Organizing an event is both rewarding and a lot of fun. There are a great number of things that you need to keep in mind though, when managing your event, whether it is a large conference, a user group or a once off launch of the latest product.
The below rules offer guidelines to help you create a professional, efficient and successful event that can be replicated and become a stable of your professional community. The rules are based on experience from community events, such as user groups, hackdays and conferences like DDD Melbourne, however, the rules can also be applied to commercial and large scale events.
The rules are split into three distinct sections:
The rules assume that your event idea has been properly researched and you have an audience for the particular field and topic you are addressing.
Do your events feel organised beforehand, but chaotic on the day?
That usually happens when no one clearly owns the handover from planning to execution. By assigning 2 clearly defined roles, an Event Organiser for pre-event planning and an Event Master for on-the-day delivery, each with a clear checklist to follow, your event is much more likely to run smoothly.
Even if someone is sick or there is an emergency handover, the next person can step in confidently and keep the event on track.
Yes, the roles can be the same person, but the roles and actions should still be clearly defined.
When planning an event, everything revolves around the date so it’s vital to be sure there are no potential clashes or conflicts. We recommend using a SharePoint calendar, to let employees and the public keep up to date with what your organisation is holding or attending. It is best to have more than 1 date in mind for your event when you start planning, as this affords you flexibility if your first choice of date won’t work out.
When you first start planning your event, a lot of ideas are put on the table and many are great and would improve your event.
Once you know which speakers you want and have established sponsorship and budget, you can start thinking about putting together an agenda.
This cannot be stressed enough. The venue for your event is the absolute most important item to get right and to get locked in.
At least a month before a user group talk the room for the presentation should be booked.
Make sure that the venue is prepared for the speaker to arrive.
Securing the right speakers for the topic of your event ensures that you attract the right people who want to hear what your speakers have to say.
Each venue is a little different and has different requirements. Don't expect presenters to know how each user group runs, especially if the user group organizers will not be available on the day/night.
It is really important that your speakers feel empowered, so make sure you give them the tools they need to run their event well.
Many of our speakers have hundreds or thousands of followers on social media. To get the best attendance for the user group, the speaker should announce their presentation using as many media channels as possible that they are presenting at the user group.
Putting on events aren’t free.
If you have offered sponsors booth space, make sure you have a designated area they can be set up in.
Managing the process of selling tickets can be very time consuming if you try and do it on your own.
Arriving at a venue for the first time can be both confusing and daunting if you don't know the area. Your event should have a registration area clearly signposted and easily identifiable so that your guests can find you more easily.
A successful event requires attendees to show up, or it won't reach its full potential. You will have to promote your event in a way that makes sense to your topic and approach.
The most cost-effective way is to use a large variety of online services that are available and to talk about the event.
A great way to increase your overall audience, as well as your attendance at each User Group, is to use social media and online forums like MeetUp to advertize your events.
You can use MeetUp, as well as the social media platforms, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn to announce all of our upcoming User Groups and keep track of attendance.
Imagine a potential client visiting your YouTube channel, keen to engage with your content but clueless about the next event you're hosting. You skip a valuable chance to connect with your audience if you don't highlight upcoming events on your banner. It's a great way to show off what you're promoting or hosting!
To maximize reusability and minimize costs, it’s best to avoid including dates as text in graphics for promotional videos.
It is relatively easy to get volunteers for your event, but it is often something that is left until the last minute.