• Sports events take special planning.
• Addressing security and transportation needs of your sporting event.
Organizing sporting events entail many of the same types of skills as other events, however there are a variety of differences as well. From the special needs in the initial planning, collaborating with a board of directors, establishing and working with volunteers, coordinating with local and/or state governments and security and transportation for the attendees as well as national or international dignitaries and visitors, the sports market requires a different model than traditional meetings and events.
• Addressing security and transportation needs of your sporting event.
Organizing sporting events entail many of the same types of skills as other events, however there are a variety of differences as well. From the special needs in the initial planning, collaborating with a board of directors, establishing and working with volunteers, coordinating with local and/or state governments and security and transportation for the attendees as well as national or international dignitaries and visitors, the sports market requires a different model than traditional meetings and events.
Initial Planning
Beth Hecquet, CMP, Director of Meetings and Events of the National Association of Sports Commissions, and a former event executive is well versed in the special factors that are involved in planning sports events. When comparing this industry versus other segments, Hecquet sees the biggest difference as the intense, ongoing planning prior and during the event, “Generally when a hotel or convention and visitors bureau (CVB) brings a meeting into town their job is done when they’re contracted and typically the meeting planner does their thing. They may need menus, etc. but with a sporting event, the contract is just the beginning. Most groups have a large need for a local organizing committee that will bring in everyone from police (for events like road races and high-profile events like the US Olympic Swim trial) to local experts needed for a badminton convention, since most hotels will have no idea what the ceiling height needs to be, or that the air-conditioning can’t be on.”
As a growing industry, many groups and organizations are creating new events as well as bringing back events that haven’t been held recently. The Meijer State Games of Michigan is such an event. The games were last held in the 1990s, but were brought back in 2010. Eric Engelbarts II, Events Manager with the West Michigan Sports Commission, helped the return of the games. “We brought it back, but with a different business model. Our goal was to get people in Michigan out and moving around, experiencing something they can’t normally do.” To plan the return, they began planning two years in advance and in June 2009 they went public.
Planning large-scale sporting events often begin with committees, sponsors, and board of directors. In the case of the Michigan State Games, they set up a statewide sports committee with contacts in each major market to attract statewide attention.
Crucial to planning sporting events is the marketing that goes along with it. Many participants need to be courted to make an event a success. Engelbarts credits grassroots marketing to get athletes, as well as connecting with spokespeople and well-known athletes within the sport arena “You need to find the right people and then the teams and individuals gravitate to them. It’s about finding and attending the right events where the athletes are at.”
Volunteers
In many cases, entire events are largely dependent upon volunteers and sponsors, in the case of the Michigan State Games, even the website was completely donated.
When working with volunteers, it is important to give them tasks and responsibilities that fits their unique talents, skills and interests. Find out what they excel at and let them fill the niche that is best suited to them.
“State Games are America’s best kept secret, the US Olympic Committee started the initiative to have the state games. It is the Olympics for amateur athletes in your state. You can have Olympic athletes or potential Olympic athletes participating, so it’s a very exciting event to be a part of, whether as an athlete, attendee or volunteer”.
Since volunteers are such a vital part of events successes, it is important to take care of them.Some things to keep volunteers happy include free meals, appreciation party and treat them like family to bring them back year-after-year.
Community Ties
It’s important to gain community support from the beginning of the planning, often times this can be what determines where and if an event can take place. As Hecquet notes, “Most (sporting organizations/events) are non-profit, so they really rely on local community to assist them, some need everything; sponsorship sales, sporting venues, etc.”
When initially meeting with community leaders and local entities like chamber of commerce’s and CVBs, it is vital to gain their buy-in and establish relationships as well as commitment. In dealing with established events it’s easy to share estimated revenue returns, however in inaugural events, it will be important to create anticipated budget needs and event revenues.
Engelbart’s group had a positive experience in both working with the city, as well as finding a major sponsor. “Having a city like Grand Rapids that is so welcoming, people were coming to us to offer their help, we were also able to use existing relationships. It’s so important to get support behind the event before going public, we got endorsed by the governor’s office for physical fitness… then we took it to the community and sponsors. Meyer, the areas largest grocery chain, was a great partner and title sponsor; they were able to activate their connections to promote the event, from apparel to radio to print ads in store.”
Security & transportation:
Kevin O'Connor, COO of Transportation Management Services, is familiar with the logistical needs, planning and service to sporting events.
O’Connor understands the particular and specific requirements that are often overlooked by novice planners. “For example, an international event or one that has international guests is on a highly different level. You need to account for a variety of different groups, media, VIPs, dignitaries... security is a much larger deal in these cases.”
Depending on the scope of the various sporting events that take place, planners have different checklists when it comes to their needs. Some of the questions planners need to ask and consider are:
The sporting industry is a vast and varied world, Hecquet sums it up best, “It takes a village to run a sporting event.”
