The first thing I would like to do today is make a correction to an earlier blog. The Suncoast Anime Day will be Saturday, January 30, 2010 not as I reported earlier last Saturday, January 23, 2010.
There has been a lot of talk about a “failed” event last weekend. I want to address that concept. As I see it there are three tiers of success an event can climb, each tier making the event more successful. But if any of the thresholds are met, that event has been a success.
The first tier is: Did the event happen? Was the person(s) in charge able to hold the promised activity? There are a lot of variables that go into throwing an event, any one of which has the potential to derail the whole activity. So having all those variables come together and work makes for a successful event.
The second tier is: Did the attendees have the intended experience? Usually that means; did they have fun? This is a much harder tier to meet than its predecessor since a lot of intangibles and affect this outcome. I maintain that this is the most important goal for any organizer and the most intangible.
My final tier is: Did the event pay for itself? Note this is not; did it make money but rather does its success allow the organizer(s) to continue this type of activity? Annual events often run in the red for their first few years but if they never pay for themselves eventually they will be cancelled.
Justin Richardson’s Ani-Rave meets the above mentioned first tier. Therefore the Ani-Rave is a success! Kudos go out to Justin and his staff for braving the dead of winter to organize a fan activity.
Most conventions that startup in the Midwest have trouble meeting all of the above tiers and have to settle for the first and second ones. Committees spend considerable time raising money in between them to make up for short falls and to keep them going. We are all one community. We need to look out for the activities that we love. We need to support those brave enough to bring them to us. And yes, there are two tiers to that support: buying a membership and volunteering to help with the event.
So get involved and support the Omaha Sci-Fi/Anime/Gaming community. You'll have fun doing it!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
John;
ReplyDeleteI would like to add that a few people would also say that tier two was met. The DJ play excellent music and most of the people that did show up enjoyed it. The fascility was also enjoyable.
If tier two's conditions must be met for each and every attendee to be considered successful then no event would ever succeed at that tier.
Depending on how you account for the event - it DID break even. (there were a number of people who paid for weekend badges and got free entry to the event)
ReplyDelete