10 Naming Rights Ideas for Auction Items

Naming rights are typically reserved for significant major gifts, with the naming of schools at universities, hospitals, stadiums, and other similar entities for gifts of $10 million or more. However, the appeal of naming rights can be applied to opportunities for individual and corporate donors at the $500+ level, too! 

Offering naming rights is one of the ways donors can feel connected to your mission. It’s also an opportunity to be creative with how your organization stewards donor relationships. And, they are low-cost options, with significant returns. 

Broader naming rights opportunities also encourage long-term involvement, as donors placing their chosen name, or remembering or honoring someone, on something or somewhere within your organization are directly contributing to its legacy. 

Naming Rights as a Sponsorship vs. Auction Item 

While the most significant naming rights opportunities are reserved for mega corporate and individual donors, often after months and years of stewardship and proposals, offering naming rights as an auction item provides a gateway for similarly minded and dedicated mid-major donors, who may not be able to give or are interested in – yet – in $10+ million gifts. 

When you start to think of auction items for your upcoming events, consider what adding naming rights opportunities could do for your revenue.   

How to Offer Naming Rights in Your Auction  

There are a few factors to consider when exploring naming rights, including time limits, naming rules and guidelines, and how exactly you’ll credit the donor.  

When offering a smaller item with a lower impact, add the naming rights opportunity as an auction item and allow donors to bid on the naming rights. If it’s a larger impact item, program, or other similar opportunity, your team should decide on the expected minimum donation amount.  

Sometimes, donors like to give publicly, and the excitement of funding a program or other naming right opportunity with a paddle raise can impact and inspire other giving throughout your event. Consider soliciting a guaranteed bidder for a mid-range naming right, ahead of your auction program.  

As you share naming rights opportunities, share exactly how you’ll feature donors’ names. It could be a plaque, a sign, adding their name to your organization’s website, and/or including the name in your future communications. Donors need to be publicly recognized, so be clear in your organization’s plan to do so.  

 

 

Naming Rights Auction Examples 

1. Animals or Habitats 

Who doesn’t want to name the newest animal friend? Offering the donors the chance to name a new foul, cub, or other resident, all while supporting your zoo or aquarium’s mission and conservation efforts, is a zoo-perb opportunity. Make sure to mention that it is mutually-agreed upon choice! 

 

2. Benches  

If you have outdoor space or another large open area, or can partner with your city or town, you can offer mutually beneficial seating as an auction item. Donors love to, within a character limit, honor or remember their  friends and family with a resting spot. Benches are great opportunities for naming rights auction items to be placed around:  

• Arboretums and gardens 
• Churches 
• Forest Preserves and parks 
• Libraries 
• Schools and districts  

3. Bricks and Pavers 

As you beautify any outdoor space at your organization, from a path to an entrance or a garden to a grotto, bricks and pavers are a smart way to cover goods costs and raise additional funds. Depending on the space you need to fill (and how many you sell), bricks and pavers fundraisers can yield up to four times the cost of the bricks and pavers. 

4. Exhibitions and Extensions 

Do you have a temporary exhibit or program, or an extension branch of your organization that could use funding support? Are you not able to offer an addition because of funding misses? Consider naming rights as a standalone opportunity or an aggregate of multiple donors to make those extensions of your mission a reality.  

5. Mosaic, Mural, or Other Installation 

As you improve any part of your physical space, on the inside or outside, consider the naming rights opportunities you could offer. If a mural, painted windows, flagpole, or another physical change is needed, you might have donors who are a perfect fit to fund it.  

6. Outdoor Areas 

Does your organization have internal streets, turnaround lanes, or playgrounds on site? You can section off these physical items for multiple naming rights opportunities within one area. For roadways, you can auction them off annually. A playground (and its areas) would likely offer more permanent naming rights opportunities at a still friendly price point.  

 

7. Programs

Do you have programs that are short on funding?  Share the specific funding gaps with your donor network and offer them the opportunity to bridge that gap and honor or remember someone with naming rights.  

This tangible, mission-connected offering is enticing to the donors who are the most invested in your cause.  

8. Rooms or Spaces 

While large university buildings are reserved for mega donors, consider what naming a room, theater seat, lab table, elevator, or other small space could do for revenue generation. Honoring and remembering friends, family, and alumni with a piece of a place that was important to them is a high-value offering that donors will give for.  

9. Supplies and Other Goods 

As your organization looks to revitalize or refuel its art supplies, seed, feed, pet food, hygiene, and other tangible goods that directly benefit your constituents, consider naming rights to get those goods paid for.  

Some organizations have shown a lot of creativity with offerings, encouraging people to name zoo-feed cockroaches after exes, so consider brainstorming creative ways to leverage naming rights to help you raise more and cover costs. 

10. Vehicles and Other Equipment  

Do you have equipment at your organization — snow clearing, lawn maintenance, or transportation — that you need to maintain or purchase? Consider naming rights to cover those costs. You could ask for suggestions and then run a donation voting campaign to decide on names, or give that honor to a naming rights auction winner.  

Naming rights aren’t just for multi-million-dollar donors and massive institutions — they can be a powerful, creative fundraising tool at every level. Whether donors choose puns, personal anecdotes, or meaningful memorials, naming rights in your auction offer donors a chance to connect personally and publicly with your mission, creating long-term engagement and meaningful recognition.  

Whether it’s a park bench, a program, a piece of equipment, or even a cockroach, naming rights auction items allow you to offer exciting opportunities that inspire giving. Get creative, be clear about how recognition will be shared, and watch as donors rally around the chance to leave their mark — and support your cause in the process. 

 

Related Resources: 

• Blog | 30 Silent Auction Items That Don’t Cost a Dime 
• Webinar On-Demand | Beyond Bids: Best Practices and Proven Strategies to Perfecting Live Auction