One of Saffire’s Core Values is “We Are Dedicated Team Players.” If you’ve worked with us on a project, we hope you’d agree we are outstanding partners!
Staffing any event can be a challenge, but we’ve noticed a trend with partner events across the country recently: Gate staff challenges, shortages and no-shows.
Is there anything worse than that feeling on opening day or night, when the months of planning and operational work have all built up to that moment when you are about to open the gate and welcome an adoring crowd into your event, only to realize there just aren’t enough people helping get them in? Ticket sellers, ticket scanners, line barkers, security and bag checkers, greeters… each of these staff members matter when you need to get folks into your event, and if you are short or unprepared with any one of the critical staffing areas, your guest experience can really suffer.
Saffire has developed so many software and product solutions to address ticket selling and scanning staffing needs, like our unmanned self-serve ticketing kiosks, iPhone/hip-printer mobile selling stations and line busters, QR code-based signage directing customers to buy their tickets online and come right up to scanning lines, and more. Although we’ve been able to help so many of our partners reduce their reliance on ticketing and gate staff, there are still several crucial roles that must be planned and staffed appropriately for your event’s admission process to succeed.
Planning a reliable staff for your admission is so important. If you are hiring a staffing agency, be sure you communicate your event requirements and ask them about their own backup plans! Relying on volunteers to staff your gates? Engage in constant and consistent communication with your team(s) about expectations and be prepared to provide a good experience for them too. Make it easy on them by making sure your volunteers know where to park, what to wear, what their hours will be and most importantly, THANK them often and in big ways.
Signage!
So much of an event’s success relies on the tiny details, so never underestimate the power of clear signage to help folks identify what line they should be in to buy a ticket onsite, or where they can go if they’ve pre-printed or brought a ticket on their device! If you are using self-service ticketing kiosks, make sure to clearly identify them with signs too, so people use them! If you have a bag-check process, use a sign to tell people in line what to expect to help you make the process efficient!
Conclusion
No matter how prepared you are with a ticketing system, technology and structure, if you don’t have the RIGHT people in place to execute your plan, you’ll be unable to get tickets into customers hands, through the gate, checked by security and scanned for entrance. Plan for your people and be ready with a backup plan so you have a solution if and when you need one in the moment. In the face of staffing challenges, do your very best to provide adequate signage and gate structure to eliminate as much confusion as you can for your customers.