ZTP Auctions

YOUR BAY AREA BENEFIT AUCTIONEER

My role was a member of the technical team working with the auction software. Gary and the ZTP team were great. Not only during the auction, but in the preparation for the auction. He was able to give the auction team and our stewardship committee great advice about how to conduct the auction, what items should be live versus online and order of live items. Our virtual gala would not have been possible without his patience, guidance and skill. During the night of the virtual gala, he and his team were wonderful in making things happen in a simple, orderly way. Thanks Gary and team!


Gino Fortunato - Tech-Team Memeber, 2021 Auction Committee

First Unitarian-Universalist Society of San Francisco

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Gary is deeply knowledgable regarding all aspects of the auction process and unrelenting in working to make your auction successful. Engaging his services was the best decision our Auction Committee made.

Thad Smith - Co-Chair, 2021 Auction Committee

First Unitarian-Universalist Society of San Francisco

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Our church did it's first ever virtual live auction this year. Gary and his team were amazing from beginning to end. Not only did they help us understand what would work and what wouldn't on this new platform, not only did they manage the technology that night so that the combination of videos, powerpoint slides and live bidding worked and felt as seamless as possible, but they helped us start planning well in advance and followed up to keep us on track. Our total for the event was more than many of our years when things were all in person too! Amazing energy, experience and partnership in helping make our event a complete success!!!

Vanessa Southern - Senior Minister

First Unitarian-Universalist Society of San Francisco

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Gary's energy and competence in managing and hosting our church's virtual gala made all the difference. Our auction team had never done an online auction event. Gary answered all our questions and made the process remarkably easy. We ended up bringing in far more money than expected, and far more than last year, when the event was in-person.

Susan Anthony - Co-Chair, 2021 Auction Committee

First Unitarian-Universalist Society of San Francisco

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Last year was our first time using Gary Lorentzen’s auctioneer services for our Moonlight Magic event. We were extremely pleased with how well Gary engaged the crowd, and we raised double what we had hoped.

This year the event landscape had to be different. Would we do as well? Could we attract “attendees”? How do we make this all work in a virtual setting?

Gary again helped us through it. Using the Zoom platform made it fairly simple for the user, so it seemed the best option. Gary assured us virtual events were doing well, but we still had our doubts we could do even half as well as the year before.

Gary was right! We had put together a nice blend of testimonial videos about our hospice services, interspersed some fun with “spin the wheel” and a live auction. By the time Gary got to the Fund a Need portion of the evening we knew we were doing so much better financially than we’d allowed ourselves to dream! Then the fund a need – and the comments that were flowing via chat were overwhelming. We had larger donations than last year (higher dollar amounts) and in the end not only did we feel we touched hearts, but we raised so much more than expected!

If September of 2021 allows us to do a live event, we will still have a virtual component, make it a hybrid event to include those out of the area or those not wanting to be in crowds or drive at night. If we can only do virtual, we are now experienced and confident the event will work well.

Gary Lorentzen is a great auctioneer, and he has a way to engage the crowd both in person as well as on a Zoom virtual platform. We would highly recommend him!

Mary Anne Davis - Marketing and Event Manager - Hospice of the Foothills

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Having a virtual fundraiser this year was quite unnerving since we’ve never done one before, but Gary had been the auctioneer at our last 3 galas and he assured us we could run a successful and engaging virtual event, and he was correct! Gary helped us every step of the way during planning and had great ideas for us. Having Gary and his assistants run all the technology aspects of the live event took off a HUGE amount of stress and pressure for us. Everything ran smoothly and Gary helped us create a show flow that kept the audience engaged and interacting on chat! We had wonderful feedback from our attendees that it was the most fun they had had in awhile and how much they enjoyed the event. Thanks to Gary and his team we were able to bring our supporters together and raise needed funds for our organization.

Alyssa Houk - Executive Director - Jasper Ridge Farm

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WOW! Gary really blew away our expectations and helped transform a potentially damaging situation into a wonderful fundraising opportunity for our community. Our school's biggest fundraiser of the year was transitioned from a full-scale gala to a virtual auction (our first!) almost overnight due to the pandemic. Firstly, Gary had already been so wonderful in helping us structure our live event with several generous calls offering advice and ideas on how best position ourselves to meet our fundraising goals that we could not have found on our own. When we had the abrupt change to a virtual auction we were a bit nervous, but Gary was excited to take on the challenge and helped us restructure the event. He was able to create excitement and foster community in the virtual room so that the evening was not only successful but super fun as well! Everything went incredible smoothly, and we were impressed with the way he was able to read the room on the virtual platform to make sure no money got left behind. EVEN during a pandemic, Gary helped us raise $10k more in our paddle-raise than the previous year, and we truly can't imagine having done it without him!

