Event Planning Blueprint for Community GoSwap

Prepared by: Ayesha Lamphear, Jaidaa Shafaei, Staci Groshek , Zach Morris


1. Pre-Planning Stage
Pre-Planning Timeline
Define Objectives-----Date and Time------Funding and Venue---------Event Planning

As you define the event objectives answer the following questions:
1. What is the primary purpose of the event for the local community?
(The primary purpose for the Community GoSwap event is to gather the
people of the community NRPA (National Recreation and Parks
Association) in order to exchange, give away or donate sporting items
that are no longer used by the members of the family.)
- What type of event goals do you have?
- What sponsors and fundraising do you want to pursue?

2. What organizational structure is needed to produce the event? (See Appendix 1)
- What experience do you want your guests to have?
How structured is the event?
How strict is this structure?
Are there activities, or other events attached (e.g. 5k run)?
More family oriented, or more young adult oriented?
What are the demographics around your venue?
- What environment do you want to create?
- Are you going for a small gathering or large event?
- How big is the community in which the event is hosted?
Tip: Try to match the event environment with the environment of the
surrounding community.
- Who are the key community stakeholders? (local residents, community
groups, local businesses, sponsors, media, etc)

Once the event objectives and concept have been identified the committee
should define different aspects of the event including:
- Event date and time
GoStrive will work with sponsors and stakeholders to determine event
date and time.
- The physical requirements of the event
Use event objectives as a guideline for venue selection.
-Required Equipment
Furnishing (tables, chairs, tent, etc.)
- Potential locations
Does the location meet my physical requirements?
How close is it to my target audience?
Close venues that meet your physical requirements are ideal.

Note: Some exceptions may apply depending on your location.


- Funding
Use budgeting section to determine a rough estimate of the event budget.
Budget - Make sure that the event is clearly defined. Being conscious of
budget at all points of the event to ensure that the budget is not going over
amount pre-determined. Budget Worksheet. (See Appendix 2)
Fundraisers - Small fundraising events such as raffles, silent auctions, bake
sales, etc. can be held before the main event to raise funds when approved
by the financial services department. All funds obtained through these
events must be documented and allocated properly through the correct
financial channels.
Raffles & Auctions - If planning a raffle or an auction, be sure to follow
proper State Law requirements.

- Planning Timetable
Prepare a preliminary event timeline to use as a guide for the event planning,
including all the event components. (See Appendix 3)

Note: Any Major event programs to be included at this event should be coordinated
at least 2-4 months in advance.



2. Planning Stage

Planning Timeline
(Pre Planning Timeline)----Venue Planning---Marketing--Donations and Staff---Staff Training-----
Event Execution

A- Communication Management
The host organization can adapt the suggested organizational structure (See
Appendix 1) or can use their existing structure. A typical structure includes an
event committee, an event coordinator, and several team leaders, such as
donation leader, a marketing leader, operations leader, etc.

Events staff members must keep in communication with their colleagues
about events on a daily basis. The event coordinator or event committee
need to do the following:

- Identifying the tasks and skills needed
Establish what tasks necessary to make the event happen and
determine the skills needed for each tasks.

- Sourcing people
Identify the number of people needed in the event. Once the volunteer
opportunities are identified, they need to work on attracting sufficient
volunteers with appropriate skills using ways such as community
groups, colleges and universities, local Chamber of Commerce, etc.





- Training
Provide training to the volunteers so they can perform the required
tasks effectively. Training can be offered on-the-job, or it can be
conducted prior to the event. Also, the event coordinator can use the
event planning checklist, which integrates the overall management of
the event, as a job assessment. (See Appendix 4)

- Rewarding
Determine how to reward the volunteers for their efforts in several
ways, such as thank you letters/certificates, end of event celebration,
gifts, free tickets, etc.

B- Donations Acquisition Management
-Identify potential sponsors / donors
Keep separate documentation of sponsors (financial donation) and
registered donors (sporting goods).

-Compliance assurance
Review charitable organization policies if donations are going to any
other charitable organization than the pre-approved Goodwill.
Obtain documentation confirming the status of the charitable
organization.

-Donations management
Monetary
Goodwill and NRPA are non-profit organizations, therefore any
money that is specifically being raised or donated can go to these
select locations. None of the donations can be made to political
parties or candidates. Charity donations should be made directly to
the charitable location (i.e. checks should be written out to the
charitable organization, or donations can be made online). If cash
is collected for the charitable organization, the amount should be
immediately documented and deposited accordingly.

*In most cases, Goodwill will be the non-profit organization. If this is not the
case, substitute the chosen non-profit for Goodwill in your event plan.

- Sporting equipment
All sporting equipment that does not go into the swap or provided
strictly as a charitable donation will be managed by the designated
non-profit agency and are not considered donations for NRPA or
GoStrive. All donations must be itemized and need a verification of
receipt to ensure that all items have been documented for NRPA
contributions.




- Obtaining and sorting the donations
Best practice has shown that it is good to have designated areas for
drop offs and pickups of sporting goods. Use of large plastic bins,
barrels and sport net bags with labels will help with the sorting
phase. Each sport should have its own designated place; each venue
can create their own solution for this.

C- Marketing Management

-Define marketing materials
By this point you should have assigned a marketing coordinator and
allocated marketing budget and sponsors. If you are working with
Goodwill, contact their marketing person that will take care of
branding guidelines and the execution of the campaign.

-Event promotion Strategy
Analyze your target audience and with your team come up
with a campaign strategy that will include what forms of media will
be used to reach the audience. Consider the following:
Print
Yard signs, city signs, flyers, mailers
E-mail
Save the date to mailing list, etc.
Television
Contact local news stations for some free public relations, etc.
World Wide Web
City community event calendars, etc.

