4 Things to Keep in Mind When Planning an Event

Having worked with a number of event organizersthe attendee's food preference (hot dog or
over the years, I've found that there are somehamburger). As the registration forms are flowing in
things that can be easily overlooked when you are inyou will be able to accurately project how much and
the beginning phases of planning your first event.what types of food you should load up on in the
Giving special consideration to these 4 things fromweeks prior to the event.
the start will ensure that your event goes smoothly:How Will You Collect Attendee Data and Payment?
Have you obtained the necessary permits to holdThe greatest challenge to hosting an event is finding
your event?a way to efficiently collect attendee payment and
Whether or not you are required to apply for adata. Ideally, you want to devise a procedure that is
Special Events Permit will depend on your community,time efficient for your event staff and quick and
town, or city law. This should be the first thing youeasy for the attendee.
look into. Some communities require that you file aIn the past, event registration was offered
permit for any event over 1,000 attendees whileexclusively on paper registration forms and probably
some may request an application for any event overwent something like this: The attendee would fill out
10. There may also be a threshold number at whichthe paper form and mail it off to the event by post
police presence is required to ensure the orderlinessincluding a check. Once received by the event, a
of your guests. Your best bet is to contact your citystaff member would have to manually transfer the
council or local government so that they can informattendee's personal information into a spreadsheet
you of any special requirements for holding an eventand make a trip to the bank to make a deposit.
in the area.After a week or two of waiting, the attendee would
Safetyget a letter back confirming his entry into the event.
People want to have fun and they will undoubtedlyThe main concern here is the length of time it takes
want to participate in your event because it promisesyour staff to process one entry and the time the
to be a good time for the whole family. Keep in mindattendee has to wait before receiving a confirmation.
that one of the biggest draws for your event will notThe result can be an overworked event staff and an
only be the fun activities offered but also the level ofattendee uncertain if his payment has been received.
organization and focus on the well being and safetyThe growing trend in today's events industry is the
of the event attendees. Is your event location in ause of online registration software. There is a variety
safe area? Will children be safe if they stray away?of event registration software out there, some
Are you located near a street with heavy traffic?better than others. You will want to find one that
Are the event grounds contained and fenced in oroffers complete automation of all the tasks normally
can people who are not invited wander into yourrequired in hosting an event. This means finding a
crowd of attendees? Addressing these and othersoftware that provides online credit card processing,
safety issues will not only ensure your attendee'seasily customizable online registration forms, a secure
security but also enable you to market your event asdatabase to house your attendee data, various data
an exciting and safe occasion to be shared by all.reporting options accessible from any internet
Foodconnection, automatic confirmation emails sent to the
More often than not, events will include some sort ofattendee after making online payment, and an email
food or refreshments for attendees. The logisticsmarketing system that will enable you to keep in
involved in feeding a crowd of hundreds can becontact with your attendees and reach out to the
frightening but a little planning will ensure that no onethem following year to invite them to your event. If
goes hungry. Two things you should ask yourself are:you find a software that is right for your event, the
Where will the food come from and how will I haveresulting reduction of workload will allow your staff
an accurate idea of how much food I will need?focus less on the mundane tasks and spend more
To address the first issue, you will need to decide iftime working on what is important - tending to your
you will hire a catering company or purchase andattendees!
serve the food yourself. The advantages to hiring aConclusion
company are obviously that they will handleWith a growing number of people looking to take
everything from purchasing the food, to cooking thepart in novel activities these days, there is plenty of
food, to serving the food, and cleaning up after theopportunity for new event planners to break into the
event. The downside is the cost of course. If youindustry. The catch is that with the number of new
have a good group of event volunteers, you mayevents out there, only the most organized and
want to consider taking on the job yourself. Thethoughtful event planners will create something that
cost saved may be well worth the effort.truly stands out from the rest. From my experience,
The second issue of deciding how much food to buythe key to setting off on the right foot and creating
can be the most difficult one. The last thing yousomething successful is thinking about these four
want to do is purchase 2,000 hot dogs only to finditems from the very start. This solid foundation will
that your attendees are more in the mood formake launching your event easier and will lay the
hamburgers. To get the most accurate count ofgroundwork for an event destined for growth and
food items needed for the event, make sure youpopularity for years to come.
include a section on your event entry form to collect