Organising an event is not only fun to do, it can also help strengthen relationships, build your brand, stimulate growth... But let's be honest: it can also be quite stressful, especially if you don't do it often. So meet the Jaarbeurs Congress Coaches. From their years of experience, they share so-called conference hacks that make organising your event immediately easier. In this article, we take you through the 3 essentials of good preparation. Because good preparation is half the first step towards a successful event!
Fleur van den Berg and Lieke Smits-Martens are both account managers at Jaarbeurs Utrecht. As Congress Coach, they help event organisers. In this role, they support their clients from intake to aftercare. Because how nice is it if, as an inexperienced organiser, you can make use of years of expertise? Especially for this article, they share a number of crucial tips that will help you get off to a good start.
It seems a bit of an open door, but starting on time is incredibly important. Besides, the definition of 'on time' has changed considerably in recent years. Whereas before you could usually get away with six months' preparation time, now you really often miss the boat when it comes to venues, speakers and artists. For events over 300 people, it is wise to start preparing a year in advance. Especially if your event takes place in a busy period or on a sought-after day. Fleur: "The autumn is really the busiest period of the year, which does not only apply to our venue. In general, June, September, October and November are now busy months. If you then start six months in advance, you have almost no choice."
Something that ties in well with having to start on time is the importance of strict deadlines. In doing so, you can also cleverly anticipate deadlines from the external parties you will be dealing with. For example, if you need to provide catering numbers two weeks prior to your event, you should make sure that the deadline for catering requirements from your guests is before those two weeks. This will ensure that you have the necessary information in time.
For communication specialists, copywriters and journalists, it is a familiar concept, but it is also a must as an event organiser: make sure you can answer the 5 Ws and the H of your event:
- Who: Who is your event's target audience? Make this as concrete as possible!
- What: what is on the programme during your event? Thinking about the content of your programme in good time will also help you make a better choice of venue.
- Where: at which location? Consider accessibility, capacity and facilities needed.
- When: specifically: which day and time. But also: which phase of the year or, for example, at which point in the customer cycle.
- Why: why are you organising this event, what is the ultimate goal? For example: we are celebrating our company's 20th anniversary. The ultimate goal could then be to strengthen relationships, increase brand awareness or provide inspiration and motivation.
- How: this is about the practicalities of organising. Think about your budget, promotion, logistics, technology and possible security.
"What do you want to achieve by organising this day?"
If you can give a clear answer to the above questions, you are already 1-0 ahead. This will also help you choose the right venue and next steps of organisation. Based on that information, a Congress Coach can also give you appropriate advice to ensure that the goal of your event is achieved. Lieke and Fleur: "At an intake, we really go into depth. We make sure we ask the right questions: why are you organising this event, what is the target group coming to it, what do you want to achieve by organising this day... Then we can give advice on the best room set-up, programme layout, number and duration of breaks and more."
Not only is it important to have this information clear for yourself and stakeholders such as your venue and Congress Coach, you must also be able to properly inform your participants. In fact, prior to the event, you want to remove as many questions, doubts and uncertainties as possible from all parties. This is how you ensure a smoothly running event. Fleur and Lieke: "The more information the participant has beforehand, the better. A link to directions to your venue, parking facilities, dietary requirements, that way you avoid hick-ups on the day itself. That is pleasant both for you as a client and for us. A win-win in other words."
But how do you choose what information to share, without pouring a tidal wave of information over your guests? Lieke: "It is important to keep it concise. You want people to have all the information to hand in advance, for example via an event page with handy links to the information they need." So it's not necessarily a matter of deleting information, but of being short, concise and clear. Above all, people need to know where to find what information.
It is also nice to have a designated contact person at the venue itself, both someone who is a point of contact for venue staff and someone to whom guests can turn with questions. Again, communicate in advance who this designated person is and how to recognise them. Pro tip: also check in advance what possibilities there are on location to communicate with your visitors to provide them with the necessary information. Think portable screens, projection tools and apps.
Starting on time, a clearly thought-out plan in terms of resources and goals, and good communication are key pillars when organising your event. But is there such a thing as the ultimate tip? Lieke: "Why do people come to your event? That is often because of a particular theme or the speakers who are coming." Keep the ultimate goal of the event in focus for you as an organiser and for your visitors, and always keep this in mind when making decisions.
At Jaarbeurs, we understand like no other that organising an event involves quite a lot. So meet the Jaarbeurs congress coaches: your guides in the world of organising events or congresses! With their ingenious conference hacks (tips and tricks that make life easier as a conference organiser), they will help you get the most out of your event, even if you are not a day-to-day organiser. Discover the conference hacks here.
