5 Things to Look Out for When Planning In-Person Events
After a few years of planning virtual events, in-person events are back!
Event planners, marketers, and coordinators have had a tough couple of years during the pandemic, trying to get creative with virtual Zoom parties and happy hours, but now organizations are feeling more comfortable slowly integrating more in person options into their typical events schedule.
It’s normal to feel apprehensive about starting in-person events again, but hosting a successful event is certainly possible.
We spoke with 9Dot’s Senior Director of Communication, Events and Training, Gabriella Caparco-Robertson and Project Manager, Nicole Radden to talk about their first major in-person event, a leadership conference, and the challenges they faced as well as some tips and tricks when it comes to event planning in the upcoming year.
When it comes to event planning in the pandemic era, there are a few things to keep in mind, which will dictate the overall experience felt by your guests: event space & location, weather, programming, and overall safety measures.
Event Space & Location
The location is a key element of your event. At 9Dot’s All Network Leadership Conference 2022, the theme was “Reconnection” and it was held at a hotel in Laguna Beach.
“It was an environment where we were able to remove all distractions and center in on the topic that was presented,” Nicole noted.
With a view of the ocean and a quieter space away from the downtown’s noise, it was a wonderful spot for reconnection. Several guests noted that “The environment was very fitting”. 9Dot also encouraged guests to reconnect by not making WIFI widely available during conference hours, and specifically scheduling in time for guests to walk the beach and reconnect with themselves.
In addition to your location, it’s important to check with your venue site manager about the event space.
”One challenge we had was making sure that the venue met the requirements of all our event goals”, Nicole said.“We had to be flexible and make adjustments to unforeseen circumstances and changes to procedure.”
This presented itself in several ways, such as the logistics in guests getting their bags taken care of to our request that service staff wear masks when entering the indoor conference spaces. It is recommended that you connect with your venue site manager or coordinator and go through the script of your event with them while also communicating your group’s vision and goals. This helps the venue’s event manager communicate with their staff and team and allows them the context needed to better serve you and your guests.
Weather
In-person events always need to factor in the weather, and the possible scenarios if the weather may be poor. “One of the challenges we faced was less than favorable weather outcomes coupled with the COVID precautions we had decided to take for this event. We were communicating with the hotel staff up until two hours before lunch was due to be served to decide whether or not we would take the chance in hosting our farewell lunch outdoors with the threat of rain, or if we could logistically create a space where everyone was comfortable eating indoors” said Gabriella. Nicole recommended always “having a contingency plan and being prepared for changes in weather, and working with your venue to accommodate last minute changes.”
Programming
Although this is typical for corporate and large-scale events, having an agenda is crucial. Being mindful about programming activities and the time it takes to do them, is key in the overall success of an event’s flow and the guest experience.
Gabby noted that “Keeping the schedule on time is much more of a challenge in-person versus virtual. In virtual events, you are able to quickly send someone to a breakout room for example. Whereas, in-person, you need to factor in the time needed to move to a different location. This includes bathroom breaks (i.e. restroom location and capacity).”
In practice, this means that you are also more dependent on outside factors and when it comes to in-person events. For instance, if the hotel isn’t ready with the meals at the designated time, that will push your timeline back and you need to quickly come up with something to do with your guests on the spot. Alternatively, if your programming goes longer than expected, you must quickly communicate with the kitchen staff in order for them to keep meals hot and ready to go for your guests.
“It’s all about thinking quickly on your feet, what resources you have available, and how to make this the best situation for the group at any given moment”, Gabby mentioned.
Dietary Restrictions
As with every event that serves food, make sure that you have requested the necessary dietary and allergy information from your guests prior to the event, and communicate this information to the venue staff so they are prepared for any dietary restrictions and can accommodate.“We recommend putting dietary restrictions on the name cards,” Nicole proposed, “It’s a great reference for your venue or caterer when it comes to serving food.”
COVID Precautions and Safety
Because for many of the guests this was their first time being at a public event since the start of the pandemic, “we knew that extra steps were necessary to allow our guests to relax and enjoy themselves” Gabby commented. The 9Dot Events team worked closely with the venue and communicated the precautions that we wished for the hotel staff to take in addition to the measures that we would be taking on our end. “It was a challenge accommodating everyone’s COVID comfortability,” Nicole admitted. “You have to think of every scenario possible. For example, some people may not want to be in close contact with others without a mask.”
Some of the precautionary measures taken at the event included:
- Space and time to do rapid COVID testing: For the 9Dot All-Network Leadership Conference, all attendees had to test negative in order to participate in the event regardless of vaccination status. In order to streamline the registration process, the Events team designated a space to do rapid testing, and provided each attendee with a test in their welcome bag.
- Allow guests to showcase their comfortability with social distancing: One way to reduce anxieties going into the in-person event is to have your guests present clearly what their comfortability is. The 9Dot Events team set up color coordinated wrist bands so that guests could clearly depict their comfortability with social-distancing.
- Understanding event COVID guidelines and restrictions: Oftentimes guests are traveling out of state or county, and each region has different COVID restrictions. Therefore, it’s important to make sure that you are explicit about what your guidelines are — regardless of what their county/state does.
Final Thoughts
Although each event can come with unexpected challenges, whether it is a pandemic or weather issue, having events is a wonderful way to reconnect team members and get back to your why — something we often miss in virtual settings.
“Don’t let the past two years discourage you from creating opportunities for your teams to connect in creative ways”, Nicole suggested. Having a space to reconnect can bring great ways to collaborate and bond with each other.
“Getting back into in-person events may be intimidating or uncomfortable for a lot of people, but the payoff of reconnecting in-person is unmatched”, Gabby encouraged.
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