The council and events: a cost-benefit thing

Ever wondered why cities want to host events and festivals? You might think that the costs of street closures, police officers on duty, ambulances on standby, and cleaning costs would put councils off. Luckily not...

The economic benefits of events are quite often much greater than the costs. When I worked with San Francisco Pride I conducted an economic impact study on behalf of the city. The numbers were impressive:

• $40 million was spend on retail during Pride week
• $33 million in restaurants
• a total economic impact of almost $360 million

Not bad for a week long event. But that's just one event that takes place in the city by the Bay. Numerous events take place throughout the year and they all contribute to the local economy. 

South Tyneside Summer Festival

Obviously there are costs as well. Have you ever heard of South Tyneside? Nope, me neither but in this area the council organises a few free events. They say the Summer Festival brings people to the area, provides jobs and adds £1.7 million to the local economy. But there is no such thing as a free event.

The councils has published their event budget and hence we can see how much it cost to organise Summer Festival 2016. This is how we know that they spent £21,000 on a stage and £3,000 on entertaining guests. The following article is, I think, fantastic as it highlights the costs involved in organising a great festival. Is it too late to nominate South Tyneside council for council of the year?

You can follow me on my Youtube channel: every week an interview with an event expert.

Snapchat for events and festivals

Are you using Snapchat for your event? Why not? Launched in 2011, Snapchat wasn't taken seriously. Just another social media platform. However, the company has been growing steadily and more and more people have started using Snapchat. Including event planners.

Snap Inc. is planning to bring Snapchat to the stockmarket which could value the company at $30 billion. I guess they're doing quite okay then... The New York Times wrote a great piece about Snapchat a few weeks ago: How Snapchat Revolutionised Social Networks.

Event planners! If you are not using Snapchat yet you might want to look into it. Snapchat is a fantastic tool that allows you to engage with your event attendees. You can read how you can use it for your event in this article: It's a Snap! from Associations Now.

Do check out my Youtube channel: every week a new interview with an event professional!

Event trends in 2017

It’s almost 2017! So what are the event trends for the New Year? What will be different, or change, or revolutionise the events industry?

Whether you call them trends or expectations, it doesn’t really matter. Most event professionals seem to agree that event technology will become a bigger part of your event planning process. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are also hot favourites. Oh, and of course data… Not sure if that is a trend though. I think ‘big data’ has already been with us for a few years and, yes, the events industry will continue to utilise it in 2017.

The first one to publish their trends and predictions was Eventbrite UK. You can read their predictions here: Event trends that will shape your 2017! Over 50 event professionals tell you what they think will be a trend to look out for in the New Year. Most predictions lean towards: event technology, data usage, and virtual reality.

The Event Managers Blog produced a fantastic booklet 10 Event Trends For 2017. It’s actually more than 10 trends as they divided it into four categories: event technology, event design, venue management, and social media. You can read more about how the sharing economy will impact the events industry, about touchable tech at events, and on-site creation. One of my favourite predictions is Drone Streaming! You can read more about drone streaming and drone selfies at events here.

Music festivals in 2017

The Conversation is taking a different angle as they speculate whether large outdoor festivals will be a thing of the past. Smaller, more niche, or boutique festivals might be more a 2017-thing. The article refers to T in the Park, quite a large outdoor music festival, as a festival that seeks to take steps towards a smaller set-up. You can read the article Are Giant Music Festivals At The End Of The Road? here.

My 2017 event trend

And my prediction? With over 7,000 outdoor events each year the UK has one of the most buoyant festival markets in the world. Buoyant and crowded. I think we will see a rise of smaller, more intimate, and more sustainably oriented festivals in the UK.

This prediction is based on a trend we see in America. There, so-called transformational music festivals have established themselves as a unique, experiential and educational alternative to large festivals. The creativity (of venue layout, structures etc.) at transformational festivals is quite often top-notch. People want a unique experience when they visit a festival, a festival that they feel part of. These events seem to offer just that hence I think we will see more smaller and attendee-focussed festivals.

Happy 2017! You can follow me on Youtube: Every week an interview with an event expert. 

The ethics of sustainable event management

A few weeks ago I taught sustainable event management to a group of students. Very quickly we were talking about different waste streams, how many tents have been left behind at music festivals this year, and why bins aren’t emptied regularly. The thing is though… sustainability is much more than just the environment.

It makes sense though to think of waste streams when you hear about sustainable event management. It’s what we can see; it’s what we can touch. But event organisers should place equal emphasis on the social and economics aspects of sustainability, according to a report from Positive Impact.

