There are many reasons to undertake the coordination of a special event, but think about your reasons. Is it to raise your profile, raise funds, celebrate a milestone of your organisation or an individual, launch a new product, service, or facet of your business; is it an annual educational project such as a conference or congress? It may be one or all of the above.

If you are undertaking a special event, it’s important that you have your aims and objectives clearly mapped out and that everyone involved is clear as to these aims and objectives. This is particularly important if you have sponsors involved, as the ‘synergy’ of the event should be aligned with their aims and objectives.

As an organisation considering a special event, it’s probably, or should be, the time when you consider either outsourcing the event to a professional conference organiser (PCO), meeting manager, or an event production company. Alternatively, decide on a dedicated member of staff to coordinate and manage all the logistics of the event. This obviously will take up human resources and time, and also has the added assumption that the staff member can actually do the job.

My advice is to do your sums. It generally works out more cost effective to outsource the project and your end product is managed professionally with additional skills and talent in sourcing the best venue, food, beverage, accommodation, and the greater buying power of an event manager in purchasing these aspects, as they are dealing with external organisations on a daily basis. It also takes a great deal of pressure off your internal staff as often organising a special event is in addition to their day to day tasks.

It’s about here when I say to my clients “The niece or nephew that coordinated your daughter’s 21st birthday does not constitute an event manager!” Enough said.

How to turn your event around
As the Executive Officer of a large not-for-profit based in NSW some years ago, I took on flailing membership, waning sponsorship, poorly attended events, and a general feeling of apathy both internally and externally. Having an exceptionally supportive CEO helped a great deal in turning the organisation around. The first step was identifying why the events were failing dismally, from both an attendance and financial point of view. Identifying the needs of the membership was paramount. How did I do this?

We asked the membership what they wanted and how we, as an organisation, could assist them in their business objectives. This particular association was a very social group and although education was important, it was the networking and social aspect, so we tailored our events to meet these criteria.

In the end we took a holistic approach and won back the confidence of our target market through consistent marketing and communication. By building the confidence level of our members and delivering creative and meaningful events on a regular basis.

Should special events have a place in your marketing mix – yes, I think so. Be prepared to be professional about them, engage your audience and ensure you provide ‘take home’ value for each person in attendance. It provides an ideal backdrop to reward your sponsors, stakeholders, members and staff. People still like, and want, face to face interaction.

Treat each and every event as though it is a family or personal event. Make sure new members are introduced to existing members are personally welcomed, talk to your members and find out what they think, even if it’s negative – they feel part of the organisation if you take the time to listen to them. Anyone in event management knows that whether you are organising for 20 or 200 people the attention to detail is the same. You must be methodical and organised.

In these tougher economic times I have clients ask me “Should we postpone our fundraising dinner, annual gala dinner, or conference?” My advice is: if your aims and objectives are clear and you have already factored an event as part of your marketing for the year, then go for it!

You may need to downsize the event, sharpen your pencil (you have done a budget right?), change your venue, or increase your sponsorship uptake. Your organisation still needs to maintain its profile even in the tough times, otherwise you will be at a disadvantage when times are easier and your competitors will have the edge.

Special events are an effective and profitable marketing tool – be ahead of the pack and continue to provide an opportunity for your key people to get together.

Yvonne McClaren is the Director of Noisy Mynah Studio.