Chamber of commerce auction item ideas that actually sell

For the general list, see our 100+ silent auction item ideas, and for the category unique to this organization see B2B item ideas. Below are the consumer lots that sit alongside them.

Combined member baskets

• A downtown bundle: certificates from a dozen small members in one lot
• A taste-of-the-county set: local food, drink and produce
• A date-night package assembled from a restaurant, a florist and a theatre
• A home-services bundle: cleaning, lawn care, a handyman's day
• A family day out from member attractions

These are the mechanism that includes small members without asking them for something they cannot give — and every contributor is named, which is what they wanted from it.

Experiences the members supply

• A weekend at a member's rental property, cabin or condo
• A boat day, a fishing charter, a golf foursome at a member club
• A private dining experience or a chef's table
• Tickets to local sport, theatre or a festival the chamber supports
• A brewery, winery or distillery experience, where members operate one

Higher-value lots

• Travel donated by a member with points, a property or a connection
• A named table at next year's banquet
• A vehicle lease contribution or a service package from a member dealer
• A significant piece from a member jeweller, gallery or furniture retailer
• A landscape or hardscape project from a member contractor

Keep a genuine low tier

A chamber room contains sole traders, non-profit members, new businesses and staff attending with their employers. A catalogue where everything starts high tells all of them the evening was designed for somebody else.

Several accessible lots, priced so anybody can win one, is not a concession — it is how a membership organization behaves toward its whole membership.

What to avoid

• Sourcing anything from outside the membership that a member sells
• Categories where two competing members would both have to be approached — handle that deliberately or not at all
• Political items, candidate access or anything partisan, which is a different question for a chamber than for a charity
• Alcohol lots where the room includes members who cannot serve or accept them
• Anything implying influence over chamber decisions, awards or endorsements

The last one deserves saying to a committee. A chamber's endorsements, awards and advocacy positions are its credibility, and nothing in an auction should touch them at any price.

General information, not tax or legal advice for your chamber. Whether a payment is deductible, and on what basis, depends on your entity's status and what the payer received — check with your own adviser before telling members anything about it.