EP 21: Grab Bag: Check-In, Collecting Info, and More

Jeff: Welcome to the Elevate Your Event podcast, where we talk about how to plan and execute an unforgettable event that will dazzle your guests and generate more income for your organization. From fundraising and securing trendy auction items to event production and logistics, get the best tips and advice from seasoned fundraising and event professionals who have been in your shoes.

Jeff: Welcome back to the Elevate Your Event podcast, where we talk about all the various ways we can help you make your next fundraising event even better. This is a special episode. This is what we're calling our grab bag episode. We brought in some event experts to help us work through some of the things that have come up in customer conversations and questions we've gotten from you guys. So in the studio today, introduce yourself --

Lori: Lori Mackey.

Jeff: So Lori is on our client services onboarding team, and she goes to a ton of events. Some of these stories probably came in from her for our little grab bag. We also have --

Kristen: Hi.

Jeff: Kristen Wheeler. Kristen makes all the trains run on time at Handbid, especially this podcast, and we love to have her in the studio because she has been involved in a number of fundraising events as well. And normally Diana DuPont is here, but unfortunately she couldn't join us today, so I have to be the one with the list.

Lori: You have a list!

Jeff: I have a list. Diana made me promise I'd bring a list, so I did. So that would be step one in event planning -- having a list. Or knowing somebody that has a list.

Lori: There you go.

Jeff: So my wife is an amazing list person. She's the type of person that will put the thing on the list just to check it off.

Kristen: That is so me. Just that satisfaction of the check mark.

Jeff: Well, here's the big deal -- I am not a paper person, so it's on my phone. I have the digital list. My wife is a paper list person. So is Diana, with the pink pen. And I don't have the pink pen or the paper list, but I've got some great stuff we're going to talk about. So again, these things that we're talking about today were things that have come in from viewer comments and questions, or from our service team. And to remind folks, we've mentioned this before -- on a weekly basis, we meet as a team to discuss things that have happened at previous events. And these aren't necessarily technology-related things. A lot of times these are logistical-related things, where sometimes it changes how we train our clients. It could also prompt some sort of change to our software or an enhancement to help folks along, depending on what we're running into. But let's go through these today. And as you can imagine, no surprise to many of you, two of these have to do with check-in.

Lori: Our favorite topic.

Jeff: We get the most questions about check-in. Check-in brings the most stress. Registration, check-in -- don't you think?

Lori: I know, yes. And the funny thing is, I was at an event the other night and I was more stressed at checkout.

Jeff: It's true. It can depend on the event.

Lori: Yeah. Everybody was hammered, and I was worried about them dropping their stuff. I was like, "I really don't want to hand this to you, ma'am. I really want to walk this to your car for you." And I don't want you getting in that car anyway.

Jeff: But anyway, so let's go through these. And obviously, if you're listening to this podcast and you feel like you need us to cover something on a future episode, we're happy to do that. Okay. So the first one was actually an event I was at, and this is related to something that you had suggested, Lori, that we implemented. It's called tiered check-in. Okay. Not tiered like crying. Don't cry at check-in.

Lori: Yeah, don't cry. Tears of joy checking in is what I call this one.

Jeff: Tiered as in T-I-E-R-E-D, tiered. So it was interesting. There were about 300 or so people at this event, maybe 350. They came and gave us three check-in volunteers, and then we had a staff of four. What we did is we put one of our leads in the back on a table with a laptop who was handling escalation issues, and we put all seven people on iPads -- one was on an iPhone, the other six were on iPads -- all equipped with card swipers, greeting people at the door.

Lori: Nice.

Jeff: Yes. And you have to kind of imagine, this was not a majorly big area. The atrium or foyer area was not huge. I probably would have laid out and designed this event a little bit differently. But either way, there was enough room in there for us to do this. About 20, 30 minutes into check-in, it's running really smooth. People are coming in, getting checked in, getting a glass of champagne, and moving on. It's awesome. And so our client comes up to me and she says, "What's going on?" And I'm like, "What do you mean?" She's like, "I'm just not used to this. Where are the laptops and the lines?" And I was like, "Oh, we're doing a tiered check-in."

Lori: That's our new coined phrase, thanks to Lori Mackey.

Jeff: And I said, "Hey, look around. What do you see here? Within five seconds of somebody walking in the door, they're being greeted and checked in." That is how well this was working. And their volunteers loved it for two reasons. One, they were standing up chatting with people face to face. This one lady said, "I'm a hugger, and I just hated last year. I was behind the laptop and I'd have to stand up from the table and reach over the table to hug my friends that came in. And now I just get to hug them and we get to hang out." She said the other thing she loved is that guests get to watch her check them in. If she can't spell their name, she just hands them the iPad and they do it. Or they get to see her and correct her as she's doing it. She said everybody feels like she's not behind some magic screen they can't see. It's very transparent. And they absolutely loved it. So it's running smooth. And then maybe 10 minutes later, the client comes back in and she's like, "Okay, I'm totally fine. It's just different."

