Share this article
As you begin planning your silent auction, you may think you have everything you need: you’ve procured enticing items, set up a simple bidding system, and printed invitations to send out for your event. However, to maximize your event’s success, it’s important to take additional steps to streamline your planning process and event execution.
To implement these additional steps, you’ll need access to the best silent auction software for your event. With the right suite of tools, your nonprofit can make your next silent auction a success.
Here’s a list of solutions to help you determine the tools and software your nonprofit may benefit from:
- Qgiv by Bloomerang | Best overall silent auction software for nonprofits
- Fun Team Events | Best software for entertainment activities
- Double the Donation | Best software for gift matching
- Gratavid | Best software for thank-you videos
- DonorSearch | Best software for donor research
- TrueGivers | Best software for data stewardship
- Mailchimp | Top software for multichannel marketing
- Constant Contact | Top software for email marketing
- Buffer | Best software for social media management
- Winspire | Best auction software for item procurement
- Handbid | Silent auction software with livestreaming
- OneCause | Silent auction software with scoreboards
- Snowball Fundraising | Silent auction software with text-to-bid
- Silent Auction Pro | Silent auction auction platform with auction games
- ReadySetAuction | Silent auction software with bidding valets
- Clickbid | Silent auction software with virtual paddle bidding
- Auctria | Silent auction software for small events
- Accelevents | Silent auction software for unrepeated auctions
Qgiv by Bloomerang | Best overall silent auction software for nonprofits
Bloomerang and Qgiv together provide a powerful combination for nonprofits looking to optimize their silent auctions and manage donor relationships effectively. By integrating Qgiv’s silent auction features with Bloomerang’s robust donor and volunteer management tools, you can create a seamless fundraising experience that maximizes both donor engagement and auction revenue. Qgiv streamlines the auction process with its intuitive platform and mobile bidding app, while Bloomerang provides deep insights into donor behavior and engagement, helping to enhance overall fundraising strategies.
Qgiv by Bloomerang includes top features, such as:
- Easy Event Setup and Guest Registration: Simplify event preparation and registration.
- In-App and Web-Based Check-In/Checkout: Streamline check-in and checkout processes.
- Real-Time Bidding and Outbid Notifications: Keep bidders engaged with live updates and alerts.
- Maximum Bid Settings: Manage bid limits effectively.
- Fully Integrated Event Management: Handle multi-guest ticketing and other logistics.
- Easy Item Setup: Quickly add auction items and manage options.
- Fund-a-Need, Raffle, and “Buy Now” Options: Provide multiple ways for guests to contribute.
- On- and Off-Site Bidding: Enable participation from anywhere.
- Data Reporting and Smart Reports: Access detailed performance insights and donor analytics.
- Generosity Scores and Donor Timelines: Understand donor behavior and track engagement.
What we love about Qgiv by Bloomerang
Combining Bloomerang and Qgiv allows for a comprehensive approach to fundraising. Qgiv’s auction tools make it easy to run an engaging and efficient auction, while Bloomerang’s CRM and engagement metrics provide valuable insights into donor behavior. This integration ensures a more informed strategy for both managing events and nurturing donor relationships, leading to increased support and revenue for your organization.
Pricing
Qgiv’s silent auction software costs $259 per month or $687 per quarter plus processing and other transaction fees.
Fun Team Events | Best software for entertainment activities
Fun Team Events combines entertainment and philanthropy to provide a unique and enjoyable way for your donors to support your cause. The platform hosts a variety of customizable virtual activities, such as trivia nights, game shows, and interactive challenges, designed to foster team spirit and encourage active participation. This software uses technology to seamlessly connect you to your virtual auction attendees, creating an event that transcends geographical boundaries.
What we love about Fun Team Events
Fun Team Events not only help you raise funds, but it also helps strengthen relationships among your community. The platform is also user-friendly, allowing your team to easily set up and manage event activities while providing a seamless experience. This is an innovative solution to add some excitement to your online fundraising auction event.
Pricing
Contact Fun Team Events for more pricing details.
Double the Donation | Best software for gift matching
Double the Donation is a leading provider of matching gift and volunteer grant solutions. Their comprehensive database lists thousands of companies that your donors can search for. With Double the Donation’s matching gift solution, your donors can search for their company, view the guidelines for submitting a match request, and easily submit their match request and see it through to completion.
