About Jean Block Consulting - Information and References

Special Events Essentials

This free section contains information and ideas designed to help make your events special. Do you have any idea you'd like to share? Send me an email message at .

List of Topics:

Success Factors for Special Events
- Purpose
- Plan
- People
Some Special Event Ideas
- Non Event
- Celebrity Waiters Dinner
- Auction Tips
- Raffles
- A-Thons
- Paper Airplane Toss
Need More Ideas?

Success Factors for Special Events

3 Elements for Success:

Purpose - Why Hold an Event?

Fundraising?

Public Relations/Promotion?

Membership?

Awards/Recognition?

Education/Issues Awareness?

Other?

Plan

Budget

Costs of event vs. expected income.

Cost:benefit ratio.

Include printing, postage, decorations, entertainment, facility costs, food costs, publicity, awards, etc.

Start at the End and plan Forward

Set realistic time frames…it always takes longer than you think.

Include accountability for each task…if no one owns it, it won’t get done.

Itemize everything…details, details, details.

Sponsors/Underwriters

Establish needs for event and set levels of benefits.

Special Needs

Theme for event - what will make it unique?

Date for event.

Place for event.

Licensing, permits, etc.

Equipment, etc.

Entertainment.

Other.

PR and Promotion

Thank You and Recognition

Thank everyone who helped.

Build relationships for future events.

Evaluation - How Can We Improve This Event?

Hold meeting after event before everything fades.

People

Type of event will determine the type and number of volunteers.

Need Sellers and Doers.

Set up sub committees for everything.

Co-chairs for everything (contingency planning and succession planning).

Specific types You Might Need are:

Steering Committee Chair - real worker or image builder?

Auction Recruitment Chair & committee.

Ticket or Table Sales Chair & committee.

Event Logistics Chair & committee.

Decorations Chair & committee.

Volunteer Recruitment Chair & committee.

Graphics for program, invitations, posters, announcements, etc.

On-site volunteers at event.

Parking and crowd control.

Food sellers, distributors, etc.

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Some Special Event Ideas

Non Event

What is it? Just that – it isn’t! This is a great variation on the annual campaign theme and a way to enthuse, inspire and entertain donors. Invite donors and prospective donors NOT to attend a make believe event, giving them reasons with suggested prices.

Success Factors:

Theme. Make it special to your agency, a time of year, etc.
Get creative. Have fun with it. Give your non event a name, logo, etc.
Invitation. You’ll need the “invitation”, response card with priced reasons not to come, mailing envelope and response envelope. It is also fun to include something fun, such as a tea bag for a tea party, glitter for a fancy ball, etc.
Mailing List. Mail invitations to the agency mailing list with the agency return address on both envelopes. Ask Board members and key volunteers to mail invitations to their list of influence. On these envelopes, use the volunteer’s return address. Ask volunteers to write a personal note inside the invitations they send.
Thank you and Acknowledgments. Of course, every donor gets a thank you and acknowledgment. Volunteers should send their personal thanks to donors from their lists.

For more info, visit my Non Events web site at www.NonEvents.com

Celebrity Waiters Dinner

What is it? A dinner, either formal or informal, where local celebrities serve as waiters. Warning: This event will be fun and lead to outrageous behavior!

Success Factors:

Theme. This makes people know there will be fun galore. Try a picnic theme in the middle of winter, Western BBQ theme, vacation cruise theme, or something specific to your agency. Encourage waiters and guest to dress accordingly. Decorate.
Waiters. Recruit waiters from your community who are Celebrities-In-Their-Own-Minds such as business leader or recognizable local people, or recruit real honest-to-goodness celebrities.
Table Sales. Waiters buy their tables and give away the tickets to co-workers or friends. Print large tickets so that attendees understand the event is a fundraiser, tell them about the theme, promote the event, etc.
Invitations. Who need ‘em? You’ll be recruiting waiters individually, so why go to the expense of printing invitations? Consider a “fax attack” with the theme on the fax paper to recruit waiters, followed up in person or by phone, of course. Simple flyers or big tickets with the event info is all you’ll need for the waiters’ guests.
Extra Fundraising Opportunities. Add other activities to the dinner giving participants the opportunity to get involved (and spend more money). Consider a car raffle, a putting contest for a car (get hole in one insurance), “outdoor” picnic games for a picnic, fashion show, etc.
Live and Silent Auction. Consider a live and silent auction. Remember that dinner guests haven’t bought their tickets, so they’ll be ready to spend some money. See Auction Tips for more ideas.
Prepare the Waiters. Communicate often with your waiters to prepare them to have fun. Encourage costumes and give-aways for guests at their table. Feed them dinner early and get them motivated to do wild and crazy things for the Waiters Tip Contest, such as clear off the table and “sell” the tableware, perform special feats, etc.
Food. Here is a nice thing about this event. Food should be served family style (in large bowls or platters) so it can be handled by the celebrity waiters for more tips, of course. Usually, this type of menu is less expensive.
Fun. This event is fun. No other entertainment is needed, other than the waiters letting go and having fun in their competitions for tips, etc.

