Posted 07 July 2005 - 01:31 PM
Assuming Scott joins us, and assuming he places a bid a $500, we're looking at a maximum bidding potential of $2,350, at least given those who have spoken so far. I seriously doubt this will be enough, which raises two or three important questions:
1) Are there others here who are willing to bid, but are remaining silent in hopes of being one of the lucky six?
2) Of those who have already bid, is there any chance of possibly going higher? (In my case, I have already hinted I might go higher, though for budgetary reasons I couldn't possibly go higher than $500, and I doubt I'd even go that high.)
3) Of those who can't or won't bid enough to be in the top six, is there any chance you could bid $10 or $25 or $50 or $100 towards the team, to help boost our bid (which goes to a good cause) and our visibility?
As a final note, if anyone is concerned about posting publicly, you could at least PM Bruce, who will, I trust, keep your name and bid confidential. That way, Bruce can keep a tally of the silent bidders, and have a better chance at being able to win this.
I should also point out that, if we follow a last minute strategy, then we won't know how high the bidding might go. So, in that case, we should assume the worst (well, the worst for ImmInst, but the BEST for the MPrize), by which I mean that we should assume a five-figure winning bid. I have serious doubts it will get that high, but we should be trying to collect bidding power here at ImmInst as though the goal were to be able to place a five-figure bid, if necessary, to win.
With six top bidders, we'd be looking at close to two grand each, if no one else pitches in. I just don't see that happening. If Kirk joins our team, and the other six spots give $500, that would still only get us about $3,500 in bidding potential.
If twenty other Full Members agreed to pitch in $100, which is a stretch to say the least, that would still only push us up to $5,500 in bidding potential.
Which brings us back to the Conference. With the conference, we have an opportunity for people who help win the bid, but didn't make the top six, to get to meet Ray. They won't get to sit and have lunch at the same table, and discuss the future or the present or the past with Ray, but they'd get to meet him, before or after the luncheon.
And with regards to a Friday luncheon, if Ray were willing to stay for the Friday night get-together, the bidders who help us win (but aren't in the top six) could still come to the schmooze-fest, so to speak, and meet Ray. They just wouldn't be part of the actual luncheon. But it could still be an incentive to bid... maybe?
The point is, even as a team effort, I seriously doubt we'll win this with just the help of the top six bidders. So we'll need the help of every member who sees the potential benefit of winning this auction for ImmInst!
LongeCity