Lori: Yeah, you've got to get past the laptops on a table and people looking down at you to get checked in. You're looking up at them like, "Hi, what's your name?" It's just so much more personal when you're looking at somebody eye to eye. And not to mention, like Jeff said, the ability to greet people right when they walk in the door. Because there's that other aspect that we've talked about with running an event where people don't necessarily know where they're going. You're taking that away immediately. As soon as they walk in, you just go to them. It just makes you mobile. It makes you more approachable. And people really liked it.

Jeff: So at one point, I became the greeter. They had a greeter and then this greeter met somebody they knew, and they were gone -- stopped doing the greeter job. Definitely don't put that person at the front door if they know everybody. That's a side topic. Maybe a grab bag future one. But anyway, so I was the one saying, "Hey, welcome to the event tonight. Hopefully you guys found a good place to park. We're here to get you all registered and checked in." And then I would look around, I'd be like, "Jason's going to help you." And then I would escort them over to Jason, Jason would check them in, and it was all perfect.

Lori: Yeah. The only thing that we needed to do differently was make sure that, especially on the volunteer side, once they were done checking someone in, it's time to move them on. Because, "How are the kids? What did you guys do last night? I think I saw you at the gym." So there's a little bit of that going on, and that's just a training issue. Just make sure.

Jeff: And that wouldn't change at all if they were sitting behind a laptop anyway.

Lori: Right, agreed.

Jeff: Now, the first question that's obviously going to come up -- what if I'm handing out custom paddle numbers?

Lori: Ooh. Well, I worked an event -- this is funny. It was a cowboy event, a concert, a big concert. They made their paddle numbers, and it just happened to work out this way -- they actually were the size to fit in your back pocket. So I just had a bunch of paddle numbers in my back pocket and pulled them out when I needed them. Because typically they're five by seven. They're big and then people fold them and then they lose them.

Jeff: And I'm with you on that. What would this be? Three and a half by five?

Lori: Yeah, they looked like fat tickets.

Jeff: Yes, a fat ticket size. And we had an auctioneer here in Denver that did that once. I thought it was awesome because they did fit in your back pocket. He regretted it because he's an old man and he couldn't read them.

Lori: These worked out really well. That's what big font is for. Yeah, like a bigger postcard. And then they had their program and their agenda on the other side, so it was really convenient. We were able to just pull them out and do that. But I like having cocktail tables available for check-in as well. You can have your paddle numbers on the cocktail tables. I'd put my paddle numbers underneath my iPad. No big deal. It seems to be pretty manageable.

Jeff: Yeah. And to your point, if you're standing and you don't want to have to kind of manipulate an iPad or an iPhone with a stack of paddle numbers -- because you can manually assign paddle numbers at the door -- just have a stack with you and whatever the number is, just type it in and you're done. Having those high-top cabaret cocktail tables works for that. And then we like to stagger them, the front ones are a little farther in and then they go farther back, so you can kind of get people in the door easier. And I think the other thing that works well and is critical to a tiered check-in is that greeter at the door, shuffling people to people that can check them in.

Lori: Yeah, I worked an event -- it was a luncheon event a few weeks back, and we had 450 people coming in in a matter of half hour, 45 minutes.

Jeff: Yeah, luncheon events are busy.

Lori: They're busy check-in. Very busy. Can be chaotic. People can be in lines for longer than they need to be. So we ended up doing the tiered check-in concept as well, where we had the people in the front and then all the way to the back. It just worked beautifully. It was super fast. They were very content. But it required, believe it or not, Jeff, two line marshals, because of how narrow the venue was. So you had one line marshal at the door waving at the other line marshal who was able to say these spots are open. Because we had about 15 check-in volunteers, and we've found that about 15 people tends to work well if you're doing a one-hour check-in with 450 people. So it made it really quick. I don't think there was a point at all in that entire check-in that there was a line.

Jeff: That's awesome.

Lori: And the other thing that's wonderful about the tiered check-in concept -- if you do have a venue that's a little bit wider and maybe has a little bit more space, I like to pull groups of people off to the side and stay in their little group for check-in, and I just check in the whole group right there. We pull them off to the side. They're not clogging. Groups are known for clogging. They like to stand and drink and talk and chat. And I'll be like, "Why don't you just all come right over here," and just bring them off to the side. You just train your volunteers to do that, and then it clears the space for the other people as they're coming in.

