No matter how big or small an organisation: Preparation is key for a successful event
Hi everyone and welcome to my second blog post!
Today I’m going to be discussing the importance of preparation and documentation for successful event execution, and also the importance of review and reflection. As we have previously learnt in PR Techniques, events take time, energy and exceptional organisational skills to ensure they run smoothly and those who attend are satisfied.
The Stirling Lions Soccer Club recently hosted The Comedy Lounge (see more here: https://www.comedylounge.com.au) for a night full of eating, drinking and laughing with a mix of the funniest stand-ups from Australia and around the world!
On the day of the event, I was required to come to the club a bit earlier to help set up tables, the stage and a ticket station area where door sales would be occurring, so that it was all ready to go for the evening.
Tables all set up
I returned to the club at about 6pm to help with last minute preparation before guests started arriving at 6:30pm. As the club is local and primarily a volunteer-run organisation, it can understandably be a bit difficult to cover ALL bases of event preparation if there aren’t a lot of helping hands! As a result, I did notice some gaps and areas to be addressed and improved upon. I was responsible for being at the door handling the cash box and ticket sales with another volunteer, and as guests were coming in, we realised that it was hard to determine which guests already had a ticket and what table number they were on. Some people would walk in saying, “Oh, we are on _______’s table, they’ve already paid for a table of 10” or “_______ has our tickets”. There was no specific list of table numbers and guest names that we could follow, so we had to allocate tables on the spot – it was just a bit unorganised! Despite this little hiccup, the night was such a great success. My stomach was hurting from laughing so much! I went around and took photos of the comedians and the guests which were uploaded to the club’s Facebook page. This small amount of media coverage was important for the club as it showcased the type of community events they hold, the family-friendly culture they have and also raised awareness about the club for people who may want to become members for next year’s season. Although I was a bit hesitant, I did raise my suggestions on how to better prepare for club events in the future with the vice president and president of the club and they took my advice on board which was a relief! Hopefully we can implement this for the trophy presentation night event coming up.
Among other recent tasks over the weekend, I was required to again, write a speech to announce over the loud speaker from the media room before the 21st round of the NPL WA which was Stirling Lions vs Floreat Athena. In this speech, there was actually a lot more to say compared to the first one I touched on about in my first blog post. I additionally had to thank some special guests for attending the game including a local minister and ward members, go into a lot more depth about a sponsorship offer and raise awareness about a raffle and the upcoming trophy presentation night – not to forget announcing the player numbers and names again – I thought I was going to run out of breath!
Stirling Lions vs Floreat Athena
Pre-game announcing from the media room
Keep your eyes peeled for more of my blog posts!
Breanna
“Sometimes, it’s who you know, not what you know.”
It’s a saying we’ve all heard from our parents, work colleagues or tutors at some point in our lives, and, it’s entirely true. In the public relations industry, connections are everything. The lady who works at the cafe you bought your coffee from this morning? Her son so happens to be a retired soccer player. And guess what? You’ve just been given the task of writing a news article about the life of sports stars after they hang up their boots. Score! You now have a potential source to interview! You just never know when you might need to reach out to someone – so talk to people, get to know them really well, build authentic relationships and always keep their contact details.
Welcome to my very first blog! I am excited to share with you my reflective practice experience so far at the Stirling Lions Soccer Club! Despite having watched soccer on the TV multiple times and having been to a few live games at stadiums, anyone who knows me knows I am no doubt a girly girl – a soccer club is probably the last place you’d expect me to end up for this unit. I will admit, I don’t know how to run and kick a ball simultaneously (I know, embarrassing), however, I decided to try something different and push myself out of my comfort zone – sport is an area I’d love to learn more about and speak about with confidence (then people might actually think I know what I’m talking about!). I’m only a couple of days into my internship, and I’m still a bit rusty on the sports terms and rules of the game, but I’m getting there. But a soccer club isn’t just about the physical game. A lot of work happens behind the scenes too. What I can bring to the table is the media and PR knowledge and skills I have so far acquired at university.
Over my first week I was required to write a speech to announce over the loud speaker from the media room before the 19th round of the NPL WA started. In that speech, I had to include details about what round it was, what teams were playing, where they were playing, what sponsors we needed to thank and details about upcoming events at the club. I really tried putting my speech skills to use from PR Techniques and Contemporary Practice – making sure I knew who my audience was. I found using simple language, but also being lively was the best approach to take. The tricky part that came after that, was having to announce the starting lineup for both teams – having to announce (and pronounce correctly) the numbers and names of 22 soccer players was definitely nerve-wracking – but I think I did okay for my first go!
Announcing at the game.
I think the most rewarding part of my first week would have to be the days following the game. The Stirling Lions won 2-1 which was fantastic, and I was given the task of writing a news article about the result and details about the team’s upcoming game for this week. I interviewed the coach and got some great quotes from him and pieced together a story. Now, this is where the main point of my blog post title comes into play. I have previously interned at Community News and have formed a great bond with the editor there. So, I emailed him and asked if he wouldn’t mind publishing my story in The Stirling Times. He was extremely kind, gave me some editing advice and tips, and within an hour, the story was up online. If I had not known the editor and more importantly, kept in good contact with him, then the story would have probably just been uploaded onto the club’s website and would not have received as much exposure or engagement. Having my story published in the Stirling Times meant that it not only reached the club’s players and supporters, but it reached the general community – a much larger audience, which is really important for the club.
I can’t wait to see what else there is in store for me! They even gave me my own jacket to wear and I really feel like I’m part of the team.
Keep your eyes peeled for more of my blog posts!
Breanna