Event Checklist: 1 week to your event

Event Checklist: 1 week to your event

We’ve been looking at the event Checklist from 4-6months to your event. In case you missed that, just click here. We are now on the fourth post in this series of event Checklist. Congratulations, your event is almost here.

Now you’re getting so close to your event. If you’ve been following the series, you’ll realise that at this point, the majority of the event details should be confirmed already and all that’s left will be final touches, such as:

  1. Have all committee chairs meet and confirm all details against Master Plan.
  2. Finalize event script.
  3. Brief any/all hosts, greeters, volunteers about their event duties and timelines.
  4. Finalize your seating plan.
  5. Provide final registered members to caterer.
  6. Make print and online copies of any speeches, videos and presentations.
  7. Do a final registration check, including name badges and registration list.
  8. Determine Photo OP and interview opportunities with any presenters/VIPs and use Getdp.
  9. Confirm details with media attendees.

So let’s take this list from the top.

Have all committee chairs meet and confirm all details against Master Plan. 

It’s one week to your event and you’ve come a long way to still deal with glitches during your event. This period is a time to make sure no glitch came up during execution so you want to ensure back-up plans are developed for any situation (e.g., back-up volunteers as VIP greeters, additional volunteers for registration or set-up, etc). Make sure to meet everyone, all committee chairs to confirm everything on the Master plan. Develop plan C, if need be.

Finalize event script.

I know you’ve been going over your event script for sometime but this is also another great time to finalise everything on it. Check up with everyone who has a role in your event. You may also asssign practice sessions for anyone who has a speaking slot. This will help with time management and effective delivery on speakers part and save you unnecessary time wastage during the event.

Brief any/all hosts, greeters, volunteers about their event duties and timelines.

If you have a volunteers working with you on this event, a week to the event is a good time to call them for a meeting with you so you can brief them about the event, and they can ask all the questions they want. Call meetings with the hosts, greeters, ushers, etc. make sure each person’s work/deliverables for the day is well detailed and everyone understands what to do at every point in time. In fact it won’t be a bad idea if you give them a typed memo so they could read up in case they forget anything.

Finalize your seating plan.

Finalise your seating plan. In what order will attendants seat, will there be VVIP, VIP, regular participants? Where are the caterers going to seat before their service will be needed? The Speakers, Panelists, etc. Is there going to be wheelchair-accessible areas at the event?

However your choice of arrangement, make sure the venue has clear paths for people to walk through easily. If you are going to have various sections at the event, make sure to indicate each section with a large cardboard or sign poster.

Provide final registered numbers to caterer.

Provide the caterer before hand with the total registered number of people coming for the event. This is useful to prevent wastage or insufficient food at the event.

A week to the event is a good time to estimate how many tickets or passes will go out before the event day. So make a total calculation of how many people will be present. Remember to add yourself, the volunteers, and other hosts/speakers.

Make print and online copies of any speeches, videos, and presentations.

Make copies of all presentations at the event; both printed copies and online copies. Video presentation can be linked to the event website also so if there’s provision for online viewers, they can follow up with the speeches as they stream the event.

Do a final registration check, including name badges & registration list. 

This may not be possible since it’s a week to the event but depending on when your registration closes, you can do this few days to the event. Trick is to try to finish it as early as possible. 

Determine photo op and interview opportunities with any presenters/VIPs and use Getdp 

Since it’s a time of finalising, checking and making sure everything is perfect. It’s also a time to determine what route your photo sessions will go, and who your Photographer will be.

You also have to take make yourself available for interview opportunities where you can talk about the event and people can also call in to ask questions.

You can also broadcast that all your registered participants download a DP banner (flyer that has their profile picture and states the person is attending your event). This can be done automatically from any location in the world. Check Getdp to understand better.

Confirm details with media attendees.

Confirm the press team/ journalists that’ll be in attendance so you can include them in the sitting arrangement.

Also you can plan an after-event press briefing or interview time with your speakers and participants.