Jeff: Hey, so just want to let you know this podcast is brought to you by Handbid. Handbid is mobile bidding and auction technology software built by fundraisers for fundraisers. So we're able to help you with everything from ticketing and registration to mobile bidding to live auction recording appeals -- you name it. And the nice thing is, in addition to the software that we provide, we have a ton of services we can offer you. If you need help getting everything set up, if you need coaching, if you need counseling and advice on how to get through your event, or you need someone to show up and make sure that it runs smoothly, these are all the types of services that we offer. So if you want more information about what we do, click on the link below or reach out to us at handbid.com and we'd be happy to talk to you.

Kristen: What about name tags at check-in?

Jeff: Oh, you just said a bad word, Kristen.

Kristen: You threw that out there. I knew they had thoughts. I just like to stir the pot.

Jeff: No name tags at check-in. None, zero. So look, I mean, it's a trade-off. We've worked with plenty of people that obviously see the value in donor development out of events. And it's nice to have name tags so that you can tell your board members, "You need to go meet with Kristen, you need to meet with Lori, and you need to meet with Jeff," and then they don't have to hunt around looking for you. They just find the name tags. I get that. However, they are a disaster at check-in in most cases for a variety of reasons. And I don't care how intimate you think you are with your donors -- there are still name tag issues. But that could go on to a good segue into our next grab bag topic, which was this idea of a check-in where you don't even talk to anybody. They just kind of flow right in. And this comes out of an event I attended. I have not attended this many events, you guys. I don't know how long it's been. It's been kind of fun to get back into it.

Jeff: So we get there and of course there's name tags everywhere, and I'm like, okay, here we go. And then I was also met with, "We have already pre-registered everybody. Everybody's paddle numbers are on the table. People are literally just going to come in, grab their name tag, and they're going to go sit down. And there will be absolutely no line and nothing going on at check-in."

Kristen: How'd that work?

Jeff: It didn't. So when we say that in our experience, pre-registering people tends to create more issues than it solves, it's not just because our software doesn't handle it well. Our software will pre-register anybody you want. It's because it doesn't necessarily work the way people think it's going to work. This concept of everybody's going to walk in the door, nobody's going to have to talk to me, they're all going to be pre-registered, they grab their name tag, their table number's on the back -- it sounds so awesome.

Lori: Yeah.

Jeff: Okay, so let's walk through what didn't work, because what didn't work is what we predicted would not work. It's a combination of things. So the first thing is that you've now pre-registered two people, right? So walking in the door is Adam and Lori Mackey, and so there's Adam Mackey and Lori Mackey's name tags, and they've been pre-registered, both of them. And they have two paddle numbers. And most couples don't want two paddle numbers. And one of them has a credit card on it and the other one probably doesn't. So which one does? I've got to look that up anyway.

Jeff: So you walk in the door, you're like, "Hi, we're the Mackeys. You guys are awesome because you pre-registered." So which one of you registered a credit card? And they look at each other, and Lori would go, "It was definitely me." And nine times out of ten, they're probably right. And we'd look it up. We were like, nope. And then Adam goes, "Yep, it was me." And so we have to look up the other paddle number and say, "Oh, the credit card's on that one." Okay, so we have choices. So Lori, we can add a credit card to your account so you guys can bid, or you guys can just bid under Adam's account. And, "Okay, well, we don't want two accounts." I'm sure you didn't want two accounts. We didn't make that decision for you. That decision was made for you.

Lori: Yes.

Jeff: So that was one issue. And so what's at the table? Two different paddle numbers. They forget which one is which. They're not going to look on the back of their name tag all the time. So we had plenty of people showing up at the end of the night with two bills. And then we've got to move purchases around and all that kind of stuff, which it's not hard, but for guests that want to check themselves out, it is hard. Because now they come to you saying, "Well, I really don't want two credit card transactions. I really just want one. I want it under this account. Can you move everything over here?" So now you're having guests come to checkout, and that was supposed to be avoided.

Jeff: That was the first thing. The other problem we ran into was people were told, "Hey, we've pre-registered you but we want you to go in and add a card on your own." Because they can't capture cards in advance. So, "Yes, I'm going to pre-register Adam and Lori Mackey, but I'm going to email them and say, using the email address I just emailed you, go into one of your accounts and add your card." Well, guess what? They didn't use that email address. So then they go in and they register a completely different account under a completely different email address. And there is no software in the world smart enough to know that fungirl22@gmail.com is the same as --

Lori: Did I just reveal my email? I'm really sorry. Don't everybody email me. Fungirl22 is the same as lori@handbid.com. So, I mean, that's the problem.

Jeff: And now you have her email. So that's another challenge, right? Then they're like, "I know I registered online." And they'll pull out their Handbid phone and show me, and I'll look at it and go, "Oh, yeah, you did -- under a different paddle number." Okay. So then we say, "Well, you have your credit card under that one, so that's probably the one you want to use. Unfortunately, I've got to change it because I already put one at your table." I could have just handed you one right there and it would have been perfectly quick and easy and done. But your paddle number was at your table, so now I've got to go into your account and switch your paddle number to the one at your table.

