Last night, I attended a high-energy fundraiser for Senator Barbara Boxer that President Obama spoke at.  A diverse crowd packed to hear the President, including my own elected representatives - Council President Eric Garcetti and County Supervisor Mark Ridley Thomas. 

I attended to not only support the cause,  but to also experience a major political fundraiser. 

As a Consultant, I’m always curious to learn from events I attend.  Here’s five elements from last night’s event that you may want to replicate if you are planning your own fundraising event: 

1. Feature a keynote speaker that many will fork out the extra bucks to see.

2. Stick to a relatively short program – they kept it to India Arie (who sang some inspirational songs), the chair of the DNC, Senator Boxer and then the President.

3. Their speeches celebrated progress they made while asking people for their ongoing support.

4. They personalized some of the invitations – the invite I received for this event came from my Council Member.

5.  They effectively dealt with challenges as they came up (including some hecklers in the audience that the President very effectively responded to by saying he heard their concerns, was working on it and then went back to his speech - to the applause of his supporters).

And at the end of the day, they raised an estimated $3.5 million dollars!  Even though my contribution was relatively small to the overall amount they raised, it was a gift I needed to give some thought to, and one that I’m glad I made.  

For more tips on planning an effective fundraiser, check out my recent blog post on the topic.