The event industry has been one of the hardest hit by the Coronavirus pandemic. Like most organizations, the pandemic has likely changed the event industry for the foreseeable future. From venues and catering companies - to photographers, wedding cake experts, entertainers, cleaning crews, suppliers and other service providers & vendors - all are experiencing a seismic shift in the structure and execution of events.

The outlook continues to change daily and these changes don't just impact the providers; they will also require event and meeting planners to consider new trends, requirements, and technologies on the front-end. Amid the terrible confusion, here are some of the trends being consistently noted by industry professionals:

1. Keeping events local conveys a perception of safety, negates the need for travel, and affords you the opportunity to monitor changing guidelines in your community.
2. The trend is towards smaller and shorter events. The smaller the event, the smaller the risks.  Shorter events decrease the amount of time for person-to-person interaction. So, consider ways to decrease the size and duration of your event. Which leads to...
3. Plan a hybrid live/virtual event. Incorporate webcasts with the use of Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype, GoToMeeting, Google Hangouts, or other videoconferencing software to reach those who are unable to attend due to travel restrictions, illness, or even just to keep your on-site attendance lower than usual. The Venue is in the process of installing videoconferencing equipment to enable such virtual events.
4. For live streaming, consider the use of Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Periscope, Twitch, Vimeo, Brightcove, or Dacast, among other platforms. All will integrate with The Venue's new equipment.
5. If incorporating a virtual element, consider the use of an event app for networking, live polling, Q&A, and gamification to bridge the live/virtual gap. According to Nina Dermody, an event industry writer, "When paired with other event tech, the app becomes the communication hub that brings it all together." She highly recommends making sure you choose an event app with a networking component. Check out reviews of some of the most common event apps here.
6. Event apps can also be used to help promote sponsors. Engagement and conversions can't really be measured by a banner, but with an event app, "sponsors can include tracking information in their hyperlinks to measure impressions and conversions," said Dermody. Using the app might finally provide the ROI data sponsors crave and keep them coming back.
7. If done correctly, a predominantly virtual event can be just as engaging and beneficial as a live one. Benefits include saving money, reaching a larger audience, and eco-friendliness. Just make sure to create robust and interactive content to keep your attendees hooked.
8. If planning a wedding, the pandemic has added a whole new level of anxiety to couples and their families. An article of advice compiled by Maggie Kreienberg includes tips such as: Using email to correspond with vendors so everything is in writing; exploring other available dates for contingency plans; and of course, understanding the cancellation policies of your vendors. Keep in mind, many vendors (including The Venue) have tightened their deposit and non-refundable retainer policies as a result a taking enormous revenue hits in the spring.
9. If you haven't already, be sure to visit the event venue(s) you are considering ahead of time. You'll want to inspect the cleanliness of the facility and ask about their sanitation and other safety and health-related procedures (temperature checks, hand sanitizing stations, cleaning, etc.). Don't forget to ask about the venue's health & safety requirements for outside vendors as well (i.e. disinfecting high-touch surfaces such as a photo booth, extra food safety protocols at buffets, etc.).
10. Live event set-ups are also changing, which will likely require more tables (with fewer guests at each), linens, centerpieces, etc., in order to ensure the appropriate social distancing. It follows that more space might also be required to allow for the expanded layout. Depending on the type of event you are planning, consider a venue with outdoor space options, such as The Venue at Lenoir City.
11. Look into purchasing event insurance. Event insurance is something we always recommend, but it's even more critical now. While most new plans likely won't cover cancellations due to the Coronovirus, they will help put your mind at ease and cover a number of other relevant items/scenarios.
12. The timeline for people to make decisions about whether or not they plan to attend an event has shortened, allowing for last minute registrations, ticket sales, etc.. It's important to plan your marketing efforts around this shortened timeline. Baptiste Boulard, CEO of Swapcard adds, "Depending on your industry and audience, you may consider offering a discount or access to bonus content to the first people to sign up in order to attract registrations and create buzz." He suggests using the same marketing tools you normally would to reach your target audience.
13. Always remind your guests to stay home if they are ill or considered high risk. Encourage social distancing and other timely safety measures (such as masks) if CDC or other official guidelines continue to recommend them.
14. Consider using disposables for plates, cups, napkins, utensils, etc.. Also, for the time being, it is wise to ask guests to dispose of their own trash to minimize service staff contact.
15. Have extra disposable masks and gloves on hand for those guests who prefer to use them.
16. Beware of "revenge attendance." According to Julius Solaris, editor of EventMangerBlog.com and an international speaker, author and consultant, "After months in 'captivity,' herds of frustrated people could finally let go and indulge." So, set maximums of the front end and cut-off registrations/RSVPs/tickets when it is reached.
17. When considering registration logistics, use floor markings to indicate 6' between attendees in line. Many venues (including ours) will provide these for you. Be sure to place bottles of hand sanitizer at the registration table. Also, have antibacterial wipes on hand to clean pens between use.
18. Inform attendees to keep in small groups when networking. Shaking hands and passing of business cards should be discouraged.
19. Encourage guests to wash/sanitize hands frequently.
20. There is much talk about immunity testing, but if they become available, their application will likely be held to controlled environments such as factories and hospitals. According to Solaris, "While these are key for the economic comeback, there is no good new for events. Policing immunity at events seems discriminatory and very risky - just scraping the surface of what the potential implications may be."
21. The same goes for app (contact) tracing, According to Solaris, "this, in fact, is a preventive measure that could limit the spread of the virus but cannot be adopted to secure attendance at events."

