Every event organiser and venue owner is by now familiar with the restrictions in place for reopening to the public. Although this can be a somewhat moving target it is safe to assume that the criteria for event goers to enter an event will be quite restrictive and require some planning and thought to implement in time for the bulk of events resuming in 2021. 

Given the awareness of modern-day issues being addressed by numerous charitable organisations music festival event goers are increasingly concerned that the event embraces charitable causes. Such is the connection between music festivals and charities that many commercial event organisers have switched from a business to charitable status. 

With many European countries starting to allow event venues to reopen with larger audiences form early 2021 there are many steps that a venue owner should take in preparation of reopening. This is particularly important considering many live event venues have been closed for in excess of eight months. 

As the UK government announced that live events with audiences can resume from 2nd December 2020 how are event organisers geared up to put on events with such short notice? What processes and procedures are in place to gear up for short notice events with ongoing lockdown restrictions likely to be an ongoing threat  

With most of Europe likely to remain in some form of lockdown over the Christmas and New Year period now is the perfect time to start planning your stay-at-home movie fix. Check out some of the classic films and documentaries about music festivals from the last fifty years that will hopefully get you inspired for 2021.   

The music festival sector relies heavily on corporate sponsors to fund their events with the bulk of the global $1.6 billion sponsorship spend coming from alcohol brands. Being so reliant on one sector for sponsorship funding may leave some festival organisers exposed should any unforeseen issues arise from the connection between alcohol and festival goers.      

As the world battles and copes with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic service companies have to adapt to new working practices. Some restrictions like measures to ensure social distancing are voluntary and some are mandatory. Part of the solution will be cashless payments and contactless ordering of food and drinks.

There is so much uncertainty in the live music events industry for 2021. Nobody knows for sure when a coronavirus vaccine will be available, how it will be rolled out and how effective it may be. Combine this with unknown levels of restrictions placed on holding events by government organisations and the future is far from clear. 

With the current pandemic having a dire effect on all music venues in the UK the warnings voiced by those in the industry seem to be falling on deaf ears. History shows that once a venue closes it rarely resurfaces and can be lost forever. Here are a few reminders of famous British music venues lost but not forgotten.

Every music festival provides opportunities for food and beverage vendors usually providing a wide range to suit different tastes and budgets. Pitches are generally oversubscribed and festival organisers can select the most suitable. However, what are the opportunities for non-food and beverage vendors at music festivals? 

Surely one of the attractions of attending any music festival is the experience of the mosh pit. That small area in front of the stage for hard core event goers keen to dance and party hard all day and all night. With proposed restrictions likely as festivals return in 2021 what does the future hold for the music festival mosh pit?

Most participants in music festivals will generally need to make an application, specifically artists, vendors and volunteers. Festival organisers should be organising their application forms and processes at an early stage in the planning process. Having a consistent approach to the application forms used helps to create an efficient event planning process   

A key consideration for the success of any performance artist is how they promote and market themselves to a wider audience. An essential part of this process is having a professional biography package of materials and having these at hand and available immediately on demand is essential. 

Any large music festival will have someone responsible for curating the content, they may have a wide range of job titles but the essence of a festival curator is to source and produce content that fits with the festival themes, genre and overall ethos. It’s a specialist role that requires a unique skill set, so what exactly does a festival curator do? 

For any event goer getting on the guest list has always carried an element of prestige and something to brag about. In reality the management of guests for any live event is now a major element of almost all event planning and requires the same logistical planning as any other aspect involved in running a successful live event. 

Having just entered a second lockdown in the UK, this time for a month, possibly longer, the prospect of further lockdowns and restrictions is playing havoc with music festival organiser's planning. What strategies can organisers explores to minimise the impact on their planning for events scheduled for 2021?  

As the UK enters another lockdown on Tuesday 5th November 2020 the impact on the live music industry could be the final curtain call for an industry already in crisis. Musicians, venues and the thousands of support services workers now face another complete closure until at least January 2021. 

Finding new ways to boost ticket sales for live events is going to be more important in 2021 when the events industry hopefully makes a recovery. Event organisers have traditionally used ticketing agents in conjunction with their own online sales channels to sell event tickets although using the big corporate agents like Ticketmaster can prove very expensive. 

The use of bartering dates back to ancient times and is simply the exchange of goods and services between two parties. Any company involved in the events industry sells tickets for admission to their event. Tickets have a monetary value and have been used as a bartering tool in the events industry for years. 

For the largest music festivals, the organisers must plan and manage hundreds of artists, multiple stages and shows plus the usual army of volunteers. Many organisers still use spreadsheets to manage logistics and schedules but surely there is an easier way to do this with the help of technology? 

The competition for vendor pitches at the most popular festivals in the UK is intense. With visitor numbers (in normal circumstances) hitting in excess of 100,000 the financial rewards for securing a pitch are huge. What steps can vendors take to get a pitch at the UK’s most sought-after events. 

Earlier this month (October 2020) various organisations got together and in conjunction with government departments have put together an essential guide for music festival organisers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidance has been launched in its first iteration and will be updated monthly.  

As events look set to start up again in 2021 many organisers are into their planning process right now (October 2020). With the coronavirus taking its toll on the events industry in 2020 many event organisers have gone into a state of hibernation whilst at the same time suppliers to the industry have faced financially difficult times with many not likely to survive.        

Some of the world's largest music festivals can use an army of volunteers to make their event a success sometimes using as many as 1,000 plus to help out in various ways. There is a lot more to being a volunteer than just doing a little bit of unpaid work in exchange for free entry to the event. 

One of the keys to successful accommodation planning for music festival organisers is being able to offer a variety of accommodation with a range of budgets. With many festivals being quickly sold out it is also vital that accommodation for artists is secured early in the process to ensure availability. 

Probably one of the biggest gripes from visitors attending any music festival is the toilet facilities. Often there are not enough available and queuing always seems to be an issue along with poorly maintained facilities. What are the key steps organisers should take to ensure they provide enough clean facilities? 

A large-scale music festival can mean up to 150,000 visitors, the equivalent of a small town descending on a site for several days so the need for providing suitable coverage for medical emergencies is inevitable. Aside from being a requirement of Health and Safety regulations it is common sense to plan for the provision of suitable medial facilities and personnel. 

Everyone hopes for the return to a season of music festivals in 2021 but the reality is many organisers have made the decision to bypass next year altogether because of uncertainty. Planning for a music festival can take up to 18 months so event organisers are currently deep in the throes of planning for 2021 and one of the key aspects to plan for is the provision of onsite customer service facilities.  

Running a music festival with hundreds of artists over multiple stages for several days will test even the best project managers. With large scale events rarely will things go to plan so what can event organisers do to minimise any hiccups and present a timely, seamless and professional artist line up to satisfy event goers. 

With potentially hundreds of performance artists appearing over several days on multiple stages there is a huge challenge to get the artists organised for perfect performances. Key to ensuring smooth running and the seamless transition of act changes is having the correct specs for each and every act.