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Frequently Asked Questions

  • We want to have Zaffarano Auctioneers conduct an auction for our organization, how do we get started?

    Its as easy as 1-2-3.

    1. Review the services that we provide and choose which one that best describes your event.

    2. Choose a date for the auction (preferably three months or more in the future) and contact us or you can call us directly at 312.404.9436 to schedule your auction. You will also need to identify an available facility to hold the auction.

    3. Confirmation of your scheduled event will be reviewed by Zaffarano Auctioneers and we will contact you to discuss your auction details and start event planning.

  • What factors should we consider when setting a date for the auction?
    It is important to make certain that there are no conflicting auctions or events in the area that could compete for guests. Also, holidays and vacation weeks should be avoided as well. Saturday nights are the best nights for auctions, but other nights of the week can also work?
  • What kind of timetable of planning are we looking at?
    The planning for an auction typically takes three months although we can restructure the process to some extent if necessary.
  • What factors should we consider when we choose a location for the auction?
    Size does matter, but so does convenience. The room should be large enough to accommodate 150 to 200 seats arranged theatre style. Ideally, the room should have the necessary lighting to showcase the items. Synagogues, country clubs, catering halls, hotels and schools are all logical choices with sizeable ballrooms and ample parking. Also check with your community, you may be able to get the venue donated or at least receive it at a reduced rate. Your ticket sales to the auction should more than make up for any cost incurred for the rental. Ground floor accessibility is a major plus and of course, the more upscale the location, the better.
  • OK, we chose a date and we think we have a great location, now what do we do?
    Just contact Zaffarano Auctioneers. Assuming the date is available on our calendar; we will discuss your specific needs and tailor an auction and event planning just for your organization. We will then send you our standard Letter of Agreement, spelling out all the details of our partnership. Once the agreement is signed, your date is locked into our calendar and Zaffarano Auctioneers will begin event planning to create the perfect auction.
  • Should we get the community involved in the Auction?
    Absolutely. Your contacts in the community can help you to secure the location at a discount (or even for free) and help you to promote the auction. Donations of food and drinks by local merchants can also help turn the auction into a fun social event for the community to rally around. Any publicity to make the event better attended will pay off.
  • Will Zaffarano Auctioneers be available to help us during the preparation leading up to the auction?
    Absolutely. Once a date has been selected and potential locations scouted, we will arrange an event planning meeting with your committee to construct a plan and outline each step that will lead to a profitable and memorable event. We will also be available for telephone consultation at 312.404.9436 on a daily basis to answer any questions that may arise.
  • What else will Zaffarano Auctioneers provide in the planning stages?
    Please review our event planning page; which will show you our outline of services and ideas that are tailored to your auction.
  • What percentage of the amount raised does our group get to keep?
    At Zaffarano Auctioneers our customers come first. That's why we have different options to suite every event. A flat fee is available for certain events (Sales Incentive Auctions) or a % of the gross amount raised for event is also an option. Zaffarano Auctioneers guarantees the committee 90% of the amount raised during the live auction.
  • What can our organization expect to make from a live Auction event?
    At Zaffarano Auctioneers we understand each event is different. From local fundraiser's, School Functions, Benefits, and Charity Galas our professional staff will work hard to ensure that every possible dollar for your Auction is raised.
  • What needs to be done the day of the auction before it starts?
    The room where the auction is held should be set up according to the floor plan that we have given your group. The banquet tables should be covered, the chairs, the podium and microphone should all be ready to go 3 1/2 hours before the start of the auction.
  • How long does the auction take?

    Benefit and Charity Auctions
    There is a one-hour preview before the auction starts. The auction runs for approximately 45 minuets to hour, varying on the amount of items in the live Auction.

    Sales Incentive Auctions
    There is a one-hour preview before the auction starts. The auction vary up to 3hrs depending on the amount of items business has provided.

  • During the preview, can people ask the auctioneer questions about the items?
    Definitely. This is the best time for prospective bidders to browse the great array of artwork and to select the items that they are interested in bidding on. The guests will also have a great time mingling with each other and sampling your food and beverages.
  • How does the auction work?

    Upon registering, each person/couple will receive an auction program and a bidder number. After making some brief opening statements, the auctioneer will start the bidding on the first item. Each item will have a preset minimum bid, which is the lowest price the item will sell for.

    Sales Incentive Auctions
    Each prospective bidder will raise their bidder number to get the auctioneers’ attention when they wish to bid. The auctioneer will announce each bid and when the bidding ceases on that item, we have a winner.

