Events are a big ordeal - especially when it’s large, outdoor, and public! From guests to speeches, activities to food, from start to finish - A big event means a lot of hard work. When KrishnaKul Designs undertook Alberta’s first Annual HinduFest 2022, we had a few hiccups along the way, but thankfully, our experienced and enthusiastic team were able to manage it all. Nevertheless, we learnt a LOT from big public events, so we are bringing you some of our best tips for handling one yourself!
Walkie - Talkies
Whether you're a professional team working on a public project or simply a smaller group of members trying to get the community together, you are going to need walkie-talkies. Communication between teams is essential and definitely a task when you have so many things to oversee simultaneously. Phones aren't that efficient either, unfortunately, as you won't be able to hear anything over the background noise and you'll always be too occupied to not lose it. Thus, old school is the way to go! Get a few walkie-talkies, clip them on, and go ahead with your planned event.
Traffic Control
Public events see a lot of unexpected guests and uncontrolled traffic. Needless to say, it can very easily become a hectic affair. If you want to ensure the safety, organization, and control of the event, you need to facilitate proper traffic flow so that the team doesn’t get overwhelmed. A few of our favorite methods include using ropes or fencing to block off areas, creating designated pathways to ensure foot traffic can be controlled, and the most obvious, using signage to dedicate specific areas to specific activities. If you have a constricted area or limited attendance allowance, you might want to have someone present at the entrance to control the amount of people coming in at a time.
Dedicated Teams
Large scale events don’t always require large teams. If you have a limited amount of hands-on deck, appoint multiple tasks to members that are to be completed in the same vicinity, can be categorized in the same distinction, or suit the members’ individual skills and knowledge base. Having clear expectations and resolute deadlines can also be helpful in keeping your team efficient and as effective as a large group would. If you find it difficult, then perhaps you just need a team of day-of coordinators that can help you manage the ups and downs of the event, in accordance with your planning.
Stay Calm & Adapt
Mess-ups happen - relax. The beauty of a large event is that most people don’t know what to expect and all that is to happen, thus no one really picks up on mistakes except you. The key to ensuring a small hiccup doesn’t backfire the entire event is to stay calm and adapt. First think whether the situation can be fixed - perhaps someone on your team has the skills required to help out. If not, see if you can do something to replace the misfired element. Lastly, if you are still unable to do anything about it, then accept the situation, inform those who need to be informed, and carry the event forward. Unfortunate events happen to the best of us, but it is the principle of event planning that you keep from getting riled up. Just breathe through it, and remember to enjoy the event yourself!
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