Ella Jacques, Author at Givergy

Sealed Bidding

Posted on November 11, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

Sealed bidding could be the answer to your fundraising prayers!

This method involves only showing the number of bids placed on an item, as opposed to the highest bid, helping to increase audience participation and encourage competitive bidding.

Throughout the auction our system will display the number of bids received on an item, but bidders won’t be aware who the highest bidder is. The idea is that bidder’s are encouraged to place their best bid first, however when a guest sees a lot of interest in an item they have also bid on, it encourages them to ‘up’ their bid, which they can do as many times as they want to!

Sealed bidding is particularly powerful when you have access to several of the same auction item (which is always the case when you include items from Givergy). Through a fully transparent and ethical process, we’re able to easily sell the same item to, for example, the top three bidders at the end of the event, meaning that your charity profit is instantly tripled. We are very upfront in our visuals that we may sell to the top X bidders if multiple items are available. We also recommend adding a sentence to the item description to be fully transparent.

We add visuals to the website, tablet and leaderboard to help explain to your guests how sealed bidding works, and recommend that your MC/host explains this at the start of the event. If you have booked an onside team, they will also explain sealed bidding to guests when they conduct table welcomes.

Why does sealed bidding raise more?

Our results show that guests participation increases by 9% when using sealed bidding at your event.
On average the charity profit is increased by up to 166% when using sealed bidding on your event.
When using sealed bidding and standard incremental bidding at the same event, items sold via sealed bidding raise 11% more than items sold via standard incremental bidding.

Example Media Page we will add to tablets and fundraising websites:

Selecting and briefing your auctioneer

Posted on November 11, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

Choosing the right auctioneer is paramount to the success of your auction. If an auctioneer is entertaining and charismatic, he or she will keep the crowd’s attention and transform a silent room into a hive of bidding activity. If you haven’t worked with an auctioneer before, we can recommend one for your event.

If your budget permits, avoid the temptation of using a board member or staff member as the auctioneer to cut costs. A good auctioneer could be the difference between raising £10,000 and £50,000, so even if there is an initial cost involved, the right person will pay for themselves in the money they raise for you. However, it is still important to do your research. Ask your potential auctioneers if they have any recordings of their work they can share and make sure you select someone whose style is tailored to your event.

Ahead of the event, your auctioneer needs:

A fact file with key points about each item.
A list of correct reserves so he/she does not undersell.
A list of any items that can be multi-sold.
A brief on any high net worth individuals or VIP tables so he/she knows where bids may be coming from.

Your Givergy event manager will brief with your auctioneer prior to the event to ensure everything is clear. As part of this, it helps to introduce volunteers and spotters to your auctioneer so that he/she knows they are there to assist and point.
Getting the auctioneer to say “Sold!” and the table number can eliminate missed bids and direct the spotter to the winner.

How to best utilise your MC for your silent auction

The best way to order your auction items

Posted on October 11, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

In our experience it’s always best to mix up your items and not group them together by type – This will deter people to carry on looking through the list if they aren’t interested in that category. This way people are encouraged to look through all the items and we find they end up bidding on something they weren’t initially looking for.

You want to make your items feel attainable to a wide audience, so think about having a mixed distribution of prices – you don’t want to have all of your high or low-priced items at the end of
the page.

If you are worried about having a long list, to make things easier for potential bidders, you have the option to assign your items to categories. People can then search the category menu to easily navigate around the auction if they’re looking for a specific item.

Ella’s Journey – Less Than 2 Weeks To Go

Posted on September 22, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

The London Marathon is less than two weeks away and I cannot believe how fast it has come around! The butterflies have begun that’s for sure, but I guess being nervous shows how much I care about this. I have given training my all, it has already been the biggest challenge of my life, but I don’t think I could have done any more so I’m feeling ready! I’m very excited to learn of the difference my fundraising has made, that has kept me going and will hopefully get me all the way to the finish line.

Having only got a place 10 weeks ago, I’m pretty proud of myself. If you had asked me a few months ago if you think I would have completed 20 miles just over 2 months later, I would have laughed. I have enjoyed seeing my fitness improve that’s for sure (and the guilt free carbs!), I am just sorry to my poor knees. I underestimated the pain I would be in 2 weeks out, but it’s now time to rest up ready for the big day!

Missing People provide specialist support to people who are or at risk of missing, and the families and friends left behind.

If you need to talk to missing people, you can call or text 116 000.

Further information on Missing People can be found on their website, https://www.missingpeople.org.uk

There is still time to donate and if you wish to do so, you can find Ella’s fundraising page here.

9 Top Tips for Successful Mobile Fundraising Events

Posted on August 13, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

As we emerge from 16 months of lockdowns and distancing, Givergy’s ambition is to ensure that each and every client sees a seamless and successful return to live events. Part of this means helping fundraisers understand one of the most powerful, yet underused tools at their disposal – smartphone fundraising – including all the benefits it offers over older, tablet-based set-ups.