  • Do people take the items they won with them after the auction?
    Yes, when the entire auction has concluded. The winning bidders will go to the checkout area, pay for their purchases and take their items with them.
  • Our volunteers have no experience with registration and cashiering, will Zaffarano Auctioneers provide any guidance?
    Of course. We will give the volunteers a run through of their duties before the auction. Zaffarano Auctioneers will also provide our custom-designed multifunctional bidder registration/sales slips to make the entire process fail-safe.
  • How do we collect the funds raised after the live Auction?
    Very easily. The committee will have volunteers for the event who will collect the funds immediately after the item has been sold to ensure that the item is paid for.
  • Is the auction high-pressure?
    Not at all. The auction will be very comfortable for those in the audience. After all, many of those in attendance will be at their first live auction and we want to make sure they have a positive experience.
  • Still can't find your answer?
    Then you can contact us or dial 312.404.9436 and Zaffarano Auctions will be happy to help!

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Delighted Clients

  • "What a night, indeed!!! Thank you so much for all of your advice and auctioneering during the event. It was terrific. The Holiday Celebration was a HUGE success because of your efforts. I look forward to working with you again."

  • "Zaffarano Auctioneers exceeded our expectations.  They bring added value through their in-depth knowledge of philanthropic events.  Zaffarano provided strategic and targeted counsel throughout the entire Auction and Fundraising process; brought new and exciting fundraising tactics to us while working to tailor their style to our specific client needs. Vinnie Zaffarano has a unique ability to read a crowd  and work with his team to generate excitement while encouraging a sense o..."

  • "Vinnie, What a great night! This was our 21st auction, but you made it made it seem fresh. Your bid assistants were a great addition to the night and were encouraging, but not too aggressive. The Fund-A-Need was a great success and brought in more than twice what we expected. Many attendees said it was the best auction they'd been to and many more said you were the "BEST AUCTIONEER WE EVER HAd". Thank you for breathing new life into our auction. We look forward to working with you in the..."

  • "zaffarano auctioneers I’d like to personally thank you for the fantastic job you did on Friday! The feedback we have received about the event has been overwhelmingly positive and we are even hearing that this was the best event yet. I have personally been involved with the golf outing for the past 7 years and feel that we stepped up our game in a big way. We have always struggled with keeping everyone’s attention during the Live Auction and pushing to get the highest bids possible without ..."

  • ""Vinnie was accessible to us at all times leading up to the event, and gave us terrific and fun ideas of ways to spice up the auctions. He is professional, energetic, and works hard to make an event as successful as it can be." I would highly recommend him his services! Marcia Liss Development Director Roger Baldwin Foundation of the ACLU, Inc. New Client September 2010"

  • "Dear Vinnie, I thought you did a great Job. Having your two(2) professional bid assistants there and your efforts definitely saved the day. New client October 2010"

  • "Vinnie You are a true professional and we can’t thank you enough. Last night was extraordinary and we couldn’t have done it without you. With your expertise and the generosity of the donors, guests and Sullivan’s, we brought in much needed funds for Naperville CARES. Thank you again Vinnie. We look forward to working with you again in April on Cuisine for a Cause. Karen Garlough Fundraising Chair Naperville CARES PS Thanks for taking photographs of the e..."

  • "Cystic Fibrosis Foundation February, 2011 We just held the 14th Annual Grand Chefs Gala and after having the same auctioneer for many years, we decided to change it up and book Zaffarano Auctioneers. We have worked with Vinnie on many CF events and were excited to see what the response would be to someone new at this particular event. Well, the response was nothing but positive feedback. Vinnie was able to take control of the 750 guests, keep their attention and raise significan..."

  • "Dear Vinnie, I wanted to write and share a few words on behalf of our club in regards to your SERVICE and ASSISTANCE with our wine and chocaolate extravaganza. From the first moment we spoke, you displayed a great CONFIDENCE and PROFESSIONALISM; you were extremely knowledgeable, helpful and encouraging. Your spirit and energy was motivational to me and to the club. On the night of the event, your energy and excitement was palpable to all. Your knowledge and experienec helped to make for a fu..."

  • "Great job!  You certainly earned your fee and made believers out of all of us!  The addition of a professional auctioneer resulted in a significant increase in donations for our agency.  In addition, your participation in our planning process added to the quality of the event.  We look forward to having you back again next year."