Incorporating a matching gift tool into your auction allows guests who make additional donations during your event to submit their donations for a match through their companies. Double your donations during your auction and increase your revenue without extra solicitation.
What we love about Double the Donation
It’s easy to overlook matching gifts while planning your auction event. Double the Donation’s database makes it easy for donors to look up their companies and submit their match requests. Simply embed the matching gift search tool into your organization’s website and direct your auction guests to the appropriate page so they can look up their company.
Pricing
Double the Donation plans start at $999 per year.
Gratavid | Best software for thank-you videos
Gratavid is a leading platform for creating and sending personalized video messages to donors. Their software enables you to enhance donor engagement by crafting customized thank-you videos that can be sent directly to your supporters. With Gratavid’s user-friendly tools, organizations can easily record, edit, and distribute video messages, creating a personal touch that strengthens donor relationships and encourages continued support.
What we love about Gratavid
Gratavid’s platform simplifies the process of creating and sending personalized video messages, making it easy for your organization to enhance its donor relations. The ability to quickly generate and distribute heartfelt video thank-yous ensures that each donor receives a unique and memorable acknowledgment and can significantly increase engagement and support. Plus, it can be integrated with Bloomerang to automatically remind you to record a video for your donor once a donation is made.
Pricing
Contact Gratavid for pricing.
DonorSearch | Best software for donor research
DonorSearch provides software for advanced donor prospect research and analytics tools. Their platform offers comprehensive data on potential high-value donors–including wealth indicators, philanthropic history, and giving capacity. With DonorSearch’s solutions, your nonprofit can identify and engage with prospective major donors more effectively, utilizing in-depth profiles and insights to tailor their outreach and fundraising strategies.
What we love about DonorSearch
DonorSearch’s robust data and advanced analytics provide a strategic advantage for identifying and engaging high-value prospects. The platform is easy to use and offers comprehensive profiles that simplify the process of researching potential donors, making it easier to personalize your approach and maximize your fundraising efforts. It also has a built-in integration with Bloomerang, so you see valuable insights on donors all in place.
Pricing
Contact DonorSearch for pricing.
TrueGivers | Best software for data stewardship
TrueGivers offers data on donor insights and engagement and is designed to enhance your nonprofit’s ability to build meaningful relationships with supporters. Their software provides valuable data on donor behaviors, preferences, and engagement metrics, enabling you to tailor outreach strategies and optimize fundraising efforts. With TrueGivers, you gain access to comprehensive donor profiles and analytics that help identify trends and opportunities for deeper engagement.
What we love about TrueGivers
TrueGivers’ platform offers powerful analytics and engagement tools that make it easy to understand and connect with your donors. The detailed donor profiles and engagement metrics enable you to craft more personalized and effective outreach strategies, enhancing your overall fundraising success. Plus, with the built-in Bloomerang integration, your donor data can be scanned nightly for the most up-to-date database!
Pricing
Contact TrueGivers for pricing information.
Mailchimp | Top software for multi-channel marketing
Mailchimp is an all-in-one marketing platform that can help you build your nonprofit’s brand and find your supporters. This software helps you gather all of your audience data, keep all of your assets in one place, create integrated campaigns across all channels, and analyze your audience engagement so you can market better with each campaign. Target supporters who would be most likely to show interest in your auction event and ensure they receive all the information they need.
What we love about Mailchimp
Mailchimp helps you collect data about your donors and turn those insights into action. Learn what your audience likes and create a conversation with them from an all-in-one platform. Promote your auction across email, social media, landing pages, postcards, and more with Mailchimp.
Pricing
Mailchimp has multiple monthly pricing plans depending on features and the number of contacts, including a free plan to get you started.
Constant Contact | Top software for email marketing
Constant Contact is an email marketing software with 100+ mobile-optimized, customizable email templates that can help build your brand and stand out from the crowd. Constant Contact’s top features include email marketing with templates, marketing automation, eCommerce, Google ads, and Meta ads. Stand out from the sea of emails and build your brand using this marketing software.
