EP 10: How To Create A Run Of Show For Better Fundraising

Jeff: Welcome back to the Elevate Your Event Podcast, where we talk about all the various ways that you can make your fundraising events better and raise more money. We've got some amazing guests here today. We've got Kristen Wheeler. Kristen, why don't you introduce yourself?

Kristen: I'm Kristen Wheeler. I do marketing for Handbid now, but in a past life, I actually ran galas and walk events. And fun fact, I used to produce the local segments of the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon.

Jeff: And she is still smiling after all of that.

Kristen: I bleached my gray hair.

Jeff: And Lori Mackay.

Lori: Well, hello, I am Lori Mackay. I've worked for Handbid for -- I don't know -- five, six years or so. I do coaching sessions. I'm a service person as well as an onboarding specialist. I've worked a bagillion events, I like to say.

Jeff: A lot. A billion. I'd like to see how that's spelled, but a billion.

Lori: I've worked quite a few events in all different venues. And now I just give my opinion.

Jeff: That's right. You share your wisdom with the world on the Elevate Your Event Podcast, and we're happy to have you. I'm Jeff Porter, CEO of Handbid. I have been involved in fundraising events well before we founded Handbid. I was kind of thrown into that world in 2006 -- that was the first one I was directly involved in. And then we started two fundraisers that year. One was a golf tournament in D.C. And then we had a gala event here, which actually started at my house.

Kristen: I was there. I think I was at the first one.

Jeff: That's awesome. And from all of that experience, we ultimately created Handbid. So we've been involved in fundraisers for well over 15 years. But the topic we wanted to talk about today, which comes up a lot, is the classic run of show. We should probably define what a run of show is.

Lori: Yeah, we probably should.

Jeff: So why don't you go ahead and give your definition of a run of show?

Lori: It is a timeline of the evening -- how things are going to run, how it's going to look, and where everybody should be. It helps to have sections of it for not just the sequence of events for your fundraiser, but what your video crew needs to be doing, or your audio crew, or who's supposed to be on stage speaking and what the lighting package needs to be at that point in time. So there's a lot that goes into it, depending on what kind of event you're having.

Jeff: And I learned a lot of this the hard way. I remember when we moved from the Cable Center in Denver with our event to Infinity Park. If you're from Denver, Infinity Park has this amazing AV system. It's got these wraparound walls where you can put video that wraps around the entire thing. You can have different things showing on different screens. They have lighting with up lights and down lights -- you name it. And I go in there to meet with the lady, and she says, "I'm going to need a run of show." I'm like, "What?" She says, "I need a run of show. We're going to sit down right now and design all your lighting packages." So we'd show the logo here, have this thing going there, have a video playing -- that's going to be Package A and Package B. We put it all together, and then I had to come back to her and say, okay, at this time, when these things happen, show Package A. And it was pretty impressive. Boom -- Package A shows up, the red lights go up, the logo goes up. So I learned a lot through that process. I need to take this and go to the next level with it -- really map out the event. And we've learned from plenty of clients as well who have been in that space. We did one fundraiser with a church, and churches are really good at this because they run a service. They have to know the timing, and you'll see if you go to certain church services, they've got the timer in the back and you can see how much time's left. So all of those things are important. We've discussed in general what a run of show is, and I'm sure a lot of our listeners want to know what should go into it in terms of the order of events. So let's go back to the fundraiser topic and talk about the fundraising side. We get this question a lot: what should the order of events be? Everything from opening an auction to registration. Do you want to give your thoughts on that?

Lori: Well, if we're going to start with the whole thing, I'm going to say tickets -- opening up tickets and event promotion. I like tickets about two months out. I think that's usually a good time, but it's really about your venue and when you need to have last-minute guest information to your caterer or whatever. There's a lot of factors that go into that. But a couple months out, start promoting your programs, start promoting your event, and get people involved buying tickets if you sell tickets.

Jeff: Okay. What do you think should happen next?

Lori: Silent auction. Silent auction should open about a week before, five days.

Jeff: Okay. What do you think, Kristen?

Kristen: I like five days. I think seven is too much. Seven feels like it would be the right answer, but I think it's too much. You have to have all your items up.

Lori: Exactly. And I don't know about anybody else, but I sure have been up until 2 o'clock in the morning entering silent auction items.

