Planning a Successful Banquet

1. NABC Summit, Chatfield, MN April 19 & 20, 2008 Lou Compton Maryland Bowhunters Society Planning a Successful Banquet

2. What Kind of Banquet Do You Want? • Camaraderie building social event • Fundraising focused only • Combination of both

3. Consider using this one slide to replace the six that follow. The information appears as you click the mouse or advance the slide during the slideshow. I moved the next six slides to the end of the presentation. Social Fun focus Camaradarie Family feeling Labor intensive Still need fundraiser Financial liability if low attendance Pro’s and Con’s • Fundraiser • Can be profitable • Develop benefactors • Build membership rolls if ticket includes membership • Labor intensive • Cost of items for raffle & auction • $$$ vs. members • Need the right venue • Combination • Can be profitable • People will want to attend • Member rolls increase with non-members/guests joining • Labor intensive • Cost of items for raffle & auction • Need the right venue

4. Consider using this one slide to replace the six that follow. The information appears as you click the mouse or advance the slide during the slideshow. I moved the next six slides to the end of the presentation. Banquet more economical smaller organizations better served by a 4-6 hour banquet still requires fair amount of planning and volunteers adaptable to a wide array of halls (fire hall, community center) Compressed schedule; Good MC becomes critical avoid a broken floor plan where communication is difficult Banquet vs. Convention • Convention • more expensive to stage • may be best venue for a large club with 500+ attendees • labor intensive and requires many volunteers • usually requires hotel/conference center/civic center • multiple rooms can offer a wide variety of entertainment, auctions, dinners, etc. • usually offers lodging package for attendees who have to travel

5. A Successful Banquet + A Good Location + Some Good Planning + A Mix of Donations + A Variety of Fundraisers + Effective Coordination _____________________ = A Successful Banquet

6. Location: Your First Key Decision • Your venue should • Be centrally located • Near the majority of your members • Provide a quality caterer with an attractive menu and affordable prices • Have the capability to grow as your attendance grows • Don’t just look at hotels or conference facilities; check out caterers & halls

7. Planning: Getting Started • Start small if this is your first event • Learn what works from successful organizations • NABC • RMEF • NWTF • DU • Name a Banquet Chairperson and a Committee

8. Planning: Budgeting • Establish a Working Budget • Cost of hall/caterer • Advertising • Prizes/games • Cost of speaker/entertainment if used • Event insurance • Supplies (duct tape, raffle tickets, poster board, etc.)

9. Planning: Setting Ticket Prices • Keep Prices Affordable • Offer Early Bird Specials that offer raffle tickets and/or membership renewal • Avoid making membership fee a mandatory part of ticket price • Ticket price should cover cost of hall/caterer • Make purchasing tickets easy (PayPal on your club’s website)

10. Planning: Get Sponsors • Table Sponsorships • Local businesses get a sponsor’s poster/centerpiece at table • Raffle Sponsorship • Pro-shop could donate a raffle prize, etc. • Adult Beverage Sponsor • Local beverage distributors

11. Planning: Advertising • ADVERTISE-ADVERTISE-ADVERTISE • Your organizations newsletter at least 2 issues prior • Posters/flyers in pro-shops and stores • Web sites (Your own as well as other local hunting sites with potential attendees) • Calendar of Events boards, newspapers, etc. • Hunter friendly radio shows • Public access cable ads (usually free) • Mass mailing to membership

12. Planning: Speaker or No Speaker • Must be entertaining and interesting! • Is cost justified by increased attendance/profits? • Will your speaker detract from fundraising efforts? • Would the time devoted to the speaker be better spent with fundraising events? • It may be better to not have a speaker.

13. Donations: Soliciting Donations • Face to face from local sources • National sources such as Cabela’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Gander Mt., etc. via solicitation letter on organization letterhead • Phone solicitation to above sources • Solicit membership via your newsletter and website

14. Donations: Making Money Sometimes Takes Money • Don’t be Afraid to Spend Money to Make Money!!!! • Purchase Prizes at greatly reduced prices • End of season sales • Closeouts • Offers from previously solicited vendors • Be prepared to spend some money to get decent hunt packages

15. Donations: Build a Database • Start early building an extensive database of outfitters and guides • Web sites • Magazine ads • State/Provincial outfitter organizations • Send out solicitation letters well in advance of event • Don’t forget local guides AND members who may have access to great hunting areas. Not all hunts have to be guided

16. Donations: Don’t Refuse Anything • Remember no donated prize is too small or insignificant. Small items can be combined to make a good “package” • Don’t forget DVD’s, Books, releases, scents, packs, camo clothing, raingear, etc. Be creative!!!! • Ladies and youth prizes should be obtained for women and children attending

17. Donations: Think Outside of the Box • Jewelry, artwork, vacation packages, weekend get-a-ways, Diner gift certificates, spa/resort certificates all have a broad appeal EVEN to bowhunters • Consider leasing a tract of prime private property, local or out of state, and then auction off a series of week long packages. • This was recently done in MD and netted a $6000.00+ profit.