What we love about Constant Contact
Constant Contact offers more than 100 beautifully designed email templates for your nonprofit to use. You can easily edit and customize each one and use it for whatever you want, whenever you want. Each template is mobile responsive and offers the flexibility you need as you create your content.
Pricing
Constant Contact pricing plans start at $12 per month.
Buffer | Best software for social media management
Buffer is a social media management system that helps you to draft your posts, coordinate with your team, and plan your social media marketing campaigns, all within one platform. You can use this software solution to further market your silent auction event by easily planning your content using scheduling tools, managing access to each social account, and building your brand to drive conversions. Drive traffic to your event registration from your social media pages and analyze the performance of your content to see where you can improve and grow your engagement levels.
What we love about Buffer
Buffer’s platform is highly collaborative. Drafting posts and sharing feedback allows you to refine content as a team. Review your posts to ensure they’re of the highest quality and adhere to your brand standards before publishing on your preset schedule. This helps you make sure you’re posting live from your auction event to keep your at-home supporters up to date!
Pricing
Buffer’s pricing plans range from a free plan to $120 per month based on your nonprofit’s needs.
Winspire | Best software for item procurement
Winspire’s unique platform offers a diverse range of travel and experience packages for fundraising auction events. This software provides your nonprofit with high-quality auction items, such as luxury vacations, exclusive experiences, and memorabilia, to be featured in fundraising events. Winspire’s process involves selecting desired packages, promoting them during events, and, upon winning bids, your winners can redeem their experiences. This platform ensures that each package is curated to captivate your donors and boost fundraising efforts.
What we love about Winspire
Winspire integrates with various fundraising formats, including live and silent auctions, providing flexibility for your organization. This software’s innovative approach can help you elevate your silent auction prizes by offering enticing experiences that motivate your attendees to bid generously. Plus, you add your selected packages directly with Qgiv’s auction platform!
Pricing
Winspire only requires payment for experiences that have been won, so pricing depends entirely on the experience you choose.
Handbid | Silent auction software with livestreaming
Handbid provides software for mobile auction and fundraising solutions. Their platform offers an easy-to-use experience for managing and executing auctions via mobile devices. Handbid’s technology allows organizations to host live and silent auctions, track bids in real-time, and engage bidders through their smartphones with livestreaming options.
Pricing
Handbid’s pricing starts at $1,396 plus processing fees.
OneCause | Silent auction software with auction scoreboards
OneCause is a silent auction software provider that offers a suite of tools designed to enhance the efficiency of your auction events, including mobile bidding, live auction management, silent auction, and auction scoreboard features. With OneCause, you can manage event operations, engage bidders through interactive features, and boost revenue through mobile and online experiences.
Pricing
Contact OneCause for pricing.
Snowball Fundraising | Silent auction software with text-to-bid
Snowball Fundraising is a top solution for managing and executing online auctions. Their platform offers a suite of tools designed to streamline the auction process, including item cataloging, text-to-bid, and real-time bid tracking. With Snowball Fundraising, your organization can set up and run online auctions with a user-friendly interface.
Pricing
Snowball Fundraising’s pricing for auction starts at $849 per year plus fees.
Silent Auction Pro | Silent auction software with auction games
Silent Auction Pro is a software solution for organizing and managing silent auctions. Their platform offers a range of features including online auction management, bid tracking, and auction games, such as 50/50 and Heads or Tails. Silent Auction Pro can help you set up and run silent auctions while allowing you to focus on engaging your bidders. With their user-friendly interface, you can streamline auction logistics and add engaging features to your auction.
Pricing
Silent Auction Pro’s pricing starts at $449 per year, plus 2.0% of event proceeds.
ReadySetAuction | Silent auction with bidding valets
ReadySetAuction helps simplify the auction process for managing everything from item procurement to bidding to checkout. Bidders can automate their bidding experience with the Otto-Assisted Bidding Robot or use a volunteer bidding valet through proxy eBidding for a unique auction experience. ReadySetAuction also offers an eCatalog Access Period for pre- and post-bidding options. While ReadySetAuction provides mobile-optimized event pages for mobile bidding, it doesn’t offer a silent auction app.
Pricing
ReadySetAuction pricing plans start at $1,099 per year.
