7 tips for organizing a successful live event

In this age of online connections, live events continue to be an essential part of brand and business development. Hosting a live event gives your brand and business the opportunity to stand out from your competitors. In this way, you can have a deeper and more significant brand-building effect on your consumers that is more effective than indirect and media-focused marketing efforts.

However, with so many innovative events happening around the world, companies and event professionals must increase their efforts to ensure that the event they host is attractive to their target audience and meets their goals.

The live events industry is booming, so much so that the US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the events industry will grow 44% between 2010 and 2020, beating most growth predictions for other industries. Even so, the stakes are still high when organizing a live event. They are very expensive to put on and require a great deal of planning, even if they only last for a weekend.

Here are the tried and tested best practices for hosting a successful live event.

Audio

Audio is the number one component when it comes to organizing a successful live event. No matter the size or type of event, the leading event companies know that you should always strive for excellent audio; otherwise, you will lose your audience’s interest and attention.

Most of the time, the microphones will be part of the setup, so plan to test each and every one well in advance so your audio engineers have time to deal with any issues that may arise, paying particular attention to the wireless frequency interference.

Also, get in the habit of using fresh batteries for wireless microphones for each event. If you are using an audio webcast, make sure it is clean and audible.

If your event is going to include remote presenters, schedule a test round with each of them, as most will not use a high-tech setup and will instead use a basic headset microphone or even a phone connection.

Video

In recent years, live video has proven to be the dominant form of marketing and, when used correctly at events, increases audience engagement. Live video at events offers brands and businesses the opportunity to take advantage of this compelling tool, bringing you and your customers together.

As in a TED Talk video, plan to have multiple camera angles to create a cinematic experience. Capturing raw moments and different perspectives helps everyone feel closer to the action.

The power of video is heightened by the fact that you can broadcast your events to audiences around the world, expanding your audience live and promoting the results of the event you are hosting. The filming of the speakers, panels or artists can later be turned into content (such as webinars) to promote your next event.

Visuals

In addition to the power of audio, visuals add an additional component to the story you are telling. The level and complexity of the images will vary depending on the aesthetics of your brand and the nature of the event; however, in all cases, some type of image must be used.

Moving backgrounds are a great way to add an extra dimension, as the subtle movement slightly enhances everything else that happens on stage. For a more extreme viewing experience, LED lighting rental is the way to go.

Another idea is to incorporate your brand or company logo into the appearance of the event. In short, you want the space your event occupies to become an immersive environment.

Processing fees

When selling tickets to your event, you may encounter ticket or credit card processing fees. Depending on the company, these can vary between 2.5% and 3.5% and may have an additional fixed fee per ticket.

Be sure to include these additional charges in the price, rather than adding them last. Psychologically, customers would rather see a slightly higher entry price than have a load of additional fees added at the end.

Next

Selecting a location and venue for your event is a matter that can require a lot of brainstorming. First, consider the niche your event is in and what characteristics (if any) your niche should have for that niche.

Once you’ve selected a venue, don’t just focus on the positives, but consider its limitations as well. Ask about the power capacities, whether certain things trigger smoke alarms, the weight capacity of the roof, etc. – go over all the little things that could potentially turn into big problems.

In the days and weeks leading up to the event, make sure the core team members are familiar with the venue. When everyone is running trying to put everything in its place, knowing the fastest routes from A to B will feel like a blessing.

Wherever you decide to host your event, make sure there are plenty of charging stations. You want everyone to be tweeting your event #hashtag all day!

Technicians

When it comes to product and service providers, the most important tip of all is to hire the right attitude. You want to make sure that the people you are going to work with are the creme de la creme of the industry.

Organizing and hosting these events can get a bit messy and intensely stressful, which can only be made worse if the people in charge of your audio, lighting, stage, and rigging haven’t been listening and can’t remember what to do. A good, energetic and motivated attitude goes a long way.

Don’t forget to make sure you reward your crew with great food! It’s amazing how much more motivated people can be when the reward for hard work is a tasty snack or meal.

Feedback

After the live event is over, be sure to ask attendees for post-conference feedback. This is the key to ensuring that the next event runs more smoothly and is more impressive than the last. If you don’t ask, you may never know that the chairs were uncomfortable, that there were too many overlapping panels, or that the coffee machine was never full.

Professional advice: Since you’ll likely need three days of sleep after the event is over, prepare your post-event emails and surveys before it even starts. Check that all links are working and leave room for any images you can add from the event before hitting submit.

By hosting a successful and engaging live event, potential customers can begin to develop a relationship with you, increasing the chances that they will buy from you in the future.

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