CARIBFEST write up due 10th Nov

1) EVENT DESIGN PLAN (20 mks)

-Design Philosophy

The event’s objective is to promote the establishment of bonds between the Caribbean Islands,
through a fusion of music and culture. With the design ‘we aim to portray the arts of the Caribbean
diaspora.’

-Event Theme

Using the philosophy of the event as a guide the theme of the event is ‘a Caribbean melting pot’
using inspirations from Caribbean art and elements of its rich and diverse culture to make the event
an immersive showcase of culture.

THEME:

 -invitations (flyers ads 4 tickets)

 -catering
 -Artists, entertainment, hosts/ MC
 -venue:Decoration, Props, scenery
 -Sound and lights
 -Audio visuals and special effects

INVITATIONS

CATERING

ENTERTINMENT

The Caribbean as we know is a melting pot of difference races and creeds of persons due to its rich
history. With these many subcultures came their music and instruments and over time the
miscegenation and evolution of these genres became newer more ‘Caribbean’ sounds. These
Caribbean musical genres include Soca, Dancehall, Calypso, Zouk, Reggae, Kaiso, Reggaeton, Bele
and even more still. As the Caribbean becomes more and more diverse these musical genres evolve
more and more. Our event will feature DJ….. who will be entertaining all attendees with a medley of
these genres during the event, showcasing the variety and talent of musicians across the diaspora.

-DÉCOR ELEMENTS (food and beverage, entertainment , activities, etc.)

This philosophy and theme can be seen through the use of warm and bright colours in particular,
which is a main visual identifier of the caribbean as seen by our most notable art and fashion as well
as the incorporation of masks in the wall décor as Carnival as mentioned, is a shared historical
experience and now a symbolic festival celebrated by many of the islands.
SOUND AND LIGHTS

As the event showcases music as the main event, he party sound and lighting had to suit. The event
was planned to hire a professional DJ equipped with quality equipment such as multiple large
speakers and surround sound effects so that the music can be heard clearly from all areas of the
venue. The lighting chosen was multi-coloured lights which accented the reflective and colourful
decorations well, making the atmosphere of the party very reminiscent to Caribbean nightlife where
some of this music is mostly played and setting a tone for the attendees for the social and dance
friendly event.

AUDIO VISUALS & SPECIAL EFFECTS

A short presentation will be made with the assistance of wall projection, portraying a short
educational PowerPoint about Caribbean culture to preface the event, to shed light on the theme’s
importance. Additionally audio and visual aids, such as a phone laptop, ring light and stand will be
provided and operated to ensure that the entire event can be streamed to our virtual guests who
cannot attend the event due to covid or other restrictions.

Evaluation Plan

Measuring and Monitoring

Planning

 Research planning 

Survey used to analyse potential market; 40 respondents were gathered however when
it came to purchasing, persons were unwilling to purchase. Actual sales did not reflect
the data collected. There was a problem with cooperation from the sample size
regarding

 Design 
The design of the event, in accordance with the theme and philosophy,
regarding aesthetics, lighting and special effects went smoothly as they were
prepared and successfully tested 2 days before the event itself, there were
some minor difficulties faced with the set up of the area regarding time
(curfew) space and sufficient materials, however we managed to successfully
prepare the area in time for the event. The catering and invitations, being the
advertisements of the event, were also all effectively carried out without much
difficulty at all. However the issues of design were really confronted on the
day of the event, specifically with entertainment and audio and visual effecs,
 due to technical difficulties and lack of consistent WIFI as well as the
unpunctual appearance of the main musical entertainment.

 Coordinating 
Disorganisation occurred during in the event amongst the members as the even was
heavily reliant on the first few scheduled events occurring on time, little allowance was
given for missteps in the timeline. Late arrivals caused the time schedule to be thrown off
and events omitted from what was originally planned and lead to a bit of panic amongst
group members due to the sudden implementation of improvisation. Miscommunication
during the even between coordinators who operated virtually, which consisted of the
majority, was also a mismanagement of risks that were not be prepared for.

