As a blogger I’m often asked to post about charities or fundraising efforts for local and national causes. If I’m being honest I dislike these emails, getting four or five sometimes every week. I just don’t have the time to write articles (for free) for all of these very worthy causes, I wish I did.
I had eight different people last month who came to my door to ask me to sign up to support and fund their charities, I wish I could help everyone but I can’t. The seven clothing and bric a brac charity bags sat in my hall will be put back out on the relevant day as I just don’t have anything else to give.
Sometimes it can be very overwhelming when you consider the number of people in the world who need our help and the number of projects that desperately need funding.
I’m guessing I’m not the only one who feels this way, not by a long shot and I suspect that charities and community groups are constantly having to find new ways to raise funds and awareness. One way to do this is to run an online auction or auctions.
Think about it for a moment. Using online auctions like these can be a great way to raise funds in a secure and easy to advertise way. Online auctions are timed. Some of the time limits are just a few hours while others can last for over a week. There is just something special about looking at a time ticker on an online auction site and realising that you only have mere seconds to get your bid in before the opportunity is lost forever. The need to bid becomes increasingly important as that time limit approaches. We are all human and therefore attracted by the thought of missing out if we do not react in time. Couple this with having great items, services or promises up for “sale” and you have a unique opportunity to raise some serious funds.
An additional benefit to online auctions is that they are online! People don’t always want to go out during the evening to a charity event, to attend a fundraising sale on a Saturday and for this reason online auctions have an advantage. Home shopping online has long since been proven to be the preferred method for many and of course with social media being the marvelous tool it is when it comes to free advertising this could be the way forward for fundraisers.
I can’t stop the charity bags, the door knockers and the emails asking for my help however in future I’m going to suggest giving this alternative way of fundraising a go!
