Open Air Business August/September 2017
The UK's outdoor hospitality business magazine for function venues, glampsites, festivals and outdoor events
The UK's outdoor hospitality business magazine for function venues, glampsites, festivals and outdoor events
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
EVENTS<br />
The Devil’s in the<br />
John Radford runs though the essentials of pre-event planning<br />
“If you fail to plan, you are<br />
planning to fail.” This classic<br />
quote is attributed to Benjamin<br />
Franklin, but many wellknown<br />
leaders both past and<br />
present have highlighted the<br />
need to plan carefully and<br />
comprehensively in order to<br />
achieve the goals required.<br />
It is no different in the event<br />
industry, yet do we really plan<br />
effectively and comprehensively<br />
or are we simply paying lip<br />
service to this key requirement<br />
in the vain hope that “it will<br />
be alright on the night”? If we<br />
get it wrong the results can<br />
be devastating, so planning<br />
appropriately is a critical part of<br />
event management.<br />
As an event production<br />
“AS A<br />
STARTING<br />
POINT,<br />
CREATE<br />
A LIST OF<br />
EVERYTHING<br />
THAT YOU<br />
WOULD<br />
WANT TO<br />
HAVE ON SITE<br />
OR THAT YOU<br />
WILL NEED<br />
TO MAKE<br />
THE SITE<br />
OPERATE<br />
EFFECTIVELY”<br />
company, we often become<br />
involved with events where the<br />
end product has been clearly<br />
defined but the roadmap hasn’t<br />
been properly considered or<br />
clearly communicated. The<br />
devil is in the detail; don’t come<br />
unstuck. Planning makes an<br />
event successful, so consider it<br />
carefully.<br />
BUDGET<br />
For many, the goal is to develop a<br />
profit-making event, while others<br />
just want to break even or maybe<br />
create a charitable fundraising<br />
model for many years to come.<br />
Whatever the goal, the need to<br />
create a comprehensive budget<br />
is vital. Have you really looked<br />
at what is needed for the event<br />
or have you become blinded by<br />
the more exciting ‘wow’ parts and<br />
forgotten the mundane elements<br />
such as litter picking, way finding<br />
signage or fencing?<br />
It’s easy to focus on the creative<br />
and exciting aspects and lose<br />
perspective on the need for a<br />
holistic approach to the event by<br />
considering every aspect – some<br />
of which will not be seen by those<br />
attending the event but are vital to<br />
its success.<br />
As a starting point, create a<br />
list of everything that you would<br />
want to have on site or that you<br />
will need to make the site operate<br />
effectively. Think about what you<br />
need in advance of the event,<br />
such as licensing, venue plans,<br />
site visits, and what you may need<br />
PHOTO BY KYLE BAKER<br />
56 WWW.OPENAIRBUSINESS.COM
Change language