Podcast – Episode 19: Starting the Year Off Right for Your Fundraising Gala
In this episode of Auction Is Action with U in It!, Bobby D. Ehlert shares the five steps every nonprofit should take at the start of the year to set their fundraising gala up for success.
Not themes. Not decor. Not auction items. The foundational decisions that determine whether event night reveals preparation or exposes the lack of it.
If you've ever said "next year we'll plan earlier" or walked off the stage wondering if you left money on the table, this episode is for you.
Key Takeaways
Gala Success Is Decided Months Before Event Night
Event night doesn't create generosity. It reveals how well you prepared for it. Hopes and dreams are not a fundraising strategy.
Set One Clear, Intentional Fundraising Goal
Not "as much as possible." Not "more than last year." A real number tied to real impact. When your goal is connected to who it helps and what it funds, it becomes easier to inspire generosity in the room.
Define the Role of the Gala Before You Plan Anything Else
Is this your biggest fundraiser of the year? A donor acquisition event? Stewardship? Celebration? When one event tries to do everything, the message gets muddy and the results suffer.
Align Leadership in January
Your board should know why the event matters, what success looks like, and exactly how they are expected to support it: hosting tables, making leadership gifts, finding sponsors, and activating their networks. When leadership is aligned early, the room feels different on event night.
Design the Donor Experience, Not Just the Agenda
Most galas plan the program. Few plan the experience. How do you want guests to feel when they arrive? When do they understand the mission? When are they invited to give? Great galas feel collective, not transactional. That feeling is designed, not accidental. Bobby calls it collective effervescence: the energy that makes live events work.
Bring Your Experts in Early
Whether it's your auctioneer, emcee, event consultant, or planner, the earlier they're involved, the more value they can provide. Great partners help you design the program, avoid costly mistakes, and build the golden goosebump moments that move donors to action. Waiting until the last minute always costs you money.
FULL TRANSCRIPT
Bobby D.: Hey there everyone. I am Bobby D, professional fundraising auctioneer, world champion auctioneer, and founder of Call to Auction and your host of the Auction Is Action with You in It podcast. And today we're going to talk about how to start the year off right for your fundraising gala so you're not scrambling, you're not stressing, and you're not leaving money on the table when that event night arrives.
Have you ever said, "Next year we'll plan earlier," or, "I just hope we hit our goal"? Well, this episode's for you.
Now, why does the start of the year matter? Here's a hard truth from hundreds of events that we've conducted. Gala success is decided months before the room ever fills up. Event night doesn't just create generosity. It reveals how well you prepared for it. And when you start the year strong, you gain clarity, you gain alignment, you gain confidence. And when you don't, you rely on hopes and dreams. And hopes and dreams is not a strategy for fundraising success.
So step one: you have to set one clear fundraising goal. Before we talk about themes, before we talk about decor, entertainment, auction items, you need one thing. One number. What is the fundraising goal for your event? Not "as much as possible" or "more than last year." A real number. An intentional number. And when you ask this, what is this money meant to do? Who does it help? What does it fund? What changes because of it? When your goal is tied to impact, it becomes easier to inspire generosity.
Step two: define the role of the gala. Your gala should never exist in isolation. Ask yourself, is this our biggest fundraiser of the year? Is this a donor acquisition event? Is this stewardship? Is this celebration? Is this meant to fund one specific initiative? Too many nonprofits expect one event to do everything. And when that happens, the message gets muddy. When you define the role of the gala early, everything gets easier: the program, the ask, the storytelling, the energy in the room.
Now, quick pause here. If you're listening to this and thinking, "We want to do this right, we don't want to guess," that's exactly why we built Call to Auction. At Call to Auction, we help nonprofits just like you raise more money by designing intentional fundraising events, not just running auctions. We specialize in that wonderful call to action, powerful paddle raise, mission-driven programs, and creating moments that inspire generosity in the room. What we're creating together is collective effervescence, and that's why live events work. Whether you need an experienced fundraising auctioneer, event strategy support, or help maximizing your biggest night of the year, you don't have to figure it out alone. Visit calltoauction.com or reach out to start a conversation.
Now, step three: align leadership early. January is leadership season. It's the time to align your board, your staff, and your planning team. Your board should know why this event matters, what success looks like, and how they are expected to support it. That may include hosting tables, making leadership gifts, helping to find sponsors, inviting key donors, diving into their networks, and utilizing their leadership. When leadership is aligned early, the room is going to feel completely different on event night. People show up prepared. They show up connected. And generosity follows clarity.
Step four: design the donor experience. Most galas plan the agenda. Few plan the experience. Ask yourself: how do you want your guests to feel when they arrive? When do they understand the mission? When are they invited to participate? When are they thanked? And what do they feel as they're leaving? Great galas don't feel transactional. They feel collective. They feel like something meaningful is happening together. And that experience doesn't happen by accident. It happens because it's designed early. What we're doing is designing what I call collective effervescence. This is why live sports work. Why live music works. Why theater works. Humans come together to be part of an experience, and this is the feeling you're trying to create.
Step five: bring your experts in earlier. Whether it's your auctioneer, your emcee, your event consultant, your event partner, your event planner, the earlier you bring these experts in, the more value they can provide. Great partners don't just show up on event night. They help you design and shape the program, design the invite, and help avoid costly mistakes. They help maximize the moments that matter most, what we call the golden goosebump moments, where people are on the edge of their seats, ready to give, ready to participate, ready to take action. Waiting until the last moment always costs you money.
In closing: starting the year off right isn't about perfection. It's about intention. When you plan early, you raise more, you stress less, your donors feel more connected, and your mission wins. If your gala is coming up this year, don't wait for urgency to force those decisions. Start now. Be intentional. Design for generosity.
If this episode was helpful, please share it with your board, your development team, your event committee. And if you want help building a gala that truly performs, you know where to find us.
Thank you so much for listening, and thank you for all the impact you are creating in the world by designing better fundraising events and galas. You're the ones doing the work. You're the ones taking action. You're the ones that have the power in your hand to create these fantastic collective effervescent golden goosebump moments.
Remember: auction is action with you in it, and action starts with intention.
My name is Bobby D, founder, CEO, champion auctioneer with calltoauction.com and your host of the Auction Is Action with You in It podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we will see you next week. Bye everyone. Go out there, change the world.
Ready to Raise More?
At Call to Auction, we specialize in turning galas and fundraising events into mission-driven, revenue-generating experiences. From paddle raises to live auctions, our team knows how to excite donors, engage audiences, and inspire generosity in the moment.