THE EVENT-IN-A-BOX TOOLKIT
Hosting Great Short-Term Rental Alliance Events
Welcome! This guide is here to ensure you’ve got all the essentials of a great alliance event covered. Inside, you’ll find everything we wish we knew when we got started with our own alliance events, plus tons of templates, checklists and SOPs we’ve developed along the way.
You’re also encouraged to make it your own! You know your community and your members best, so everything here is completely customizable.
We’ll update this guide regularly with more tips, tricks and bonus materials, so bookmark this page and check back before each event to see what’s new.
Enjoy!
– Team Rent Responsibly
Photo courtesy Camylla Battani
Table of Contents
Part 1: Key Considerations
Part 2: In-Person and Virtual Event Timelines
Part 3: Marketing Your Event
Part 4: In-Event Roles, Templates & Other Support Resources
Part 1:
Key Considerations
Let’s start with some key considerations to think through before we begin the logistics of planning. These are areas that the alliance board should discuss and act on as early as possible. Ideally, allow yourselves around a month for virtual events and two months for in-person events to work through the whole event process. However, the more time you have, the better!
Important Things to Decide from the Start
1. Identify Objectives
Every event is different. This event’s content will depend on the needs and concerns that the alliance has identified. For instance, informing members of draft legislation and mobilizing them to engage with the ordinance process or driving more members to join the alliance.
2. Create a Volunteer Planning Committee
A great way to ensure a successful event is to form partnerships with a variety of organizations and other STR allies. Working with them to plan the event can elevate its credibility and increase its reach and effectiveness. In addition to some key alliance members, suggestions include: members of the Chamber of Commerce, staff from the Visitor’s Bureau, local business owners, and real estate agents. Forming a diverse committee will also help boost marketing efforts and help to secure free or low-cost supplies/vendors.
3. Review Your Budget
The ordinance process is lengthy with many steps. There will be numerous opportunities for members to engage along the way. Make sure you are spending your advocacy budget wisely. Review your budget and determine what you can allocate to this event. Are fundraising efforts needed or will current dues and donations be adequate?
4. Determine The Format
There are two typical formats that you can choose from when planning an event—In-Person, or Virtual. An in-person event has a considerable number of moving parts and time commitment, but also the largest opportunity for real connection and relationship building. A virtual event is cost-effective, convenient, and easy to set up, but difficult to truly engage your audience. You’ve chosen a virtual event. If you’d like to host an in-person event, check out our In-Person Event Concierge.
5. Get a Head Count
While you may have many members, all of them will not attend. As a general rule, you can expect 25% of the people you invite to attend. Requiring registration to join the virtual event will help forecast numbers. Offering a small incentive to register can increase its accuracy.
6. Choose the Speakers
Who will speak during the event? A great way to engage your audience is through a panel or a few expert speakers. Panelists can bring different viewpoints and highlight benefits and challenges through the lens of varied stakeholders. Choosing an emcee is also important, as this person conducts the overall event and adds a layer of finesse.
7. Decide on a Private or Public Event
Do you want this to be a members-only event or will members of the public and media be encouraged to join? Having it restricted to members fosters a sense of privacy, exclusivity, and closeness. However, opening it up to the public and media increases overall awareness and can multiply the power of the alliance’s voice. If you do invite the public and media, identify who will serve as the alliance’s media liaison in advance.
8. Ensure Safety
Covid isn’t a thing of the past just yet, so for in-person events, be aware of current local guidelines and restrictions around gatherings and make sure you uphold them.
Also, consider the climate around short-term rentals in your area. Does the alliance anticipate any heated moments? While these may be rare, consider security measures and codes of conduct to ensure the safety of all involved.
9. Pick a Day
Decide on a date and time that suits the majority of members and speakers involved. Consider work schedules, those with families, and the media (if applicable).
10. Consider Including Elected Officials
Have you been having monthly meetings with elected officials? If not, now is a good time to get one on the calendar. Include not just town or city council members, but the city manager, city attorney, the staff department in charge of managing STRs, and advisory boards involved in STR ordinance evaluations. Are one of your alliance leaders appointed to the city’s STR task force? If so, try drawing on those relationships. Having regular meetings before this event, or at least one meeting prior, will help to foster a positive working relationship with city staff. Listen to their needs and help meet as many of them as possible.