18. Hunting Lease Prize • Secure annual lease to a QUALITY hunting property • Break the year (season) down into week to 10-day blocks and allow a rest period between weeks • Auction off the hunting blocks to a group of 3-4 hunters • Prime periods (rut) should have the highest minimum bid • Name a lease coordinator / hunt master

19. Fundraisers: Bucket Raffles • Consider Having Two Levels • Lower Tier ($1 tickets) • Mostly small items such as knives, broadheads, sights, etc. Do put a few better prizes in Lower tier to keep interest and ticket sales high. • Upper Tier (5 tickets) • Better items such as GPS’s, Optics, Scent Loc clothing, youth bow, a 3-D target, smaller artwork, etc.

20. Fundraisers: Silent Auctions • Better quality items such as framed prints, local and/or out of state hunts, traditional or custom bows, custom arrows, etc. • Set minimum initial bids and minimum increments; e.g. - start at $120 with $5 increments • Avoid duplicate items; if you have two bear hunts, make one a silent auction and one a live auction

21. Fundraisers: Live Auctions • Higher value items • Get a professional auctioneer. Some donate their services; pay for a good one if not • Find someone who knows bowhunting and the members!!! • Have him help decide which items gets auctioned first, second, etc. • Collect payment immediately after close of auction item

22. Fundraisers: Card Raffle • A standard 52 card deck of playing cards used at $10 a card • Raffle off a single prize such as a bow, hunt, or package • Limited number of “tickets” improves the odds for those buying cards/tickets • Call these throughout the event

23. Fundraisers: Dart Throw • Set up safe backstop in secure area • Participants pay $5 for 5 darts to throw at a 3-D target. • Score is based on standard 3-D scoring and tickets awarded for prizes such as a custom bow, game camera, scent loc, optics etc.

24. Fundraisers: Glass or T-Shirt Raffle • Raffle off a medium value item selling a club T-shirt or Banquet Glass for $5 or $10 with a raffle ticket attached. • Banquet Glasses can be obtained for as little as $2 ea. Attendees like to buy these as they get an instant memento and a shot at winning a prize. • Remember if you’re serving adult beverages many folks want a souvenir glass anyway

25. Coordination: Make a Schedule • Six hours goes by in a flash • Use the schedule to • List all activities • Estimate how much time each activity will take • Determine how many things you can do • Determine what you can do concurrently • Use an MC to keep things running smoothly

26. Coordination: The Value of a Good MC • Can serve as your stage manager and keeps banquet on schedule • Should be personable and a decent public speaker • A MC with a good sense of humor could eliminate need and expense of guest speaker

27. Coordination: Keep Records and Gather Information • Keep Detailed Records and Receipts • Collect and Maintain Names/Addresses From Each Attendee • Survey Attendees for Suggestions to Improve the Event • Build on Each Year’s Success

28. General Words of Wisdom • Remember the “Average Joe” member. Be careful to appeal to those on a family budget as well as those with deeper pockets. • Avoid a broken floor plan that detracts from ability to communicate to all attendees at the same time. • A good MC is a MUST!

29. General Words of Wisdom; cont’ • Be very detailed in explaining all the small details about hunts being offered. Let potential bidders/winners know about license fees, travel expenses, trophy fees, etc. right up front. Auction items should be detailed in your banquet program with ALL details. • You want hunt winners returning next year and telling their friends what a great hunt they had. • Keep very detailed records.

30. General Words of Wisdom; cont’d • Set ticket price = cost per person for lowest expected attendance, then consider adding a few dollars profit. If you get more people then your price point goes down and you make more money on each ticket. • Consider having packages with raffle tickets for early purchasers or a discounted membership

31. General Words of Wisdom; cont’d • Outfitters fill their books in the first quarter so they know what they can donate in the second quarter • Many attendees will already have their Fall hunts already booked, so for out of state hunts try to get the option to use it the next year (banquet in Spring of 2008, ask to use hunt in Fall of 2008 or 2009).

32. General Words of Wisdom; cont’d • Pick a venue that looks nice, has good food at a good price, and can handle your event as it gets bigger each year. • Start working on the next banquet right after this years is over. Don’t’ try to cram it all into a few months before the next banquet. • A full year to get good hunts and merchandise donations, • Enough time to plan well, and • Enough time to get the volunteers you will need.

33. General Words of Wisdom; cont’d • Track what works well and what things cost • Where did people hear about the event (what advertising works and what doesn’t) • When did they place their order for tickets (when to expect orders and when to panic) • How many orders did you get each week (tells you what to expect next year in terms of ticket sales) • How much each kind of raffle or auction item brought in (what things are worth having and what are not) • Build a database/list of attendees with name, address, email, and phone number

34. Questions????