Auction Games

Jazz up Your Event With Auction Games

Adding auction games to a charity auction can be a fun and interactive way to engage attendees and raise funds for the cause. By adding auction games to the evening, attendees are more likely to stay longer and bid more often.

How Auction Games Engage Your Guests

1. Increases excitement: Auction games can add a new level of excitement and entertainment to the event. They keep attendees engaged and entertained.
2. Increases participation: Auction games can encourage more people to participate in the auction. Moreover, they may feel more comfortable bidding on items if they are having fun.
3. Creates friendly competition: Auction games can foster friendly competition among attendees. Therefore, making the event more enjoyable and encouraging them to bid higher.
4. Raises more money: Auction games help to raise more money for the charity because they encourage more people to participate.
5. Differentiates the event: Including auction games can set your charity auction apart from others. Because it becomes a more memorable and unique experience for attendees.

Conclusion

Incorporating auction games into your next fundraising event can be an excellent way to engage guests. Moreover, they create an interactive and enjoyable atmosphere. With their ability to promote social interaction and friendly competition, auction games are an excellent addition to your charity auction. Moreover, they can spice up your silent auction and complement a live auction too. By considering the interests of your guests, you can therefore select the right auction games. You then create a memorable and engaging experience for everyone involved.

Heads or Tails Game

A heads or tails game is a simple and fun auction game used to raise money. Attendees purchase a ticket to play the game and are given a necklace or other such token to indicate their participation. To play, the host will ask players to stand up and choose whether they want to play “heads” or “tails.” Players can indicate their choice by placing their hands on their head for “heads” or their backside for “tails.” Once all players have made their choice, the host will flip a coin and call out the result. Players who chose the correct side, either “heads” or “tails,” remain in the game. Meanwhile those who chose incorrectly are eliminated. The game continues with another coin flip, and the process repeats until only one player remains. The last remaining player is declared the winner and receives the prize.

Other Game-Like Activities

There are numerous other games like activities that you can incorporate into your fundraising auction. While they are not games per se, they are nevertheless fun activities. And, they are sure to capture the attention of your guests and increase their engagement in the auction.

Raffle Style Games

• Prize Draw: A prize draw is a raffle-style auction game where attendees purchase tickets for a chance to win a prize. Local businesses donate items or experiences for the raffle. Basically, items such as a dinner at a local restaurant or tickets to a sporting event work well. It is easy to run this game and is a fun way to get attendees involved in the event.
• Basket Raffle: This popular auction game involves attendees purchasing tickets for a chance to win a basket filled with themed items. Consider items such as a “spa day” basket or a “gourmet food” basket. Attendees are eager to participate in this game. And it can also be a fun way to showcase donated items.
• 50/50 Raffle: A 50/50 raffle is another raffle-style auction game. Half of the money raised goes to a winner, and the other half goes to the cause. Attendees purchase tickets for the game. The auctioneer randomly draws a winner from a raffle barrel. This is a fun game and attendees are eager to get involved. The prize money can be substantial if the raffle is well-supported.
• Deck of Cards: Sell 52 chances to win a valuable prize. The purchaser tears the card in half. The purchaser keeps one half and places the other half in a raffle basket. Half way through the live auction, stop the bidding action to draw the winner. A variation of the game is to ask all 52 participants to stand at the start of the game. Players then sit when their card is drawn. The last person standing wins the prize.

Active Participation Games

• Scavenger Hunt: Create a scavenger hunt with clues leading participants to different locations within the event space. Award prizes for the first team to complete the hunt.
• Murder Mystery: Host a murder mystery game with participants acting out different roles and solving a “murder”. Grant prizes to the team who correctly solves the mystery.
• Treasure Chest: Hide a valuable item inside a locked chest. Promote the item so that guests know the value of the prize. Sell keys to the lock. Set aside a time before the live auction for guests who purchased keys can come forward to try the lock.

Bidding Games

• Reverse Auction: In this game, attendees bid on items in the opposite way that they would in a traditional auction. Instead of starting with a low price and increasing, the starting price is high and decreases over time. The first person to accept the current price wins the item. This game can be a fun and fast-paced way to auction off items and create excitement among attendees.
• Paddle Raise: A paddle raise is a type of live auction where attendees are asked to raise their paddles to indicate their support for a specific cause or item. The auctioneer then calls out increasing donation amounts, and attendees who are willing to pledge that amount raise their paddles. This game is a fun way to encourage attendees. A variation of this game is to start at a low dollar amount and all participating paddles up in the air at the start. Ask donors “drop out” at their donation threshold with the last paddle in the air winning a prize.

Just be sure to clearly communicate the rules of each game to attendees. And have a plan in place for tracking bids and determining winners.

By incorporating these games into your live auction, you can create a fun and engaging experience for attendees. Moreover, you’ll be raising money for a good cause. Just be sure to clearly communicate the rules of each game to attendees. And have a plan in place for tracking bids and determining winners.