Prepare for a Mega Event

The World Cup will be a mega-event but it won’t be the only one. In the future, other major sporting events and concerts may bring surges of customers.  Preparing for the World Cup can position you for future mega-events.

Her are some tips to ensure your business can handle a mega-event and its surge of customers and other impacts.

1. Understand Your Customer Demand. Will the mega-event bring more customers for your business? What are their expectations?
2. Managing the Surge. Are you ready to handle the surge in terms of staffing, inventory, cash flow, waste, and customer experience?
3. Permits. Do you have the necessary permits, especially for changes to your operation such as street or sidewalk use, alcohol service, temporary signage and banners, tents, etc.?
4. Regional Impacts. Are you tracking regional event updates, transit, traffic, road closures, weather forecasts, and police/fire/EMS advisories?
5. Staffing. Is your staff prepared? Do they know what to expect and how to respond to the unexpected?
6. Marketing. Mega events bring visitors. Can the visitors find you on social media? Are you resourced to sufficiently post so that your business gets attention?
7. Safety and Security. Do you have a plan to monitor emergency alerts and how to coordinate with your staff to make adjustments?

A good resource is the Mega Events Readiness Playbook (condensed and in graphic novel format) created by the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce because it has useful checklists.