Jeff: So again, just another step in this whole goal of not talking to anybody -- and yet we are talking to people. Which I don't get anyway, because I think you can look at check-in as an opportunity to welcome your guests and set the expectation of how the evening's going to go. So why wouldn't you want to welcome them? Why wouldn't you want to make their experience a little smoother and a little bit clearer for them as they come in?

Jeff: I'm all about the concept of self-registration, scanning QR codes, and registering and signing up for a silent auction -- but only in the case if you're not handing out paddle numbers. If you're handing out paddle numbers, then use it as an opportunity and reframe how you're thinking about that in your mind so that you're using it as an opportunity to welcome people and get them what they need to be successful to bid in your fundraiser.

Lori: Yeah. And why not the best of both worlds, right? Why not go online, register yourself, let Handbid pre-assign some random paddle number you're never going to use. Show up at the door. "Welcome, Adam and Lori. I see you're already registered. You already have a card on file. Here's your paddle number." Literally like that's all you're doing, and it's over so quick.

Kristen: Well, and I think regardless of how you choose to do check-in, if I'm a guest at an event, I want check-in not only to be a welcoming experience, but I'd like to know that you are expecting me. You have been expecting me. So whatever that process is, whether you've done it in advance or you have everything ready -- "Oh yes, I see you here. Welcome to the event. Your table is this way. Please feel free to grab a drink on your way." I want to know that you are expecting me. So if there's a snafu at check-in -- "Well, we don't see you on the list" -- then there's this feeling of a guest all of a sudden feeling awkward or insecure or vulnerable. "What do you mean? I paid my ticket. I did this." I think just whatever process you choose, it's important that guests feel seen and known and that you're expecting them.

Jeff: Well, I think you brought up something important, and that is when you've made decisions for your guests and then you go ask them to do something and they make a different decision, they're going to feel like they did something wrong.

Kristen: Yeah, that's a good point.

Jeff: Don't make that decision for them. Let them pick the email they want to use. Let them pick the phone number they want to use. You're not saving anybody any time. I get it. So you don't want an empty guest list where you're having to type in a bunch of emails and all the rest. No one disagrees with that. But there's ways to do that that don't mean you going in and doing it for them. That's where I think the big distinction is. And if you did do that, don't also tell them to go online and register themselves at the same time to add their credit card. That makes it even worse.

Jeff: I would say the other big final thing that was a challenge with this one is that the data wasn't always right. Emails were mistyped. They never got any information. So we're having to go in there and fix that. Or worse yet, their name tags weren't on the pre-registered table and they should have been. And if you want to frustrate your guests, tell them, "Hey, we're going to put your name tags on this table. This is the rock stars table," and then they did everything you asked them and then you didn't put their name tag on the rock star table.

Jeff: It's no big deal. People are pretty gracious. They're fine. "I got you. I'll go find your name tag. It's all good." You hand it to them. And then every time we handed out name tags, we gave them the speech. "Okay, on your table are two paddle numbers. You'll want to pick one to bid under. If you bid under both, it's totally fine -- you're going to get two bills. So you guys decide." And they appreciated that because I would say 90% of the time, maybe higher, a couple's going to bid under one account. That's all they want.

Lori: Well, I had one organization that didn't want to hand out paddle numbers at check-in because it was at a big museum and they thought it was going to be too cumbersome for guests to carry around a paddle number while they're touring the museum on their way to the actual dinner venue. So they decided to put paddle numbers on the tables, but they were blank. And then they asked the guests to write their paddle number on the paddle.

Jeff: Just a random paddle number?

Lori: Oh, no, no. They had to figure out on the software where their paddle number was. And of course, nobody did it. And so then when it came time for the paddle raise, people weren't raising their paddle. They were raising their hand. And then we didn't know who gave what. And it was just this really chaotic time.

Jeff: So, I have an idea. I have never tried this. But tell me what you think. So maybe it's not a better idea.

Lori: He has an idea.

Jeff: I have an idea. So what if you delivered the paddle? Because guests don't like to carry them, right? Especially at a museum, they're going to go around with cocktails. So what if you just had a check-in queue? As your guests were getting checked in and getting assigned paddles, they don't care what their paddle number is unless they're going to an iPad -- until you do a live auction or appeal. So you could have a queue that says, "Here's 101, 102, and 103 with these last names, go to table 12." And you just have runners go put them out on tables. Or big envelopes with "Table 12," and then you put all the paddles for table 12 in the envelope, and then you have runners deliver it.

Lori: Yeah. I actually like that, Jeff. I might try to see if I can implement that at my next applicable event.

Jeff: Well, don't come asking me for a raise if it works.

