If you’re looking to maximize the fundraising revenue of your nonprofit, online auctions are an untapped opportunity. While in-house live auctions may have a more personal, exclusive feel, upgrading to the Internet offers unparalleled possibilities. For one, the online realm reaches all sorts of people, businesses and communities across the globe. Each type of auction has its pros and cons, but if you have yet to look into the latter, it could be worth your while.

Vivanista recently spoke with Coppy Holzman, CEO and Co-Founder of charitybuzz, who gave us the inside scoop on what this new fundraising strategy can do for you. Charitybuzz, the world’s first charity auction website which launched in April 2004, takes the idea of eBay to a whole new level. As an online auction website, the company uses technology and pop culture to raise funds for philanthropic organizations.

“We are like an unusual concierge service, but everything goes to charity,”

- described Coppy Holzman, CEO and Co-founder of charitybuzz.

They currently are fundraising partners for over 1,000 nonprofits, have an international community of 60,000 bidders with top markets in New York City and London, and have raised more than $50 million for nonprofits worldwide.

By challenging the traditional live auction format, Holzman explained that online auctions “blow the gates wide open.” By jumping into the cyber world, auctions are able to reach millions of potential bidders, rather than being confined by the number of attendees at a black-tie social event.

In addition, an online venue is able to target passionate fans of particular celebrities, luxury brands and experiences, who don’t necessarily have access to these options. “In LA, auctioning off a walk-on role for a film may be no big deal because so many people in LA are familiar and have access to that, but for people abroad, they can now have access to that, in places where they can’t get it,” described Holzman.

Online auctions also heighten the awareness for a cause by expanding the universe of people that see the charity, and by bringing in new financial supporters. This kind of venue also has the ability to put a positive spin on the many important, yet depressing and overwhelming causes out there. “We don’t show the sad parts of the story,” like of kids in crumbling buildings after the Haiti disaster, said Holzman. Rather, charitybuzz tries to accomplish the same social impact, by taking a nonprofit’s message and conveying it in positive manner.

Charitybuzz specifically provides the added benefit of taking a load off of a nonprofit’s plate. “We’re like your own development office that does all the work,” said Holzman. Charitybuzz manages all the details, such as post-event auction redemptions, so that nonprofits, especially those with limited manpower, can focus on their life-saving work. “We make it simple,” summed Holzman.

Holzman also emphasized their “white glove service” to their customers. Charitybuzz keeps bidders in the loop at all stages of an auction with emails and phone calls, and provides readily available communication to winners to facilitate the post-auction process.

“It may sound trite, but if you’re nice to everyone [whether they purchased a $500 or $100,000 experience] and exceed their expectations, they’re going to come back and spread the word,”

said Holzman.

So what merchandise works and what doesn’t?

“The biggest pop culture celebrities and access to them is what generates the most money,” said Holzman. Charitybuzz has organized experiences, such as a tennis lesson with Andre Agassi (which sold for about $100,000) to a day on the set with Cameron Diaz (where Ashton Kutcher made a guest appearance). “We unabashedly embrace pop culture,” said Holzman. Regarding products, early release vehicles and watches tend to do well. But charitybuzz is not restricted to high-end prices. They’ve auctioned off internships and unique dining opportunities with famous chefs, which sell at lower prices and encourage philanthropy at all price points.

In terms of logistics, nonprofits can put up anything from one item to ten lots, like the RFK Center. CharityBuzz then takes on the primary role of promoting the auction and encouraging people to bid. By leveraging media opportunities on TV and in the papers, utilizing social media platforms, like Twitter and Facebook, and widgets, charitybuzz generates lots of PR and exposure for the auctions. Moreover, charitybuzz benefits from celebrities’ and luxury brands’ own personal publicity of auction items. However, the company maintains its focus on adding a “personal touch,” such as sending targeted emails to bidders about items that may be of interest to them based on their past bidding records.

Charitybuzz’s growth has doubled over the past few years, but Holzman emphasized that working with charitybuzz is like a collaborative partnership. “We’re very humble. We try to do whatever we can to show the nonprofit in the best light,” said Holzman. They don’t charge their clients for anything up front, but they deduct a fee of 20 percent and remit the balance to the nonprofits within five business days. While the fee may sound steep, “We’ve never had a nonprofit relationship where they would’ve raised more money had they done the auction lot in the conventional way,” said Holzman. “We’re really in this to establish long-term meaningful relationships,” he said, which is evident by their 94 percent retention rate.