Parades can be organized for almost any occasion. It is mostly a very colorful and exciting event that everyone looks forward to. It could be to celebrate a special tradition, a holiday like independence day or women’s day, or even to honor a great person or achievement in a community or country at large. Regardless of what the occasion may be, organizing a parade may require much planning for it to turn out successful. Here are some tips on how to effectively and efficiently organize a parade.
#1. Get a team
As said earlier on, organizing a parade requires a lot of planning and you can’t do everything by yourself especially if it’s a big one. Outline the responsibilities you would like to delegate to your team members, like decorations, selling or serving food, entertainment and so on. Communicate goals and motivate your team. Make sure that the people on your team have time for the event and are willing to help you. Encourage them to come up with ideas that they think will make the event a success.
#2. Plan in advance
After you have formed your planning committee, get to work immediately. Give yourself at least six month to plan, as for donations and so on. Don’t forget to send out invitations out on time so that people will also have enough time to plan and save the date.
#3. Budget and sponsorship
Prepare with an estimate of what everything is going to cost to have an idea of how much you will need. Remember to add miscellaneous just in case something that you didn’t foresee comes up. After you’ve set up your budget, you’ll need spend some time contacting local businesses or individuals to see if they would be willing to support the event. Some might volunteer to help with products, services or cash depending on what is convenient with them
#4. Legal authorities
After choosing your route, you will need to find out if you need permission to use that particular place. You may need to contact the local police or if it’s a private land, the owners. Find out to make sure there are no other events planned on your route come event day. The last thing you want is to start your event and then get stopped by the police or owners because you failed to get permission. Remember that regulations vary depending on the state, so you might want to start early as some procedure are time consuming. You will also need permission from the charity to use their name and logo.
#5. Event marketing
Event marketing is all about spreading the word. There are so many ways you can advertise your event starting from putting it on mails, TV, radio, newspaper advertisements and signs posted up about town. Not forgetting social media which is one of the most effective means these days. Most of the social media channels are free and a great platform to reach out to the entire world. Word of mouth should also be included.
#6. Fun
The parade will not be much of a success if people go home without having fun. From the theme, to the parade itself, to the dressing, everything should be fun and exciting. So think of ideas on how to make it interesting.
Remember to set rules for the parade so no one goes overboard. Set up the right entertainment that is appropriate for everyone like a music band, clowns, jugglers, games etc. Just and color and fun to the whole event and surely if people love it, be sure to have them coming for the next one. After the parade, send thank you notes to participants and crew and ask for areas where improvement is needed.