Road Blocks to Success… (Part 1)

 I was at a festival helping my sister set up her art booth. During the set up I talked to an artist acquaintance who I knew participated in a number of shows throughout the year. I wanted to find out more about these shows and what he thought of them. That’s when we started to talk about the different rules and regulations that organizers and governments threw in the way to prevent festivals and events from having ultimate success. The artist gave me a number of examples of poorly conceived rules that just made me shake my head in disgust! I think the best example of fuzzy headed thinking was the festival that decided to charge vendor participants a fee for parking on their grounds! What were they thinking??!! I’ve talked about this before, but I think it bears repeating, for many events, vendors are the engine that drives people to their event. Why bite the goose that lays the golden egg?

(To be continued in Part 2)

Event Development (continued)

 

“The following is a continuation of my Event Development Series. Several months ago, I started the series with the first section, “Initial Development” The second section is entitled “Research and Preliminary Planning”. Now that you and your team have decided to proceed with the event, it’s time to get serious! As suggested previously, any thoughts and idea are more then welcome!”

Research and Preliminary Planning

Money (continued)

“Monies Needed During the Event”

7.    Miscellaneous: Depending on what you are planning on offering, there could be a number of other expenses. Some examples could include:

·         If you are offering food services, you will need to purchase food in advance or during the event. Unless you have a friendly (and trusting) grocer, you will need to pay for the food at time of purchase.

·         Again, if you are providing food and drinks, you will need to store them in a safe, cool place. Unless your event has access to a free cooler, you will need to rent a cooler. For pop, you will need to purchase ice. All this will likely cost money up front or during the event.

·         If you are serving liquor or are having a “beer tent”, you will need to pre-purchase all your liquor. If you don’t order enough in advance, you may need to purchase extra during your event. All this requires cash.

All in all, there is an awful lot to think about and research once you start down the road of event development! As you progress in your festival or event planning, you will likely find many more areas where money is an issue. However, the more finite you make you research and planning, the better your festival or event will be!

Event Development (continued)

 “The following is a continuation of my Event Development Series. Several months ago, I started the series with the first section, “Initial Development” The second section is entitled “Research and Preliminary Planning”. Now that you and your team have decided to proceed with the event, it’s time to get serious! As suggested previously, any thoughts and idea are more then welcome!”

Research and Preliminary Planning

Money (continued)

“Monies Needed During the Event”

4.    Clean Up and Garbage Disposal: Unless you are part of a town event where the town provides this service, you will need to hire a company or individual to provide clean up and garbage disposal services. If you do, you will likely have to pay for this service up front or during the event. Any services contracted should include recycling. This is becoming more and more important each year.

5.    Policing: Once again, depending on your event and what you are offering, you might need to hire a private policing company or hire off-duty police. There could be a number of reasons for providing policing services. Unfortunately, beer tents and/or music concerts quite often require policing. If you are having road closures, policing for traffic control might be needed. If you have vendors or expensive equipment that are going to remain on the festival grounds overnight, you will need to provide policing services during the night time. Whatever the reason or reasons, you will likely need to pay for these services at the time they are rendered. Whoever you hire will need to be professionally equipped and legally able to provide the service(s) contracted.

6.    Shuttle Service: If you have off-site parking, you may want to provide a shuttle service. The type of service you hire will dictate the financial terms. For example, if you are hiring a bus service, they may require a deposit upfront and then invoice you for the rest after the event. However, if you are hiring individuals or a specialized type of service (taxi, horse and carriage, hay wagon, etc.), you will likely need to pay them up front or during the event. In all likelihood, they will want cash.
(To be continued)

Event Development (continued)

 “The following is a continuation of my Event Development Series. Several months ago I started the series with the first section, “Initial Development” The second section is entitled “Research and Preliminary Planning”. Now that you and your team have decided to proceed with the event, it’s time to get serious! As suggested previously, any thoughts and idea are more then welcome!”

Research and Preliminary Planning

Money (continued)

“Monies Needed During the Event”

1.    Cash Float: If you are planning on selling tickets or admission at the “gate”, you will need to provide each of your ticket sellers with a cash float. This is necessary because you will need change to give to your visitors. The amount you are charging will influence the dollars denomination you will need to provide for your sellers. As an example, if your admission fee is $2.00, you will need plenty of $1.00 or $2.00 coins and some $5.00 and $10.00 bills. You should also keep a supply of change at you headquarters. A consistent system of collecting the ticket money and replacing the sellers float should be in place.

2.    Security: Depending on the type of event you are holding, you may need to hire a security service. If this is the case, you will likely have to give them a deposit. If not, they will want payment either during the event or right after it. You need to be prepared for either scenario.

3.    Washroom Services: If you are holding an outdoor event, you will likely need to provide washroom and wash-up facilities. Depending on the service company in your area, you may have to give them a deposit. Again, like security, they will want payment either during the event or right after it. Since the washrooms and wash-up facilities generally need to be serviced a number of times during an event, there may be charges for each serving. You need to negotiate terms before you sign any contract.
(To be continued)