Free Online Fundraising Auctions, Merging Community Involvement with Your Organization.
InCommons Collaboration Challenge
Free Online Fundraising Auctions, Merging Community Involvement with Your Organization.
My collaboration is ongoing and multi-level as I offer a free service to our non-profit clients to better help them raise awareness for their respective causes while increasing funding revenue through our online auction venue. Our collaboration serves to create a new funding source, enabling non-profits to tap the local business community for item donations as opposed to relying solely on monetary contributions from donors. This also serves as a great advertising venue for businesses eager to get their products in front of our affluent registered bidders and put a 'halo' over their brand. Additionally, our online auctions bring the community (bidders) together with the organization. This would not take place with a traditional silent auction as the fundamental component, the online presence, is missing. Additionally our mobile application enables bidders to place bids and receive outbid notifications on their smartphones so the bidding never stops as typically happens at a silent auction, where bidders enjoy dinner, socializing, etc, and don't make it back to the bid sheets. With a smartphone in hand, the bidder places her bid, never having to leave her seat, effectively driving bidding revenue up further than previously possible.
Non-profits are used to paying exorbitant fees for services like this which is the last problem we solve. We allow the non-profit to utilize our services still and keep 100% of the auction item proceeds. Instead of charging the non-profit, we charge and collect a 10% buyer's premium from the winning bidders, as if there was a 10% tax.
About You
About You
First Name
Steve
Last Name
Wasnick
Country
United States, MN, Hennepin County
About Your Organization
Organization
MillCityAuctions.com/WinningCause.org
Organization Website
Organization Phone
612-331-1622
Organization Address
2001 Kennedy St. NE, #175, Minneapolis 55413
Organization Country
United States, MN, Hennepin County
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Your Story
Collaboration Title
Free Online Fundraising Auctions, Merging Community Involvement with Your Organization.
Country your work focuses on
United States, MN
Describe your locally-based collaboration and the problem it sought to address
My collaboration is ongoing and multi-level as I offer a free service to our non-profit clients to better help them raise awareness for their respective causes while increasing funding revenue through our online auction venue. Our collaboration serves to create a new funding source, enabling non-profits to tap the local business community for item donations as opposed to relying solely on monetary contributions from donors. This also serves as a great advertising venue for businesses eager to get their products in front of our affluent registered bidders and put a 'halo' over their brand. Additionally, our online auctions bring the community (bidders) together with the organization. This would not take place with a traditional silent auction as the fundamental component, the online presence, is missing. Additionally our mobile application enables bidders to place bids and receive outbid notifications on their smartphones so the bidding never stops as typically happens at a silent auction, where bidders enjoy dinner, socializing, etc, and don't make it back to the bid sheets. With a smartphone in hand, the bidder places her bid, never having to leave her seat, effectively driving bidding revenue up further than previously possible.
Non-profits are used to paying exorbitant fees for services like this which is the last problem we solve. We allow the non-profit to utilize our services still and keep 100% of the auction item proceeds. Instead of charging the non-profit, we charge and collect a 10% buyer's premium from the winning bidders, as if there was a 10% tax.
Tell us about the community in which this collaboration took place
All of the organizations we've worked with thus far have been in and around the Twin City Metro Area. Our hope is to work with all organizations across the state of Minnesota with any non-profit interested in holding a fundraising auction being a great candidate for our free services.
Issue Selector
n/a
Partnership
Who was involved in co-creating or implementing your collaboration (other organizations, leaders, community members, etc.)?
Special Olympics Minnesota, The Raptor Centor, Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, WCCO Radio, Amplatz Children's Hospital, Foundation IX and our community of registered bidders, many of which have proven to be serial bidders and supporters of every non-profit auction we've hosted, as well as the community at large.
To what extent does your collaboration involve partnerships that are outside or cross traditional organizational or sector boundaries?
100% of our collaboration involves a marriage of the business sector with the non-profit sector. Virtually every auction we conduct involves items donated by businesses which affords the business a tax write-off, very inexpensive advertising which targets an affluent crowd, and puts a great big halo over the business/brand.
Innovation
What makes your locally-based collaboration innovative and unique?
