Forget the tedious and expensive planning of a traditional auction and make room for internet auctions for fundraising.
They are super easy to set up, and they take all of the stress out of organizing an auction fundraiser for your nonprofit or charity organization. People from all around the world can participate and donate to your cause. There are barely any limitations to internet auctions and the benefits are worth it!
Keep reading to find out exactly what internet auctions are, how they work, and why your nonprofit organization should host them.
Internet auctions, also known as online auctions or virtual auctions, are auctions that are held online. Like traditional auctions, the highest bidder receives the item or service on auction.
Online auctions reach a larger audience because of the lack of physical limitations. You can also host them for a longer time than a live auction, which means more people can participate. This ultimately results in higher winning bids - meaning your nonprofit or charity organization makes more money.
Internet auctions operate a lot like traditional auctions. There is a description (and often an image) of the item up for sale and someone interested in the item can place a bid. However, it all happens virtually.
The first step in creating a successful online auction is getting familiar with online auction software. This enables you to list the auction items and host the auction online. For example, BiddingOwl is free and easy-to-use software. It makes it simple for you to create your own auction site and offers all the auction management tools you need to host a successful internet auction.
After you choose your auction software and have your auction items ready, the next step is to promote your auction effectively.
The choice to make it so that any one from around the world can participate or limit it to your country or region is completely up to you. However, the beauty of virtual auctions is that they aren’t limited by geography. This means you can have a greater reach and drive more participants to your auction while raising awareness for your cause.
With good auction software, you can manage your donors and bidders effectively and enable notifications. This way, people know when they’ve been outbid and can then return to your auction site to raise their bids.
After the auction concludes and payments have been made, you can send the items off to the highest bidders.
As everyone in this day and age uses the internet, it’s possible to reach more people than ever before. Moreover, social media networks enable you to easily advertise your auction around the world.
In traditional auctions, fewer people would have shown up because of physical constraints such as time and location. Hosting an auction online nullifies these constraints.
There is no specific time and place that they need to attend the auction. Buyers can pre-bid and place live bids from any location with a reliable internet connection or right from their phones.
In-person charity auctions are more costly because of the different factors in planning. An in-person auction would need a venue, catering, and many more to create a successful event. Internet auctions eliminate these costs by a great deal.
Your nonprofit or charity organization can use free auction software and you won’t need to pay for a venue.
Because there are less costs associated with internet auctions, the money you raise won’t need to replace or pay for the expenses of hosting the auction.
In addition, online auctions can reach more people and take place over a long period of time. As a result, you will reach more bidders, which will drive the bids higher than they would be at a live auction.
Internet auctions are convenient and flexible for bidders because they can participate from anywhere at any time.
As mentioned, online auctions can take place over longer periods of time, meaning that people can bid at any time of the day or night, regardless of time zone. This allows more people to participate and drives engagement in your virtual auction.
Internet auctions are beneficial when it comes to analyzing how the auction went.
The implementation of analytics tools makes it easy to track what happened in your auction. You can analyze things like how many people registered for the auction, how many actually participated, how many times they bid on an item, and so on. You can also easily identify which items were the most popular and which weren’t.
This kind of data can be incredibly valuable in helping you identify valuable donors and improving your auction fundraisers in the future.
People love a great deal that is convenient too.
As you host more auctions, you will find bidders coming back again and again to see if they can get their hands on a great deal while supporting a good cause.
In turn, you will start to grow a loyal supporter and donor base that you can nurture.
It can be tedious and time-consuming to sort out payments after a live auction has taken place.
Online auction software makes this process much more efficient. Payments are made easy with a secure check-out system.
Bidders will manage their own payment after placing the highest bid on an item. You just need to send them their item and that’s that!
It’s clear that online auctions are an effective way to raise funds for your organization. It is convenient and reliable, making it a great way to raise funds for your nonprofit or charity.
So, if you’re looking to host an internet auction, you’ve come to the right place. With BiddingOwl, you can set up, host, and manage a successful virtual auction in no time at all!
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