7 Reasons Site Visits Are Vital To Your Event's Success

We were recently involved in an event in a fairly minor way. Had we been the ones planning it then the route would not have involved having to run through 2 buildings. You see, the route had been mapped using Google Maps. However new buildings had been completed since the nice Google people surveyed that area.

To me, that's just lazy and unprofessional. 

You can not expect to plan an event in a location without spending time at that location. Now, that seems like simple logic to me.

To others in the events game it appears that's not the case. 

Aside from you owing it to your client and it demonstrating that you're a professional, here are 7 other reasons site visits are vital to your event's success. 

Creativity happens on site

We're currently planning an event in a location we're very familiar with. We've actually run events very similar to this one there too. 

Still, we went out to the site with the client and we spent time out there together. The 90 minutes we spent on site threw up a lot of different ideas for the event, some which hadn't been considered at all prior to the site visit. 

That's not the only time that's happened, either. 

You'll see real problems

Countless times we've done site visits only to discover problems we were previously unaware of.

This even happened us once in a venue we do regular events. Someone else had recently run an event there and damaged an important production element. Had we not found this out during our site visit then the event would not have gone very well at all. 

You'll see real opportunities

The flip side to the point immediately above is that you'll also see opportunities and possibilities you won't see sitting behind your desk. 

We've found solutions to 'problems' simply from being on site. Turns out they weren't actually that big a deal but we wouldn't have realised that had we not done a site visit. 

You'll do a TRUE risk assessment

We were in a statutory meeting with a local authority last week. One of the ones with a bit of a clue about events and what's involved. 

Towards the end of the meeting one of the people attending pointed out that the one appendix missing from our EMP was the Risk Assessment. She was dead right. The RA wasn't in there. We explained that we don't like to do our final RA until only about a week out from the event as things change on site - especially this particular type of site. I don't think they'd ever had that before. 

We'll go back to site about a week out from the event and do our final site-specific Risk Assessment. 

Familiarity with the site makes planning easier

Planning where you're going to locate things for your event is made much easier when you're very familiar with the location. The best way to achieve that level of familiarity? Yup, you guessed it. Site visits. 

We're working on something at the minute which, if you look at the site on Google Maps leads you to believe we have X amount of wide open space to work with. The reality, however, is we don't. Google maps doesn't show the 6 permanent bins, 5 permanent concrete benches, not to mention the large sculpture piece. 

It demonstrates commitment

We've had clients comment that we've been to site a lot during the planning stages of various events. This impresses and demonstrates our commitment to ensuring the event is as good as it can be. 

To my mind ANYTHING that demonstrates the commitment we put into all our events is a good thing. 

There's no harm in a client noticing. 

Your event is more likely to be a success

The culmination of all the points above pretty much should lead you to this final one.

The bottom line is that site visits will help you ensure your event is a success. 

If you're working with an event company who don't understand this then you're working with the wrong people. 

Give us a shout. We're the right people.