How to Execute a Flawless Event

Katie here, if you’ve just come from my blog post on planning your next event, read on to find out how to execute it flawlessly. If you haven’t seen my first post yet, click here to read that and I’ll see you back here in 5!

To recap, I’m an event coordinator at Trustpower Baypark who is passionate about helping people bring their event visions to life. I’ve been in this role for over two years now, and these are my 5 top tips for running an event day smoothly – and having some fun along the way!

1. Be Present

Picture this: you’re getting ready for the big day. The teams are setting up and your vision is finally coming together. But how do you make sure it goes off without a hitch? The best thing you can do at this point is be present on the ground. Or, if you can’t physically be there, hand over your wealth of knowledge to someone else who can take the lead in your place. This way you/they can oversee everything as it happens rather than hearing about it when it's too late. Being available on RT and/or mobile will allow your teams to stay in direct contact and solve problems as they arise, so your event can run as smoothly as possible.

2. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

I cannot repeat this enough, please don’t sweat the small stuff! If something minor goes wrong during an event, most of the time your guests won’t even notice. After the event you can reflect on these minor issues and try to mitigate them for next time, but during your event you want to stay focussed on the bigger picture.

One of the best pieces of advice I was given early in my event coordination training is to picture your event as if you are standing on the outside looking in.  When you’re caught up in the middle of the organised chaos that is an event, you can become overwhelmed and feel like there are a million things you need to do. My advice is to take a step back (literally and metaphorically), delegate to your teams, and stay focussed on overseeing your event from a high-level perspective. If all your guests are safe and happy, guess what? It’s going well!

3. Take Photos

This one may not seem very important, but I can’t tell you how many times it’s come in handy for me. Always take photos! Especially during the events you know will be back again, take photos of your set up and the event on the day. You never know when they could come in handy. You can use them to refresh your memory the next time the event rolls around, to problem solve previous issues and even to inspire someone else!

And during the last two difficult years, my camera roll has been the perfect place to reminisce on the fun events I’ve worked on and remind me that better times are coming.

4. Debrief

Once your event is over, it doesn’t mean the work is done! Reach out to those involved in your event to find out what did and didn’t work for them. I would recommend waiting until a few days after the event is finished, you’ll all be much too tired to do this when your event has just finished for the day.

The learnings you take away from these discussions will make your event better the next time round. If things didn’t go 100% to plan, you may receive some constructive criticism. That’s okay! Remember that although it can sometimes be hard to hear, it will be invaluable when you come to plan your next event.

5. Pat Yourself on the Back 

You did it! It’s easy to congratulate our team, but we also need to take time to congratulate ourselves. Own your part in it, you did the mahi now and you get the treats! Then, thank everyone involved and let them know how much you appreciate their hard work.

So, there you have it, my top 5 tips for executing an amazing event. Remember that events are moving beasts and no two events are the same. Find what works best for you and your people, value your teams, stay present and adapt with your event. You’ve got this.