Since spring of 2004, I have been producing events.  First it was producing Chicks and Giggles, a comedy show. Now it is monthly cupcake meetups as well as the occasional clothing swap. My next event is The Red Velvet Cake Debate on Friday, October 14.  I have a curated a panel of bakers and food writers to talk about the red velvet cake phenomenon.

Here are some of the basic steps that I have about producing events:

1. Have an idea of what the event will look like:  envision the venue, the attendees, the speakers or performers, the vibe. Is it for networking? professional? entertainment? educational?

2. Have a date in mind. Make sure it doesn’t conflict with an event that you potential audience would attend.  For example, having fundraisers benefiting the same charity on the same night is not a good idea.

3. Secure the dream venue.  Location, location, location. Having a clothing swap in a place that has lots of mirrors and is well-lit is better than having it in a dark bar.

4. If the dream venue can’t accommodate your date, be flexible.  However, don’t hesitate to seek out other places if  the date can’t be move.

5. Once date and venue are set, tell people. Even if you don’t have all the details confirmed, let people know about it by sending out a “save the date” message.  This builds anticipation.

6. Get anchors!  Vendors, sponsors, speakers, performers and the like want to be a part of something cool. However, they want to know if you already have an “anchor tenant”.  Like how Macy’s is the anchor tenant in a mall, you have to go for that marquee person or brand that will compel people to do the event.  People want to be around people they aspire to be.  Facilitating this is a great way to get people on board.

7. Promote. All the time. Offline. Online. In your sleep. The best thing is about having an upcoming event is that I always have something to say when I am a party or meeting someone new. Hopefully, they can attend or know someone who can possibly speak, sponsor, etc.

8.   Get volunteers. They can provide a hand or just make sure you don’t forget anything.

9. Sweat the details.  Day before event you have to run through anything you might have missed, and go grab anything you may need.

10. Relax. An hour before the event,  you should be chilling.  Anything that is missing or last minute cancellations are often things you can’t fix easily.  You are often at the venue so only thing is get a friend or volunteer to help you run an errand, if needed.

Update: The Red Velvet Cake Debate sold out and was featured in the New York Times Diner’s Journal.