To learn more about how our smartphone fundraising platform can help take your next event or online campaign to another level, feel free to get in touch and schedule a call with one of our expert fundraising consultants.

In the meantime, here are 9 Top Tips for smartphone fundraising at in-person charity events.

Pre-event

Make sure your chosen venue has strong signal / WIFI

For guests to access the fundraising site, your venue needs a strong mobile signal. The Givergy team will send you tools to test the mobile signal and provide alternative recommendations, such as venue WIFI, if the signal is not strong. It is also a great idea to remind guests in your pre-event materials to bring their phones to participate this time around.

Pre-registering

Registering at the event is quick and easy, but we always encourage pre-event registration. Givergy has a great ticketing platform, so you can sell tickets through the same site allowing everyone to be registered and ready to go for fundraising during the event. This can make a huge difference when it comes to your fund-a-need appeal and processing final payments.

Open the auction in advance

Another way to generate fundraising revenue before your event even begins is to open your auction in advance. Givergy’s mobile bidding solution makes it easy for your supporters to start bidding at home and continue the activity throughout the event. We recommend opening the auction approximately seven days prior to the event.

Make use of outside bidders

As all of your fundraising is through a website, extend your audience by promoting your site further than event attendees. Take a look at a great article on promoting your fundraising site on social media here.

During event

URL & QR code

It’s extremely important for guests to understand how to access the fundraising site. We recommend having the URL on the screens around the room as well as QR codes printed on tables for easy access to the site.

Fundraising host

In the opening speech by your fundraising host, make sure they promote the site and how to access it by pointing out the URL on the screens as well as the QR codes. This needs to be continuously pushed throughout the night.

Fundraising leaderboards

Make use of the Givergy Leaderboard options to display on your screens around the room. We can also include the event URL at the top of these screens for an extra push. This will draw guest’s attention to what is available in the auction, ultimately drawing them to the fundraising site. During your pledge appeal, we have various totalisers available so speak to our team to make sure you are utilising those in the best way for your audience.

Guest messaging

The Givergy system will send automatic registration and outbid notifications to guests to ensure they have easy access to auction items of interest. Through the system we can also send notifications to your guests to keep them interested. We recommend countdown notifications to the end of the auction / prize draw to ensure you have a big focused finished with guest’s full attention on placing their last bids or purchasing their final tickets. We also recommend a pre fund-a-need appeal message, so all guests are only one click away from making a donation.

Quick and easy payment solution

Collecting your guests’ payments couldn’t be easier with our mobile platform! All pledge and prize draw tickets can be taken straight away, and with our pre-authorisation feature, we will have the winning bidders card details already stored so can simply charge them at the close of the auction. Don’t forget, we also have an option for guests to cover the payment processing fee to ensure greater charity profit.

We firmly believe that our smartphone fundraising platform represents the future for in-person fundraising events, and we’d love to take you on that journey with us.

For more information or any questions, please do get in touch.

Pre-authorisation

Posted on August 11, 2021August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

For online only campaigns, we can use our Pre-Authorisation service.

Note, this method is not available for clients using tablets at events – it is only available for online campaigns.

If you would like to find out about our full payment collection service available to Premium clients, follow this article: How does Givergy collect payment?

What is pre-authorisation?
Pre-Authorisation is a payment method whereby all bidders would be required to register their card details on the Givergy system at the point of of registering.
Their card details are then stored securely on the Givergy system (within Stripe) until the end of the auction, when their cards can then be charged should they win an item.

Note, the Givergy website does make it very clear that no money will be charged unless they are the winning bidder.

How to charge guests card’s post-campaign?
Firstly, you need to sell the auction items. Follow this article to find out how: How to sell your auction items
Once your items are sold, to charge the winning bidders cards follow the below steps:

Login to the Campaign Management System and select your event. How to log into the CMS?
From the tabs in the left menu, select payments > guests
You will see the final column titled ‘card’ – if this is ticked, it means we have the card on file. If you had pre-auth on from the beginning of your campaign this will be ticked for all bidders.
In the first column you will see you can tick the small box next to each guest name. This will select the guests you wish to charge. To select all guests, tick the box next to ‘select’ at the top.
Once everyone is selected, hit charge. You will see the payment status of guests go from ‘not paid’ to ‘paid’. This will send the ‘payment thank you’ SMS & Email to everyone.

Please note:

Some guest’s payments may be unsuccessful, if this is the case their status will remain as ‘unpaid’. The most common reason for this is the bank rejected the payment. We suggest you contact the guest to explain payment did not process. Wait 24 hours before attempting to charge the card again, otherwise you risk doubling up.