Jeff: "Hey, we've just now opened up the sports category." Or if you're a school, parking spots. Something along those lines. And you can always tease your items before the auction actually opens, especially the big-ticket ones you want people bidding on -- give a sneak peek so people can download their apps and get their bidding in order. That way when it opens, the bids start coming in and you don't have people just perusing; they're ready to bid on the things they want.

Lori: Yeah, I love that idea. And look, it's going to take a lot of stress off you when you get to the day of or night of your event, because you're not staying up until 2 in the morning snapping photos of items and loading them into software. It's been open for a few days.

Kristen: Or navigating questions when you're trying to run an event.

Lori: You're navigating basic questions that you probably could have mitigated a week before if people were looking at the items. So you also want to make sure you've got those cool items in there and that there's interest, that you're promoting it. Why should they bid early? Maybe give some incentive there too. Maybe have an item that's only open before your event -- something that's going to get people in there, registered, and comfortable with the software and the items prior to the event.

Jeff: That makes sense. Okay, so we've gone two months out, we start to sell tickets. We're about a week out, we've got our silent auction up and running. And just full disclosure, I'm not sure I've even been able to get my silent auction open a week in advance.

Lori: So anybody on this -- goals!

Jeff: Goals. If you do it, you're way better than we are, for sure. You have your life in order. So the silent auction is now open. What do you think is next on that spreadsheet or that Word doc that's your run of show?

Lori: When your event's going to start, if you're having an actual event.

Jeff: Okay. I don't think we're going to totally dive into what day of the week you should have your event. That's going to be driven by a number of factors, including seasons, venue availability, and your budget. But let's just say we're going to have a night event. Run of shows for day events are a little different, but the order of things is going to be the same. So we're going to do a night event, say it's a Saturday night. What do you typically see happen?

Kristen: I would say even a few days before, in your run of show, you're talking about communication -- things we've talked about in a previous episode, like where to park, what to do when you get there, what to bring, whether you're sending text messages, or showing up early in a special room or a special session while registration is starting somewhere else.

Jeff: What are some of the things that you can offer at a VIP reception?

Kristen: So you'll have, if you have a celebrity coming, a meet and greet. You might have access to premium offerings. We did a wine-slash-bourbon type event, and VIP guests got access to some of the more premium stuff at the VIP reception, along with silent auction items that were only in that room and closed at the end of that VIP reception. I've seen speakers come and give a presentation, book signings.

Lori: I mean, really, if you just give some really good drinks and have a special space for them, make them feel special.

Jeff: So let's talk about Handbid for a second. If we're going to come staff your event, we're typically there 90 minutes before your first check-in. So if you are doing a VIP reception, we're already there. You've already done a walkthrough. We probably should have talked about that.

Lori: There's so much, right? You've already done a walkthrough. You've walked through with your caterer. You already know what's going on. You already know if you have Wi-Fi. You already know if the cell signal's good.

Jeff: But it's always good to do one last-minute check. And what I like to do with that check 90 minutes or two hours in advance is also make sure that the IT person and whoever's responsible for the internet -- you know who they are and you know how to get a hold of them.

Lori: Very good.

Jeff: And I'm just assuming you're doing mobile bidding because the vast majority of people we work with today do. But if you're going to do mobile bidding, connecting to the internet is essential. Whether it's cell phones or Wi-Fi, it's good to find out and get that list of who do I call when something comes up. So, checklist: who's the venue manager? Where's the head caterer? Where's the tech person? Where's the auctioneer?

Lori: Where's the auctioneer? They like to show up late.

Jeff: That's what I was going to say. Auctioneers like to show up about five minutes before.

Lori: That's right. Just know that in your run of show.

Jeff: So maybe not in your run of show, but in your planning document -- it helps to talk to the auctioneer before the event, days before the event. Make sure they're bringing their own paddles. And if they're not, that you've agreed to that and that you have them, because to your point, they're not showing up 90 minutes before registration. They're going to show up five minutes before dinner.

Lori: Yeah, they're stars. They're really good at what they do. They've got it to a science.

Jeff: That's right. Okay, so VIP reception. We talked about when you would or would not have that. We've also -- all of the listeners on this podcast have agreed you're going to check everyone in at VIP. How long do check-ins typically run?

