Why don't communities think more often of using an event strategy for economic development?
- events generate immediate income from attendees, while exposing the community to potential outside investors
- statewide and national event are magnets for out-of-town money
- event subject matter can be tailored toward the needs of a community
If a community is going to employ events for economic development, why not focus on growing new events, rather than attracting events that already exist in other communities?
- Home grown events can more easily be designed to meet the needs and leverage the advantages of a community.
- Home grown events will stay; whereas events that have been attracted can just as easily be lured to some other location
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Thank You Notes
When it gets right down to it, our grandmothers were right about pretty much everything -- especially the importance of sending thank-you notes.
For events of up to 200 people, sending personal, hand-written notes to attendees can make a huge impact. It doesn't (and shouldn't) be anything grand -- 50 words can make all the difference in the world.
For example, two days ago we finished an awards luncheon for 160+ people (www.tribuneawards.com). By tomorrow, pretty much every single one of those folks will have a hand-written thank you note from me.
Why?
1. It provides one last chance to give attendees a warm feeling about the event and to reinforce the brand and messaging.
2. It reminds attendees about you and will help them remember if they ever need help with their own event.
3. It is just really nice, and will set you apart because nobody ever does this kind of thing anymore. Don't you want to be remembered for being nice and thoughtful?
E-mail is okay, and might be necessary if there are over 200 attendees or if you don't have a couple of people on the team who can help you. E-mail absolutely does not pack the punch of a hand-written note on nice stationery or note cards.
No matter what, be as personal as you can; reinforce the messaging of the vent; and be sincere. If you really appreciate that someone supported your event, and can effectively communicate that, it will make a big difference.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
For events of up to 200 people, sending personal, hand-written notes to attendees can make a huge impact. It doesn't (and shouldn't) be anything grand -- 50 words can make all the difference in the world.
For example, two days ago we finished an awards luncheon for 160+ people (www.tribuneawards.com). By tomorrow, pretty much every single one of those folks will have a hand-written thank you note from me.
Why?
1. It provides one last chance to give attendees a warm feeling about the event and to reinforce the brand and messaging.
2. It reminds attendees about you and will help them remember if they ever need help with their own event.
3. It is just really nice, and will set you apart because nobody ever does this kind of thing anymore. Don't you want to be remembered for being nice and thoughtful?
E-mail is okay, and might be necessary if there are over 200 attendees or if you don't have a couple of people on the team who can help you. E-mail absolutely does not pack the punch of a hand-written note on nice stationery or note cards.
No matter what, be as personal as you can; reinforce the messaging of the vent; and be sincere. If you really appreciate that someone supported your event, and can effectively communicate that, it will make a big difference.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Event Volunteer Tips
At the Community Events Web site (www.commevents.com) I just posted an awesome checklist for working with volunteers. Are you detail oriented? Then this list was made especially for you.
Here are a few things I've learned about working with volunteers (in no particular order):
1. Always recruit at least 1/3 more volunteers than you need because there is always a good chance that some of your volunteers will not show up when they said they would. (This is probably the single most important thing I know about working with volunteers.)
2. Provide written instructions -- as short as possible, but explaining exactly what is needed.
3. Recruit them -- immediately send each a thank you/reminder e-mail -- send each a second reminder e-mail a day or two before the event
4. If someone else is doing the recruiting, don't settle for anything less than a list of specific volunteers with names and contact information (people have a tendency to be "optimistic" about the number of volunteers they have recruited).
5. Feed them if you can.
6. Have them sign in with addresses, phone numbers, and e-mails. You want to make sure you have this list for thank-you notes and future volunteering.
7. Send hand-written thank you notes, not e-mail (no one does this anymore and it makes a lasting impression).
Here are a few things I've learned about working with volunteers (in no particular order):
1. Always recruit at least 1/3 more volunteers than you need because there is always a good chance that some of your volunteers will not show up when they said they would. (This is probably the single most important thing I know about working with volunteers.)
2. Provide written instructions -- as short as possible, but explaining exactly what is needed.
3. Recruit them -- immediately send each a thank you/reminder e-mail -- send each a second reminder e-mail a day or two before the event
4. If someone else is doing the recruiting, don't settle for anything less than a list of specific volunteers with names and contact information (people have a tendency to be "optimistic" about the number of volunteers they have recruited).
5. Feed them if you can.
6. Have them sign in with addresses, phone numbers, and e-mails. You want to make sure you have this list for thank-you notes and future volunteering.
