Industry Predicted to Hold Its Own in 2010

According to a study of event planners conducted by Special Events magazine, the industry is optimistic about the dawn of a new decade.

When forecasting 2010 event activity, some 84 percent of respondents say they expect to stage the same number of events or even more in 2010 compared with 2009. And while 29 percent will have bigger budgets to work with in 2010 versus 2009, an equal number will be stuck with this year's budget allocation, and the rest will have even less money to work with.

Log into www.tfea.org to vote in January's poll regarding anticipated budgets for Texas festivals and events.

What to do when the "antlers" come off?

Last night I was watching the Grinch that Stole Christmas while wrapping presents. Actually, I was just sort of glancing at it from time to time as not to miss my favorite scene when the Grinch ties an antler to his little dog's head, only to see the puppy fall over top-heavy into the snow. He eventually cuts off enough of the antler for the dog's back feet to find the ground again and, well, you know the rest.

My favorite scene of the Dr. Seuss classic brought back the funniest moment this holiday season in the TFEA office. One morning TFEA President Kay Wolf called and greeting me with "Something bad has happened, but it's sort of funny." For months, she and her staff had meticulously planned to bring live reindeer to the children of Hidalgo for the 2009 Festival of Lights, enjoyed by more than 750,000 people annually. The process including everything from coordinating veterinary health papers to a crash course in the care and feeding of reindeer.

A few days before the kick-off of the festival, one of the reindeer was being walked early morning by a city employee and PLUNK! One of the reindeer's majestic antlers simply dropped off! Shocked and panicked, the employee tucks the fallen antler under his arm and heads back to the reindeer pen, but within a few feet there is another PLUNK! Both antlers are gone!

With growing concern, he places the reindeer in its pen with the other reindeer and calls to report the problem. While on the phone, a reindeer smackdown ensues (leave it to two lady reindeer to get into a spat over such matters) and low and behold, the other reindeer loses one if its antlers, too! Soon thousands of people will arrive to look at two reindeer who only have one antler between them!

When Kay conveyed this story to me, she and I laughed so hard my mascara ran down my cheeks and my tummy hurt. Such is the life of an event planner! We never know what is in store for us and sometimes the only thing left to do is laugh.

But don't worry. The story has a mostly happy ending. For starters, reindeer shed their antlers annually, but typically not until AFTER the holiday season. And the two decrowned reindeer were traded for different ones with spectacular antlers in time for the big opening and children of all ages were wowed by their beauty. But as fate would have it, weeks later the replacement reindeer also lost their antlers prematurely! Likely the warm climate of South Texas tricked the reindeer into thinking spring had arrived.

But in spite of the drama, they still carried their load and made for a successful event, just like the little dog of Grinch cartoon fame. You can't steal Christmas from Whoville and you can't steal it from Hidalgo either!

Sometimes you just know what you do is cool.

As the Executive Director of TFEA, I have the privilege of getting to attend a lot of festivals and meet event planners from around the globe. This has been an amazing opportunity, but it can also make one a bit jaded at times. Because I am surrounded constantly by the brightest and best, I have become convinced that I am getting pretty darned hard to impress.

And then, right in my own hometown, I am reminded what it is all about. Today I attended the dedication and grand re-opening of the 33,000 SF George H.W. Bush Gallery of the Museum of the Pacific War, which is part of the ever-growing Admiral Nimitz Museum complex. I played no role in the production of the event. Rather I was there as a small sponsor and happy observer.



The event was very well done, but also had its small snafus. A low cloud deck forced the cancellation of the scheduled paratrooper landing and delayed the start of the ceremony when former President Bush's plane was redirected.

But what impressed me was not so much the considerable hoopla. Rather it was the impact of the activities that found me contemplating just how rewarding the job of an event planner can be. As I looked around I saw the weathered faces of survivors from Pearl Harbor and Iwo Jima, undoubtedly some of the bravest men ever. I saw a tiny baby wrapped in blue, still unaware that war even exists. I saw school children, many of whom were about to gain their first glimpse and understanding of the battles that literally saved the world. I saw the proud and amazed smile of my 98-year-old grandmother who has lived across the street from the Nimitz complex for more than 75 years.

