EVENT (Keith Michael Hearit)

n: Robert L. Heath (ed.), Encyclopedia of Public Relations, housand !a"s, #$: %a&e, '(()
E*ent +ana&e+ent, also "no,n as special e*ent plannin&, pro*ides a *aluable *ehicle by ,hich
forprofit and not-for-profit or&ani.ations are able to en&a&e in speciali.ed public relations
acti*ities.E*ents help or&ani.ations beco+e reco&ni.ed and establish and +aintain relationships
,ith "ey constituents throu&h direct co++unication. ypes of special e*ents utili.ed by
or&ani.ations include ne, buildin& dedications, fundraisers, &alas, product launches, receptions,
and co++unity or arts sponsorships. /hen e0ecuted ,ell, e*ents can add &reatly to the
or&ani.ation1s profile and presti&e.
%PE#2$L E3E4% 5E624E5
%pecial e*ents are those circu+stances in ,hich or&ani.ations ha*e to de*iate fro+ traditional
public relations, ad*ertisin&, and +ar"etin& efforts and +eet directly ,ith clients. 4e*ertheless,
they should be part of an inte&rated public relations ca+pai&n. %o+e +ay ha*e a non-+edia-
related purpose, but typically they are structured to be part of the or&ani.ations1 lar&er
co++unication plan. hey pro*ide a *ehicle by ,hich to directly co++unicate ,ith custo+ers,
often by brin&in& the+ to a place of business. %uccessfully e0ecuted, a special e*ent can
enhance an or&ani.ational i+a&e by presentin& a co+pany as proficient and professional,
thereby addin& to its presti&e. 2n e0ecutin& special e*ents, co+panies pro*ide 7ready-to-be-
consu+ed8 +edia i+a&es and stories that support their public relations efforts. $ +a9or function
of +any, thou&h not all, special e*ents is that they often are or&ani.ed around a fundraisin&
the+e or purpose. Many special e*ents are desi&ned to pro*ide people ,ith a +eanin&ful
e0perience by ,hich they en9oy participation or entertain+ent in e0chan&e for a donation to a
,orthy cause or to a political candidate.
E:$MPLE% !6 %PE#2$L E3E4%
he types of special e*ents are hi&hly di*erse; a+on& the+ are press conferences, fundraisers,
dedications, open houses, &ala e*ents, a,ard cere+onies, product launches, +eetin&s and
conferences, &olf outin&s, trade sho,s, contests, rallies and +arches, and benefit concerts.
$lthou&h the different incarnations of special e*ents are li+ited only by the i+a&ination, the
pri+ary cate&ories of special e*ents are open houses, fundraisers, pro9ect &roundbrea"in& or
co+pletion cere+onies, holiday celebrations, &rand openin&s, pro+otions, and co++e+orations
and anni*ersaries.
<
6$#!R% 24 %=##E%%6=L %PE#2$L E3E4 PL$4424>
o be successful in de*elopin& special e*ents, a nu+ber of factors are ,orth notin&. 6irst, to
&enerate +edia attention, an e*ent should be ne,s,orthy in its o,n ri&ht. %econd, e*ents tend to
,or" best ,hen there is a +eanin&ful lin" bet,een a co+pany and an e*ent, such as ,hen
,o+en1s fitness apparel co+panies sta&e e*ents to fi&ht breast cancer. hird, if there is to be a
product lin", it should be e*ident but not intrusi*e; +ore direct approaches tend to turn
consu+ers off. 6inally, the e*ent itself should be ,ell planned and e0ecuted to +a"e the
e0perience distinct and +e+orable.