Lori: Oh, I'd like them to be at least an hour. I'd like check-in for an hour. If it's a small event, maybe you don't need a full hour, but most of the events we work that have several hundred people, it's going to take an hour.

Jeff: So what you're suggesting is, if you're asking guests to move on to the next stage of the event, don't do that before seven. And when we say move on to the next stage -- don't make them all sit down and start eating at seven. Is that what you're suggesting?

Lori: Right. I would say have that scheduled in so you know what everybody is doing from six to seven. Because you've always got the people that show up at 5:45 for a 6 o'clock arrival.

Kristen: Including your board members.

Lori: Including, yes, and that's normal. So they arrive, you've got to have something for them to do. That should be part of your run of show. What are they going to do while everybody else is checking in? Are they going to have drinks? Photo booths? Snacks? Silent auction area?

Jeff: Yep, we'd like that. That makes sense. So you have to assume that some people are going to arrive at six, all the way up to 6:59. If they're arriving at 6:59 and you check them in, I would recommend you still give them some amount of time to hit the bar, check out the silent auction area before you're asking them to move on to the next stage of the event. So in this case, maybe that next stage starts at 7:30?

Lori: Yeah, 7:15, 7:30. I think that would be good.

Kristen: Well, I think there's the run of show that you have on paper that you give to the venue and keep internally. And then there's the run of show that you give your guests. Those could be a little different. So I think it's good to add a cushion. You tell guests that registration is from six to seven, but you and your staff or your volunteers know that really they have until 7:30, because you don't want to feel stressed and rushed and you don't want to rush your guests to go on to the next thing.

Jeff: And I think it's important to be careful about the order of your activities so that there is time -- if you're having a dinner, lots of time for guests to get their food and sit down and settle before your next formal hard-start moment.

Kristen: I think that's an important comment -- the concept of slack. Understanding that you're going to need cushion. I think project managers call it slack. You need to have a little bit of margin in your run of show. If you have everything butting up against each other, you're going to be a ball of stress when things run late. All you're going to hear is "we're running late, we're running late, we're running late." You want to enjoy yourself at your event and set the expectation for your guests.

Jeff: Of course, I automatically think of galas. But if you're running some kind of conference or convention or you have a set of speakers, guests get really annoyed when you're running behind the schedule that you printed for them.

Kristen: Well, that's even better -- maybe don't put times on a printed program, so there's no expectation. That way guests aren't saying, "We're supposed to be doing the live auction right now."

Jeff: There's always those people. I ran a Derby event for 12 or 13 years, and the only things that really mattered time-wise had to be on the run of show -- because there's a horse race, and it starts in Denver about 4:50 p.m. every year. It does run a little late sometimes because, well, you know how that goes. So you're going to have to work with the hotel staff if you're at a hotel. If you're working with a caterer, you're going to have to ask them when they're going to be dropping and pulling plates so that you know -- I don't want them doing that in the middle of my tear-jerker video or my executive director's talk. So you've got to plan that out. I don't know if you guys have had any experience with this: maybe you're not eating, but are you drinking? Is the bar open? Do you close the bar right before the presentation?

Lori: I've had many, many people do that. And in a lot of cases, that is very helpful. Auctioneers like the bar closed. In most cases, they're going to ask you to do that, especially if they're doing a paddle raise and they want people paying attention. I like it when the bar is closed. I like it when there's a cocktail hour where it's drinking time, and then you close the bar for that portion of the program, and then you open it back up for celebration afterward.

Jeff: I've done events where the bar was closed and it was still impossible to get people to settle down and stop talking. It got to the point where it was rude. We had a 15-year-old speaker and the MC kept having to get up and say, "Can everybody please be quiet?" I have seen some interesting ways of handling that. I'm not a fan of the big glass "ding, ding, ding" thing. There are people that do that. But I've seen auctioneers shush the crowd, and I've seen that done in really tasteful ways and in really rude ways -- all with the same objective: we need to quiet the crowd down, there's a presentation, you're here for a reason. It is tough when guests are making a lot of noise. But the ones I've seen work really well are when the auctioneer or emcee gets off the stage, walks through the tables, and just starts talking about what's coming next. As they get closer to people who are talking, those people start to pay attention. So sometimes you can kind of indirectly redirect people to the stage. But it's tough. I've been at plenty of events where I just felt bad for the charity because they could not get the crowd to be quiet.