For instance, sending sample questions so they feel prepared during presentations in which they will be speaking, and full transparency about the format and/or any challenges that arise. If you have already begun developing these relationships, you may even be in the position to ask an elected ally to co-sponsor the event, adding more buy-in.
Part 2:
Virtual and In-Person Event Timelines
There are myriad project and event management software that can be helpful when you are a planning professional, but they often require a time and financial investment and sometimes a steep learning curve. Let’s begin with a simple but detailed timeline and customizable checklists anyone can use.
Virtual Event Preparation Timeline
The following timeline overview and downloadable template list Zoom as the virtual event software, but if you choose another, simply swap it out for your preferred tool.
4 Weeks Out from Event
This is the week you’ll want to get all of your ducks in a row to prepare for marketing your event and building out its content. This includes confirming dates, times, and in-event roles; setting up Zoom to collect registrations; connecting with friendlies and key attendees, such as elected officials or members of the media; and preparing event marketing materials.
3 Weeks Out from Event
Three weeks away from your event, you’ll want to begin inviting attendees and getting your in-event content prepared, including slide decks and materials from speakers. Now’s the time to build your media kit, too, if using one.
2 Weeks Out from Event
While you continue marketing during this time, we recommend putting together your in-event support materials, such as icebreaker questions to engage attendees and responses to FAQs to drop into chat as needed.
1 Week Out from Event
Ideally, by now you’ll have your event well prepared so you can leave this time for any last-minute items and confirmations. Check in with your speakers and event volunteers. A practice run-through is strongly recommended to ensure everyone can get into the event and be comfortable on the day-of. This week is also a good time to look ahead to your post-event checklist items.
Day of Event
Log in at least 30 minutes early to get ready and have a great event!
1-5 Days Post Event
Believe it or not, much of the success of an event is in the days after it. Things like thank-you notes for speakers and a recap with helpful items to attendees (and those who couldn’t make it) will make the event go that much further. So will meeting with your board for a debrief to capture ideas and lessons learned to make your next event even better.
Download the Detailed Virtual Event Timeline and Checklist Template
In-Person Event Preparation Timeline
7-8 Weeks Out from Event
In-person events have more moving parts than virtual ones and often require much more coordination with venues, rentals, speakers, volunteers, and attendees. During this period is when we recommend setting your objectives, budget, target dates, and other foundational elements.
5-6 Weeks Out from Event
This is when you’ll want to confirm the essentials like venue, equipment rentals, speakers and catering. Now is also the time to prepare your marketing materials and order any branded items or other supplies you’ll want on site.
2-4 Weeks Out from the Event
Continue gathering important materials while you launch your event invitations and prepare your in-event materials, such as slide decks, scripts and on-site sign-up forms.
Days Before and Day Of Event
Now’s the time to wrap up any remaining planning items and gather your event materials and supplies. See the What to Bring Checklist in the following section. Arrive to your event in plenty of time to set up, coordinate volunteers, and have a great event!
1-5 Days After the Event
The event work isn’t quite over yet. Be sure to send thank-you notes to those who should get them, and send a recap with helpful items to attendees (and those who couldn’t make it). Make sure, too, to meet with your board for a debrief to capture ideas and lessons learned to make your next event even better.
Download the In-Person Event Timeline Template
EVENT SUPPLIES CHECKLIST
You can’t execute a successful event without the right materials and items. Use this handy checklist to make sure you aren’t forgetting to bring something the day of the event.
Part 3:
Marketing Your Event
Even the most thoughtful event plan falls flat if no one attends. Ensuring that you have a robust attendance will drive more opportunities for meaningful connection and relationship building. This is a key ingredient for successful advocacy. Here are six ways to increase attendance at your event.
Email Members & Subscribers at Regular Intervals
Using an email marketing service, such as Mail Chimp, to send out the initial invitation to members is a great idea. It’s best to let people know 4-6 weeks in advance. However, most people will need several more reminders to actually get them to the event. After the initial invitation, send a reminder at 2 weeks prior, 1 week prior, 2-3 days prior and the day of the event. This ensures that you stay on their radar until the big day.
Use Multiple Channels of Outreach
While email is a great tool, it’s best to have more than one in your toolbox. Utilize multiple ways to reach members. Does your alliance have a Facebook page? Post it there, using the same interval technique described above. Does your alliance have a Slack workspace? Make sure to add an events channel and regularly post there as well. Do you have a large group of members that aren’t tech-fluent? Sending a postcard or making personal phone calls can go a long way. If that’s not possible, there are inexpensive ringless voicemail apps, like SlyDial, which allow you to send a prerecorded message directly to a voicemail to many users at a time.