7. Send hand-written thank you notes, not e-mail (no one does this anymore and it makes a lasting impression).
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Do it yourself event Web site creation
Over the years, I've created a lot of event Web sites and, no, this is not my forte. Yes, it would be better to have professional Web designers do this. When there is enough money to hire a professional, then I do, but what about when we are on a shoe string budget?
That's what hosting company templates and sitebuilder software are for. When it comes to stretching tiny Web design dollars, these are lifesavers.
As you might guess, there is a wide range of quality when it comes to these things. So here is what I look for when I'm evaluating a new sitebuilder:
1. Peruse the site templates offered by the company. Across the industry, these are getting better, but there are still real disparities in quality. Set aside 20 minutes to an hour to skim the album of templates for a company you are considering. You want to see at least a few that seem really exciting and professional; there are still plenty of templates out there that look do-it-yourself shortcuts, and simply won't satisfy anyone with a discerning eye for Web design (which seems to be just about everyone these days).
2. If there is a free demo of the software, give it a spin. If not, this should be a red flag and it would probably be better to look at other options. During the demo (which might be free for as long as 30 days) you should look for two things. One, ease of use. For my part, I have basically no technical skills, so I need something that the average cat could use. The second thing is the widest range possible of editing power -- too many sitebuilders have huge sections of their templates that can not be manipulated. In most cases, the templates weren't that great to begin with, so this is particularly disappointing.
So far, the hosting company with the best sitebuilder I have used is Homestead.com. It has many, many cool templates and offers incredible versatility in design. For my money, it vastly outpaces Yahoo!, GoDaddy, Hostpapa, Hostmonster, and any of the other services with which I have spent time and money.
That's what hosting company templates and sitebuilder software are for. When it comes to stretching tiny Web design dollars, these are lifesavers.
As you might guess, there is a wide range of quality when it comes to these things. So here is what I look for when I'm evaluating a new sitebuilder:
1. Peruse the site templates offered by the company. Across the industry, these are getting better, but there are still real disparities in quality. Set aside 20 minutes to an hour to skim the album of templates for a company you are considering. You want to see at least a few that seem really exciting and professional; there are still plenty of templates out there that look do-it-yourself shortcuts, and simply won't satisfy anyone with a discerning eye for Web design (which seems to be just about everyone these days).
2. If there is a free demo of the software, give it a spin. If not, this should be a red flag and it would probably be better to look at other options. During the demo (which might be free for as long as 30 days) you should look for two things. One, ease of use. For my part, I have basically no technical skills, so I need something that the average cat could use. The second thing is the widest range possible of editing power -- too many sitebuilders have huge sections of their templates that can not be manipulated. In most cases, the templates weren't that great to begin with, so this is particularly disappointing.
So far, the hosting company with the best sitebuilder I have used is Homestead.com. It has many, many cool templates and offers incredible versatility in design. For my money, it vastly outpaces Yahoo!, GoDaddy, Hostpapa, Hostmonster, and any of the other services with which I have spent time and money.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Nice paper
Today I drove to Kansas City (about two hours away) to visit my favorite paper store. It would be better if I could find a good paper store here in Columbia or closer than 120 miles away, but we make do with what we must.
I went because I needed paper for invitations. Yes, many events now handle all invitations electronically, but there is still no substitute -- in terms of sending a message of quality and class - for paper. In addition to the class issue, people also still pay a lot more attention to high quality, mailed paper invitations than they do to electronic. Paper will increase your response rate (and their is no reason not to couple paper invitations with electronic follow-up).
With that settled, the big issue is cost. We must provide high quality at the lowest cost possible.
For me, the answer is typically to print my own invitations on nice stock that I've bought at a bulk paper store. Doing this also shortens the printing time (since printers typically take a week or two to do what I can do in an afternoon).
Even with the cost of gas, if I several jobs worth of paper at at a time, going to the Kansas City store is a worthile expenditure of both money and time.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
I went because I needed paper for invitations. Yes, many events now handle all invitations electronically, but there is still no substitute -- in terms of sending a message of quality and class - for paper. In addition to the class issue, people also still pay a lot more attention to high quality, mailed paper invitations than they do to electronic. Paper will increase your response rate (and their is no reason not to couple paper invitations with electronic follow-up).
With that settled, the big issue is cost. We must provide high quality at the lowest cost possible.
For me, the answer is typically to print my own invitations on nice stock that I've bought at a bulk paper store. Doing this also shortens the printing time (since printers typically take a week or two to do what I can do in an afternoon).
Even with the cost of gas, if I several jobs worth of paper at at a time, going to the Kansas City store is a worthile expenditure of both money and time.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
Friday, May 22, 2009
Get the money in the door
For a long time, I was a fulltime political professional, doing a lot of fundraising. I still do quite a bit. Today, I had a meeting with a gentleman who is chairing a fundraiser for a candidate.