ClickBid | Silent auction software with virtual paddle bidding
ClickBid is a silent auction platform that provides item listing, bidding, and donation management options. The software utilizes mobile bidding, real-time notifications, and automated checkout for a convenient auction experience. It also offers virtual paddle bidding for live auctions to streamline the paddle raising auction experience. While the nonprofit auction software offers mobile-friendly auction catalogs, it doesn’t provide a silent auction app.
Pricing
ClickBid pricing plans start at $795 per year.
Auctria | Silent auction software for smaller events
Auctria is a fundraising auction software tailored specifically for auctions and features item listings, donor management, mobile bidding, and customizable auction websites. This silent auction software offers robust reporting and analytics to provide insights for strategic decision-making and integrations with payment gateways and third-party platforms for easy checkout. Auctria provides three ways to bid: through a website, through their silent auction app, and through text messaging.
Pricing
Auctria pricing plans range from free to $700 per year.
Accelevents | Silent auction software for unrepeated events
Accelevents is a silent auction software that facilitates various fundraising formats, including auctions, raffles, and virtual events. This platform offers event management solutions with features such as online ticketing, customizable registration forms, and secure payment processing. The software’s virtual capabilities incorporate live streaming, chat functionalities, and other interactive elements for online experiences. Accelevents offers mobile-bidding options through a web platform, their silent auction app, and text bidding.
Pricing
Accelevents pricing starts at $499 per auction, raffle, and fund-a-need, plus $1 per each bidder. There’s an additional price of $49 per month for text-to-give, plus 1% of the donation amount.
Top features to look for in silent auction software
As technology advances, it’s best to look at what you can include in your silent auction experience. Mobile bidding apps have increased in popularity as they provide a more personalized and convenient bidding experience. In the past few years, artificial intelligence has become more and more popular, and your nonprofit can use it to your advantage to help create marketing materials and other resources.
Another feature that can enhance your silent auction experience is a streamlined checkout. Your donors don’t want to wait in long lines just to be able to leave at the end of the night. Your guests can checkout simply using their unique attendee QR code and have the receipt waiting for them in your mobile bidding app or sent to them through email! If your silent auction software has reporting tools, you can see how well your auction did, pull bidding reports, and check if any attendees have any open payments.
Getting started with Qgiv’s silent auction platform
To kick off your next silent auction using Qgiv’s auctions tools, follow these steps to get started:
- Set up your auction. Create your auction event page on Qgiv and add your auction items, configure bidding options, and customize your auction page to match your branding.
- Promote your auction. Share links to your auction page on social media, through email campaigns, and other communication channels to attract bidders. Advertise your big-ticket items to boost excitement surrounding your event.
- Monitor and manage the bidding process. During the auction, use Qgiv’s monitoring tools to track bidding activity, answer your attendees’ inquiries, and ensure a smooth process. Take advantage of real-time reporting to stay updated on how your auction is going.
- Close and settle your winning bids. Once the auction concludes, close out the event through the Givi app or Virtual Terminal. Manage payments, send notifications to your winners, and gather feedback for future improvements.
- Evaluate your silent auction’s performance. After your event, assess the performance using Qgiv’s analytics and reporting features to understand what worked well and identify areas for improvement.
Final thoughts
Mix and match different software combinations to meet your nonprofit’s silent auction needs. Technology is going to keep advancing, so take advantage of it to personalize and simplify your donors’ auction experience. With the right software, your next silent auction is guaranteed to be a success!
Additional resources
Check out these additional silent auction software resources:
- Silent Auctions | The Ultimate Guide for Your Next Event. Check out this guide to host the ultimate silent auction.
- Mobile Bidding Technology: App-based vs Web-based Silent Auctions. Learn the differences between app-based and web-based mobile bidding to discover which solution is best for your organization.
- 50 Silent Auction Basket Ideas to Bring In the Big Bids. Use these 50 silent auction ideas to motivate your bidders!
- 35 Exciting Raffle Prizes to Spice Up Your Events. Take a look at these raffle prize ideas to get your attendees excited for your event.
- 50 Awesome Auction Item Ideas for Your Next Fundraiser. These auction item ideas can help you boost bids at your next silent auction!
