Like hiring builders with no blueprints, employing an event marketing company without a detailed brief is unlikely to turn out how you imagined. From the outset, brands should therefore be specific about their needs, means and aims to ensure event architects can design and build them their dream event. Here’s what you need to include. 

The foundations

Objective and budget are the cornerstones of a detailed event brief. Whether in Los Angeles, London or Singapore, event agencies need these two key building blocks to not only give direction, but also provide the scale and scope of the event. 

When it comes to objectives, an event that charms 100 high-spending customers is not the same as one that promotes a new drink flavour to teenagers, so brands should think about why they are having an event, what KPIs could track and measure that objective and whether that objective is realistic. 

Furthermore, while event management companies know the best locations, contractors, hand sanitiser suppliers and timings to ensure you get a great deal, no amount of planning magic will construct a memorable 500-person gala on the budget of a 20 person virtual B2B seminar. A fixed cost range is crucial. 

The scaffolding

Like choosing between modern and rustic aesthetics, brands these days have a choice between building a traditional, in-person live event or a contemporary, multi-country digital event. Each demands a set of minimum requirements to aid event construction. 

For live events, brands should think about:

• Location – Much depends on cost and number of attendees, but noting your preference towards a secretive art gallery, an open-air marina iis a useful pointer. 
• Date – The time of year influences event type, dress code, location and guest numbers, to name just a few. Providing events companies with a range of dates and a midweek or weekend preference is helpful. 
• Attendees – Who and how many? Will they be current customers, potential customers or open to everyone?
• Safety – Is there sufficient time to work through all the safety aspects of a live event? Can you book the relevant safety authorities (police, fire, Covid testing teams)?  
• Target audience – Not the same as attendees. In the social media age even exclusive events can go viral and build wide client bases. 
• Entertainment – From holographic musical performances to moving art installations, you name it, we find it (or we create it). 
• Type of event – Aerial cocktails, street art extravaganza or street art aerial cocktail extravaganza? If you have an idea, we’ll get working on it and if you don’t, we have plenty to suggest.
• Previous events – No event is the same, but some are very similar. Let us know what you’ve done before so we can build from the learnings and ensure there’s no repeats. 

For virtual events, much of the scaffolding is the same, but with a different focus:

• Attendees – Again who and how many? Is it a fixed invite or open invite? Would you like attendees to see each other, interact with the host, communicate via the chat function and vote, be able to add a range of fun facial recognition animal avatars during the event or just sit back and take it all in?
• Location (platform) – It’s not all about Zoom or YouTube. With a wide array of AI mediums, the digital world is full of dazzling interactive platforms to support audiences from 10 to 10,000s. 
• Speakers – When it comes to virtual events, learning opportunities and networking are a major draw, so if you’re having a big name speaker it changes the whole dynamic and with this format, there’s no cost to fly them in, put them up or potentially even pay tax on their performance.
• Entertainment – Fancy a virtual reality (VR) driving experience or some Augmented Reality (AR) trapeze artists? Tech advancements have knocked down the virtual entertainment ceiling. 
• Target audience – B2B or B2C? Industry-wide or loyal customers? Influencers or purchasers?
• Data – Will we manage the invite process and have access to client data or will there be certain restrictions in place (this impacts the data analytics that can be provided)?
• Time zone – Yes, virtual events can fit many people in a virtual room at one time, but if they’re in different time zones and speaking different languages, it’s often better to run a few repeat events with more culturally relevant hosts to ensure you have the audience attention at its peak. 

Spot the difference

Even with fixed objectives, budgets and minimum requirements, brands can still deliver bad briefs (and thus forgettable events) if they are unsure why they are hosting an event, have unrealistic expectations, set impossible KPIs or continue to change their mind after a brief has been delivered. 

But, fear not. The primary difference between a good brief and a bad brief is the events agency itself. Yes, brands hire events companies for their experience, know-how and contacts, but also for their advice, feedback, suggestions and vision. At Rebel & Soul, we’re proud to be hailed as one of the best event planners in Singapore. Bringing our bespoke INVOLVE® methodology, attention to detail and obsession with memory-inducing novelty and innovation, we work with brands to create neuroexperience briefs that set the wheels for a memory-making event in motion. For an example of a Rebel & Soul brief, download one here.