How to Plan Your Charity Auction (Plus Auction Checklist)

Imagine attending an event where the energy is high, the venue is spotless, and everything runs smoothly. You had fun—and maybe even supported a great cause.

Events like that don’t happen by accident. They’re the result of hours of thoughtful planning.

So where do you begin prepping for an event like a charity auction? Maybe you’re the first in your small nonprofit to tackle this task and you feel like a writer staring at a blank page. You know the success of your event will determine whether donors will want to return year after year.

Whether you're planning a silent auction, gala dinner, or golf tournament, we’ve made event planning easy with our step-by-step guide.

And to make things even easier, we’ve put together a Pre-Auction Checklist to ensure you haven’t missed a thing. 

1. Plan Your Auction Early

We recommend you begin prepping for your charity auction 6 months in advance. This may sound early, but planning ahead helps you avoid common mistakes like:

• Scrambling for last-minute items that don’t fit your audience.
• Overloading staff and volunteers with unclear responsibilities.
• Blowing your budget on unplanned expenses.
• Losing donor trust if your auction feels disorganized.

To stay on track, build a detailed milestone schedule and don’t forget to add buffer time for delays. Issues will always come up—whether it’s a sponsor not communicating or technology gone awry—so set yourself up for success.

2. Set Clear Fundraising Goals

Before you choose a venue or draft an email invite, decide what success looks like for your nonprofit. A vague goal like “raise more than last year” won’t inspire your team or your donors. Instead, be specific about the amount you want to raise and what project the event will fund.

For example, you might set a goal of:

• $20,000 to expand after-school programs for 200 students
• $50,000 to open 2 new food pantries
• $100,000 to continue funding leukemia research

Donors care more about outcomes over outputs. They want to know how their donations will make a difference, so emphasize the impact your fundraiser will make while setting goals.

3. Build Your Auction Team

It’s tempting for small nonprofits, but we don’t recommend leaving event planning to one person (you’ll risk burning out your event planner).

Break down responsibilities into a few roles, and delegate those responsibilities to different volunteers or staff.

Your event planning team roles might include:

• Event Planning Lead: Oversees the full event
• Item Procurement Lead: Secures items and experiences
• Marketing Coordinator: Manages email, flyers, and social media
• Volunteer Manager: Recruits and trains volunteers
• Finance/Checkout Coordinator: Oversees payments

Just as important is communication with your team. Regular check-ins keep everyone on track and prevent issues from falling through the cracks. For a six-month timeline, you might hold monthly meetings at first, and shift to weekly check-ins as the auction approaches.

4. Budget Early and Wisely

If your budget is tight, early preparation is again your key to keeping expenses low.

As you prepare your budget with your board, don’t forget to account for:

• Venue or platform costs
• Catering and vendors
• Marketing and printing
• Auction software fees
• Shipping for auction items
• Auctioneer

To keep your budget low, look for areas where you can save:

• Local businesses may donate catering.
• Printers might offer nonprofit discounts.
• Corporate sponsors can offset big-ticket expenses like venues or tech. 

The more you save or secure upfront, the higher your net revenue will be on auction night. An event that brings in $75,000 but costs $50,000 to run only nets $25,000. A reasonable goal to set for your team is to keep fundraising expenses at under 35% of total funds raised.

5. Use an Event Planner

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel when planning your fundraiser event or charity auction. Many fundraising software come with built-in tools to streamline event prep.

A good event planner lets you:

• Create event timelines
• Assign tasks to team members
• Communicate with your team inside the platform
• Track your budget and expenses

6. Document Your Steps

Planning your first charity auction is a big job. But imagine starting from square one yet again when your organization decides to host another auction next year.

As you’re preparing your very first charity auction, don’t forget about your future self (or the next event planner after you). Document your steps and start establishing systems to make next year’s auction prep much faster.

Good documentation also lets you improve your auction prep over time—you’ll be able to spot what worked, what didn’t, and where you can trim costs.

Auction Checklist

Check off each of the following tasks as you build your auction. If you're including mobile bidding at your event, you can find our Mobile Bidding Checklist here.

Use the following checklist for all auction formats:

Logistics:

✔ Decide on your auction format (live vs. online vs. hybrid).