Lori: I will let you know if it doesn't. If it does work, it's all your idea.

Jeff: I think it'd be interesting to try. And we've talked about this -- in our software we have the ability to, using some third-party tools, literally have texts flying out to auction managers every time someone checks in. Or it could be a Slack channel or it could be a queue, whatever it is. It could be a Google spreadsheet. But how fun would it be -- as people are checking in and they're getting assigned paddles -- it's like, "Lori Mackey checked in, Table 12, Paddle 102." And someone just sees that, grabs paddle 102, takes it to table 12, and writes "Mackey" on it, puts it on the table.

Lori: Love it. Now that's service.

Jeff: But they're still getting checked in. They're still getting some sort of welcoming greeting. And you can check in multiple ways. I definitely lean against the table with the laptops lined up. I like a more casual check-in, a little bit more relaxed check-in.

Jeff: But back to what we were talking about with name tags. So I don't hate name tags at events, but I do hate them at check-in.

Lori: So you just want to put them at their table?

Jeff: No, no, no. I like it where we've talked about this tiered check-in concept. I like it where check-in is like you're doing different things and you're checking in, but you don't really know you're getting checked in. You're just kind of being funneled through. So for instance, you walk in, you get a drink. Oh, there's the photo booth. Oh, here's a table with name tags. Now you go here and get your paddle number. Now you go here and get your table number, and now you go in. Something along those lines. So I like name tags before check-in.

Lori: Okay.

Jeff: Because I love knowing people's names at check-in. I just think it's so funny when somebody puts on their name tag and then you're like, "Hey, Bob, what's up?" And they're like, "How did you know my name?" I'm like, "Because you're wearing it." I mean, it's just -- I really love check-in. I like name tags before check-in, but I do recognize that has to be in a very structured environment.

Lori: Yeah. Okay, fine. So 90% of the reason why I dislike name tags is because you're doing it at check-in.

Jeff: You're doing it at check-in. Okay, so fair enough. I agree with you there. I still think they're difficult to get right for a lot of folks. There was a person at this last event who was the name tag reprinter.

Lori: Yeah, I've had that, yes.

Jeff: Right, because you have last-minute guest changes. "Oh, Lori's not coming. So I brought my other friend. Kristen's coming now in her place. Can you print out her name tag so no one calls her Lori all night?"

Lori: Yeah, I can do that.

Jeff: Or misspelling of names -- ouch. Happens, right? Missing name tags because the sponsor never filled it in. So it's like "Acme Guest One, Acme Guest Two."

Lori: I was just going to say, don't call them "guest." Just don't make a name tag at that point.

Jeff: No, don't. Yeah. So yes, I could see that. And it just seems like -- I don't know. Maybe if our clients would get it better. I remember one event, still at check-in -- I was still angry and annoyed at the same time -- but they put them all out in alphabetical order. You're like, "This is going to be so awesome, they're all in alphabetical order," and there's like 200-something name tags on this table. And then this girl goes, "Hey, what about these?" She pulls out another shoebox and it's all the Fs and Gs. And she looks at me, she's like, "Oh yeah, you missed all the Fs and Gs." Right in the middle of your table of name tags.

Lori: Just leave them in the box. Just leave them in the box at that point. We'll find them later.

Jeff: Now, I mean, if you're going to do name tags, I do agree you need to have a name tag reprinter. I liked that title. Why not do it on the fly?

Lori: Yeah. You can print them out on the fly.

Jeff: We should add that to our software. What do you think?

Lori: Yes. Along with our new check-in kiosk.

Kristen: Yes. Like your boarding pass. And my baggage tickets. That's exactly what I want. There it comes, printed out.

Jeff: Yeah, they had a little kiosk and you were registered, but you went up and you said, "This is who I am," and it spit out your name tag and you clipped it on your little lanyard and you went about your way. They just had somebody there to reload the paper. It was like a craft project.

Jeff: So there's only one other -- and you just brought this up, so I'm going to make this point. The other reason why I dislike name tags -- I did go to a recent networking event with my wife, who was wearing an outfit that was not conducive to name tag wearing, the clippy kind.

Lori: So I can't stick them on -- polyester or rayon or whatever it is, those dresses -- the name tags fall right off. Just come right off. Or hair. I can't wear name tags because it gets caught in my hair. So please give me a lanyard. Please. If you're going to do name tags, the whole clippy thing -- no. I like a lanyard.

Jeff: I mean, you are looking at someone's belly to find out their name. I mean, it's fine as long as it's not a dressy event.

Lori: I know, but if you're going to do a dressy event, how are you clipping that thing on your dress?

Jeff: No, I think you don't need -- I like name tags, but I would say don't do a name tag if you're doing any sort of theme or formal or costume type event because it ruins the costume. I hate wearing them as well. Networking events -- it makes sense. If you're doing a stewardship event where you're just thanking your donors and you're not raising money or not significant amounts of money, do name tags. Conference, convention -- yes. If you're doing a fundraiser and it's a black tie gala, please don't do them.