H!/ ! PL$4 %PE#2$L E3E4%
/hen plannin& a special e*ent, there are a nu+berof i+portant considerations to ta"e into
account. 6irst, a special e*ent needs to be a part of a lar&er public relations plan. 2t should follo,
traditionalpublic relations techni?ues of research, plannin& and bud&etin&, i+ple+entation, and
e*aluation.6urther+ore, the e*ent +ust be effecti*ely pro+oted to &enerate both +edia and
public interest. $lthou&h standard public relations techni?ues are necessary, special e*ents also
ha*e a nu+ber of uni?ue characteristics that re?uire specific plannin& and focus. $ttention to
detail is especially critical in e*ent +ana&e+ent, in ,hich perfection is in the +astery of
thousands of s+all details. 6ro+ start to finish, there are a nu+ber of i+portant concerns that an
e*ent planner +ust "eep in +ind. 6irst, care +ust be ta"en in choosin& the ti+in& and the
location of the e*ent. he e*ent also +ust not conflict ,ith other +a9or e*ents. 2f the occasion
,ill be held outside, attention +ust be paid to ,eather concerns, ,ith contin&ency plans +ade
a*ailable. $dditionally, thou&ht +ust be &i*en to si&na&e, transportation and reception, as ,ell
as to necessary banners and other pro+otional +aterials that effecti*ely represent the
or&ani.ation1s i+a&e. here also is the proble+ of pro*idin& tic"ets; tic"ets pro*ide e*ent
+ana&ers a +eans by ,hich to &au&e interest and to +ana&e attendance. $nother feature of
special e*ents is that they characteristically re?uire production and technical assistance in the
for+ of a sta&e, audio*isual e?uip+ent, +icrophones, and li&htin&. Most of this e?uip+ent, as
,ell as tents, booths, fences, tables, and portable &enerators, is a*ailable for rent. %pecial
consideration should be &i*en to the choice of food and be*era&es; the or&ani.ation +ust ta"e
into account the i+a&e it ,ants the special e*ent to pro+ote, as ,ell as +odern drin"in& and
dietary habits and concerns (e.&., *e&etarianis+ and food aller&ies). he sa+e concerns often
surround the topic of entertain+ent. Entertain+ent +ust not offend, +ust be boo"ed and paid
for, and a&ain, +ust reflect positi*ely on the or&ani.ation. Ris" +ana&e+ent is a further
'
concern. 2t clearly &oes ,ithout sayin& that safety procedures need to be spelled out and
follo,ed. #ontin&encies that +ust be planned for include illness, heart attac", and
o*erconsu+ption of food or drin"; therefore, if liability insurance is not enou&h, necessary
insurance riders for the e*ent +ust be procured. $ +a9or issue of e*ent plannin& is that of security:
"eepin& out un,anted &uests or acti*ists ,ho ,ould see" to disrupt the e*ent and ensurin& the
safety of those ,ho are inside. 6inally, thou&h it is less than &la+orous, sanitation is an area that
re?uires attention. %o+e co+panies ha*e ta"en to rentin& trailers ,ith &enerous 7po,der roo+s8
to &et a,ay fro+ the indi&nities of port-a-potties. 6inally, additional plannin& +ust be done to
handle the collection and disposal of trash.
See also #a+pai&n; #ause-related +ar"etin&; #o++unication +ana&e+ent; #o++unity
relations; #onsu+er@custo+er relations; Entertain+ent industry publicity@ pro+otion;
Philanthropy; Photoop; Pro&ra+@ action plans; Publicity
Bibliography
$llen, A. ('(((). E*ent plannin&. oronto: /iley.
#utlip, %. M., #enter, $. H., B Croo+, >. ('(('). Effecti*e public relations (Dth ed.). =pper %addle
Ri*er, 4A: Prentice Hall.
>oldblatt, A. ('(('). %pecial e*ents: ,enty-first century &lobal e*ent +ana&e+ent (Erd ed.). 4e, For":
/iley.
Matera, 6. R., B $rti&ue, R. A. ('(((). he special e*ent ca+pai&n: 2f you plan it, they usually co+e.
Public Relations #a+pai&ns and echni?ues (pp. '(<G'<H). Coston: $llyn B Cacon.
!1oole, /., B Mi"olaitis, P. ('(('). #orporate e*ent pro9ect +ana&e+ent. 4e, For": /iley. E('
E