 Marketing 

Advertisements were utilised weeks prior to the event; however, patrons were receiving
advertisements or other events in between, thus our ‘Caribfest’ advertisements would be lost
amongst them. Additionally marketing tactics outside of the occasional flyer and the release
of the promotional video were not effectively used. Tactics such as promotional specials on
boxes being sold and greater showcasing of incentives such as free food and entertainment.

 Risk Management

Risk management regarding issues such as the forementioned five step plan of risk
management and the contingency plan, however issues that were not foreseen or prepared
for by the coordinators were the failings of the contractual agreements, in particular the
late arrival of the DJ, which was pertinent to the commencing and events timeline
structure. Thus, offsetting the entire structure of the event as much last minute alteration
were made with minimal communication, all done via message, which in itself was a
challenge.

 Event success 

The even was seen as a success according to those who attended in person, as the DJ’s
late arrival and technical difficulties would not affect their event experience. However,
Those who attended virtually were met with many issues that would ‘sour’ their
experience as they disturbed the immersion. Some of these issues being, muting of the
live video leading to awkward silences, pauses and miscommunications, Poor wifi leadint
o disruptions and lags taking away from the immersion of the event and the rearranging
and omission of some event which lead to a confusing and ‘random’ or awkward event
experience, as the transitions would seem abrupt and sudden.

Survey Instrument

To survey the overall reception of the event to the attendees and those involved a survey
which was distributed to all the attendees. This was distributed via email and direct message,
asking a series of questions and tabulating the responses, allowing us to properly analyse the
customer experience on the event and what the problem areas were as well as what advice
was provided for us to heed and learn from.

 Survey Results

The Survey allowed us to properly understand what was expected of the event and how
effectively those expectation were met. The result of the survey showed that those who rated
the event favourably on the scale of 1-5 appreciated the musical, party and food elements
incorporated into the event, which captivated their interest in the theme of a celebration of
caribbean culture. However, those that rated the event poorly strongly advised that the
technical difficulties that occurred resulted in confusion and lack of structure and consistency
of the proceedings, allowing the event to appear clumsy and disorganised as well as their
being awkward pauses between events. The live performances and music translated poorly
when experienced virtually as it was not immersive enough to be experienced as the in person
guests would have experienced due to the obstructions caused by poor wifi and an
inconsistent itinerary, virtual events cannot be as impulsive and fast paced as it would be in
person. One comment that stoop out was that one felt as though they were ‘watching a party
from their computer’ suggesting that they felt less included in this experience as an attendee
watching from home.

The first problem faced came before the event began in terms of preparation, the distance
between homes made it practically impossible for everyone to physically meet to discuss the
event since some members had jobs, in addition to the presence of a curfew, reaching the
distance within a particular time frame could not be done. This meant all planning would be
done virtually, which then brought up the challenge of not only finding a time where
everyone would be available, but also having internet trouble created another unavoidable
task. Nevertheless, time was made, and the idea of a virtual Caribbean tour party was created,
and each member was assigned a task.

During the event came the bulk of the problems, firstly being time management. Late arrivals
caused the time schedule to be thrown off and events omitted from what was originally
planned and lead to a bit of panic amongst group members due to the sudden implementation
of improvisation. In addition to this, the choice of platform for hosting the event was
unsatisfactory, thee zoom broadcasting along with poor wifi connections unfortunately
caused the visuals and audio to be out of sync at times where the videos shown would lag,
this made the hard work put in by everyone seem as though it was a mediocre effort. Also,
internet problems yet again played a part as people would constantly be kicked out and have
to reconnect due to connectivity issues. The main problem faced during this event however
was lack of preparation. Our lack or preparation was easily seen by our inability to adapt to a
challenge when presented with one, causing the event to have a very disengaged flow
between the different segments.

    This event is something we would always remember as it taught us many things, but
the predominant lesson that it showed us, was how important practice is Had we made more
time to meet up and go through the event schedule, we would have been well equipped to
conquer any problem or challenge thrown at us during the event. With us being properly
prepared, the ability to adapt to an off-time schedule and internet problems would be
effortless therefore eliminating two of the challenges faced during the event. In addition to
this, with preparation we would have noticed that using zoom as our platform to host the
event would have our work at a standard below what we were set to make.