Shannon Choudhari - Auction Chair - Jefferson Elementary School

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I really think that you did not leave one dollar in the room. I am so impressed – and over the moon! – about how well we did on Sunday night. Our guests did not even want to go home. I have never seen so many guests just stay, hanging out by their tables in the ballroom after the auction was over. That’s the sign of a fantastic event.

Susan Safipour - Auction Chair - Northstar Team Foundation

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We couldn’t be happier with Gary—he took our annual fundraiser to the next level! After four years of hosting benefits with only a silent auction, this past year we decided to incorporate our first-ever live auction and fund a need. This was a big decision for us, and we were definitely nervous! Gary understood exactly where we were coming from and guided us through the entire process. During regular consultations in the months leading up to the benefit, he advised us on everything from how best to package together live and silent auction items, how our silent auction should be laid out the night of the event, what to include in the event program and auction signage, and how we should best time the programming to maximize participation in the live auction and fund a need! The night of the event he was engaged with the guests from the moment he walked in, and once he got on stage he got the crowd excited and motivated to donate. All his games and strategies really paid off—especially The Last Hero! At the end of the night we had tripled our revenue from the previous year’s fundraiser. Needless to say, we can’t wait to work with Gary again next year.

The Development Team at Root & Rebound

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This was our very 1st gala and we were a bit nervous about the auctions. Gary was so supportive in training our team, guiding us throughout the process and helping us implement the live and silent auctions from planning to event day (and beyond).

Our 1st event was very successful and Gary was appreciated and well liked by not only the planning team but members of our congregation. ZPT Auctions is definitely our choice for future events.

Pat Baxter - Event Committee - East Bay Church of Religious Science

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Gary is a true pro. We're a school PTO in an urban district where our auction revenue makes a big difference in the programs we're able provide our students each year. For the past three years, Gary has helped us grow our event, advising us on during the planning months and keeping our all-volunteer crew on track. The night of the event is when Gary shines. He has an amazing sense of timing and a performer's ability to read and connect with the room. We feel so fortunate to have an auctioneer with Gary's skills and expertise to support our fundraising team!

Paige Patterson Duff - Event Committee - West Portal Elementary School

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Wow! You are amazing. Thank you so much for your expertise, time and care. We are so appreciative that you have taken us under your wing. You were so successful with the crowd and I can’t wait for next year!

Kristin & Nick Chaset - Co-Organizers - Pulmonary Hypertension Family Camp

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Friends of Napa County Animal Shelter recently worked with Gary for our first annual A Tail to Remember benefit to raise money for animals in need in Napa County.  Gary was extremely helpful throughout the planning process, offering advise and guidance from his years of experience.  He explained what works and what doesn’t allowing us to focus our efforts on things that would make our nonprofit the most money.  Over the months of planning, Gary was an invaluable resource to us and extremely responsive.  At our event, Gary had great energy and effortlessly kept the crowd engaged and donating money, while maintaining the event schedule.  Our guests commented on his professionalism and everyone agreed he did a wonderful job. Our first fundraiser was a big success due in part to Gary’s guidance!  We highly recommend Gary and we look forward to working with him in the future.  On behalf of all the animals we will help with the money raised, thank you Gary!  

Eva Devin - President - Friends of Napa County Animal Shelter

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Gary is one of the most valuable contributors to our annual gala. He's been the auctioneer at our last two, and we already have him booked for next year! As a very small nonprofit with only a couple people organizing the event, Gary becomes a very welcome addition to our small event planning team. He has great ideas, provides valuable feedback and is fun to work with! During the live event he is professional, helps keep us on track, cracks jokes to keep stress level down, and he truly keeps the whole event running smoothly. Watching him do the live auction and fund-a-need is a thing of beauty. His skills are on point and he gets the audience excited and energetic about raising their paddles! For us Gary is not just a nice to have addition for our gala, he's a must have.

Alyssa Houk - General Manager - Jasper Ridge Farm

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Gary was easy to work with, always enthusiastic and available, had a lot of ideas, and we raised more money than our school had previously.  We were very pleased.

