Sample Receipt Letter

If your charity is looking for new ways to raise cash, you may be interested in holding auctions where members of the community can bid on goods and services that are donated by interested parties. Non-profit organizations can raise their profile by offering items for auction that people actually want to bid on. As such, it’s important to remember to acknowledge the person or organization that has donated items for your charity to auction off.

Expressing Thanks

Saying “thank you” goes a long way toward forging relationships between your charity and the organizations that donate goods and services to promote your cause. You will want to study a sample receipt letter to see what you should be writing to the people offer donations to you.

After all, your charity is presumably in it for the long haul, and you will likely want to hold a charity auction at least once per year, if not once per season. Depending on the financial goals of your organization, you may need to solicit valuable items and services to auction off, so you can raise the appropriate level of funding.

By studying a sample receipt letter, you can see that you need to thank the donor for his or her time, effort and material support. You’ll need to include information about what the donor provided and state when it is scheduled to be auctioned. It’s also important to include information about the location and the venue if it is an auction taking place in a building, or the website if it is an online auction.

When you thank the donor, remember to include contact information so he or she can quickly reach you with any questions or concerns.

Tax Deductible

When you write a receipt letter, it’s prudent to remind the donor about the tax advantages of helping out your charity. While not every donor organization is primarily interested in benefiting with its tax-deductible donations, it is still a factor to consider.

Besides getting name recognition to acknowledge the support being offered, the donor will be able to lessen its tax liability by making donations to your organization, and it is only fitting that you confirm your non-profit status.

After you study a sample receipt letter to help you write your own letter on behalf of your charitable organization, you will be prepared to put in your own words the gratitude that you want to express, and your hope that the donor will continue to find your charity worth supporting in the future.

Free Charity Auction Software

Auctions are a great way for charities to raise funds to support their ongoing activities and to finance the purchase of goods and services for their clients. An auction is also a great way to energize the community and encourage people to learn more about the charity and the good works it performs.

People who might otherwise not be so interested in donating money to a charity may find themselves enticed into making a contribution when they stand to gain something in the auction.

If your organization is preparing to run an auction, you will want to get some free charity auction software. Even if you are a computer novice, you can quickly learn how to use auction software to help your organization.


Features of Charity Software

Once you obtain free charity auction software, you will be able to easily set it up and begin raising money.

Typically auction software enables you to set up pre-bidding before the main event, which is particularly helpful in attracting people to your charity and to drum up excitement and interest in the items or services being auctioned.

You can use the software to register bidders ahead of time, to help you get an idea of how many participants there will be. The software will also let you set up sponsors for the event. For example, if your organization wants to auction off a weekend at a local resort, different resorts in your area can sign up with the software.

Use the software to enter pictures and descriptions of all the items being offered, so people can use their computers to see what they can bid on. Likewise, the software lets you keep track of donors, register their credit cards and generate invoices for them to pay after the auction has concluded.


Raise More Money

Charity auction software is ideal for helping your organization raise more funds for your vital projects. For example, by using the software’s integrated social media functions, you can advertise and promote the auction to your organization’s online friends, which will help spread the word and bring in more funds.

Software for charity auctions usually has an event countdown timer, which gives people a sense of urgency to make their bids. What’s more, you can use the built-in goal thermometer to keep track of how much money has come in and to show people just how much more they need to spend to meet your organization’s needs.

The nutshell: Non-Profits explained

The term “nonprofit” simply refers to “not being commercial motivated.” To think that non-profits should not make any profits is simply wrong. As a matter of fact, they can, do and should make profits. Important is what is done with those profits and where they came from. 

There are three basic types of nonprofit organizations:

• Informal Nonprofit Organizations
• Incorporated Nonprofit (Corporation)
• Tax-Exempt Organization

Informal Nonprofit Organizations

Anybody can form an “informal” nonprofit, simply by getting together with other people to provide support or services to benefit others. We see this all the time - "Save the Trails of Marquette County", "Recycle Otsego County", "Friends of St. Ann". There are no special benefits in being an informal nonprofit, other than personal satisfaction in helping others. However, there may be certain legal liabilities.