Above all, remember that nobody knows anything for certain about this pandemic, except that events will continue to be under scrutiny for some time. The management and staff of The Venue are going above and beyond, doing everything in their power to ensure a safe and healthy environment for your next event. For more information about our protocols and procedures, click here.

​#eventstatus

Ok, ok... So there’s no fire, but I got your attention didn’t I? If I had titled this #eventstatus something like "Paper Clutter During a Quarantine,"  I bet you would have just scrolled on past. 
 
As an event planner, one of the comments I get regularly is, “You must be so organized. You have to be in order to plan such elaborate events.”

​Ummm...smile and wave boys, smile and wave. If you know me, please stop laughing at this thought. Seriously, I can hear you all snorting with laughter. I am here during this quarantine, to officially say: "Hi, my name is Stephanie and I have a paper organization problem."

​Y’all this was my desk at home:

When we moved to our house nine years ago, I thought the desk being in the kitchen was going to be a great motivator for me to keep our paper in check. I was wrong. But somewhere around 2015, I stopped caring about what people think. Then, I got my dream job and that paper control issue transferred to my office (which drives my uber-neat and ultra-organized office mate Brittany, absolutely insane. Sorry, Britt!).
 
In an effort to better myself during this quarantine, I decided to take a paper clutter “Mini-Boot Camp”. This is what we are supposed to do, right? Use this time to better ourselves? Clean out our closets? Get rid of the things weighing us down? Yes! I can do this! (Right? Anyone? Friends?)
 
So, with large glass of wine in hand, I started collecting all of my paper from around the house. That’s right. All of it.

Those papers in the filing cabinet upstairs? Yep.The kids' old art projects and schoolwork? Yep. Twenty years' worth of neatly organized tax documents? Yep. The random piles of “I don’t know what to do with this but surely I’ll need it” papers? Yep, even those. Everything piled on any surface, even if I don’t know what that pile is? For SURE. 
 
I used the dining room as my collection point. There were a couple of reasons for this:

1. The dining room is sort of out of the way, so the mess wouldn’t be glaring in our faces as I sorted; and
2. I like to set my table for holidays and as such, I knew I’d put pressure on myself to finish the project so the table could be set for Easter/spring. 

 
Once I collected ALL of the papers, the sorting could begin. It was at this point I called my mother, who has been in banking for all of my 40+ years of life, to confirm which financial papers to save. Evidently, that whole "don’t save taxes older than seven years" is true! Same with bank statements. In fact, most banks don’t save statements longer than five years. That means it is so rare that anyone looks at bank statements from more than five years ago, that most banks don’t even keep them!

It quickly became apparent that I was going to need a paper shredder. So I went to an office supply store’s website and promptly ordered said shredder. Luckily it was on sale, I could pick it up that day, and it could be brought to my car.
 
I sorted all the documents/papers/junk into categories and, one by one, began tackling each pile. This part of the process took approximately three days to work through. The consultant I was using recommended setting a timer and working for 15 minute intervals, but I just dove in and worked until I was tired of sorting. I found I became more ruthless with “needing” to save something when I was deep in purge mode and wanting to power through to get done. 
 
