The pain is still fresh in many Yankee fans’ minds. They had gone to New York City in April and waited for hours in long lines for the chance at one of 250 pairs of free tickets to the opening day game at the team’s new stadium. Pepsi was sponsoring the promo to plug Pepsi Max, but somebody forgot to get the right permits to distribute the tickets. The rest — which unfortunately involves the men in blue — is best left back on the streets.
Crafting big city events is no easy feat, and there are any number of unforeseen mishaps that can crop up. And if they aren’t man-made, Mother Nature usually steps in.
Here’s a checklist provided with help from Civic Entertainment Group to get off on the right footing.
- LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Get a list of the top-10 media markets and set up in a high-traffic location that the target audience and media outlets have easy access to. Locate a site close to public transportation and parking.
“The majority of big events are planned not only to reach that audience on the day, but to communicate with millions through media coverage,” says Seth Webb, director of Civic Entertainment Group.
- PERMITS
City agencies issue permits, and you need to apply for one — the right one. Start way in advance because this can take time. If you’re in a park, you need permission from the Parks Department. If you’re on the street, you need permission from the Department of Transportation. Building a stage or platform requires Department of Building permits.
“You can’t just show up. You need permission to do the things you want to do,” Webb says.
- TIMING
Make it easy on yourself and pick a day that’s free of competition. Don’t compete with the local baseball team, religious holidays or big parades. Choose a time of day — preferably around lunch — to maximize the chances of getting the event picked up by the local media.
- BRANDING
Understand the impact that presence, staging, signage and staff create for the brand. Civic set up an outdoor porch in June for Southwest Airlines in New York’s Bryant Park to get the word out that it was about to begin offering service out of LaGuardia Airport. The porch is located throughout the summer in the southwest corner of the park and offers food inspired by the airline’s destinations, such as soft-shell crab sandwiches from Baltimore.
- SECURITY
Large events require security to safeguard talent, keep an eye on set-up and break-down (often in the wee hours) and monitor VIP-only areas.
- CONTINGENCY PLAN
Bad weather? Excessive crowds? Electrical failure? Talent no-show? Think through the scenarios and have a clear plan of who to call and how to handle the unexpected.
DID YOU KNOW?
In response to an economic downturn unlike any faced by the sponsorship industry in the past two decades, sponsorship consulting agency IEG has revised its forecast for spending this year:
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Spending will be up 1.1%, compared to the 2.2% previously predicted.
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Spending by U.S. and Canadian companies will total $16.79 billion in 2009, compared to $16.61 billion in 2008.
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Worldwide spending is expected to be up 3.1%, to $44.4 billion, in 2009, versus the original projection of a 3.9% increase.
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2009 projections by property type were: sports: $11.48 billion, up 0.7%; entertainment tours and attractions: $1.64 billion, up 0.7%; causes: $1.55 billion, up 2.2%; arts: $838 million, up 1.3%; festivals, fairs and annual events: $775 million, up 2.9%; and associations and membership organizations: $498 million, up 3.3%.
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