5 Things to do in Advance to Save Time on Event Day

We work on site at many of the events we ticket and have years of experience, so we thought we’d give you five simple tips (for an event with alcohol) that will save you a bunch of time on event day.

At least two days before your event, make a plan for how people will enter your event:

1. I.D. Check
   • Whose task?
2. Ticket Scanning
   • Whose task?
   • Use an app or a paper list?
3. Wristbanding
   • Whose task?
   • Prepare wristbands in advance
4. Collateral
   • Whose task?
   • What does each attendee receive?
   • Who is going to give it to them?
5. Troubleshooting/Customer Service
   • Whose task?

Let’s dive a little deeper

1. Checking I.D.s at an event with alcohol
   • What is the date you’re looking for?
   • Whose task is this?
   • Do you need to stamp hands to show I.D.s have been checked or will wristbanding each guest suffice?
2. Ticket Scanning
   • Whose task is this?
   • Remember to charge devices in advance!
   • Have spare devices
   • Pack extra power cables and chargers
   • Log in to the app and test usernames/passwords
   • Become familiar with the app. Speak with your ticketing company to learn the best way to scan the ticket barcodes
   • What are you scanning? Printed tickets or barcodes on phones? Or Both?
   • Print out test tickets to use for training your volunteers and staff
   • Make sure there is power at your entrance
3. Wristbanding
   • Whose task is this?
     • Wristbanding takes longer than ticket scanning so allocate more staff to this task
   • What type of wristbands are you using?
     • Tyvek/Paper (example)
     • Plastic (example)
     • Cloth (example)
   • Standard or Custom?
     • Customized wristbands add extra branding to your event, but will take longer to produce.
   • Separate them in advance – wristbands typically come in sheets of 10 or 20
     • Tyvek wristbands are strong and easy to separate
     • Plastic wristbands take a little longer to separate and plastic wristbands with tear-off tabs take even longer
     • Practice putting wristbands on
       • A good rule of thumb is make the wristband tight enough that you can only slip 1 or 2 fingers inside
4. Collateral
   • Whose task is this?
   • If a beer/wine event, how does the attendee pick up their glass?
   • If you’re giving out drink tickets, prepare them in advance
   • If you’re giving out festival maps, prepare them in advance
   • Can you prepare packages with ALL collateral in advance?
   • Are you preparing packets for each attendee that need to be sorted by name?
5. Customer Service
   • Whose task is this?
   • Prepare answers to your most common questions in advance
   • Get to know your ticketing system. What customer service options do they offer you?
   • Where is customer service located? Near the entrance? Away from the entrance so as not to clutter entry?

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