EVENT STAFF IS IMPORTANT

It is said that you have approximately only 27 seconds on average to create a first impression on someone new, but it can take more than a year to correct it. This applies to job interviews, dates or business meetings, simply any situation you meet new people.

I would say that the same applies to all events too. It will take only few seconds to your guests and clients to get a feel for the overall event and what they can expect during the upcoming hours or days. Hosts by the check-in who are stressed and not ready, event staff running around in dirty clothes talking about issues and what went wrong during the setup phase and cleaners passing through registration with their cleaning baskets and mops can ruin the whole impression of the event you want to be perfect and have sometimes planned for more than a year. Some situations could be unpredictable and just happen unexpectedly. But some situation could be avoided when you think of them prior to the event. Here are few easy tips to add to your check list on set-up day:

Hosts

Always, always take a proper time to brief hosts. Tell them what type of event they are working for, what the company is about and what you expect from them. Hosts are usually hired from an agency and have no more information apart from the date, the time and their working hours at your event. You should always brief them by yourself or delegate this task to someone you trust to and who is also part of the event preparation (coordinator, helper, assistant or a friend if you are planning a smaller private party). Don’t rush with the briefing and talk to the hosts about following:

the company and the type of event.
The exact hours they will work inclunding breaks. It is super-helpful to go over the event schedule with them. Not only will they know when their protentional rest brea are coming up, but they will also help your guests with any questions.
The venue. Show them the bathrooms, cloakrooms, elevators, reception. When guests need something, the first person they go to are the hosts.
Any gifts they are to hand over to the guests when they are leaving.
Appoint one senior host who will be the leader and tell them they should create a list of rotation for the other hosts. Also, appoint this host as your contact. Whenever you need to tell something to hosts, they will be the one who will help you to spread the information instead of telling each one individually. Alternatively you can setup WhatsApp group, but note, that sometimes it is not nice to see hosts checking their phones during an event: it creates the impression that they are not working, but checking their social media, although they can only check message from you as a main coordinator.
Although some hosts might not be keen on it, do role-plays when briefing hosts for conferences, guest registration or check-in. It is a good chance to check what they have learned and also you might come up with new ideas or sentences to add. Put bullet points on a sheet of paper and hand it over to the registration desk as a checkpoint.
Make sure the hosts know where their cloakroom or office is, where they can rest and leave their stuff and never forget to order them enough water, coffee and food – especially when hosts and other event staff are not allowed to eat with guests.
Last but not least, tell hosts your name, introduce yourself, be strict, but also nice and supportive so they are not afraid to come to you with questions or problems. Don’t forget that the only one who knows the whole event from A to Z is usually only the planner so it might happen that you forget to hand over some information.

AV guys, cleaning ladies, entertainment

As for the hosts, always take enough time to brief these workers about the type of event and what you expect of them, and especially, at what time. Tell them when you need them to be ready, fully dressed up and on their places, ready to run the event (always count on having at least 20 minutes´ spare extra time). Each supplier is different,so it is important that you talk to each of them individually. Don’t forget they can´t (unless they are superheroes:) read your mind: unfortunately, telepathy usually doesn’t work that way. Have a name and phone number for each of them or at least for their coordinator. Have ready plenty of water, snacks and a lot of coffee, as for the hosts.

Never forget to thank to all your event staff when the event is successfully over. You will need them another time, too and if they don’t enjoy working for you or feel that you didn’t support them or valued them, there will be a tension and the guests will always notice it.