Fundraising through Silent Auctions: A Complete Guide (Spiral-bound)

by Robert Dechene (Author) "There are so many good causes out there that you can donate your time to..." (more)
Key Phrases: Auction Donation, Silent Auction Acquisition, Bidder Card

Editorial Reviews

Review
Fundraising Through Silent Auctions is written in a casual, conversational style that is clear, concise, and very accessible. -- Charity Village

The success of the auction was the result of the information provided by Bob Dechene, on running a successful auction. -- Sport Central

Product Description
Fundraising through Silent Auctions will show you how to:
• assemble an organizing committee
• build the forms you need for a successful event
• manage your volunteers
• run your silent auction and maximize the funds you raise for your cause

Whether you are running a small auction for under a hundred people or a gala event for over a thousand, with Fundraising through Silent Auctions you’ll meet or exceed your fundraising goals and have fun while doing techniques he’s learned over the years by helping charities.

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Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 52 pages
• Publisher: Bobter & Associates Consulting Services Limited (October 2003)
• ISBN-10: 0968964400
• ISBN-13: 978-0968964408
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,148,006 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Should be titled - "An Incomplete Guide", July 2, 2004

By A Customer

If you are buying this book because you are a regular person suddenly involved in putting together an auction - having no previous fundraising experience - I will tell you that I learned a lot more by inviting a local fundraising professional to come chat with our committee for a couple hours than I learned from this book.

It primarily focuses on running the auction tables at the event. It is grossly lacking in advice about how to actually plan the event in the first place. A rather important tidbit. I didn't notice when I bought it online that it was a whopping 50 pages - that would have been a clue. Absolutely not worth the 20 bucks I paid for it.

It touches briefly on committees and volunteers, has a few forms (examples are easy to obtain from the community - no need to buy this book for those), information about running the event itself, and some general hints, but that's about it.

The "complete guide", as he calls it, has no suggestions for how to advertise your event, find attendees/sell tickets, come up with a budget, how to work in other activities at the event (such as a meal), etc. There are no sample invitations, save the date cards, etc. And there is no useful information on procuring items and very limited information on how to track donations in a overly simplistic spreadsheet.

If would suggest that Mr. Dechene keep writing until the book is actually finished.