-Displays, Decoration, Logos and official titles, names for event
Coordinate with NRPA, Goodwill and GoStrive to be sure that proper
marketing is being ordered and used for the event. Also communicating
with the marketing teams to verify proper advertising and marketing
placement to be consistent with marketing standards.

-Sponsorships in local community
If sponsors in the local community provide a monetary donation, it is
up to the discretion of event planning committee to determine
marketing aspects with sponsors for sponsorship recognition.

D- Venue Planning Management

-Identify potential venues
Select a venue that will satisfy the needs of the event vision.
Example: (Whitewater, WI) Since it is a SportSwap, Whitewaters NRPA
decided to do a softball tournament in the summer with food and drinks
provided (possible fundraising opportunity for funding event), the location


they are looking for will have an outdoor playing area along with an indoor
venue for swap *in case it rains. They decide on Starin Park with the
facility next to the park and baseball field. The facility provides chairs and
tables, they can reserve the date and time and plan needed components
for this type of event. (i.e. necessary permits, contracts with vendors
and/or entertainment, etc)

- Ensure that the venue location completes a safety/inspection checklist and
provide a copy for verification. (Including Fire Prevention)

- Verify that there is a valid Certificate of Insurance (COI) and Special Events
Insurance through NRPA for specified event. Ensure they complete the
required Signed Vendor Agreement with NRPA, Copy of Sellers Permit,
Business License, Certificate of Insurance and Contract with supplied vendor
services.

Note: Anything that will impact NRPA, GoStrive, GoodWill or Stakeholders for the
community GoSwap need to complete written documentation with the associated
signature to ensure that all potential legal interactions are covered.



3. Advising & Training Stage

Staffing Timeline
Source Staff--Define Roles and Goals---Create Handout----Do a Test Run---Event Day----
Reward Staff

- Start Early
Try to begin the staff training process as soon as you have the other aspects of
the event laid out. Extra time never hurt anyone!

- Source Staff
Source staff from the local community. This can be done while marketing the
event. Since communities will differ across the landscape, it will be up to each
NRPS location along with sponsors to find their own solution for this.

- Define Objectives
Utilize the event plan, event objectives, and desired guest experience to define
roles for staff.

- Write it Down
Once staff roles are determined write them down and give volunteers a
copy. You may also want to include some frequently asked questions that
guests may have, and the solutions to them.








- Try it out
If possible, it is best to do a dry run before the event where staff and event
planners role play the event. This will make sure that staff knows their duties,
and will highlight any areas that need work or change.

- Event Day
Be sure to be there for your staff and help with any questions or problems that
they may have on this day. By checking on all of your staff regularly and helping
them out, you will not only build a good working relationship but also gain event
quality control benefits.

- Rewards
The event wouldnt have happened without your staff. Remember this and
reward your team accordingly. Its up to each NRPS location to determine how
to do this. Some examples include, free access to the event, t-shirts, remind
them of the good cause they are helping, etc.
A healthy dose of verbal praise when warranted also goes a long way.

Note: The project team from GoStrive/Enactus will introduce the event breakdown to
the Event Coordinator to train on the specific details in planning the Community
GoSwap Event.





Appendices
Appendix 1: Sample Organizational Structure
Appendix 2: Budget Tracking Spreadsheet
Appendix 3: Planning Timetable
Appendix 4: Event Planning Checklist
Appendix 5: RFP (general)
Appendix 6: Event Survey
Appendix 7: Waiver Forms - anything that can come back to the company
should have documentation to cover all risk issues. (Must be customized for
the event)






Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
Community GoSwap Event

1. Pre-Planning
1.1. Set objectives
1.1.1. Conduct a needs analysis and anticipated audience
1.1.2. Collect demographic information on the attendees
1.1.3. Identify stakeholders
1.2. Defining the event
1.2.1. Determine event date and time
1.2.2. Determine the physical requirements of the event
1.2.3. Identify potential locations
1.2.4. Determine funding needed
1.2.5. Prepare Project Schedule

2. Planning
2.1. Communication Management
2.1.1. Volunteers/staff communication plan
2.2. Donations Acquisition Management
2.2.1. Identify potential sponsors / donors
2.2.2. Compliance assurance
2.2.2.1. Review charitable organization policies
2.2.3. Donations management
2.2.3.1. Obtaining and sorting the donations
2.2.3.2. Donation storage plan
2.3. Marketing Management
2.3.1. Define marketing materials
2.3.1.1. Print, app, www, email
2.3.2. Event promotion Strategy
2.3.2.1. Web/App development
2.4. Venue Planning Management
2.4.1 Identify potential venues
2.4.1.1 Select venue
2.4.1.2 Contract to reserrve date (Cost point)
2.4.1.3 Obtain necessary permits (Cost Point)
2.4.2 Staffing plan For day of event (cost point)
2.4.2.1 Set up
2.4.2.2 Registration
2.4.2.3 Public relations spokes person
2.4.2.4 Clean up








2.4.3 Registration payment processing Strategies
2.4.3.1 Preregistartion Only
2.4.3.1.1 Online
2.4.3.1.2 Mail
2.4.3.1.3 Phone
2.4.4 Donations swap plan
2.4.4.1. Materials list
2.4.4.1.1 Exchangeable/saleable items
2.4.4.2 Excess materials management

3. Advising & Training
3.1 Training
3.1.1 Train the trainer meeting
3.2 Post event survey
3.3 Lessons Learned