These combined images renewed the sense of pride I have in our industry, which exists largely to deliver unforgettable experiences to those we touch. I encourage each of you to take a different look at your next event. In addition to the watchful eye you place on the execution of each element of your event, take some time to simply watch the celebration unfold through the lens of your attendees. Listen to the music of their laughter. Renew in their spirit of wonder. Feel their rush of emotion. Then lay your head down at the end of the day (or early the next morning) knowing just how cool it all really is.

Is multi-taking a good thing?

As festival planners, we know the story all too well. There are a million tasks, both large and small that must be performed to make our event exciting, yet orderly. So we have to move at what feels like the speed of light. With the advent of technology, the sense of urgency is even greater. We have all of the s0-called productivity tools, making the expectation for immediacy even greater. But is working faster and multi-taking always a good idea? I recently attended a workshop that explored the cost, in loss of focus and wear-and-tear on the body, of multi-tasking. Are we really saving time or costing ourselves this precious commodity? Read the attached article from the workshop presenterhttp://www.kimberlymedlock.com/docs/What_You_Should_Know_About_Multi-Tasking.pdf to learn more.

We can sell you the entire seat, but you'll only need the edge!

The 11-day Fiesta San Antonio celebration is home to some of the largest parades in the state. To help local non-profit organizations raise revenues from the massive crowds that gather to watch the parade, the Fiesta Commission allows these groups to rent parade route folding chairs to create viewing areas.

"Walk your parade route and figure how many chairs will fit in each block. We limit to three rows of chairs that start from the street curb (row 3) and set up two other rows closer to the parade," said Fiesta Commission Executive Director Chuck Blische.

Nonprofits sell seats for $10 each and pay the Fiesta Commission a $2 per chair licensing fee. Each non-profit is assigned a specific area in which they rent the chairs and perform set-up and take-down. In San Antonio's case, the price of chair is set by city ordinance.

"We print and distribute parade tickets. People really appreciate having a place to sit during the parade that they can just leave behind," said Blische.

Do you have a great idea to contribute to the TFEA Blog? Send it to pennyreeh@ktc.com.

The Customer is Changing...Are You?

In 2010 the United States will be conducting a new census and we will all have the opportunity to look at the emerging demographic trends. While this data provides us with a snapshot of our population, it also tells us a great deal about who our festival customer is; and more importantly, how they are changing.

One thing is certain - Texas is growing. According to the Texas Data Center and Office of the State Demographer, the state's population is projected to grow to 35.8 million by 2040, which is an increase of more than 71 percent over the 2000 census count. This means more potential attendees for Texas festivals and events. But what do these new customers look like?

Demographers predict that Hispanics will outnumber Whites by the year 2020. Texas has been a "majority-minority" state since 2004, meaning that combined minority populations outnumber the white population. Other such states include Hawaii, New Mexico and California.

Understanding changes in the ethnic mix of our state is critical knowledge for our events. What programming changes to attract these growing, and potentially-lucrative, audiences are needed? How can the event maintain relevance and gain awareness? Do these audiences present sponsorship opportunities?

State demographers also predict the number of residents over the age of 65 will double by 2040. The percentage of Texans age 65+ remains slightly lower than the national average, but remains significant. How will our festival attendees interests change as they age? Are our events prepared to be more accessible to an increased number of attendees with special mobility needs?

Another significant change in our state's population will be the continued shift from rural to urban areas. Between 2000 and 2005, 11 of Texas’ “metro” counties – counties with one or more urban areas – saw population increases of at least 20 percent, while 93 non-metro counties experienced losses. This may mean greater population density and proximity for some events. But attracting these customers may also be more competitive as urban populations present more entertainment venues.

Soon we will see the latest numbers and put these predictions to the test. But the real test lies in how prepared festivals are to understand the information and use it to grow their event?

Penny C. Reeh - Owner, Indigo Resource Group and TFEA Executive Director

Is your festival a Purple Cow?

I am somewhat embarrassed to admit how long it took for Seth Godin's Purple Cow to surface at the top of my reading stack. While one will not find a single festival reference, I cannot think of a better book for festival planners to be reading, especially in today's turbulent world.

In a nutshell, the book encourages us to be REMARKABLE in what we do and contends that being remarkable is the only true competitive advantage left for products of any kind.