Making the piles was easier than I thought it would be. As I started sorting, the piles and their categories kind of took shape naturally. We had everything from insurance, to hospital and medical records, to kids schoolwork and old paper maps. 

The process caused quite a mess in my dining room, hence furthering the need to finish. No one wants to track shredded paper all over their house. Trust me.

Efforts also seemed to produce a metric ton of shredded paper. At one point the shredder jammed and I swear it was smoking. But after letting it rest for about two hours, the poor thing started functioning again. ​I enlisted my husband to go through the piles I knew he would want to peruse himself. Together, we worked to whittle away at 23 years' worth of paper work!

It should be noted at this point that my father-in-law is notorious for saving papers and such (bless him). It is one habit that drives my hubs crazy. Once he saw so much old paperwork had accumulated (meaning he was well on his way to the same fate as his beloved father), there was no problem getting him on board with the purging and reorganizing process. 

I have to say, it was kind of fun going through old paperwork. We still had stuff from when we sold our old home nine years ago, as well as banking statements from 15-20 years back. Also, I used to be so organized with reconciling statements…then came the wonders of online banking, So, I haven’t done that in ages.

​The lesson here is that when you file stuff away in a filing cabinet, it probably goes there to die. We essentially whittled down to needing only one drawer of the cabinet, instead of the full filing cabinet plus the full desk filing space. We didn’t get rid of the cabinet, and decided that long term items will live there, while short term/current items will be filed in the desk drawer.
 
Here is a list of the things we kept:

1. Current home documents (insurance, mortgage and title information, etc.);
2. A file for each vehicle we CURRENTLY own with repair records, insurance riders, etc.; and a file from a vehicle I totaled a couple of years ago, in case we need it in the next couple years, then it'll be tossed as well; 
3. Eight years of past tax documents, with the note to remove the oldest as we file the newest;
4. Several home manuals. However we did get rid of many, many manuals. With the ability to find them online, we spent a Saturday going through them, throwing away manuals for things we no longer own, and creating a file on my computer for current PDF manuals we found online;
5. Transcripts and important papers, which we placed in a fire safe lock box;
6. Medical/ vaccination records; 
7. Insurance documents/paperwork/information (medical and auto);
8. Investment portfolios, sorted into their own folders by investment and pared down significantly (I don’t need to know what was in the 401K in 2004 - I only need to know what was in it over the last 2-3 years, and even that is a stretch, if you ask me); and
9. A few sentimental items. I don’t know how to describe them, but you will know when you come across them (notes, old art work, cards etc.).

 
Overall, the project worked out just like we had planned. I posted an Instagram story (because I’m THAT GIRL) and my college roommate texted me that I inspired her to do the same thing! On the advice of my consultant, I designated a tray on the edge of my desk for all incoming papers. Everything goes in this tray, trash is thrown away immediately, and “action items” are dealt with accordingly. My goal is to not have it overflow, so we have been doing a good job of tackling it as it comes in, or every few days. (Disclaimer: We are under a safe-at-home order, so I have much more time on my hands, and - as school has been called off for the year - there are no new school papers are coming in.)

And just for fun, above is an "after" of my kitchen desk and Easter table. I love the way my dining table turned out this year and it was made even sweeter by having cleaned up the paper mess!
 
So, this seems to have been a successful project overall. Now, let’s just see if I can use this same strategy for my office desk. (I promise I will work on it, Britt!)

(Special thanks to Grid and Glam for the tips and the mini-camp.) ​

I admit it. I usually get my best cleaning and organizing done when I'm mad. With my husband behaving himself lately (thus staying out of the proverbial doghouse) combined with the clutter we've accumulated during our 19 years in the same house, I have a LOT to do! Especially since we are empty-nesters now and we'd like to downsize while we have the energy to move.

So, enjoy these "after" pics. "What about the before pics" you ask? Well, I didn't realize I'd be sharing my at-home adventures with the general public until a couple of nights ago. Also, you probably need to get to know me and my warped sense of humor a little better so I don't frighten you with the state of our closets. Anything to keep our audience entertained!

Stay tuned. Stephanie's hard at work on an online paperwork de-cluttering class (and subsequent inspired projects, I'm sure). She's anxious to share her #eventstatus!