Jeff: I know you like them because you want to say "Bob" when he walks in the door. How cool would it be -- okay, so you want to talk about how we can get super techy here? Because we built this in.

Kristen: Can you flash something on his forehead?

Jeff: No, like I could put something right on the iPad when he walks in if he had his phone. So we have not tried this, and this could be kind of creepy and cool all at the same time. But you literally could, if you had the Handbid app on your phone and you walked up near somebody, it could tell you that Lori Mackey just arrived.

Lori: I love that.

Jeff: Yeah. So, creepy and cool all the same time. That's what I told you. So anyway, but that is the type of stuff that technology could help you with. I don't know.

Jeff: Name tags wasn't even on my list, and we just talked about it.

Kristen: Oh, I thought it was on the list.

Jeff: Oh, well. It was called "the contactless check-in with pre-registration where I don't have to talk to my guests when they arrive," and we talked about how it really helps to talk to your guests when they arrive.

Lori: It really does, no matter what.

Jeff: Yes. Just don't do paddle numbers at check-in?

Lori: Yeah, well, if you don't want to have a check-in process, just have really amazing greeters, QR codes, let people mill about, and don't do paddle numbers.

Jeff: Could I still -- I mean, I hear what you're saying, and if you're just doing an auction, that makes sense.

Lori: I like collecting information at the door.

Jeff: Yeah. Because we're going to do a podcast on this, and we're going to bring in a donor development expert who I've known for a while. And I already know what she's going to tell you. She is going to tell you that this is an entry point to a relationship, and you cannot have a relationship with somebody when you don't know how to reach out to them. And so I'm just going to make this final point because this came across at this event, but it's come across many times.

Jeff: Your guests are not too important to give you their information. They're not too famous. They're not too wealthy. They're not too snobby. They might be too snobby, but I can't control that. But what I can tell you is that wealthy people, famous people -- they expect at a fundraiser that you're going to be able to connect with them. They expect it. They expect a thank you. They expect you to reach out. And how do you do that when you're not getting their information?

Lori: Yeah.

Jeff: I mean, and we've been to events -- it drives me crazy. You go to these events and they say, "I don't want you collecting any information on them. I pre-registered them with all fake email addresses."

Lori: Oh, that's going to be fun.

Jeff: What's the point? And so the event ends, and these people raise their paddle or they bid in the auction and they leave. And then it's like, "Okay, well, how are we supposed to get ahold of all these people?" Well, you could have solved this problem upfront by collecting their information instead of putting in fake email addresses and telling us we couldn't collect their phone number.

Jeff: Now, I'm sorry, this is going to sound snarky, but it really kind of becomes your problem, and it shouldn't. You could have solved this problem upfront.

Lori: I've checked in famous people. They're gracious. And guess what? If they don't want to give you their info, they're not going to register. Or they'll send their assistant over.

Jeff: Yeah. I've had that happen multiple times.

Lori: I mean, it's their assistant. I checked in Pat Sajak. He gave me his info. He wanted to participate in this fundraiser. He had no problem checking in with us. I do agree with you, Jeff. I talk to people about this all the time when we do check-in training. It can really help to go in with the mindset that people are coming to your event to give. They are coming to your event to give to you because they love you. So you want to provide that opportunity.

Jeff: Yep. So don't shirk away from it. Fall into it. Just embrace it.

Jeff: So let's -- and that's a good segue into our next thing because we've been talking about collecting data, and you can't do anything with data you don't collect. We get this question -- this came up again about CRM integration. "Do you guys integrate with CRMs?" Or "Should my mobile bidding company integrate with a CRM?" And the answer is maybe. What are you going to do with it?

Jeff: I mean, the first thing that comes to mind -- what are you going to do with that information? Sure, you want to synchronize contacts so check-in's easier because you can look them up out of your Salesforce database? Great. Or you want to synchronize all those transactions out of Handbid or your mobile bidding platform into your CRM? Great. What else are you going to do with the data?

Jeff: Because if you're actually going to take it into your CRM and then say, "Lori Mackey attended this event. Lori Mackey bid on these items. Lori Mackey checked into this event. She bought this ticket. She donated this amount of money" -- all of that is valuable information only if you do something with it. Besides sending them a tax receipt.

Jeff: Again, events become an entry point to a relationship. And it's called a CRM because it is a customer relationship management tool. So it's the relationship part. It's not a customer reporting tool. It does that, but it's a relationship management tool. So it is important that you think about how you're using that information.

Jeff: So is it important that your mobile bidding platform integrate with your CRM? At one level, sure -- your finance and accounting people probably want it to. But beyond that, your donor development people should really want it to, if you're going to use that data.

