Celebrity Auctions - the route to riches?

When you want to raise money surely what you need is a few big names.  Who bigger (if you’re a child or parent) than Dora the Explorer?  For five year olds she’s a global superstar translated into 30 languages.

But why stop there?  Let’s add some other big names to the mix: Jade Jagger, Eva Longoria-Parker, Salma Hayek-Pinault, Jessica Alba, Matthew McConaughey & Camila Alves, Heidi Klum, Shakira, Sheryl Crow and finally let’s throw in former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash.  With all those names the money’s bound to roll in - isn't it?

Well that was the stunning line-up put together by the folks at Nick Jr to mark the 10^th anniversary of Dora.  The nine stars designed their own version of Dora the Explorer back packs and they were auctioned in the UK for UNICEF and the US for the Dora ‘Beyond the Backpack Foundation’.

In the US the backpacks were on display in the window of Macy’s Herald Square store.  There was an even a celebrity unveiling of the window.

I don’t have the figures for the amount raised in the US but in the UK the total was a mere £1,211.  So why bother?  The time and effort involved for something like this is enormous.  To be fair I suspect UNICEF were merely recipients rather than active partners.  In reality it was a PR event to raise awareness of Nick’s CSR activities through the Foundation.

Which brings us to the point. These types of auction shouldn’t be seen as a primarily fundraising activity.  There will always be exceptions, for example some sporting memorabilia, but a vast amount of celebrity auctions don’t make a huge amount of money, especially online.  They can however get you great publicity.

There are also reputational issues.  In the UK auction Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves’ bag went for only £26. Not something you would necessarily want to have to report back to your star who’s donated their time.

Auctions should be approached with caution and a clear idea of what you’re trying to achieve.  If PR’s your aim that’s great but it’s worth thinking long and hard if you’re investing a great deal of staff time with the specific aim of raising funds via an online auction.  If it’s one of a series of lots at an event where people can get ‘caught in the moment’ an item will probably do much better.