The last year has been challenging and unpredictable for everyone, especially event creators. With strict safety requirements still likely present at the end of UK lockdown and the possibility of changing guidelines, it’s normal to feel anxious about hosting in-person events once again. But there’s one simple way to help you feel confident during the return to live events: going back to basics.
That means forgetting about all the extra baggage that can often come along with event planning and returning to the reasons why you’re hosting the event in the first place. Simplifying things, whether that means streamlining entertainment or shortening running time, can take the pressure off and help to get you excited for planning events again. At Eventbrite’s recent Tips from Down Under webinar, BeerFest Australia’s James Harding asked the audience: “If we’ve got a blank canvas, how can we paint it in a way that’s going to work?”
While it’s essential to always keep up-to-date with the latest COVID-19 government guidelines, here’s how to make life easier and fall back in love with event hosting.
Focus on your “why”
The first question to ask yourself when putting together your event planning checklist is: why am I hosting this event? Reasons might include:
- Bringing like-minded people together
- Raising awareness of your brand
- Offering insight and knowledge
- Creating networking opportunities
- Raising money for a cause
It’s important that your “why” is realistic, rather than wildly ambitious. You might try uniting a local community, for instance, rather than attendees from all over the world. Keeping these values at the forefront of your mind through every step of the planning process will help you to deliver your vision without getting side-tracked by time-consuming and costly extras. Ultimately, this core message is what attracted your attendees in the first place (and it’s what will make them come back time and time again).
Knowing your “why” can also help you to decide what your priorities are for your event management plan. Did you find booking and hosting multiple food vendors a bit of a headache before, for example? And would you prefer to spend your energy on securing a great speaker instead?
How to go back to basics
- Using the ideas above as inspiration, write down your “why.” Think about what you want attendees to come away with at the end of your event and the next steps that you’d like them to take, whether that’s engaging with your brand online or booking another event with you.
- Make a list of any aspects of your event that might not be necessary. Look at key areas like food and drink, entertainment, participants, and merchandise. What could you reasonably take away from your event without impacting your core values and message?
- Next, it’s time to think about what you want your event to look like. When deciding on your event format, think about ways you can eliminate the unnecessary additions from step two while focusing on your “why.” For example, easy events to plan like a Q&A session with audience participation might work well for a book launch or masterclass, while a single music act, rather than an entire festival, might be more appropriate for fundraising or awareness-building.
- Keep COVID regulations at the forefront of your mind, but don’t let them take over your event. Of course, it’s essential to comply with national and local restrictions, but try thinking of these as an extra layer of planning. This can help you to remain positive without getting discouraged. If possible, assign the responsibility of making your event COVID-safe to one member of the team, freeing you up for more creative tasks.
- Concentrate on the sense of community between event creators. Rather than seeing other events as competition, why not embrace a grassroots set-up and try working together? This could take the form of sharing a venue to halve costs or creating a collaborative series of events.
What fulfils you as an event creator?
In times as tumultuous as these, it’s essential to remember why you started hosting events in the first place. It might be the buzz of carefully made plans coming together, facilitating the exchange of exciting ideas, or getting great feedback after the day. Whatever it is, this reason is the key to pushing forward. And now is the perfect time to concentrate on what makes you feel happy and fulfilled as a creator, rather than what fills you with dread. Your event doesn’t need to be all-singing and all-dancing, but it does need to come from a real place of passion and intent.
Remember that before hosting any event, it’s essential to check all of the latest COVID-19 restrictions and guidelines in your area.
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