In fundraising, all that matters is getting the money in the door. In this case, we have a June 30th filing deadline with the state -- everything we do is focused on raising every dollar we can by that date.
Originally, this fundraising event was scheduled for the last week of June, to accomodate our deadline. When I arrived, the host told me he needed to move it to early July. Ugh. You'd think that the change of a week or so wouldn't matter, but all that matters in fundraising is getting the money in the door. And if there is a deadline involved (because of a state filing, or a bill that is due, or whatever) then nothing else matters.
My initial response was to make an effort to shift us back to June, but it was quickly apparent that this couldn't happen.
So here's the salvage plan -- we'll send the invitations on June 18th. That's three weekends before the event (right in the 2-3 weekend timeframe that is best for event invitations). Importantly, it will give us almost two weeks to collect money that can apply to the June 30th deadline. In the invitations, we can include a line like, "Contributions received by June 30th will be particularly helpful." And we can focus on the deadline in follow-up calls and details.
None of this will make it as good as if the event itself were scheduled earlier, but it might just be good enough.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevent.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
In fundraising, all that matters is getting the money in the door. In this case, we have a June 30th filing deadline with the state -- everything we do is focused on raising every dollar we can by that date.
Originally, this fundraising event was scheduled for the last week of June, to accomodate our deadline. When I arrived, the host told me he needed to move it to early July. Ugh. You'd think that the change of a week or so wouldn't matter, but all that matters in fundraising is getting the money in the door. And if there is a deadline involved (because of a state filing, or a bill that is due, or whatever) then nothing else matters.
My initial response was to make an effort to shift us back to June, but it was quickly apparent that this couldn't happen.
So here's the salvage plan -- we'll send the invitations on June 18th. That's three weekends before the event (right in the 2-3 weekend timeframe that is best for event invitations). Importantly, it will give us almost two weeks to collect money that can apply to the June 30th deadline. In the invitations, we can include a line like, "Contributions received by June 30th will be particularly helpful." And we can focus on the deadline in follow-up calls and details.
None of this will make it as good as if the event itself were scheduled earlier, but it might just be good enough.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevent.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Keep it short
One of the best ways to increase the chances of a successful event is to keep it short. Think about how much time events of a similar sort usually are and then cut it by 25-50%.
The event we did tonight was a business awards dinner. Two hours or longer is an average length for this kind of thing -- three hours or more is not unheard of.
Our event started at 6:30 and was over just before 8:00. In terms of the program, this included presentation of several awards and three speakers -- one scheduled for ten minutes, one for five minutes and the third one for two minutes. With the speakers, we emphasized the importance of staying on schedule at least three different times, verbally and in writing. This message was also driven home with the MC, who was inclined toward brevity, anyway.
Still, leaving nothing to chance, I stood at the back of the room, in the direct line of sight for the speakers, and they knew that if I stepped forward, that meant it was time to wrap up, immediately. All three had assured me that this would not be necessary because there was no way they would exceed their alotted time; for all three, giving the signal was absolutely necessary, and absolutely worked.
Streamlining the events does several things. It shows attendees and everyone else that we value their time. It gives little time for attendees to think of other things they could be doing, and forces speakers to use their best material.
In all cases, I would rather leave my guests wanting more, instead of wondering why that event couldn't have ended just fifteen minutes earlier.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
The event we did tonight was a business awards dinner. Two hours or longer is an average length for this kind of thing -- three hours or more is not unheard of.
Our event started at 6:30 and was over just before 8:00. In terms of the program, this included presentation of several awards and three speakers -- one scheduled for ten minutes, one for five minutes and the third one for two minutes. With the speakers, we emphasized the importance of staying on schedule at least three different times, verbally and in writing. This message was also driven home with the MC, who was inclined toward brevity, anyway.
Still, leaving nothing to chance, I stood at the back of the room, in the direct line of sight for the speakers, and they knew that if I stepped forward, that meant it was time to wrap up, immediately. All three had assured me that this would not be necessary because there was no way they would exceed their alotted time; for all three, giving the signal was absolutely necessary, and absolutely worked.
Streamlining the events does several things. It shows attendees and everyone else that we value their time. It gives little time for attendees to think of other things they could be doing, and forces speakers to use their best material.
In all cases, I would rather leave my guests wanting more, instead of wondering why that event couldn't have ended just fifteen minutes earlier.
- sean
Sean Spence
Community Events
www.commevents.com
seanspence@earthlink.net
573-823-1308
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