Generating buzz around your events is thrilling — and might inspire you to create more events on a larger scale and at a faster pace. If you’re ready to scale up and don’t know how to get started, it’s helpful to tap into firsthand advice from creators who have already successfully grown their events.
During Eventbrite’s RECONVENE Sessions event Growing Pains: What to Expect When Expanding Your Event, three expert event creators shared the tools, resources, and strategies that have helped them build out their businesses.
Read on for a teaser of key takeaways from each of the event’s speakers. For more in-depth insights, watch the full video below — featuring New York Adventure Club, Cuties Los Angeles, and Manny’s.
Corey Schneider, founder and CEO of New York Adventure Club
New York Adventure Club organizes special access tours and events in New York City.
- Rethink your to-do list
Creating a to-do list might sound basic. But Schneider recommends applying the “Same Day, Same Task” philosophy to it. This means breaking it down further by assigning specific tasks to certain days of the week. “This piece of paper helps ensure that I stay on top of my priorities,” he says. “Plus, it’s really gratifying to cross tasks off the list.”
- Find a mentor — or two
As Schneider says, “nobody can be an expert in everything,” so seek out those who specialize in whatever you’re trying to accomplish. He recommends SCORE, which is a free service that connects people with volunteer business mentors.
- Embrace (and empower) your biggest fans
He created a Brand Ambassador Program and recruited members via his newsletter, then trained those people to do things like greet and check in guests during events, freeing him up to spend time on other priorities.
Sasha Jones, CEO of Cuties Los Angeles
Cuties Los Angeles is a Black-owned community space that offers in-person and virtual events for queer and trans people.
- To diversify your programming, hire BIPOC employees
If you’re a one-person team, the next person you hire should not look like you and should have a totally different identity, Jones says. “Building diversity builds community and trust and lets folks know they’re safe,” she says. “It takes intentional effort.”
- Choose venues and spaces that align with your event
Always trust your gut about whether a venue feels right, Jones says — and think outside the box. For example, Cuties Los Angeles regularly collaborates with The Plant Chica, which is a greenhouse that doubles as an event space.
- Create the events you — and your community — want to see
If you wish there was a certain event you could attend, and it doesn’t exist, make it happen. And be “open to collaboration and working with people, engaging with your community in a way that allows them to feel comfortable sharing ideas with you,” Jones says.
Precious Green, director of programming for Manny’s
Manny’s is a community space in San Francisco that focuses on helping people become better informed and more involved in their communities.
- Hold tight to your mission
It might take you some time to figure out what your mission as an event series is. But once it’s clear, “make sure you take it everywhere with you. That’s your currency — it’s better than the dollars in your pocket,” Green says.
- Be creative about hybrid programs
Manny’s bread-and-butter is its physical space, but during the pandemic, virtual events became essential, expanding their reach to brand-new audiences around the globe. Green suggests always doing a gut check: Does the hybrid format align with your mission? Does it make sense for this specific event?
- Always be open to new partnerships
Joining forces with other like-minded businesses or influencers is a way to a) validate your brand, mission, and events, and b) unlock even more potential fans of what you do. When you partner with someone, “it’s essentially their co-sign that your work is worthwhile, and now suddenly their audience can become your audience.”
For additional tips from Eventbrite’s ongoing RECONVENE events series, visit our recaps hub.