Kristen: Do you think that has to do with the run of show? Do you feel like those events that typically have that issue maybe had too long of a cocktail hour, or maybe riled the crowd up and then are asking them to be quiet?

Lori: Or, worse yet, they've been there for two hours because the program hasn't started.

Kristen: There's too much.

Jeff: It's an art form for sure. It's like a wedding where you're waiting so long for the bride and groom that you're just over it. You do have to be cognizant that these people are there for your fundraiser.

Lori: So with the run of show, the presentation can be done at the beginning, then a little bit in the middle, and then at the end. That way you keep things moving, especially for the ones that have really long presentations.

Jeff: Benefit auctioneers are good at this. The ones we work with that are really good are great at starting to warm the crowd up or concentrate them by playing a game -- like Heads or Tails. That does a nice job of getting people focused up front. And from there, I would always do that first. Most auctioneers, I think, would recommend that. Let's play a game with the crowd, and once the game is over, we can move into other parts of the program. And you get to decide. That's the next thing we should talk about: the next part of the program. We have a program, a paddle raise, and a live auction. What are your thoughts, Lori, on the order? We're going to ask you next, Kristen, so get ready. What order do you think those should go in? We get asked this question a lot.

Lori: A lot. Okay, so I like a little program, and then I like a live auction, with the game beforehand. I like a game beforehand, then live auction -- and preferably not with 500 live auction items. We can talk about that in another podcast. Live auction. And then right after the live auction, I like a good, solid ask -- usually a loud video of some sort, something that brings people in, centers them, and prepares them for a paddle raise. I like a really good video with a clear message.

Jeff: Can I throw another twist into that? It's part of the question I totally forgot to ask earlier. When do you close your silent auction?

Lori: I'm scared to answer this question because honestly, I think Jeff and I have a little bit of a different opinion on this. I like the silent auction to close before the live auction and paddle raise.

Jeff: I accept your answer. I differ, but we're going to come back to that. I do disagree. Let's hear from Kristen first, and then we'll come back to me.

Kristen: No, I agree with Lori. I like to insert activities and interaction in between the program portions -- the videos and speaker information. You've got to get them standing up or interacting, and then get them settled down. Again, that's an art form. But never underestimate the power of dimming the lights and turning on a powerful video before your paddle raise, before your ask, and before your speaker. That can be another way to control the crowd. Okay, we're doing a video -- here's your chance to sneak out if you need to use the restroom. Then everybody's quieted down and the lights come up on your speaker.

Jeff: That makes sense. What about when you close the silent auction, Kristen?

Kristen: She dodged that question! What does Kristen think? I actually think you're both right. I know what Jeff's answer is because I listen to the podcast. I think you're both right, but I think it depends on how long your program is. You don't want people to leave during your appeal to go pick up their silent auction items, but you also want to give your checkout staff and volunteers enough time to gather the items and get ready for checkout. So it's going to depend on the length of your program and also how large your silent auction is.

Jeff: It is tough. So we'll come back to that because there are pros and cons to both. I love the video before the speaker too, because I think it sets the mood of the crowd if that's the type of speaker you're going to have. If your speaker is not related to your charity -- and I've seen that -- then maybe the video after would be the better way to go. But I am a fan of keeping the program short. Unless the speaker is part of the reason why everybody's coming. I did do an event once with a Navy SEAL -- the guy that had shot Osama bin Laden -- and he had people glued to their seats. Nobody moved for 45 minutes. Now, as soon as he was done, they're trying to move on to the program, and 300 people run to the bathroom. So you just have to know how long the speaker is going and plan accordingly -- how you're going to accommodate that, because if you're going to have a segment that long, you're going to need to give people a bit of a break. So I like the video, and then a short program with short speeches, and then I actually like the paddle raise before the live auction. Interesting, right? Not everybody does it that way.

Lori: Interesting.