Our online auction company is the only one that combines a free, state of the art, online bidding platform with a free mobile application that enables bidders to support a cause by bidding from their smartphones. This same application reduces workload for sellers, enabling them to use their mobile device to snap pictures of auction items, enter descriptions and instantly upload directly to their online auction (even while their auction is live - last minute!). We also engage the local community to the point that the organization no longer needs to even provide their own bidders. If the organization can solicit good auction inventory, they will have a successful auction utilizing our services. The best part about our services is that although we provide better services than our competitors, the non-profit utilizing our service keeps 100% of the auction item proceeds. Bidders get a great deal and are able to support a great cause, businesses get great advertising and a halo around their brand and the non-profit receives greater exposure and keeps 100% of the auction proceeds. Everybody wins and it's a beautiful thing.
Did you take risks in establishing this collaboration? Explain
Yes, on a personal level, this is my livelihood. I've got everything riding on this venture. Without income, I'm in jeopardy of losing my house, among other things. My wife, Shawn and I have a 6 year old son, Trace who was diagnosed with Aspergers. I must make this work so I can afford the special schooling he needs as well.
How did this collaboration differ from the normal way of doing your work?
Originally, MillCityAuctions.com was to be holding 'for profit' auctions. With a need to get registered bidders came the idea to 'volunteer' our services to non-profits, building our bidder base to later attract 'for profit' clients. This differs in that we now really make a difference in our shared community. I can also now say that I love what I do.
Impact
How do you know your collaboration has been effective?
I know we've been effective because the money we help raise can be quantified. We are also now starting to get repeat business from our non-profit clients. The testimonials from our non-profit clients and our bidding clients further proves our effectiveness. Two of our auctions have been the result of the cancellation of an event where the auction was to take place. Without our services, these non-profits would have likely gone with another auction company, forcing them to give up a large portion of the auction proceeds.
To me, effectiveness equates to a win. I won't enter into any dealings unless each party comes out with a win. Every auction we conduct is a win for everyone involved, thus our name change to WinningCause.org.
What progress or impact has been made?
The impact we make is great. Just one of our competitors conducted a local auction and charged the non-profit organization $15,000 on a $30,000 auction and they only provide a small portion of the services we provide for free. Imagine what impact that extra $15,000 would have on those the non-profit serves. That is an example of our impact, multiplied by every organization we serve.
Next Steps
How would you go about continuing, expanding, or replicating this collaboration?
We would extend our reach and begin advertising. We can only help those that know we exist. It is frustrating to see the myriad of silent auctions being held every week, knowing that through our services, the organization would have gained greater exposure, more bidders and higher bidding revenue, not to mention the reduced burden in terms of time and effort. Effective advertising is our best method to reach out to all non-profits across the state of Minnesota and beyond.
Additionally, our hope is to spin-off a donation solicitation company, leveraging our ever-growing list of affluent bidders as an advertising venue for companies interested in getting their products in front of this demographic. For donated products, we would incorporate advertising and links back to the donor company. These same donated products would be added to each organization's auction with 100% of the proceeds still going to the non-profit, further increasing the money raised. Believe it or not, even with a free service, it can be difficult to attract clients. If we can provide free items (free money), it should help our cause!
Describe the current stage of implementation and desired next steps
Currently, we have a fully functional online auction website which has serviced a number of non-profit organizations. We are currently building a brand new website which will be live within the next few weeks. Additionally, with this new website, we will integrate our first generation of web application which will function across most smartphones. We are also now beginning the process of building a mobile application that will span across all platforms and work on all smartphones. This is key to ending auctions at an event which is quite common, enabling bidders to bid from their smartphones, competing in real time with those bidding from home or work and eliminating the many inefficiencies of silent, pen/paper bidding auctions.
We have also been chosen as one of only four businesses from a national pool to compete in a contest called Second Chance sponsored by Sprint and Microsoft. This was filmed for a web series which begins 10/25 on BusinessOnMain.com, running through 12/6 at which time voting opens to the public to choose their favorite entrepreneur/business. Then, the top 2 contestants will be flown back to NYC to pitch their businesses to the entire division of New York Angel Investors on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. They have also set me up with a mentor, Josh Kopelman, founder of Half.com which he sold to eBay for $350 Million. My hope is to meet with Josh and with his guidance, bring our socially responsible start up to a national audience of non-profit organizations, both making and saving these organizations millions of dollars per year.
| 135 weeks ago Steve Wasnick updated this Competition Entry. | |
| 135 weeks ago Steve Wasnick updated this Competition Entry. | |
| 135 weeks ago Steve Wasnick updated this Competition Entry. | |
| 135 weeks ago Steve Wasnick updated this Competition Entry. | |
| 135 weeks ago Steve Wasnick submitted this idea. |
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