Introducing your volunteers to the Givergy service

Posted on July 11, 2021September 17, 2025 by Ella Jacques

Volunteers contribute to the event running smoothly as a whole and we recognise that getting them on board with the different fundraising activities is key to enhancing guests’ experience and increasing bidding activity. If you have volunteers available at your event, Givergy will work with them to help guests use the bidding system.

If you have many volunteers, consider sharing our online course with them. This will teach them the basics so you have more support at your event – reach out to our support team or your CSM to get your volunteers enrolled on our course.

Ask your Givergy event manager to take part in the volunteer briefing in order to:

Give a demo on how the tablet system works.
Run through the live auction if the volunteers & Givergy team will be spotting – you can’t over prepare for your live auction!
Discuss how payments will be collected and items given out, if applicable.

How does Givergy manage Gift Aid

Posted on May 11, 2021September 17, 2025 by Ella Jacques

In the UK, Gift Aid is important to many charities as the government will support in donating an extra 25% of any donation made, if the guest agrees to allow the charity to claim it.

If enabled, when a guest registers on the fundraising website or tablet, it will ask them if they would like to add Gift Aid to their donation. If they tick this box, they will the be required to complete the first line of their address and postcode.

The following copy is displayed to guests – should you wish to update this please chat with our support team.

If you are a UK tax payer and want to claim Gift Aid on any donation or eligible bid you make, tick here and complete your details below. For more info click here.

Gift Aid Declaration
Boost your donation by 25p of Gift Aid for every £1 you donate.
Gift Aid is reclaimed by the charity from the tax you pay for the current tax year. Your address is needed to identify you as a current UK taxpayer.
In order to Gift Aid your donation you must tick the box on the Register page. By doing so, you agree that you are a UK taxpayer and understand that if you pay less Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all your donations it is your responsibility to pay any difference.
Please notify the charity if you:- want to cancel your declaration- change your name or home address- no longer pay sufficient tax on your income and/or capital gains
If you pay Income Tax at the higher or additional rate and want to receive the additional tax relief due to you, you must include all your Gift Aid donations on your Self-Assessment tax return or ask HM Revenue and Customs to adjust your tax code.

Post-event, you will be able to download all of this information into a report for you to work with HMRC to claim the Gift Aid.

Always consider

It is your responsibility to make the claim for Gift Aid with HMRC. Givergy is not responsible or liable for this.

Creating the Run of Show for your Virtual Event

Posted on April 11, 2021September 17, 2025 by Ella Jacques

Our recommendation for your Virtual Run of Show is as follows:

• Start by welcoming your guests and providing information on how the event will work. Be sure to mention the fundraising website and encourage them to register if they have not already done so.
• Next, show content to demonstrate the importance of your organization and mission. This is your opportunity to set the tone before fundraising begins.
• Remind your guests they can bid on auction items throughout the event and mention the auction close time. You could have a dedicated moment to celebrate some ‘star items’ within the silent auction to give these a little push.
• Include your most emotive piece prior to your biggest fundraising moment.
• Host a pledge moment / fund a need, this is a key element of any successful fundraising event.
• Don’t be afraid to have a little fun! While your mission is serious, your guests want to have a good time. Inject humour where you can and provide entertainment.
• Save entertainment towards the end! It is important to focus on fundraising while your audience is most engaged.
• And then end with your outro video, this is often a video with scrolling credits.

Two very important elements to consider it the time to host your event and the length of your event. We have found the best time is between 7-8pm. It’s not like a live event where people have childcare etc and they are unlikely to stay up very late. Some people will watch this on their TV for all their family to enjoy, so this is the perfect after dinner time for all the family to watch.

Keep it short! Think of your event as a Netflix show, 45 minutes is the sweet spot to keep guests engaged from start to finish. Anything much later than that, we find a drop of guests as they begin to get fatigued. I have been on many virtual events and 45 mins in and they still haven’t asked to give a single £ so I really encourage you to introduce your fundraising from the start.

Your Client Service Manager (CSM) will share a working project plan once booked with us. At the end of this you will see our example Run of Show. Take a look at our tips for creating this below:

Layouts for content

Your content will all be displayed in the large box on your website. Within this box, we can be flexible on the layout. The main content will fill this area and we can then overlay secondary content over this, ie. the live as the main content and a totaliser overlaid in the bottom left, or the leaderboard as the main content and the live host bottom right. The Production Specialist will overlay the content in the most suitable place. See screenshots below:

Perfect Your Guest Experience With Our New Ticketing System

Posted on January 22, 2020August 29, 2025 by Ella Jacques

We have been working tirelessly the last few months to complete an update to our ticketing system that will not only streamline your fundraising process from start to finish, but ensure your guest experience is flawless, ultimately helping to raise more for your cause!

Continue reading “Perfect Your Guest Experience With Our New Ticketing System”