Jeff: But they might also donate ten grand to me. And I'd rather actually get the ten grand than them buying the trip to Tahiti, which -- unless it was fully donated -- I'm paying a consignment cost on. But honestly, those are coming out of different parts of their budget anyway. People's discretionary income and vacation income -- they're going to go on vacation and spend money to do it. And if they love your organization, they're going to donate to that as well. So keep that in mind. But I do think it's interesting to do the paddle raise first and capture those people, then do the live auction. And here's why: you're going to have a much smaller audience for your live auction. Let's be honest -- not everybody's going to participate in it. A lot of people who have zero desire to spend thousands of dollars in the live auction, you're asking them to sit there for 15, 20, 30 minutes or longer, even if it's entertaining, to get to the paddle raise. Then you close your paddle raise, and I do think you close your silent auction late. The reason is that people do leave. If you close the silent auction after you've done your live and your appeals, the people that want to leave and don't want to participate in the live -- you've got all that stuff ready for them and they can check out early, even if the silent isn't done. And then for someone who didn't win something in the live, have that auctioneer go back into another quick ask. "If there was something in the live that you were hoping to win and you didn't get a chance -- go into your mobile bidding app and make a donation, or if you'd like to pledge a donation right now, we'll take it." There are a variety of ways they can either ask at a level or just have people come up to them. You can hand out donation cards. So that's kind of the play I like. Going back through: you're eating, doing your thing, then you do your short program, then you do your paddle raise, then you do your live, and at the end of your live, you close silent with it.

Lori: Anyway, so there was his long answer. I like that perspective.

Kristen: I don't know if he's right.

Jeff: It's a good point. You decide. You decide. I think one of the things to consider, too: a lot of the events I'm working now, we have big concerts, big speakers coming. Those, in my opinion, should be at the end. No matter what, the big entertainment should be at the very end. And whether you close your silent auction before you have the speaker or before you have the concert, at that point, let's close out the silent. No one's leaving. They're all going to want to watch the concert. And that actually works pretty well.

Lori: Yeah, I prefer that. And then if you want to leave early, it's okay. You have a checkout team that's there. They're missing out on the concert, or hopefully not a speaker because that's a little strange, but a concert -- they can leave whenever they want.

Jeff: And then you can have your after party. Or the concert is your after party. It could be. If you're having a concert but you don't want to spend lots of money on a national band, there are options. The people that have been the face of the fundraising and the volunteers -- they're all just enjoying themselves. They go right out to the dance floor, start dancing and partying, because people love that. They love seeing the people who are really involved in the fundraising let loose a little bit and have some fun.

Lori: Okay, well, here's some other things that I love about after parties. I would do it in a different spot. I'm just taking the after party to a new level, so if your budget doesn't account for this, that's fine. But put it in a new -- same area, same building -- like, say you're in a hotel, maybe it's in a different room. Maybe you brought in a new entertainer, maybe there's a DJ in there. And then I think you serve pizza.

Kristen: I was just about to say that. Some of these -- I had Chick-fil-A at one of mine.

Lori: Yes, Chick-fil-A! Oh, they just had a big thing of Chick-fil-A that they rolled in.

Kristen: So good. And they got it donated. People love that stuff at the end of the night.

Jeff: Oh, yeah. They love it. And who's to say your after party can't be an extension of your VIP? It could be. It could be your VIP thing, something to treat them special -- if they want to stay late.

Kristen: Yeah, I guess you could even make it part of your ticket package. And then you could sell tickets to your after party at your event for those people who didn't buy them the first time.

Lori: We did a surprise after party. It was sort of a surprise -- we knew people knew there's always something at the end after the emotional program. But we did sort of a surprise where we had the curtains up on the stage, and once all the totals were in and the program was over -- it's one of my favorite things ever -- it's called a kabuki drop.

Jeff: And all kinds of things. They started playing a Pink song and everybody was on their feet. It was so much fun.

Kristen: That sounds like fun. That sounds awesome.

Lori: Yeah, I like a kabuki drop.

Jeff: Why weren't we invited to Kristen's events?

Kristen: I don't know. What's up with that?