Auction Tips

Live Auction Success Factors:

Don’t put more than 6 or 8 big items in the live auction to keep interest high and generate enthusiastic bidding.
Consider a celebrity auctioneer rather than a professional one.
Have lots of spotters and high energy “encouragers” throughout the crowd during the bidding. Allow bidders to pay with a credit card, cash or check.

Silent Auction Success Factors:

Display, display, display! Add accessories. Spread items out so they can be seen. Make gift certificates interesting.
Keep silent auction in the same area as the pre-dinner and dinner festivities so people don’t forget about it.
Orient volunteers to keep an eye on their tables and to collect bid sheets immediately at the end of the auction.
Have the MC use a portable microphone and announce how bidding is going during the event to stimulate competition, encourage bidders on slow items, etc.
Consider grouping similar items into baskets or displays.
Consider a theme auction instead of lots of general items.

Raffles

Raffles can be fast money-generators, especially if you take advantage of some of the tips to follow.

Success Factors:

Grand Prize(s). Consider a themed raffle or one with lots of prizes for the winner.
Ticket Price. Do some simple calculations to determine the price of your tickets. Factor in your GOAL, the VALUE of the prize and the number of SELLERS. Be realistic and conservative here. Cut the number of potential sellers in half. Then see how many tickets each seller would have to sell at $25 to reach the goal, at $50, $100, etc. until there is a reasonable balance.
Ticket sales. Here are some ways to get people to sell tickets. For every 25 they sell, they get one free. Add a line for the seller’s name on the ticket stub and give the seller a prize when you draw the winner’s name.
Another thing. The cost of a raffle ticket is not a donation according to the IRS. Don’t print the word “donation” on your ticket!

A-Thons

You know what these are, of course. People will walk, climb, dance, eat, ride horses, cut hair, read books, etc. for pledges.

Success Factors:

Promotion. An a-thon is no good without “thon-ers” so promote the event to appropriate groups and teams.
Pledges. Encourage participants to collect pledges/payments in advance and turn the money in when they register. Too many pledges are never collected or turned in after the event.
Volunteers. You’ll need lots and lots of them for crown control, sign in, and the like. Consider collaborating with local service clubs, campus sororities or fraternities, military, etc.
Prizes and Shirts. Only give shirts to participants who have turned in money at a certain level (more than the cost of the shirt, of course). Consider working with a fulfillment house or agency for prizes.

Paper Airplane Toss

What is it? Players purchase sheets of paper, fold into paper airplanes and toss into a target to win one big prize or one of several prizes.

Success Factors:

This is an indoor event. A gymnasium or indoor mall area works best.
Prize. Recruit one big prize, such as a car, or place several prize targets around the floor.
Paper. Sell paper for airplanes at the event, not before, because people can duplicate the paper. Like a raffle ticket, print name, address and phone on the papers.
Rules. If you have one big prize, such as a car, you will want to purchase Hole In One insurance, The insurer will specify the rules to be printed on the papers (distance, number of folds, etc.)
Sponsors. Recruit sponsors for the event to add to your revenue.

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Need More Ideas?

See my book “Fast Fundraising Facts for Fame & Fortune” for more fundraising ideas and how to ask for money, sponsorships, and other things you need to support your agency or program.

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Jean Block Consulting, Inc.
7915 Cliff Road NW
Albuquerque NM 87120
phone 505-899-1520
fax 505-890-5285
e-mail