This started me thinking. Are there many remarkable festivals? In my workshops, I often speak about the homogeneity of the festival product. We all have good food, beverages, entertainment, children's activities....etc, etc, etc. But do we have anything that jumps up and literally grabs the customer's attention? As a whole...I think not so much.

There is no formula for developing remarkable. And if being remarkable was easy, everyone would be doing it and it would no longer be remarkable. However, Godin's book helps us challenge the way we think and provides us with questions, examples and ideas to begin the quest for a Purple Cow.

Again and again he emphasizes the fact that remarkable is rarely a marketing issue. It is usually a product development issue, which could not be truer for the festival industry. What are we doing in programming, access, logistics, customer service, training, or volunteer management to created a remarkable (read: unforgettable) experience?

Are you completely willing to re-engineer your event? Too risky? Godin's contention is that risk-taking is the only safe move in today's landscape. Staying the same (as yourself and your competitors) is the path to being obsolete. Risk is the path to success.

He tells the story of Dutch Boy paint. Paint is boring and paint is an even more homogeneous product. Dutch Boy realized that paint was not their product. Rather, the painting experience (ugh!) was the product. By developing revolutionary new packaging, an easy to pour plastic jug with a handle to replace unwieldy paint cans, they made painting easier, cleaner and more fun. Listening to the customer, completely rethinking the product and unleashing this clever Purple Cow helped them steal significant market share.

Is your festival the next Purple Cow? I sure hope so!

Penny C. Reeh - Owner, Indigo Resource Group & TFEA Executive Director

Rainy Days And Mondays . . .

Mother Nature is such a tease. All summer long the temps topped 100 and the sky was blue above most of Texas, but in recent weeks that's changed.

Traders Village Marketplace is the largest flea market and festival complex in Texas with more than 5.5 million shoppers and festival-goers every year. From the Bayou City Cajun Festival and Houston Championship Chili Cook-off in Houston, to the Tet Lunar New Year celebration and annual Auto Swap Meet in Grand Prairie, the marketplaces' festivals and special events entertained thousands earlier this year without a hitch . . . then, the rains came.

Anyone who stages outdoor events knows the heartbreak that comes when months of planning is completely washed away in a frog-strangler filled with pine needles, paper debris and generic "stuff" of questionable origin. But, it happens.

Traders Village in Grand Prairie recently hosted its 47th annual American Indian Pow Wow - an event that normally draws more than 100,000 guests over three days. But, this year a rain dance must have mistakenly been performed, the sky opened up and the event was a washout. The event crew did its best and the Pow Wow went on beneath the cover of a giant Expo building, but the damage had already been done.

The thunder rolled in Houston for the 9th annual Village Art Car Show. With more than 35 rolling works of art and thousands of dollars in television support behind it, it was like a festive private party for the members of the Houston Art Car Klub and Traders Village staff who had not been sent home for the day. There was even a live band for dancing. Such fun on a rainy day with nobody there to enjoy it.

But, despite the rain, the pre-happening prep, and all the event day stuff that had to be done -no matter what - we survived to do the next festival - hopefully one staged in the sunshine, with parking lots filled with cash carrying, fun-loving patrons.

There is no doubt that you need a positive attitude in our industry. Singing "rain, rain, go away" may have worked for us as kids, but as grown-ups, not so much. After more than 30-waterpark-flea market-theme park-years I have learned ride the wave of rainy days, and I'm okay with that. You can't do anything to stop it, so just make alternative plans, throw on your rubber boots, and go with the flow. Don't beat yourself up over it. Just rejoice in the fact that we have the best job ever. Don't let those rainy days and Mondays get you down - right Karen?

M. Baxter

Texas's Own George Draghici Performs at IFEA

CLICK HERE to watch George Graghici's performance at the Opening Reception of the IFEA Annual Convention and Expo on September 22 in Indianapolis, IN! This painting was purchased at the IFEA Foundation Night fundraiser later that week by the 500 Festival in Indy.

Let's Share

Welcome to TFEA's new blog! A place where festival/event planners, volunteers and suppliers can share ideas. A place where new information can flow quickly to members. A place to find new connections and new partners. A place to learn and teach.

We will routinely strive to offer new information, monitor trends, ask for feedback and hopefully make you smile, or even belly laugh, from time to time.

We invite you to join the conversation and be an active part of the largest state association in the country. Everything is bigger in Texas!