Build Member Buy-In
While many of your members will be intrinsically motivated to attend because they may be directly affected by the outcome of specific legislation that may be being discussed, some will need a greater sense of connection to the event. Make sure to clearly explain what is happening and the potential outcomes, both positive and negative. Invite members to participate by submitting questions in advance during registration or anonymously using a Google Form to be answered during the Q&A portion of your event. They will have a greater sense that they are driving a portion of the agenda and feel more connected to it.
Sweeten the Deal
To further the push that some members may need to attend, offer a fun incentive when they RSVP by a certain date. For instance, members who RSVP will receive a tote bag upon arrival. There are many inexpensive swag items that would encourage members to commit to joining. To take it a step further, offer members who bring a friend with them an incentive as well. This can be a small gift card, or their names can be entered into a drawing for a larger gift card or prize. These “Friends of the Alliance” may soon become alliance members themselves.
Engage and Invite the Media
When reviewing your Key Considerations, you decided if the event would be private or public. If you’ve opted for a public event, then inviting the media is key. Determine who will serve as your alliance’s media liaison. Have them write a short press release about the event and include their contact details. Remember the goal is to persuade them of the newsworthiness of the event and how ordinance changes may affect the local community. Create a list of news outlets in your area and call each of them to identify which reporters may be interested in attending and get their contact information. Often, they are assigned to certain “beats,” so find the one that is most closely related to STR’s and city council happenings. Send out the press release and ask to have it listed on their daybooks at least one week in advance, following up with phone calls and reminders.
Enlist the Support of Friendlies
A “friendly” is any person or organization that is in support of STR’s in your area. Keeping track of these on your Alliance Dashboard is a great way to refer back to them. Use these people and groups to help with event outreach. Let them know the details of the event and invite them to come. If you are opening your event to the public, some groups may be able to cross-market the event for you and share it in their email blasts and social media forums. You may even be in the position to have an elected official that has been vocally pro-STR, co-sponsor the event. Organizations to try reaching out to include: Chambers of Commerce, Visitor’s Bureaus, property management associations, Realtors’ Associations and local businesses such as restaurants, tourist shops and housekeeping services.
BONUS TIP
If your members live locally or you’re inviting other local community members to attend, get the event added to community calendars and post flyers in common areas like libraries, grocery stores, coffee shops, and the like.
Part 4:
In-Event Roles, Templates & Other Support Resources
The more prepared you can be for event day, the better the event will go for everyone. That means making sure everyone knows their tasks and responsibilities for the big day and has all of the support materials they may need. This section covers our recommended roles and templates and cheat sheets to shortcut your prep.
In-Event Roles
On-Camera/On-Stage Roles
- Emcee:
- Opening and closing messages
- Introduces speakers or panelists
- May present a portion or all of the content
- May lead a panel discussion
- Screen sharing of slides
- Presenter / Panelist / Guest Speaker
- Presents a portion of the event content and/or participates in a panel discussion
- Q&A Moderator: This role has two sub roles:
- Filtering questions: This person will monitor and sort attendee questions, dismiss irrelevant questions, mark questions live that can be addressed by the main speaker audibly or write written responses to attendee questions.
- Fielding questions: This person will voice the questions marked “Answer Live.” He/she will also comment when necessary and will be on-camera.
Off-Camera/Backstage Roles
- Zoom Driver
- Starting/ending session
- Ensuring recording is running
- Spotlighting speakers/Controlling what view is seen by attendees
- Triggering polls (if any)
- Q&A settings
- Chat settings
- Chat Moderator
- Posts messages in the chat
- Responds to and engages with inbound messages from attendees
Downloads, Templates & Other Resources
Templates, Cheat Sheets, & More
Free and Low-Cost Resources from Third Parties
Email Campaign Templates
- MailChimp
- Constant Contact
RSVP Forms
- Google Forms RSVP Template
- Eventbrite
- Paperless Post
Marketing Assets
- Canva
- Crello
Congrats on hosting a great alliance event! Bookmark this guide and come back to it regularly as we are continually updating it with new tips, bonus materials, and best practices.
WHAT TO DO NEXT
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Congratulations! If you’ve reached the end of this guide, your journey has officially begun! Thank you for reading.