  • "As our major annual fundraiser has grown over the past 9 years, so has our need for professional non-profit fundraising guidance.  We hired Vinnie Zaffarano Auctioneers to help us plan and execute our annual gala, Art & Soul, which is a 550 person event.  What a difference four months consulting with him made!  We wanted to shake things up this year to capitalize on our large attendance, and Vinnie provided the perfect mixture of professionalism, experience, energy and enthusi..."

  • "I RECENTLY RAN AN EVENT FOR A NON-PROFIT HERE IN CHICAGO. THE ORGANIZATION HAD NEVER DONE A PADDLE RAISE OR A LIVE AUCTION. VINNIE CAME IN TO HELP US AND IT WAS A HUGE SUCCES! HE IS KNOWLEDGABLE, PERSONABLE AND AN ULTIMATE PROFESSIONAL. AS A FUND RAISNING CONSULTANT, I HAVE USED OTHER AUCTIONEERS FOR VARIOUS EVENTS AND I WOULD BE HARD-PRESSED TO HIRE TO ANYONE BUT VINNIE IN THE FUTURE. NANCY PATEK AALIANCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES"

  • "VINNIE I can sum up your services and Performance in one word,"AWESOME"... I look forward to working with you in the future! Deborah Boyd New Client August 2010"

  • "Dear Vinne, Thanks for your help and amazing output. You helped us raise $53,000 from 5 items at the Three Cups of Tea fundraiser…unprecedented! The best thing about working with you is that you really took the time out to help plan, execute and implement an auction the way that we wanted. Above all you listened. The program was packed with celebrities speakers, yet everyone in the 1300 audience at our annual gala LOVED your auction segment. I think we would love to use your talents agai..."

  • "Hi Vinnie You did a fantastic job. I thought the results were very good, considering the times, and your performance was excellent. I hope that I will get to work with you again in the future and I will refer work to you if I have the chance. Thanks again. New Client March 2010!!! "

  • "VINNIE WE WERE THRILLED TO WORK WITH ZAFFARANO AUCTIONEERS. VINNIE SPENT TIME LEARNING ABOUT OUR EVENT AND OUR COMMUNITY. VINNIE HAD VERY GOOD THOUGHTS REARRANGING SOME TRADITIONAL PIECES OF OUR EVENT, AND BROUGHT SOME TERRIFIC INNOVATIONS, WHICH GARNERED IMPORTANT NEW GIFTS. VINNIE WAS ALSO QUITE NIMBLE IN MAKING ADJUSTMENTS ON THE EVENING OF THE EVENT. HIS EXPERIENCE SHOWS AND WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR HIS ENERGY. WE LOOK FORWARD WITH WORKING WITH VINNIE ON OUR 2011 GALA! NEW CLIENT- FEBRUARY 2..."

  • "Hi Vinnie, Thanks so much for participating last night- you were FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The gentleman who won the Radhika dinner cut a check for $20,000. That brought our total to $72,000.oo. There were roughly 700 people there , so you were correct that it came to $100 a person. At least 10 people told me that you were "THE BEST AUCTIONEER THEY HAD EVER SEEN". I think, especially for a first year, the auction was a success. As I get them, I will forward a few names of people who are inter..."

  • "VINNIE WE DID IT! YOU WERE AN ASSET TO OUR TEAM AD WE TRULY ENJOYED WORKING WITH YOU. A WONDERFUL EVENING WAS HAD BY ALL!!! I HAVE HEARD WONDERFUL COMMENTS ABOUT THE EVENT AND PARTICULARLY HOW SUPERB OF A JOB YOU DID. WE ARE THANKFUL FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS AND LOOK FORWARD TO DOING IT ALL OVER AGAIN( WITH YOU) NEXT YEAR! NEW CLIENT-FEBRUARY 2010"

  • "Vinnie As always, we were very pleased with your performance. You are always professional and a joy to work with. We raised in total of $70k which is wonderful in this economy. Thanks for all your hard work. SUE LUBBEN FEBRUARY 2010 "

  • "Dear Vinnie, Thank you for helping us with our most successful fundraiser yet! Your involvement goes above and beyond the Live Auction. Your first hand involvement in the PLANNING, PROBLEM SOLVING and the STRATEGY that goes into a successful event is OUTSTANDING!! We not only consider you a part of our team, but a part of our FAMILY! We couldn't do it without you. ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A CURE GALA DECEMBER 2008."

