Open Air Business January 2018

EVENTS
GETTY IMAGES
GETTY IMAGES
a competitive world out there! But does
another slightly costlier supplier/contractor
bring far greater experience and knowledge
to the event which in turn can benefit
you indirectly? The cost may be higher,
but overall will you save time having a
knowledgeable and experienced supplier/
contractor on site from the very start? The
contractor may have previous experience
on similar sites or locations and can provide
references for their previous work. The
knowledge and experience elements are
almost unquantifiable in terms of an actual
value in money but failing to understand the
benefits of this can lead to additional and
unforeseen costs.
There are also specific roles across many
events that demand a level of knowledge
and experience in order for the event to go
ahead safely. Safety advisors, electricians,
structural build elements and a number of
other areas need sound levels of knowledge
and experience to make the event work
safely and successfully.
You could ask recognised trade bodies to
recommend suppliers in your area or who
specialise in the services or product you
need, but be careful as they may simply
wish to put forward members of what is a
commercial organisation in itself. Again,
this is where personal recommendations
can be of real use. Industry events such as
the Event Production Show or Showman’s
Show can give you easy access to a large
number of potential suppliers who you can
meet and talk through your project with
at an early stage. They can then arrange to
meet you away from the industry event to
provide you with greater detail on what they
can provide.
COMMUNICATE
Talk things through clearly and have a clear
set of needs/requirements. It will be almost
“ENSURE CLARITY FROM
THE START, MAYBE EVEN
PUT TOGETHER SOME
ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY
PORTFOLIOS SO THAT
THERE IS A CLEAR FOCUS
ON EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE
PROCURING”
impossible for a supplier to provide you
with an accurate and bespoke quote if you
are vague or unsure about what you need.
Create a checklist of what you need before
talking to contractors and suppliers so you
have a clear focus on what is required. If
you are contracting an event management
and production team, this is clearly an area
where you will benefit from its knowledge
and contacts. Ensure clarity from the
start, maybe even put together some role
and responsibility portfolios so that there
is a clear focus on exactly what you are
procuring. This could greatly assist with any
issues further down the road.
CONTRACTING
Don’t forget to make sure that you
have a clear description of what will be
supplied, when it will be delivered and
collected, and who your point of contact
is. Create purchase orders that contain the
appropriate information and ensure that
both you and the supplier understand the
exact requirements of the project. If their
supply is subject to a site survey, get that
in place as early as possible. What you may
consider a very straight forward delivery
location may have implications for loads of
a certain height or weight. It’s also a great
opportunity to meet someone from the
company face to face if you haven’t already
done so.
Who is to be their contact on site as
well? You may be tied up running other
aspects of the business or event so
delegate someone to be on site to take
delivery and manage collections. Ensure
those details are passed to the suppliers so
they can easily access answers if needed.
Some companies will charge additional
fees if left waiting on site for equipment
to be off loaded so make sure there is a
realistic schedule that takes delivery and
collection time periods into account. It may
be that you can take delivery early or the
contractor can collect late – this may be in
their interest to reduce transportation so
can be worth exploring to save costs.
FEEDBACK
Hopefully, your event will take place
each year if so desired, and therefore
constructive feedback is needed to ensure
that everyone - including you - can learn
from their experience and continue to
improve their supply standards. Ask for a
post event meeting if there were areas that
were of particular issue, but be prepared
to listen to comments coming back as
well. Sometimes it could be a case of
miscommunication between the parties
and in hindsight those things can be easily
rectified. Constructive feedback can ensure
that all parties are aware of the positives
and negatives.
If your supplier did a good job then
make sure you thank them, a bit of positive
feedback does wonders for long term
relationships and it’s all too easy to simply
look at what wasn’t quite so good.
In summary – just take that little bit of
extra time so that you get what you really
need and the dividends will justify that
investment in time.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John Radford runs JR Event Services and has worked in the event industry for over 20 years. He provides event management and event safety
consultancy services for a broad spectrum of events from single day and city centre cultural events to week long music and dance festivals. Visit
www.jreventservices.co.uk or call 01275 406760 for an informal chat.
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