Opinion
F
or the larger organisers the idea of
launching an event comes with a
whole host of challenges and pressures,
but much of the burden is shared
across teams that specialise in this sort
of thing day in, day out. For smaller
organisers, the idea of a launch comes
with a different set of pressures like
putting your home up as collateral. The
need to get it right could never be more
prevelant.
We caught up with FM Future
directors Frazer Chesterman and
Marcus Timson on perfecting one of the
industry’s most vital skills: launching a
new event:
The launching process is arguably at
the heart of the exhibition industry. It is
a process that embodies the highs and
lows of working in events and attracts
the entrepreneurs that have built a
multi-billion-pound industry from the
ground up.
But, for all that it’s an industry
cornerstone, launching new events is
a process that many navigate with a
combination of common sense, nerve
and guesswork, sometimes with mixed
results.
At FM Future we’ve created a new
training course aimed at every level
of organiser, from solo entrepreneurs
to teams in the industry’s biggest
The art of the
launch
The FM Future directors on
how to successfully launch an
event
businesses, which we’re calling the
Event LaunchPad.
We’ve spent a combined 45 years
working in events and exhibitions, with
much of that time spent launching into
various markets and countries. Over the
years we’ve identified several of the key
strategies and cornerstones that make
for a successful launch.
Go to the market, and listen
If you spend a lot of time contemplating
and perfecting an event launch idea, it
can become hard to gain the objective
distance needed to see its faults and
potential problems. It’s vital to take
your idea to trusted stakeholders,
influencers and communities in your
chosen industry and find people who
will give you honest, constructive
feedback. And it’s even more vital that
you listen to that feedback and take it
on board.
If you’re hearing “yes” all the time (or
“no” for that matter), have the strength
to take a critical look at who you’re
choosing to confide in and what their
feedback indicates.
If you’re launching an event for a
specific industry there’s every chance
that it’s already an industry you’re
familiar with, or are passionate
about. Leave your own thoughts and
March — 37