How the Event Industry Can Help Amidst the Threat of COVID-19

The pandemic that is COVID-19 has seriously impacted the global economy. A lot of businesses – even well-known brands – had to temporarily stop or limit operations. However, one of the most hardly-hit businesses is the events and hospitality industries.

A poll conducted by Eventsforce revealed that almost 50 percent of event planners have already suffered the impact of the dreaded virus. This also includes various event rentals, party rentals, and corporate tent rentals businesses. Meanwhile, another independent report revealed almost a quarter percent drop in hotel occupancies.

This means the economical situation may become worse if this pandemic continues. That is why we should follow the authorities, follow the basic hygiene and social distancing, and stay at home. We can only pray that this pandemic will be gone soon.

COVID-19 preventive measures event industries should do

The World Health Organization released a document stating considerations for event organizers. This includes communicating with health authorities and coming up with preventive measures for their attendees’ safety.

In addition, event organizers are also advised to make risk assessments. This includes limiting too much crowding, venue layouts, and where the attendees will come from. At the same time, the events personnel should also be protected from possible contact with COVID-19. That is why the abovementioned measures are important not only for the event participants but also for their organizers.

However, a lot of organizers have already postponed or canceled their events for this year. As a result, several events suppliers have also been affected such as party tent rentals and staging and dance floor rentals.  Even popular sports events including annual international marathons and NBA games got canceled as well.

How the events industry can help in this health crisis

Hospitals have been almost full it may not accommodate more patients in the next weeks. This can spell disaster for the healthcare sector. Thankfully, there are already a lot of countries that use some hotels as quarantine lodges for travelers and persons being monitored for the disease.

Likewise, event organizers can also help by providing their tent rentals as a way to help the healthcare sector. A lot of event venues can be converted into makeshift medical facilities to accommodate more patients. For example, the Chinese government repurposed several venues in Wuhan and converted it into temporary hospitals.

Likewise, a conference center in Spain has also been converted into a makeshift hospital. Several hotels in the same country have also been utilized to accommodate more patients. The same goes for the US wherein a convention center in New York is also converted to accommodate more COVID patients.

When is it necessary to postpone or cancel an event

Postponing or canceling an event can be really frustrating. The expenses are already there, which may likely go to waste in many cases. However, it can be the best option to avoid compromising the health and safety of your attendees.

There are several factors to consider to determine whether a postponement or cancellation of an event is necessary. Here are these said factors.

  • Expected number of attendees
  • Type of attendees (those with pre-existing medical conditions and the elderly should not attend events that involve large crowds)
  • Given space within a venue (ideally, an event venue should large spaces to accommodate a large number of crowds)
  • The potential impact of the postponement or cancellation to the business, attendees, and the community
  • Consideration of backup plans in case of event postponements or cancellation

Other ways that event organizers can help

Not only will the attendees be affected with such postponements or cancellations but the event organizers as well. At this point, everyone’s health and safety are important. There is no doubt that the events industry has taken a hit due to the ongoing health pandemic.

However, the events industry can still stay relevant and lend a hand, especially to our healthcare workers. As mentioned, tent rentals in Northern VA can be used to help hospitals accept and take care of more patients.

Event organizers can also hold events that will benefit our health workers and medical personnel. Some of these may include online crowdsourcing for medical equipment, refreshments, and words of encouragement for our front liners. It is also a good idea to remind the public to take note of proper hygiene through creative reminders.

The ongoing pandemic may go on for several months. We can only hope that everything goes back to normal and everyone learns from what is happening right now.