A mismanaged event can lead to decreased customer retention, lost revenue, and bad press. It’s essential to plan on how to deal with any unforeseen problems. Here are six tips you should know about handling unexpected hiccups to make your next event successful.
It may also be a good idea to seek help from professional organizations like Event Ready for event planning and management.
1) Make Sure You Have a Backup Speaker
Prepare a backup plan in case any speaker cancels, is late, or becomes ill. This way, you can stick with your schedule and keep the event running smoothly even if something unexpected comes up.
If this happens during your next big conference, don’t worry—you’re prepared!
2) Stay Calm and Collected
Trust us when we say this; panicking won’t help! Make sure to remain calm and collected during an event hiccup. You’ll want to focus on the solution, not the problem because you will find a way out of it! Analyze the situation calmly, identify the resources available and then decide on the plan of action you’re going to take.
3) Delegate Responsibilities
Launching an event can be stressful! You’re responsible for many different things like catering, entertainment, even safety, etc. Should there be a problem during your big conference, don’t try to manage it on your own—delegate responsibilities so you’ll have more time to fix it.
4) Apologize to the Audience
If a hiccup is causing discomfort to the audience, you need to apologize straight away. It’s not their fault that the event isn’t running smoothly, but it is your responsibility to ensure they have a good time; smooth things over as quickly as possible. If there is nothing you can do to fix the situation, it’s always better to apologize to the audience than give excuses. Being straight-up honest is way better than putting up lame excuses.
5) Stay Flexible
You need to be open to all ideas in such situations. The ability to think on your feet is a gift, especially when managing volatile conditions. It is also important to filter information that is not in your area of expertise.
6) Make a Foolproof Plan
You can avoid hiccups by brainstorming and rehearsing your ideas as much as possible. Most event holders or organizing teams don’t have the time to run things through because they’re occupied with other important tasks. In this case, you can seek help from professionals and ask them to develop the right plan for you and your team.
Event Ready helps you plan and execute smooth events in Dallas, TX, without any mismanagement using its hybrid event solutions. From creating a web-based registration platform to ensuring things run smoothly on the day of the event, you can count on us to deliver at all times. Request a free demo now!
