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Making a good connection with your potential clients is the primary tenet of experiential marketing. Many times these connections can be made in the comfort of an indoor environment, but you should never be afraid to set up an event outdoors as well. There are many advantages of being outside and many variables as well, especially in times of cold weather.
But, if you are having or planning an outdoor event, here are some of the things you should know about and consider when preparing against the harsh elements.
1. Power Requirements
It could get very cold very quickly. Make sure you plan ahead and have a way to provide heating in case you believe that your outdoor location may get too cold for comfortable conversation. Consider if you have the hook ups to power these heating elements. Remember that generators burn more gasoline in colder weather so be sure to have back up fuel, just in case.
2. Products and Equipment
What products will you be bringing to display for your guests and clients? Will they need any special protection from the elements? Make sure the display, the transportation and handling of these products is suitable to their good conditions in the cold weather and possible wind. A television is an essential part of a booth or reception area, you will want to make sure that this equipment is set up to be well protected from the elements.
3. Data Collection
If your activation requires that your visitors do any amount of writing, you will want to consider that they will probably be wearing mittens or gloves. Consider that this will make writing and collecting information a cumbersome and uncomfortable aspect of the event, you don’t want that. So, try to consider effective ways this situation can be avoided.
Here are some ideas:
Have brand ambassador fill out information for the attendee
Provide hand warmers to the attendee while they are filling in information
Streamline the amount of writing that needs to be done
Use a data capture mechanism that is non-digital.
Finally, consider that the batteries which power these devices drain more rapidly in the cold weather and have a plan to keep the rhythm. You should have additional devices charged and waiting in a warm spot inside the building.
4, Premium / Giveaway Items
Those special details that make an event so memorable can be a hassle to lug around in the cold outdoors. This would be a good place for some special adaptations. Consider how the giveaways can be well-suited to the event, weather and location. If the weather drops, you can’t go wrong with a cozy embroidered winter hat.
Or, you could choose to use hand warmers with your colors and brand. If you already had some inventory that you wanted to use, choose the items that are small enough to be stuffed in a pocket. If your items are even slightly tedious to carry they may end up in a trash can. This is always one thing that you will want to plan well ahead of time. Deliveries are always slowed during the winter due to inclement weather.
5. Time
Like molasses, human effort is greatly slowed with the cold temperatures. Make sure you have allowed extra time for the setup, loading, unloading deliveries and everything else that will go into a successful event.
6. Setup / Surface
Make sure you are fully aware of the terrain on which you will be holding your event. You will need to be clear on the set-up procedures, the surface type and its conditions, the location, where you can set up outdoor event branding and even the weather forecast for the days surrounding the event date. You have spent a lot of time and invested much in the preparation for this event, it would be sad if the battle was lost because of a damp soggy ground – it’s happened before.
It will also be important to consider how the electrical set-up will be arranged and protected from the outdoor elements. Preplanning everything to the last detail and considering all eventualities is the way to ensure peace of mind and confidence when kicking off the outdoor event.
7. Engagement Time
You will find that in the cold outdoors, your attendees will be happier with a high-energy- short timeframe event. They will probably not want to have to wait in lines or stand around for too long. So, keep things short and fast paced to leave them with a better impression of your brand and its marketing. Look for ways to engender fun experiences and positive interaction. To this end, consider that the traditional post-event on-site survey is best cancelled if cold weather will be an issue. Instead see if you can cover this in an email survey they can complete when they return home.
8. Staff Clothing
If your staff is happy and comfortable, they will also be more enthusiastic and engaged with the attendees. Prepare your team from the staffing agency or brand representatives for high-performance by them with exactly what they will need to perform effectively. Branded jackets will be a bit costly, but it will probably be worth the effort as they will definitely catch the eye when consumers arrive.
9. Staff Attitude / Morale
There will be many different constituents to a successful event, but having a warm and enthusiastic staff that is happy and motivated tops them all. Do what you can to encourage this with all the little comforts and details that will ensure the cold weather doesn’t impede their fervor.
When hiring staff, you may want to bring in a few more staff members than will actually be needed. This way they will be able to take sporadic breaks throughout the event. Consider how far a bit of coffee, tea and hot chocolate can go in making this event especially enjoyable.
