of your donors,etc); direct mail (both for friend raising and appeals); newsletter writing; and more.

NOTE: This topic is covered in FundClass Topic #5, with guest speaker and facilitator, Kim Klein, editor of The Grassroots Fundraising Journal (http://www.chardonpress.com) and author of several books.