Informal nonprofit organizations should check with an attorney before starting an informal nonprofit to discuss possible legal liability risks. If you plan to deduct expenses, receive donations, or charge any fees, you also need to talk with a tax accounting professional.

Informal nonprofit organizations are not, and cannot be, tax-exempt organizations.

Incorporated Nonprofit Organizations

This type of nonprofit is formed by incorporating in a particular state to form and be recognized as corporation. A corporation takes the place of individual ownership. Just like a for-profit organizations the corporation “owns” itself, and therefore, can own its own property, have its own bank account, take out its own loan, and can continue on its own eve if the founder leaves the organization.

One of the major benefits of incorporation is that the corporation takes on legal liability and financial risks so that founders, officers, and board members have little or no liability (with the exception illegal acts, or gross fiscal misconduct).

Nonprofit corporations can be classified in many ways, including as a public benefits corporation, public charity, or educational foundation.

Nonprofit corporations may be formed to benefit members of an organization (a club, or mutual benefit society) or for some public purpose (such as a disaster relief, social assistance programs, or youth development programs).

A nonprofit organization is not automatically tax exempt.

Tax-Exempt Organizations

Nonprofit corporations must file with the IRS as a separate step in order to receive tax exempt status. An organization cannot receive tax exemption unless it has first formed as a corporation with an accepted charitable structure and purpose.

Not all nonprofit organizations are eligible for tax exempt status. Only those that meet certain requirements, as defined by the IRS, will receive exempt status. You will need to complete an IRS Form 1023 to apply. The form is long, the process is expensive, and it can take up to one year to receive a decision.

Tax-exempt corporations are required to operate their business in certain ways, file a Form 990, and meet other IRS requirements, or risk losing their exemption status.

How to write a fundraising ask letter

Writing a successful fundraising letter is a work of art. Unfortunately however, many lack style, are unimaginative, repetitious and just plain a general waste of time. So, how do you actually write a successful fundraising letter? 

The most important thing of a non-profit charity fundraising letter is the first few sentences. What comes, after that only plays a second row role.

Grade A+ letters grab you right from the start. They speak to your values and give you a compelling reason to donate. Those letters are truly personal. Grade F letters on the other hand have nothing to do with you or give you any reason why you should donate to the charity.

Here are some examples of different fundraising letters:

• Grade F - Dear Friend, Christmas is right around the corner. We are all busy preparing for the festivities. The feast is being prepared, last minute shopping is being done and don't forget about those greeting cards. We, here at the Community Foundation, have also been busy....
• Grade C - Dear Community Foundation Member, Yesterday, Ally F. and her sisters had a wonderful day. They experienced the true meaning of Christmas. For the first time in two years Ally and her family were able to enjoy a Holiday dinner together. Ally's eyes tearded up from pure joy, as she opened her gifts. It is because of donors like you.....
• Grade A - Dear Linda, Having a hard time finding the right gift? Give the gift that keeps on giving and provide hope, mobility and freedom to a child. Your gift of $85 will give a brand new wheelchair to a child in need....

Retain Non-Profit Volunteers

Finding the right volunteers for your non-profit charity auction can be a true struggle. Young, top tech talent is most likely busy working for corporate America. They enjoy generous paychecks and benefit package along with fun company perks. Non-profits struggle to compete, since they most likely are not able to accommodate the same.
This is where non profit charities need to find different ways to attract potential volunteers/employees. 
These days, young professionals thrive on passion for mission. Making a difference for society is inspiring for many volunteers and the reason to give. Volunteers for non profit charities want to feel like they are part of something bigger. Doing good feels great to them and therefore volunteers don't mind making sacrifices.
Also try to make your non profit charity volunteers feel part of the project. They need to have the feeling that they are needed and not just used. Giving them responsibility for big chunks of a project, such as a non profit charity auction, makes them feel appreciated. Using BiddingOwl makes this task a little bit easier. Each volunteers can be given a separate user account that gives them access to certain part of the non profit charity auction process. Volunteers will have fun using the easy to use system.

Online Fundraising with BiddingOwl.com