Estate sales, thrift shops, and auctions all have one thing in common: they attract audiences of people looking for great deals. This means your nonprofit auction has the potential to engage various participants, including past supporters who have become disengaged with your organization. 

From email marketing to text campaigns to social media outreach, you may think you’ve exhausted all your options for re-engaging lapsed donors. But your best bet is to host an auction, which is why we’ve created this guide. We’ll explore four ways your nonprofit auction can engage lapsed donors:

1. Use donor data to direct your auction planning.
2. Attract lapsed donors with enticing auction items.
3. Promote your event landing page to capture lapsed donors’ attention.
4. Invite well-known sponsors to support your auction.

When you properly plan a silent auction or live experience, your nonprofit auction can raise funds for your cause and regain the support of disengaged donors. Let’s take a closer look at how auctions can maximize support for your cause.

1. Use donor data to direct your auction planning.

Donor data is your nonprofit’s strongest weapon against lapsed support. When managed well, it provides valuable insights about your donors, which you can use to get to know them, unlock deeper relationships with them, and re-engage them. 

You may have collected information about lapsed donors during their engagement with your nonprofit or through prospect research. Use this data to guide your auction planning, tailoring the event to their unique interests. Important data points to track include:

• Geographic data: Donors’ home addresses can help you determine the geographic areas where they’re located, which can greatly impact their involvement. For example, which local restaurants could they visit if they won a gift card at your auction? Are they available to attend an in-person auction based on their proximity to your event location, or would a virtual event be more feasible for them to participate in?

• Employment information: Knowing lapsed donors’ occupations can help you estimate their work schedules, which often dictate their ability to participate in fundraising events. For example, teachers aren’t typically available for midweek lunch events but have extra free time during the summer months when school is out. Use this information to plan the timing of your auction, promotional messages, and event registration window. 

• Involvement history: Lapsed donors’ previous involvement with your organization can help you understand their affinity for your cause. You can also observe their engagement with other nonprofits to get a more complete picture of their charitable inclinations. Highlight the aspects of your mission that most resonate with them when promoting your auction.

Donor data is only beneficial if it’s accurate. Employ data appending to keep your nonprofit’s donor database clean and up-to-date. For example, you’ll need to know when a donor’s home address or phone number changes so that you’re able to contact them in the future.

2. Attract lapsed donors with enticing auction items.

It’s no secret that an auction’s appeal is in its item catalog. Even participants who are loyal supporters of your nonprofit’s mission want to win something at your event, so choosing the right auction items increases your chances of attracting lapsed donors. 

Procure a variety of highly-coveted auction items to appeal to diverse audiences. Winspire’s guide to auction item procurement recommends the following items:

• Gift baskets
• High-end goods
• Community spotlight items
• Travel and experiences

Appeal to attendees’ interests and their wallets by setting a wide range of starting bids. Some donors lapse because of their limited ability to give, so your consideration of their budgets paired with the tangible item they’ll receive in exchange for their donation can incentivize them to participate.

3. Promote your event landing page to capture lapsed donors’ attention.

As a professional fundraiser, you likely don’t need another guide on nonprofit marketing. Social media channels, email newsletters, and direct mail campaigns are popular communication channels that you already leverage to spread the word about your fundraising events.

However, lapsed donors aren’t engaged in your nonprofit’s communications and likely won’t see these messages. Instead, capture their attention by driving traffic to the go-to resource for all information about your auction: your event landing page. Google’s Ad Grant allows nonprofits’ landing pages to claim a place on the search engine results page (SERP) for free in just a few steps:

1. Apply for the grant. Create an account with Google for Nonprofits to complete the Google Ad Grant application. 

2. Create keyword-targeted ads. Promote your landing pages by creating ads that target relevant Google search keywords.

3. Analyze your campaign performance. Keep an eye on your ads and adjust them as necessary to maximize traffic to your landing page while meeting the program’s requirements.

When lapsed donors stumble upon your auction’s landing page organically, they’ll be more inclined to inquire about the event. They’ll be further engaged when they scroll through a well-crafted landing page, which the right auction management software can help you create.

4. Invite well-known sponsors to support your auction.

Though lapsed donors don’t actively support your nonprofit, they support other organizations and for-profit businesses when they go grocery shopping, tithe at their church, or give monetarily in some way to another organization. To re-capture their interest, invite these establishments to get involved in your auction.

For example, a lapsed donor might register for your auction if their favorite local boutique sponsors the event. Depending on their level of sponsorship, the boutique might receive:

• Social media mentions: In exchange for sponsoring the auction, your nonprofit might mention the boutique on social media and encourage supporters to shop there. As an added bonus, lapsed donors who follow the boutique might see the company tagged in a post and explore more information about your auction.

• Inclusion in gift bags: Your nonprofit could hand out small door prizes with items from the boutique, which further incentivizes the boutique’s customers to attend.

• Advertisements at the event: Through posters, digital screen advertisements, and other branded supplies, you can promote the boutique at your auction. Lapsed donors will be excited to see a familiar brand associated with the event.

ClickBid’s guide to silent auction software recommends including the ability to purchase sponsorships on your auction’s landing page. This way, potential donors and sponsors have access to everything they need to engage in your event from one place. Plus, advertising the sponsors you’ve already secured can turn a landing page visitor into a committed auction attendee when they see a favorite company supporting the event.

Once you’ve successfully engaged lapsed donors through auction preparation, don’t stop there! Garnering their support for one more fundraising event doesn’t guarantee that you’ll regain their loyalty, so your nonprofit must pay special attention to auction follow-up. 

Thank re-engaged donors for their return in a handwritten card, email, text message, or phone call after the auction. Craft specific messages for each supporter, thanking them not only for their bid or donation but simply for attending the event! You can even start the message by saying, “It was great to see you again!” and mention their previous involvement by adding something like, “Our volunteer team has missed you and would love to have you back this month.”