| How to conduct a Chinese Auction . . . |
It is not clear where the phrase "Chinese Auction" came from, but it is a wildly popular form of
fundraising that is simple to put in place, extremely profitable and a lot of fun! Some people also
refer to them as penny auctions or silent auctions. In any case, it is an event at which you bid for
items with small tickets that have a predetermined dollar value. The tickets typically come 25 per
card and are perforated for easy separation.
Bidders win by either 1) placing the highest dollar value of tickets into a container placed next to
the bid item than anyone else (a "silent auction"), or 2) increasing their odds of being chosen from
a hat by placing a higher number of tickets into a container than anyone else, thereby increasing the
likelihood that their ticket would be drawn from that container at the end of the auction. The reason
for a Chinese auction need not be a special occasion; it could simply be a good cause or the spark for
a good time. The items to be auctioned can be anything that your imagination allows (see below).
1. Select items to auction off
This is actually the fun part and will determine how much money you can expect to bring in from your
fundraising event. A $50.00 dinner donated by a local restaurant, for example, could bring in $100's. A
painting by the restaurant's owner - all things being equal - may not. The good news is that the sky's the
limit. In return for their donations, you could place the names and logos of businesses as sponsors on
the auction cards themselves.
Alternatively, a group of friends, an association or a church group may wish to hold an auction consisting
of items purchased from their travels around the world. Here, the value of the "treasures" to be bid on is
a total judgment call, but often turns into humorous bidding wars. Bid items can also be services such as
a shoveled driveway, a cut lawn or an invitation to a dinner party.
2. Choose an auction site
Anywhere. Your house, my house, the clubhouse, the church basement, the beach, the parking lot. Wherever.
If you decide to offer refreshments - and this is certainly not necessary - sell them yourself on site as
another source of revenue.
3. Set it up
Someone has to collect the money. Someone has to setup and organize the items. Someone has to do the talking.
Some of these things can be done by the same person. One person can do more than one thing. Broken down to its
smallest task, an auction is easy!
This, too, can be fun. If the fundraising auction is being held by a group or association of some sort, invite
that group. And mention that they can bring friends and family. And if they tell two people, and those two
people tell two people, and . . .
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