There is nothing that tests even the most experienced event professional than managing multiple events in one day. No matter what your role is in the industry, balancing the profitability of high volume with the complexity of staffing and tracking operations at different sites or different venues in the same timeframe is a challenge.
Our property features several different event sites, so we are often faced with multiple celebrations in the same day. We have found that managing the logistics and keeping our service level high is possible if we apply some important best practices.
Photo courtesy Wente Vineyards and Anna Hogan Photography
One lead contact per event
While different events will need different levels of staffing based on their guest counts, menus, and details, each one needs a unique point of contact representing your business. Someone needs to be able to have a single-track mindset devoted exclusively to a specific client’s needs. You will need to account for this in your staffing. This should really be non-negotiable as it ensures that your team can focus on meeting individual client goals while making communication between events more effective.
“Make an easy-to-use one-sheet with all relevant contact information for each event, including the client information, day-of contact, your own information in case someone else on the team needs it, and all of the contributing vendors. Keep a copy on hand for yourself and distribute it to all team members and vendors.”
Meet with your entire team
When you commit to multiple events in a single day, you also need to commit to increased organization and planning. Schedule a team meeting where representatives from all events are present. Walk through the day including transportation, set up and delivery times, strike details, affiliate contracts, and personnel requirements. Cover the timeline from the very beginning—where guests will park, who will greet them on arrival, where they will go first—to the departure. Identify red flags and fix them before they become event day problems.
Photo courtesy Wente Vineyards
Communications
One of the most important factors for running several events in a single day is establishing a functional communication plan. Make an easy-to-use one-sheet with all relevant contact information for each event, including the client information, day-of contact, your own information in case someone else on the team needs it, and all of the contributing vendors. Keep a copy on hand for yourself and distribute it to all team members and vendors. You might even suggest everyone take a picture of it with their cell phone to have a backup for the day that can be easily forwarded to each other if necessary. No one should have to waste time looking for contact information on a busy event day.
A strong system of organization is key to the successful management of multiple events in one day. You will never regret the time and effort spent on perfecting this system as your capacity increases and profits rise, while clients and guests experience amazing events.