During the process of opening and growing The Venue, our management team realized very quickly that "this is the stuff of which reality shows are born." From the people involved with the construction of the building and staff - to clients, guests, and vendors - we felt we had the characters, stories and plots that could fill a book after just our first three months in business.

We've also been planning to start a blog for a quite some time. We operate on a lean staff and, under normal circumstances, our business is very good and growing. So, we keep exceedingly busy and the blog just hadn't yet reached the top of the ever-expanding priority list.

But here we are as a community. Here we are, in the midst of an international pandemic, a national state of emergency, an almost surreal healthcare crisis. Our nation's citizens are not only worried about staying safe amidst COVID-19, but also about their families, jobs, finances, friends & neighbors, co-workers, those unable to care for themselves, etc.. Folks are sheltering in their homes, so they're not only worried; they're stressed, stir-crazy, bored, sad, etc.. 

And here we are as a venue. A business. Obviously, we are not keeping busy with events. Rather, we're catching up and cleaning up on the front-office side of the operation. Marketing plays a big role in our day-to-day operations, but it just doesn't feel right to aggressively market at this time. So, no pictures of events with which to entertain our followers, limited outright selling on social media, some time to fill, and the desire to help lift folks' spirits while keeping them engaged with us.

LET'S START OUR BLOG NOW!!! So, ladies and gentlemen, here is an actual accounting of its genesis. Enjoy!

Allison (director and certified night-owl) via a text message at 11:30pm Saturday night: Ok ladies...BEST. IDEA. EVER!!!

Since we don’t have any events to promote, and because I personally feel like it’s tacky to be aggressively marketing right now, I’m going to start a blog where we can each highlight our home improvements/clean-outs/projects, etc.! Then we’ll populate our social media feed with it. It’ll keep our audience engaged and entertained with a little light-heartedness and a pinch of self-deprecation 😊

I wish I’d been taking pics all along, because I’m getting a ton done 😆

Stephanie (assistant director, wedding specialist, and meme queen):

Jessica (former event captain and - most of the time - loving military wife, now living in the northwest US): I’m going to murder a husband 😒 it can be the episode called quarantine couples. 😂🔪

Stephanie:

Allison: ​Oooooo...we can throw somma that salt in there, too 😂😂😂

Stephanie: The episode can be everyone interacting with their husbands.

Madison (former event captain who pursued a full-time opportunity elsewhere <boo-hiss> and mama-to-be): It’s like the reality tv show but a blog instead 😎

Allison: We can call it “Why we need to be working.”
Allison: Exactly Madison!
Allison: And we can include video, so Andy Cohen might find us after all :)

Stephanie: As long as she doesn’t give birth in quarantine 😬

Madison: If we’re still in quarantine when I have to give birth I am going to be beyond mad. 

Allison: The season finale will be the quarantine lifting, things safer, Maddie gives birth to a beautiful baby girl, and her family living happily ever after ❤️

Jessica: you guys need to know I was sunbathing in the grass with the cat, on a leash while wearing jeans and a jacket. 
Jessica: It’s 55 degrees here 

Allison: You just made me snarf my drink
Allison: Because I can sooo hear your tone rn

Stephanie: I mean.  THORNE WALKES THE CAT
(Thorne is Jessica's husband)

Allison: Shut your mouth at me!

Madison: I like that finale. Jessica you’re weird

Jessica: 😂 if madi gets her happy ending can I go somewhere warm?!?! 

​Madison: 🏝
​
Stephanie: 🤦🏻‍♀️

Stephanie: ​Can I use this photo I found today of my mom?

Jessica: Oh look Thorne saved the pic of me from today

Stephanie: Brittany's gonna wake up and be like:
WHAT IN THE ACTUAL HECK HAS HAPPENED 

Brittany (Poor, sweet, sleeping Brittany, event captain and stir-crazy mama): HI...Yes I did wake up to 100 txt and I had to see what was going on! 
Brittany: Mine will be about if I’m going to be able to survive this quarantine with a 4 year old! 😬
Brittany: So there’s my chime in to the txt...

And that, dear friends, is today's #eventstatus! Welcome to our slightly-cracking-up-stream-of-consciousness world. We hope it makes you smile. Stay posted, because if nothing else, we're a creative and entertaining bunch. :)