Beth Hecquet, CMP, Director of Meetings and Events of the National Association of Sports Commissions, and a former event executive is well versed in the special factors that are involved in planning sports events. When comparing this industry versus other segments, Hecquet sees the biggest difference as the intense, ongoing planning prior and during the event, “Generally when a hotel or convention and visitors bureau (CVB) brings a meeting into town their job is done when they’re contracted and typically the meeting planner does their thing. They may need menus, etc. but with a sporting event, the contract is just the beginning. Most groups have a large need for a local organizing committee that will bring in everyone from police (for events like road races and high-profile events like the US Olympic Swim trial) to local experts needed for a badminton convention, since most hotels will have no idea what the ceiling height needs to be, or that the air-conditioning can’t be on.”
As a growing industry, many groups and organizations are creating new events as well as bringing back events that haven’t been held recently. The Meijer State Games of Michigan is such an event. The games were last held in the 1990s, but were brought back in 2010. Eric Engelbarts II, Events Manager with the West Michigan Sports Commission, helped the return of the games. “We brought it back, but with a different business model. Our goal was to get people in Michigan out and moving around, experiencing something they can’t normally do.” To plan the return, they began planning two years in advance and in June 2009 they went public.
Planning large-scale sporting events often begin with committees, sponsors, and board of directors. In the case of the Michigan State Games, they set up a statewide sports committee with contacts in each major market to attract statewide attention.
Crucial to planning sporting events is the marketing that goes along with it. Many participants need to be courted to make an event a success. Engelbarts credits grassroots marketing to get athletes, as well as connecting with spokespeople and well-known athletes within the sport arena “You need to find the right people and then the teams and individuals gravitate to them. It’s about finding and attending the right events where the athletes are at.”
Volunteers
In many cases, entire events are largely dependent upon volunteers and sponsors, in the case of the Michigan State Games, even the website was completely donated.
When working with volunteers, it is important to give them tasks and responsibilities that fits their unique talents, skills and interests. Find out what they excel at and let them fill the niche that is best suited to them.
“State Games are America’s best kept secret, the US Olympic Committee started the initiative to have the state games. It is the Olympics for amateur athletes in your state. You can have Olympic athletes or potential Olympic athletes participating, so it’s a very exciting event to be a part of, whether as an athlete, attendee or volunteer”.
Since volunteers are such a vital part of events successes, it is important to take care of them.Some things to keep volunteers happy include free meals, appreciation party and treat them like family to bring them back year-after-year.
Community Ties
It’s important to gain community support from the beginning of the planning, often times this can be what determines where and if an event can take place. As Hecquet notes, “Most (sporting organizations/events) are non-profit, so they really rely on local community to assist them, some need everything; sponsorship sales, sporting venues, etc.”
When initially meeting with community leaders and local entities like chamber of commerce’s and CVBs, it is vital to gain their buy-in and establish relationships as well as commitment. In dealing with established events it’s easy to share estimated revenue returns, however in inaugural events, it will be important to create anticipated budget needs and event revenues.
Engelbart’s group had a positive experience in both working with the city, as well as finding a major sponsor. “Having a city like Grand Rapids that is so welcoming, people were coming to us to offer their help, we were also able to use existing relationships. It’s so important to get support behind the event before going public, we got endorsed by the governor’s office for physical fitness… then we took it to the community and sponsors. Meyer, the areas largest grocery chain, was a great partner and title sponsor; they were able to activate their connections to promote the event, from apparel to radio to print ads in store.”
Security & transportation:
Kevin O'Connor, COO of Transportation Management Services, is familiar with the logistical needs, planning and service to sporting events.
O’Connor understands the particular and specific requirements that are often overlooked by novice planners. “For example, an international event or one that has international guests is on a highly different level. You need to account for a variety of different groups, media, VIPs, dignitaries... security is a much larger deal in these cases.”
Depending on the scope of the various sporting events that take place, planners have different checklists when it comes to their needs. Some of the questions planners need to ask and consider are:
- Do you need a park and ride? (venues that don’t have enough parking will need to make sure these areas identified (these tend to be at most regional events)
- How will you estimate the number of people that will need shuttle services? Will there be a charge, will tickets be sold ahead of time? Depending on the setup, this will define if you need to establish users to pay on-site/on-board, as well as create base routing shuttles estimating the number of passengers per hour.
- VIP parking? (sponsors, officials, sometimes media parking too).
- Who are the people attending and what are their individual needs? For example, spectators, volunteers, VIPs, officials, media, etc. may all have different needs. If moving a team sport you may need to have a dedicated set of vehicles for them.
- Where do buses go while they are waiting (work with locals to plan this), Roads may be closed, police directing, traffic management plan is a really important component.
- Figure out who you are handling, where you are going to put them, access how many and patterns of ingress and regress, round trip times, types of vehicles, will you want to use motor coaches due to number of people or are you driving in fields where it won’t work and will need to use mini and smaller vehicles?
- How are you going to use volunteers? Can you use them to help with transportation, i.e. managing a park and ride and maximize parking areas to get as many people to and from the sites?
The sporting industry is a vast and varied world, Hecquet sums it up best, “It takes a village to run a sporting event.”
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