  • "Thank you Vinnie We didn’t think we’d be able to beat last year’s auction but because of you….we did! Your availability, knowledge and expertise really moved us to the next level. The additional services that you bring with you as part of the package were invaluable! It was a great experience working with you and your team. I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ON NEXT YEARS EVENT!! NEW CLIENT FEBRUARY 2009!!!!"

  • "We retained Zaffarano Auctioneers for our non-profit benefit auction for the very first time this year. We were delighted to find Vinnie an EXCELLENT choice from beginning to end. Months before our event, he was able to give us valuable advice during our planning process. The night of our event, he made the evening exiting and kept the entire audience engaged. I polled several attendees after the event and it was UNANIMOUS-Vinnie was Professional, Entertaining and really inspired others to giv..."

  • "Vinnie, " Thank You"we just tallied up our numbers and totaled around $96,000.00. This is considerably more than our last auction($68,000),which had many more items. Your suggestions, flexibilty and commentary helped greatly throughout the evening. We heard glowing comments regarding how much folks enjoyed you in particular. You contributed greatly to our event and we couldn't have done it without you. We certainly would recommend you to others needing an auctioneer!!!!! NEW CLIENT April 200..."

  • "Hi Vinnie, I just wanted to thank you for being our auctioneer at our annual auction this past weekend. You were amazing! You were able to pull the crowd in, keeping everyone’s attention throughout the entire live auction and during the Fund A Cause. We riased more money in the live auction than we did last year and this was the first year that we did the Fund a Cause, per your suggestion, and we made over $12,000 just in that portion of the event. You brought some really neat, new, fresh and ..."

  • "Dear Vinnie, After a loss of our original commitment for auctioneering, and only about only ten days to go before our 2nd Pie auction to benefit Senior Services Assoc. of Kane County, I began contacting every local auctioneer listed in the yellow pages. All were sympathetic but already commited to other jobs. It wasn't looking good. But then one of these kind contacts went the extra mile, and said they had an idea of a fellow who he thought might help us out. When you called me to say you would ..."

  • "Vinnie Thank you again for helping us with our annual Kane county dinner/auction in Elgin. By incorporating your innovative"Fund A Cause" into the live auction, we grossed over 10 times the amount from previous years. Thanks again Vinnie and we'll see you next year !"

  • "Dinner on the Town was the first major Gala that Naper Settlement has hosted in many years. We wanted the entire evening not only to be perfect, but fun. We have never hired a Professional Auctioneer and vinnie came highly recommended. After propossing our event to him, he graciously agreed tp participate. He took the time to learn about our organization and the auction items unique to our museum and hosted the live auction very professionally-helping us to meet our fundraising goal! WE WOULD RE..."

  • "Vinnie, "Thank You" for the outstanding job you did at our annual auction for what was a difficult year for our school. You were very entertaining and had the entire room engaged in the Live Auction. I would definatley consider your retention for next years event! New Client April 2008"

  • "Vinnie, On behalf of my co-chair Sylvia and the staff we are very pleased with the auction in is totality(entertainment value, cash results, ease of working relationships with staff). WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE YOU BACK FOR NEXT YEARS EVENT!!! NEW CLIENT May 2008 "

  • "Vinnie, We were all exceptionally pleased with the time, experience and attention you provided for our annual auction. You were attentive to our pre-auction concerns as well as the actual event night. Thank you again for always be on-hand and approachable when a situation arised. I WOULD RECOMMEND YOU FOR ANY SCHOOLS ANNUAL AUCTION !!!!! NEW CLIENT FEBRUARY 2008"

  • "Dear Vinnie, On behalf of the Cystic Fibrosis foundation,"THANK YOU"from the botom of our hearts. You were fast, charming and funny. The crowd enjoyed watching you and you made our Live Auction a "HUGE SUCCESS". Your The Best -Thank you ! AMY PATTERSON New Client December 2007 "

  • "Vinnie, "Thank You" for all you did to make our event so successful. Everyone really enjoyed you and your team. I look forward to more chances to work with you and I hope you can return for next years event. I WILL RECOMMEND YOU TO ANYONE NEEDING AND AUCTIONEER ! "New client May 2008""

  • "Vinnie, I'd like to thank you for the excellent service you've provided at our auctions over the past several years. You and your team have been nothing but professional, and you've been able to make our events interactive and keep them fun. The feedback from our field has been overwhelmingly positive, and I look forward to working with you again in the future. Thanks for everything!"