Molly Dillon and Angela Rohde - Co-Chairs - Crystal Springs Upland School Gala 2018

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After hearing about the incredible results Gary produced for another local non-profit organization, I contacted him and asked if he would serve as auctioneer for an upcoming AnimalSave fundraising event.  From the moment he said yes, he was on it.  From regular conference calls with our fundraising team where he guided us on best practices, to his energetic and entertaining performance the evening of the event, he was a first-class professional.  As a result of his guidance and his ability to energize the crowd,  proceeds from A Furry, Furry Night more than doubled.  I immediately scheduled him for the 2019 event and look forward to working with him again.

Carolyn Niehaus - Executive Director - AnimalSave

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In my non-profit career I have worked with numerous auctioneers and Gary is now at the top of my list. The effort that he put in leading up to the auction in helping us to set price points and build an arc for our Live Auction was amazing, and THEN he helped us raise so much money day of, that we exceeded all of our goals. He was clear, he was direct, and he was FUN! We booked him for the following years gala that very night!

Trish Fontan - Development Associate - Marin Primary & Middle School

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Not only was working with Gary a pleasure but his creativity and ideas for how to get our crowd engaged and get those paddles raised were fantastic.  He was great during our planning process in making sure that he understood who we are as an organization and was thoughtful and strategic in his recommendations for making sure we had a great event.  Our auction was so successful that we chose the date of our next auction based on Gary’s availability!  Total professional, Highly recommend.

Sarah Brewster - Associate Director of Administration & Special Projects - Marin Primary & Middle School

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Gary's positive energy, infectious charisma, and genuine warmth were the perfect fit for the Post:Ballet community. His heartfelt passion for our organization's mission was really felt by everyone in the space, and Gary's balance between fun, heart, and "business" (aka fundraising) struck the perfect chord with our patrons. I'm so grateful for his work with Post:Ballet and I'm truly excited to continue working together in the year(s) ahead to raise money and enthusiasm to support our organization's vision and evolution.

Robert Dekkers - Arttistic/Executive Director - Post:Ballet

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Gary’s performance and results were outstanding. His attention to detail and ability to inspire the crowd and keep things moving in a fun and energetic way made the auction our most successful to date. I would be very comfortable recommending him to nonprofits of any size, including speaking directly with anyone who is considering hiring a professional auctioneer for the first time as we did. I have organized and attended many auctions here, and previously for 15 years in Silicon Valley. He is by far the best auctioneer I have worked with. Not only because of what he brings to the evening, but the knowledge and support that gave us so many great ideas leading up to. He made sure he understood everything we needed, stretched us to think beyond our comfort zone, and was available to go through every detail with us at the drop of a hat to ensure a smooth evening.

To a person, everyone who was there was over the top impressed with Gary and what he was able to accomplish.

I will say personally, that I am very picky when it comes to events and the experience of the attendees, organization, etc..  Gary was exceptionally prepared, and miraculously took work off my plate for the live auction piece, making my evening easier. He made sure that he knew our mission and was able to tug on all the heart strings in the room with the right messages. Ultimately, everything he said he could do (and that we were skeptical about because of our small community), he delivered and then some!! My assessment is that your clients will be very well taken care of in his hands, as we have been.

Lorraine Larson - Executive Director - Nevada County Habitat for Humanity

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I have had the pleasure of working with Gary Lorentzen for over five years during my time as Lead Auction Chair for the Brisbane School District. Gary has been a terrific asset to our school's annual auction. His energy and smooth delivery keeps the audience engaged and entertained. He works patiently with our gala team, asking questions and researching the items to better sell them. I know Gary's contribution as our Auctioneer has kept our fundraising goals on target and enabled us to raise the most money possible for our schools.  I would highly recommend Gary to any organization looking to provide a quality and fun auction experience.

Rachel Ennis - BEST/PTO Chairman 2016-2017

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Gary, our super-duper auctioneer.  Sir you are worth your weight in gold.  Thank you for guiding us through this process our first time around.  You have given us a strong foundation to continue growing our event and auction.  Not to mention your presence on stage and the good time you provide for bidders is priceless.  Our guests relly enjoy themselves and spend, spend, spend when you make it fun.  Your talent is a gift.

Michela Genato Christensen - Terra Nova High School

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He was AWESOME!  We are all still on a high from such a great night!!

Novato Charter School

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We would never have raised as many $$$ as we did, without Gary's help.

Alice Fong Yu