Jeff: So anyway, that came up from one of our readers, and we wanted to cover that. So the answer to that is yes, we do -- our software does integrate. But again, we still ask the question -- what are you doing with that info? And again, we will dive deeper into this because this question has come up, and we're going to do a separate podcast on it, which is specifically what is the role of events in the overall donor development program and how you're going to nurture and grow through different fundraising channels. It plays a role in that, and we'll talk about that in a future one.

Jeff: Okay, I got two more on the list here. I can't check them off -- I wish I could.

Jeff: The Solutions Table. So this was brought up in a former podcast, and people want us to dive a little bit more into this. Lori, do you want to talk a little bit about what you call the Solutions Table?

Lori: Yes. So at events, I love to have a spot where there is somebody who's well-versed in the software -- not just the back-end of the manager or the back-end of the software, which is important -- but also the end-user experience. So whoever you have that is personable and understands what it looks like from the end-user's perspective to navigate the software, you want to create a space for them to answer questions for people. That also allows the check-in people to push guests along out of check-in. Because inevitably, there is always the person who you'll check them in, you'll send them a login link, and then they're trying to figure out their Apple ID. And they're downloading the app. And they're just standing there. They won't leave check-in until they're completely set up because they're a little nervous about a new platform. So for those people, you can just say, "Hey, Bob, you can just head right over here and Kristen can help you out with that. She's there just for that, to get you all set up."

Jeff: Not just the software. You even have bidders that will come to the check-in volunteers who only know how to check people in or print them a name tag --

Lori: Hopefully they've already had their name tag.

Jeff: But people who go, "Okay, well, I want to bid on this item in the live auction. When is that happening?" Or, "I'm supposed to be part of the program after this video highlight." And again, those are great questions, but they're holding up the line. So to have somebody who's well-versed in the software, the registration and check-in process, but also the event as a whole --

Lori: I agree, the event. Yeah.

Jeff: Yeah. So one of our Handbid staff actually had to go replace toilet paper in the bathroom last weekend because she was sitting at the Solutions Table. And that was the solution for the moment. When a guest came out and said, "There's no toilet paper in the women's bathroom," and you're a problem solver, you go find it.

Jeff: But I think what you said is important. So yeah, they might need to know how to use the software. In a lot of cases, they're asking a question about the event, or they're asking a question about parking validation, or coat check, or "I don't want to sit with the Mackeys -- I'm sorry."

Lori: Can you move me? Where do I go? What do I do? Oh, volunteers. You're right. Volunteers come in the door and they're like, "What do I do?"

Jeff: Look, one thing that tends to help is telling your volunteers who to find and ask for when they get there. Because they usually come to the check-in staff. I'm like, "Are you here to check in?" "Yes, I am." They are here to check in -- just not for the event, for the volunteer side.

Lori: And you're getting their name and finally -- wait a second. She's like, "Oh, no, I'm not here to check in as a guest. I'm here as a volunteer." Oh, volunteer check-in's over there. That's a perfect thing to have at your Solutions Table.

Jeff: Yeah. "Oh, hey Betty, I see you are serving drinks. So you need to be here at five o'clock. Enjoy yourself. Check back in at five o'clock."

Lori: "Betty, you are here and you were supposed to be replenishing the toilet paper in the bathroom, and you're two hours late."

Jeff: Betty? No, it is important to do that.

Lori: And name tags are a Solutions Table issue. Table assignments -- "Where am I sitting?" -- is a Solutions Table issue. "Three of my guests aren't coming. I need to give you new names." That's a solutions issue.

Jeff: I mean, you can have the check-in staff do it, and if it's not busy, they probably will. If it's super busy and it's going to take a little bit of time to get people moved around, just have someone at a laptop in a corner that can handle those escalations. We call them escalations.

Lori: Yeah, escalations.

Jeff: And look, the other night I did help a guy with his phone. He had been bidding on the web all day and had downloaded the Handbid app and wanted to transition to the Handbid app and had kind of lost his way. They gave him some instructions that they wanted him to do, and there were a couple of things in there that got skipped. So we got him up and running in less than a minute. But it was just because someone at check-in said, "Hey, will you help this guy?" He came to me with a problem. "I checked him in. He's all good. He's paddle whatever. Can you get him set up on his phone?" Yes.

Jeff: So I like that, and a Solutions Table is a great way for your staff or your key volunteer team to really have eyes on what's happening with your guests when they first arrive. That would be a good position for a development coordinator or events coordinator to be, just to even see how guests are interacting with the line, how your volunteers that you've assigned to check-in are doing, and what kinds of questions people have. So that when you do your debrief for next year, you know how to pivot and how to create a better experience for your guests.

Lori: Awesome. That's awesome.