✔ Decide on an auction date.

✔ Create a detailed budget with your team.

✔ Define specific fundraising goals.

✔ Check if your organization must secure a permit for any raffles or selling of alcohol.

✔ Familiarize yourself with the tax rules on auction donations for your region.

✔ Decide if entry is free or will require tickets.

Items:

✔ Create a wish list of at least 15 mission-aligned items and experiences.

✔ Reach out to potential item donors (board members, major donors, businesses, etc.).

✔ Write item descriptions.

✔ Set item start bids and increments.

✔ Set Buy-Now prices if offering Buy-Now options.

✔ Research the Fair Market Value of items if not provided by donors.

✔ Coordinate item shipping/pick-up for winning bidders.

✔ Schedule item pickup times if applicable.

Team:

✔ Create roles for your event team (item procurement lead, marketing lead, checkout coordinator, etc.)

✔ Assign roles to staff and volunteers.

Sponsors:

✔ Create at least 3 sponsorship tiers with benefits.

✔ Reach out to at least 10 potential sponsors 3-4 months before the event.

✔ Add sponsor logos to event materials.

✔ Create sponsor recognition posts on social media.

Communications:

✔ Create an auction promotion timeline for social media, email, etc.

✔ Design consistent branding for your event.

✔ Reach out to promotional partners like influencers and local news.

✔ Prepare thank you emails and letters ahead of time.

Software:

✔ Choose auction software or fundraising software that best fits your needs.

✔ Configure your auction page.

✔ Photograph items for your online auction page and upload items.

✔ Set bidding windows for online auctions.

✔ Design a digital event banner for your auction page.

✔ Test your auction page.

✔ Configure payment processing and online ticketing.

✔ Configure receipts.

Use the following checklist for in-person auctions:

Program: 

✔ Decide what activities to include in your event (dinner, paddle raise, guest speeches, volunteer awards, etc.).

✔ Create an event timeline.

✔ Print event programs or print signage displaying your schedule.

✔ Create an impact video.

✔ Coordinate with guest speakers.

✔ Send formal invitations if applicable.

Volunteers:

✔ Recruit volunteers.

✔ Prepare volunteer materials (T-shirts, water bottles, name tags, etc.).

✔ Teach volunteers how bidding works.

✔ For live auctions, teach volunteers how to assist the auctioneer with spotting bids.

Venue:

✔ Compare at least 3 potential venues for costs, capacity, amenities, etc.

✔ Book your venue.

✔ Create your floor plan.

✔ Arrange catering services.

✔ Coordinate bathroom amenities if not provided by  your venue.

✔ Secure tables and chairs (include enough tables to display items as well).

✔ Coordinate your check-in process.

✔ Coordinate your check-out process.

✔ Create a music playlist or book a DJ.

✔ Assign a volunteer as photographer or book a photographer.

Payments

✔ If applicable, configure credit card readers.

✔ If accepting cash donations, set up cash boxes and payment record keeping.

Technology:

✔ Secure A/V equipment, including speakers, microphones, and projectors.

✔ Set up wi-fi for your event. Check with your venue or rent networking equipment/mobile hotspots.

✔ Create a back-up plan if wi-fi fails.

✔ Test that all equipment is functioning before event day (wi-fi, projectors, cameras, etc.)

✔ Bring devices for day-of auction management.

Signage:

✔ Create a welcome sign.

✔ Create a sign with bidding instructions.

✔ Print item signage with QR codes and item descriptions.

✔ Secure sign holders.

✔ Print bidding paddles if applicable.

✔ Print bidding sheets if applicable.

Auctioneer:

✔ Book your auctioneer.

✔ Brief your auctioneer with your organization’s mission, the event program, and all item details.

Start Your Auction Today

Running an auction is always a big lift—and we’re here to help you organize your auction quickly and efficiently.

If you’re ready to plan smarter (not harder), check out our free CharityAuctions demo.

For more auction strategies, see our complete Auction Best Practices Guide.

Tom Kelly

Tom Kelly, TEDx speaker and CEO of CharityAuctions.com, helps nonprofits raise millions through auctions and AI. He hosts The Million Dollar Nonprofit podcast and inspires leaders to live their legacy, not just leave it.