Jeff: Different podcasts. Good time. So let's talk about a couple of other twists. The one that I want to bring up is working with your auctioneer on the auctioneer's program, and that includes the paddle raise and the live auction. Because you made a very good point -- it takes time to go through live auction items, especially if the auctioneer likes to talk. I've been to a few where it's like a comedy show up there between two auctioneers, and eight minutes in we've gotten through one item. I'm looking over at the client thinking we need to pick this up. So you need to know how many items are going to be in your live auction. And the other thing is there's a popular fundraising tool called a "run around" -- there are various words for it, but I tend to call it a run around. That's where you have a prize and then you typically set a low donation amount like $50 or $100, and you start an ask. The last person standing -- I think that's another name for it -- the last person to donate wins the prize. But you can donate over and over again. They'll say "Bidder 232" and then it's silent and they're like "Going once, going twice," and then another paddle comes up. They're a lot of fun. I will tell you, though, they take a long time.

Lori: A long time.

Jeff: Now, that sounds great -- every 30 seconds that I'm extending this, people are donating, and that is awesome. I'm just warning you, though: when you're looking at your run of show and trying to get everything down to the minute, just know that those things can really stretch out. And if you do them first, those people were maybe just as likely to donate $500 or $600 to you -- they just did it in $100 increments in the attempt to win a prize. So I just want to throw that out there because I've seen that put a twist on things. And you don't have to do all the things. You can be selective. You don't have to do a live auction. You don't have to do a paddle raise. You don't have to do a run around, and a Heads or Tails, and then, I don't know --

Lori: Drawings.

Jeff: Drawings. I was going to say the other word. The R word.

Lori: The R word.

Jeff: I mean, you don't have to do all the things. Really strategize what's going to be best. You know your people the best. You know what they enjoy and what they like. If you're running an auction with 15 items and five people are bidding on them, then all the other people are just sitting there watching five people bid. So maybe try something new, try something different. There are all different ways to raise money at an event. I worked an event that I loved -- they wove auction items in between a dance contest they were running. It was a "Dancing with the Stars" type thing for local celebrities in a big city. In between dances, they auctioned off items. It was so fun, everybody was into it, and it was loud but everybody still participated. It was really cool.

Kristen: So there are local celebrities -- they could auction off the bow tie they wore while dancing. I would be all about that.

Jeff: That's a fun one. For the paddle raise, if you want to recognize donors, you can do that through the paddle raise. You don't have to get them to stand -- sometimes they're not going to want to be recognized -- but you can throw a paddle up in the back and just say, "Thank you, Jim and Sally Smith," or "Thank you, paddle 232." That'll warm the room up too. Paddle raise is an art and you have to be careful with it. It's really awkward to go $20, $10, $5, and have zero people donate. You have to know that stuff.

Lori: Yeah, there are few things more awkward at an event than calling out a number and nobody responds. That will kill your momentum. All the momentum you built up can be destroyed in that moment.

Jeff: So it's not a run-of-show thing, but keep that in mind when you're setting your levels with your auctioneer. Your auctioneer should guide you through that process anyway, if you have an auctioneer. How long do these events typically run?

Lori: Yeah, I would say if you're doing registration at six, it's typical that you're closing your silent at 9 or 9:30, which means everything's kind of done by then. Unless you're doing a really fun after party, people don't want to stay longer than three and a half, four hours, I would think.

Jeff: Right. So that's six to ten. People should be out -- checkout should be at 9:30 to 10 or 10:15 or so -- and people can get in their Ubers and go home. And then there's stuff that you do afterward. I don't tend to put it in my run of show. There's the whole post-event reconciliation, cleaning up, the people that left early and didn't pick up their stuff, the people whose credit cards got declined when they tried to charge $45,000 on it.

Lori: Always send a thank you.

Jeff: Oh, of course. Totally forgot that. Definitely thank your guests. That needs to be part of your process. And not just thanking your guests -- it's worth thanking the donors who donated auction items, your committee who came and helped you run your event, and anybody else that volunteered or participated. And then it's worth wrapping up with every single one of your vendors. It's a good idea to reach back out to your mobile bidding company if you used one and talk about what worked and what didn't work. They want to hear from you. The same goes for your caterer. Walking away without giving feedback doesn't serve anyone, because they're not going to get better if they don't hear from you. A thank-you-slash-feedback stage is a good way to wrap it up -- and probably a good way to wrap up this podcast.

Lori: Yes.

Kristen: Thank you, Jeff.

Jeff: Thank you. It has been a pleasure chatting with you ladies about this, and we hope that you found this information helpful as you're thinking about and planning your next event -- that you think about putting that paddle raise ahead of your live auction. Or not. All right, until next time.