How to Make a Festival Great

Booking the right talent and having good vendors is crucial, but everyone knows that. Here are some other tips for making your event great.

1. For key staff positions, such as managers of production, vendors, security, and marketing/PR to name a few, hire people who are experienced in those roles. If that means putting things off in order to raise enough money, then do it. Do not rely on volunteers, interns, family or friends to handle critical elements if you want your fest to have a shot at repeating. This is item #1 for a reason.

2. Start planning early. If it’s a first-time event, start planning VERY early. Depending on the size of the event, this could mean anywhere from 4 to 18 months or longer.

3. Pay attention to details. Well-crafted signage, clear and ubiquitous directions, snappy graphics, plenty of trash cans, extra supplies, lots of entrances and exits (or one big one), just to name a few. And make it all look nice and inviting.

4. Anticipate: weather, traffic volume and flow (both vehicle and foot), tardy vendors or artists, lost or malfunctioning equipment, staffing or volunteer shortages, injuries, security & staffing needed, visits from fire marshals and health inspectors (make sure all permits are in order).

5. Take care of your people. Not just the audience, but that also means the artists, vendors, suppliers, sponsors, staff, volunteers, media, road crews, and anyone else that is necessary to run a great fest. Treat them with respect, feed them, pay them competitively and on time, do what it takes to make sure everyone wants to come back next year.

6. Plan to lose money for the first year or two at least. Even the biggest, most famous fests have lost money in the beginning only to become hugely popular and profitable, including Bonarroo and Coachella.

7. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. As with any business, which is what an event is, start with what you can handle and plan to grow from there. Trying to be everything you want from the get-go has led to more failures than successes in every business, especially festivals.

8. This is not a comprehensive list. Think for yourself. Consult with other organizers. Do your research. Plan for the long term. And be sure to check out the blog tags and the rest of this site for more info.

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