Kohl Children's Museum
Children from birth to age 8 in the Greater Chicago area have a very special place to go — Kohl Children’s Museum of Greater Chicago. This non-profit Museum and organization is not just a building to display exhibits, but a tactile learning laboratory where any child who is brought through its doors can learn through developmentally appropriate, hands-on educational experiences in a fun, intimate environment. Since 1985, they have strived to serve their 350,000+ visitors per year by facilitating children’s learning through programs, resource materials, and exhibits that promote interaction between children and adults. The Museum also encourages children of diverse backgrounds and abilities to play and learn together and reaches out beyond the building to bring its expertise and exhibits to metropolitan Chicago classrooms, childcare sites, and other organizations serving young children. Even the building itself is a good example to children — it is an environmentally friendly, energy-efficient facility that has earned Silver-level certification as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building from the U.S. Green Building Council.
Highlights
- Gala income has increased 33% after adding Greater Giving in 2007.
- Able to tell guests what they had spent with a “push of the button” — less stressful for staff and volunteers.
- Registration and check-out went very smoothly, which translated to a small collection effort after the event.
Challenge
The Kohl Children’s Museum staff members know all about how to get children excited about learning. Getting bidders excited about spending money at their auction and managing the process, however, presented a new challenge. Previously, the Museum relied on other forms of fundraising, such as memberships, donations, and special events. They decided to add the An Evening to Imagine Gala in 2005 to further their cause. Taking place each October at the Museum, the Gala now produces 10% of their annual fundraising income. Without the proper tools, managing the event for the first few years wasn’t an easy process.
Kate Rodbro, Kohl Children’s Museum Special Events Manager, explained that all of the event details were held in an Excel® spreadsheet. “It was hard to know if you had the most recent version of the spreadsheet,” she said. They didn’t have a good way to keep track of where donated items were, and sometimes they got lost.
At the event, because it was extremely difficult for the 6 volunteers and 12 staff members to track bidder/donor information for the 450+ guests that attended the Gala, check-out was haphazard — resulting in long lines and frustrated attendees. Many guests would simply leave, and payment collection for auction sales could take months to reconcile. Rodbro laughed, “…we tried to stay within the fiscal year” when it came to post-event reconciliation.
They began looking for a better way to organize the event, so that staff and volunteers would look forward to each October rather than dreading it.
Solution
Their professional auctioneer, Jim Miller, saw the obstacles the Museum was facing and suggested they take a look at Greater Giving. This prompted Rodbro to consider the solution and after much consideration, the Museum signed on to utilize Auctionpay terminals and Greater Giving Event Software for their 2007 Gala.
After getting up to speed on the new system, Rodbro and her team quickly noticed a positive change. They now had a single source to coordinate the event details, processes were streamlined, data capture and flow was improved, and they were able to track vital procurement and registration information. The Event Software also enabled them to focus on sponsorship recruitment. And for the first time since the auction began, they felt prepared for the event night activities.
Rodbro especially appreciates how user-friendly the software is. One of her favorite features is the Tool Bar. “I can look up a guest’s spouse name – any time!” she exclaimed. Museum staff and volunteers can be also trained quickly, and are now able to quickly find information or tell guests what they spent with the “push of the button.”
Tips from Kohl Children’s Museum
- Use the Event Software reporting tool to track items that have no affect on your auction, and others that are big sellers.
- Consider adding co-chairs from the business realm.
- Recognize sponsors at the event – on programs and signs, and on your Website.
Results
The first event using Greater Giving was a whole new experience. Registration and check-out were suddenly easy, even though only 18 staff and volunteers hosted over 450 guests. Check-out was an efficient system using 3 people on computers with 2 printers. As they checked a guest out, they would pass the receipt to runners who would go get the items and hand it to the person in line. They even handled a temporary power loss with grace. Rodbro was excited to see how the new system positively affected her team. “They responded very well to easier registration and check-out. Guests could ask how much they owed or purchase a ticket and it was all there at a click of a button,” she said “Prior to Greater Giving, we wouldn’t be able to find that information quickly.”
And one of their biggest challenges, post-event reconciliation, was solved! What used to takes weeks and sometimes months, took less than a week. By capturing credit cards up front, they were able to collect all payments, even if a guest left early. “We purchased Greater Giving to help with the organization of the event but were surprised by how it streamlined the actual collections of the funds,” stated Rodbro.
The more the Museum staff works with Greater Giving products, the more value they find. For instance, last year they realized that they had to change everyone’s bidder paddles at the last second and it was extremely easy to do with the Event Software — they just selected the report and printed. The reporting features have also enabled them to look at item trends and strategize for future events. “We realized there were some items we get every year that had no affect on the auction at all – they either sold for a minimum bid or a staff member bought it. We moved the most popular items to super silent or live – which helped a lot with money raised,” said Rodbro.
Kohl Children’s Museum is on the right track. Since adding Greater Giving products to their event management and fundraising strategy, they have increased event income by an impressive 33%. That’s a lot of children’s exhibits, programs, and building improvements for the Museum to work with!
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