What that means is that on a social level you look at the impact your event has on the local community. Whether you can educate and raise awareness among your audience about certain issues and, for example, health and safety regulations at your event. The list goes on but these are just some concerns you can think of.

From an economic point of view you need to treat your event as a business so you want a positive ROI as you want your event to succeed and grow. You can be very aware of the environment but if your event doesn’t make any money there’s no longevity. And what is the added value of your event to the [local] economy? There are some great examples here and here.

Technology can also help your event when pursuing sustainable event management. At Event Tech Live I only had to scan my badge at stands to receive more information, rather than them handing out promotional items. Collecting data instead of waste… win-win!

Transformational festivals: what are they?

Last week I was a guest lecturer at a college here in Brighton. My lecture was about the story of an event. How that storyline helps you as an event organiser to convey your message to your audience. I used a transformational festival as an example.

The students weren't really familiar with the term transformational festival. Jeet Kei Lung explains in his TedX Talk that a transformational festival provides a "content rich reality that features a high density of quality interactions. Festival attendees are participants and co-creators of the experience". Think Burning Man and you get the idea.

Now what does that mean? At these festivals it is all about community building, about learning and self-development, about social consciousness, about eating healthy, about creativity. Honestly, the creativity at these festivals is mind blowing! It might sound to you as a bunch of hippies gathering in a field but that's not necessarily true. The locations for these festivals are carefully chosen and the people attending are from all walks of life. 

I've been lucky enough to attend transformational festivals like Lightning in a Bottle and Symbiosis Gathering. Both are taking place on the west coast of America, currently the hotbed for such festivals. 

Is there room for such festivals in the UK? I think so.

You can subscribe to my Youtube channel. Every Sunday an interview with an event expert. Coming soon: my interview with Dede Flemming from Lightning in a Bottle.

Can you 'digital detox' at music festivals?

Earlier this year Adele asked her fans to put phones away and enjoy the gig in real life. Not sure how many of them actually did exactly do that but I can see where see is coming from. Somewhere during the summer months I read an article about digital detoxing. People who make a conscious decision to go off grid for a while.

Turns out that a third of British internet users have tried this digital detox, according to a report from Ofcom. Now, I'm not ready for a complete detox yet but since the start of 2016 I no longer have the Facebook app on my phone.... too addictive. Am I a better person for it? Not really but I do look less at my phone, which was my main reason. 

How will this work for festivals? Fans want to be connected. They get annoyed when there's no wifi and want to post on Facebook and Instagram instantly. A good festival provides escapism. So isn't a festival a perfect opportunity for someone's digital detox? 

Some festivals are tapping into this market. Unplugged Festival and Off Grid Festival are two examples of UK festivals that allow people to switch off from the online world. And they are successful festivals. I guess festival organisers have to make choices...

Social media or social experience? Let's see if the trend continues.

You can subscribe to my Youtube channel: every Sunday an interview with an event expert!

Startups and the event industry

Earlier this month I was at Event Tech Live in London. A conference of sorts but actually more a showcase of new event technology ideas. One of the areas at the conference was dedicated to startups who could pitch their company to potential investors. My favourite stage! 

Some ideas seem to already be out there, like that company that looked a lot like a new version of Eventbrite. But the majority of the ideas pitched were really good, really innovative, and generally inspired me. They offered solutions to problems they had faced in the event industry.

Perhaps you're walking around with some new innovative ideas as well. For example a problem you ran into at your last festival and you actually found a solution for it.

Earlier this year Startacus published this blog post about how to stand out with your new product when at music festivals. It's not the same as the products pitched at the conference but it might inspire you either way.

Would you like to be inspired on a weekly basis? Subscribe to my YouTube channel, every Sunday a new interview with an event expert.

How to organise a safe event for everyone to enjoy

Working as a project manager for the International Centre for Crowd Management & Security Studies I have seen some 'interesting' approaches to health and safety regulations at events and festivals. 

From incomplete front of stage barriers to overflowing toilets and anything in between. In the early 2000s I was involved in rewriting the licensing for a large festival after an incoherent event management plan (and consequent acting on it) lead to audience members being hospitalised. As an event planner you need to avoid these kind of mistakes. After all, we are talking about the health, safety and well-being of your audience.

But what do you do when you have to organise an event in a country where violent attacks happen. Meredith Pallante wrote an interesting article about how she organised the security for an event held in Israel. You can read the article here.

For more information about health and safety aspects at events you can visit my YouTube channel where you can find my FREE course in event safety.

