Festival Fundamentals - 5 Tips For Running A Festival In The Post-Pandemic World

Health and safety have always been of paramount importance for festival organizers. However, in the post-pandemic world, they are even more critical. From your choice of lighting tower to the businesses with whom you choose to partner, there are many factors to consider when developing a strategy that will keep your participants safe, healthy, and happy. Below, we take you through five of the most important:

1. Have a COVID-safe plan

This will likely be a non-negotiable requirement for your festival to be approved. Your COVID-Safe plan must be in line with the current social distancing rules and any other regulations in your state or region. It should be constructed with the input of relevant stakeholders, including your local health department and the medics you’ll have on-site. Since this plan is key to getting your festival approved, it’s worth ensuring that it is thoroughly researched, well-written, and comprehensive.

2. Cap the numbers

At this stage, it’s no longer feasible for festivals to have crowds pushing up against each other. Though it will reduce the amount of money you’re able to bring in from ticket sales, for everyone’s health and safety, it’s essential to cap the numbers at your event. This will make it far easier for revelers to abide by the social distancing rules that will be in place.

3. Repetition and clarity must be central to your communications

All attendees must understand what’s expected of them at the event. This means you need to be thoroughly transparent about the rules and restrictions they’ll be facing. Communicate with absolute clarity and don’t be shy about repeating messages to ensure the details reach everyone and stick in their minds. It’s worth posting the rules around your site, having an information stand with well-informed staff, and ensuring all the details are included in any maps, guides, or programs you hand out.

It’s also essential to ensure people are aware of the symptoms they need to look out for to ensure they don’t attend the event while at risk of spreading the virus. Offering a platform on which they can sell their tickets if they’re unable to attend will go a long way towards ensuring people don’t put others at risk by heading out to the festival while exhibiting symptoms.

4. Consider live-streaming the event

Since you’ll likely be operating at a reduced capacity, it may be worth setting up cameras so you can live-stream the event for those who missed out on tickets. This will keep people interested in your festival, thus cementing your reputation for years to come where the restrictions will hopefully be lifted.

To ensure you offer a premium experience to those enjoying the festival from home, consider investing in a professional camera crew who are experienced in live-streaming. As a bonus, the footage you receive will be of great value in promoting any events you put on in the future.

5. Ensure you collect all the data needed for contact tracing

If the worst happens and someone does get sick after attending your event, you must be able to provide all the details needed for contact tracing to be effective. This information should be collected in the ticket purchasing process and must include: