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. 

Any large music festival will usually have multiple stages typically including two or three main stages and dozens of smaller stages. Invariably the larger main stages are for the most popular artists with smaller stages for lesser known and up and coming artists. A key element of the stage design and construction is the truss and rigging.   

Any event organiser managing a large-scale festival could face the challenge of managing in excess of 300 performance artists. How are these managed to ensure that artists turn up to the right venue and stage at the right time? The ‘Artist Advance Sheet’ has become an essential part of multiple artist management for any large event or festival.   

Wiring up the electricity supply for a large music festival can be a complex, demanding and potentially dangerous task. It takes a team of qualified and dedicated electrical engineers to connect and set up a reliable electricity supply and without doubt any music festival will not succeed without competent and successful implementation.      

As everyone accepts that any large-scale music festivals or music events will not take place until at least the middle of 2021 event organisers should be planning now to attract sponsors and vendors. It certainly makes sense to use the current quiet period to start making plans now for events to resume in 2021.        

For anyone who was working in the live events sector the prospects for work are bleak with large numbers being furloughed or losing their jobs completely. However, for those who previously worked in this sector they will have built a wide range of transferable skills and experience that can be utilised in other industries.