What it takes to create a (sustainable) festival

Rocking the Daisies took place last weekend. This South African festival has been promoting sustainability since its inception. Craig Bright and Brian Little have been building the festival over the last decade. In January this year they gave an interview to South Africa's Entrepreneur Magazine. An interview every aspiring event planner should read. You can read the article here. 

To get an overview of what sustainable event management means for Rocking the Daisies you should read the article from BizCommunity. The article provides a great overview of the festival's sustainable initiatives. I hope these initiatives will inspire you!

Event safety and the thrill of amusement rides

Event planners should take health & safety aspects at their events very serious. Most of them do this already. As part of the licensing requirements event planners need to create (and implement) a risk assessment. Accidents still happen though.

The following article discusses the risks of amusement rides at events. The article starts out with some gruesome examples but I guess that brings home the message. 

Kevin Moore works in risk management services in America and has written this article about event safety issues for the Kentucky Forward. 

Safety tips for festival fans

This year's festival season might be over but some of us are already getting ready for 2017. Earlier this week we were told that Glastonbury Festival 2017 sold out within one hour. Talking about getting ready for next year.... Pretty amazing!

Whichever festival you go to, make sure you plan it properly. Part of that planning process is to start talking to your friends about how to stay safe at festivals. What is your plan to look after yourself and your friends? 

The Upcoming is giving you some great safety tips when attending gigs and music festivals. You can read the article here.

My workshop Sustainable Event Management in Holland

Together with the Event Safety Institute in the Netherlands I am organising a two-day workshop about Sustainable Event Management. It will take place in Holland on the 18th and 19th of January and yes, it will be in Dutch. 

This workshop is for event planners, festival organisers, event suppliers, and event licensors. The aim of the workshop is to provide you the tools to make your organisation and your events more sustainable. 

You can find more information here. All info is in Dutch but feel free to contact me of you have any questions.

4.6 million people are live streaming music festivals: an untapped market

Over 800 music festivals take place in the USA each year. About 32 million people visit these festivals. That's a lot. But it gets even better (and bigger). 

23% of the social media buzz surrounding these events comes from people that aren't even attending these festivals. It comes from people sitting at home watching it on their computer or mobile devices. Now how can you tap into that market? Here a great article from Hypebot. 

How to make your conference appealing to millennials

The last time I went to a conference I noticed that the audience was quite "mature". The only younger visitors looked like students who were trying their luck with networking. 

But how do you attract a younger audience? How do you make sure they come back to your conference the next time? How do you make your conference appealing to millennials? You can read the article here.

What to think of when organising an Oktoberfest

It's October which means it is time for Oktoberfest! Actually the most important Oktoberfest, the one in Munich in Germany, took place in September. But you get my drift. The world's biggest Oktoberfest generates a whopping €1.3 billion for the region. Of that €189 million is spent on beer.

If you're thinking of organising an Oktoberfest than you might want to read the 6 tips that Eventbrite have put together. It gives you six handy tips for planning an amazing beer festival. And guess what, it's not just about the beer!

Licensing issues for Glasgow Oktoberfest

Glasgow Oktoberfest has been cancelled as the organisation didn't get a licence. The festival was said to take place on the 19th of October but due to an argument over the correct licences it has had to cancel the event.

There were concerns over safety issues, according to Glasgow Licensing Board. On the website of Glasgow Oktoberfest it says that they will be back next year. To be continued...

You can read the article here. 

Investment in event technology: the case of Social Tables

Event technology company Social Tables has secured another $15 million in funding. Social Tables provides innovative solutions to handle complex event problems (like check-in procedures, seating planning, etc). The company is said to use the investment for " a broader set of event industry challenges".

Here the article about Social Tables. 

Sustainable Events Summit to take place in London

The Sustainable Events Summit will take place on Monday 21 November. According to Conference News the summit will take place at 30 Euston Square in London. You can read the full article here.  

This conference will present the findings of a research study about how global brands view sustainability. 

Early bird tickets cost £130 + VAT and standard tickets go for £160 (+ VAT). You can find more info on www.sustainableeventssummit.com. 

W hotels is entering the music festival market

A hotel chain that is organising a music festival? W-Hotels gave it a try, according to this Forbes article, and did a good job.

So how does it work? Apparently it was a "100% W experience". Although I'm not 100% sure what that exactly means. But W did manage to fill the hotel on a normally quiet weekend, making the festival a marketing tool for the hotel business. Interesting.

How accessible is your event?

Attitude is Everything is an organisation that improve deaf and disabled people's access to live music. The organisation supports festival organisations in helping them to understand the needs of disabled people. On their website there are plenty of useful practical guides.  

Read here the Practical Guide about Access Information from Attitude is Everything.