Jeff: Okay, we only have one more. So this came up in a conversation we had recently. A number of us attended an event here in Denver, and it was just enough different than what we're used to that we said, "This is just an interesting topic." And the topic was this: a fundraiser that's not terribly expensive to go to. I mean, it's not the cheapest thing -- I think it was $150 -- but it's not terribly expensive to attend. There's thousands of people at it. They're raising money. They've done a tremendous job with sponsorship. I believe the sponsorships cover the food, the drink, and the venue rental and security and all that kind of stuff. So I think the ticket sales go directly to the charity.

Jeff: But what was interesting, as we're sitting there kind of enjoying this event, is there's probably a huge number of people here who don't realize this is a charity event. And if they do, they probably don't know what the charity does.

Jeff: So we were saying, what's better? Is it better to have 300 people, 400 people come to your event that are all donating or buying $1,000, $2,000 tables or donating tens of thousands of dollars, hopefully? Or would you rather run an event where you've got 5,000 people showing up paying 100 bucks? I don't know, but it was a new one for us. And we thought we would bring it up because I think for some people, it creates a different angle. It's almost like a different business model for your event. "I'm going to do enough here to remind people this is a charity. It'll make their ticket tax deductible, but at the same time, I'm really going for numbers over intimacy, I guess." Have you been to an event like that?

Lori: I mean, more concert events. Concert events can be like that where there's a big headliner concert. You might not quite know what they're raising money for, but it's just a big event.

Jeff: But I don't really -- I lean towards the more casual event anyway, so I have a tendency to lean a little bit more towards a larger, more casual event like that than I would a formal two to three hundred of your biggest donors. Because I like the community aspect.

Lori: But I think where they could improve potentially is really having that moment to talk about the charity and what it is at a time that would be most received, probably earlier in the evening.

Jeff: Well, let's see what comes out of this. Let's see if I get an email for the tickets that we bought and kind of what the charity decides to do with that information and where they go with it. But again, hats off to them. They did a tremendous job. The event was a blast. It felt more like a party than a fundraiser, although I think in a lot of ways your fundraiser should feel like a party. It should be fun. Check-in was smooth. There was nothing to do, right?

Jeff: Would I change some aspects of how they engage with people in the audience? Yes, I would. Obviously, I think I have some technology ideas and advice for them. But outside of that, I think it was just a great event. And I'm throwing it out there on this podcast because I think for some people who are trying to figure out what to do or what to change -- we had the same conversation. We ran a derby event for years and it was a more intimate one. I would say the average person at our derby was paying anywhere from five hundred to a thousand dollars in terms of total spend at our event, and we'd have 300 to 400 people come. Now, we talked about -- do we ever turn that into something where we're just charging a hundred dollar ticket and use sponsorships to cover the overall expenses and see what we make out of it? Can you drive that amount of sales or not?

Jeff: When we moved our derby event to a concert, we had the same conversation. Do we just bring in a headliner band, get all their fans to come, sell a cheap ticket, maybe it's not open bar or maybe it's open bar until we run out of what was donated? I don't know, but we decided to keep it intimate. But I do think that for some folks out there trying to think about what they could do differently -- maybe this is an angle.

Lori: If you feel like you've got the marketing chutzpah --

Jeff: Is that the word? Chutzpah?

Lori: That's the trick with that event in particular, because it is pretty much a great marketing tool in a really cool part of town. A lot of people want to go. So you do have a big reach, which is what I really think is cool about an event like that. You have a big reach, but you also have to put a lot of work in upfront to get the people in the door, to get them to know about the party of the year or whatever.

Jeff: Yeah. So anyway, that was the last thing we had in our grab bag. Do you ladies have any parting thoughts about anything else? Last words?

Kristen: Oh my God, the two people at Handbid that love to get the last word have no last words. I don't believe that.

Lori: No, I just think I encourage people to think outside the box. Do something a little bit different at your event. Do something that's going to be a touch that's just more casual, a little bit more relaxing.

Jeff: Okay. Do you have a parting thought?

Kristen: I agree. And if there's one thing we've learned on the podcast so far, it's don't be afraid to pivot in the moment and take care of the people who are at your event.

Jeff: Yeah. And talk to them. Don't let them walk in the door, grab their name tag, and sit down, whatever you do. Greet them. Thank them for being there. Make sure their email address is right. They will appreciate that so they get their invoice at the end of the night. I think all of those things are important. And I think what you do with that information on the other side of the event is equally important. So think about that when you're thinking about how you streamline your check-in.

Jeff: But okay, fun grab bag episode. Opened and closed.

Kristen: Okay. Send us a question.

Lori: Yes.

Jeff: Write us a review and definitely subscribe to this podcast if you're listening to it. Recommend to your friends that they listen to it. We appreciate your input and your feedback. And until next time, best of luck in your fundraising events.