Making Fundraising Events Pay and Pay and Pay …

Sure, you can do away with the event altogether and replace it with a direct solicitation program that "makes sense." Try that and you'll probably be looking for another job.

My recommendation to Liz was to take a series of half steps.

Keep the event.

Eliminate the most distracting parts such as the mediocre silent auction. Beef up the mission-based portions such as a heartfelt presentation of a success story and having real-life beneficiaries present and mingling with the guests.

Take the live auction piece and make it an "reverse auction." You may already know what this is.

It's simple. Instead of having premiums that are auctioned under the premise of the buyer getting something for less, make the auction a direct giving competition. To raise $10K, for example, have the auctioneer start the "bidding" for someone to make a direct gift of $2K to the cause.

Go down the gift chart (prepared in advance) from there. The key to success here — especially if this is the first time you've done it — is to have a "straight man" in your audience. This is someone who can make the top gift and has been prepared in advance to make it when the call is made.

In a single stroke you turn an exercise in bargain shopping into a celebration of a worthy cause and a competition to support it.

Such an approach raises sights and places the focus on the mission and away from the stuff.

Once your reverse auction becomes part of your culture, you'll see many, many more responders — those who show up for the party — becoming investors to your cause.

If you want money that grows and lasts, you must think ROI — return on investment. Cutting costs to drive up immediate cash is fine. It's the return over the long term that you're looking for, however.