Seasonal Trends for Different Types of Events

Seasonal Trends for Different Types of Events

Business demands can fluctuate depending on seasons, and for event organizers or businesses that offer events, this can mean that you may experience times with heavy demand or none at all. And that can mean a lot of lost opportunity and potential revenue for your organization.

At Event Smart, we’ve identified three main times of the year when there is a sharp rise in demand for events:

• Spring (April to May)
• Early fall (September to October)
• Mid-winter (January to February)

In this post, we’ll discuss some of the most popular events people search for and share some tips on how you can make the best use of these seasonal opportunities.

Planning Seasonal Events

Planning and promoting seasonal events isn’t easy. Knowing what sorts of features to look for in event registration and ticketing solutions will help you organize successful events throughout the year.

Here are some important factors to consider when planning seasonal events:

Will you need to sell tickets?

For example, you might sell general admission tickets if you host a Halloween party. If you’re going to sell tickets, you’ll also need to decide how you’ll send them to your attendees.

With Event Smart, you can sell unlimited tickets for free, send attendees printable tickets after registration so you can quickly scan them at check-in, and offer multiple ticket options to your registrants.

What sort of event details should you publish on your website? 

You’ll have to share basic information for all types of events that you organize such as event name, ticket type, ticket prices, date and time, and venue. If there’s an event theme (for events like masquerade balls or holiday galas), you’ll also need to mention the dress code. And if you’re hosting a multi-day event, consider publishing it in your events calendar.

Event Smart lets you create custom registration forms, blog about your events, enable commenting on event, and display upcoming events on a beautiful calendar with images.

What event marketing options are available to you?

Depending on how you start planning for your event, you’ll need to build an email list, share on social media, write blog posts, publish guest posts written by your event speakers, and offer promo codes on the registration page.

With Event Smart, you can build your email list in MailChimp, offer promo codes to prospective attendees, and blog about your event and speakers.

Seasonal Trends for Events Throughout the Year

Here we’ll look at the seasonal trends in event planning for every month of the year.

January

Scenario #1: Valentine’s Day

People start searching for Valentine’s Day ideas in late January and early February. So, you should start planning in early January.

You could organize:

• Special couples cooking classes: This involves organizing classes to teach couples to cook. You’ll have to sell tickets and share it on your event calendar.
• Masquerade ball: You’ll have to pick a theme, select a venue, and decorate accordingly. You’ll also have to sell tickets.
• Dinner show: Consider organizing a private dinner for couples paired with an entertaining musical show at a fancy restaurant.

Open registrations: At the latest by mid-January.

Scenario #2: Fundraisers More on this below.

February

Scenario #1: St. Patrick’s Day

People search for St. Patrick’s Day events in mid March so, you’ll have to start planning in early February.

You could organize:

• Scavenger hunt for kids: Plan out how long you want the hunt to last and design your course and cues accordingly. You’ll need to sell tickets.
• Plan a potluck: This involves attendees bringing a dish to the gathering for everyone to share. You could open registrations for local potlucks.

Open registrations: At the latest by mid-February.

Scenario #2: Camps More on this below.

Scenario #3: Reunions More on this below.

March

Scenario #1: Easter

People start searching for Easter ideas in early April. You’ll need to start planning in early March.

You could organize:

• Easter egg hunt: This is a fun Easter activity in which decorated eggs are hidden for participants to find. You’ll need to sell tickets and open registrations.

Open registrations: At the at the latest by mid-March.

Scenario #2: Earth Day

People start searching for Earth Day ideas in mid-April so you should start planning in March.

You could organize:

• A plant a tree event: Consider blogging about it on your site to raise awareness about the environment and share it on your event calendar.

Scenario #3: Classes More on this below.

April

Scenario #1: Cinco De Mayo

People start searching for Cinco de Mayo ideas in the first week of May so, you need to start planning in early April.

You could organize:

• A Cinco de Mayo party: This would include organizing a dance party with food and music. You’ll have to blog about it on your event site and share it on your event calendar.

Scenario #2: Mother’s Day

People start searching for Mother’s Day ideas in the second week of May so, you need to start planning in April

You could organize:

• A Mother’s Day brunch: Organize a brunch event at a local eatery where people can share a memorable meal with their mothers. You’d could sell tickets for this sort of event.
• Cooking classes: Giving parents and their kids an opportunity to learn and have fun together. You’ll have to sell tickets for the classes and share it on your events calendar.

Open registrations: At the latest by the end of April.

Scenario #3: Memorial Day

People start searching for Memorial Day ideas in the first week of May. So, you need to start planning in early April.

You could organize:

• A Memorial Day BBQ: You have to choose a venue suitable for a BBQ, evaluate vendors to arrange seating, equipment, and food. You’d need to blog about it on your site and sell tickets.

May

Scenario #1: Father’s Day

People start searching for Father’s Day ideas in mid-June so, you need to start planning in mid-May.

You could organize:

• A paintball event: You’ll have to pick the location, the field, and make a reservation for your event. You’d need to sell tickets and open registrations.
• A camping event: Another outdoor activity in which you’ll take your attendees for an overnight stay. You’d have to sell tickets and open registrations to keep things organized.

Open registrations: At the at the latest by the end of May.

Scenario #2: Golf Tournaments More on this below.

Scenario #3: Camps More on this below.

June

Scenario #1: Independence Day

People start searching for Independence Day ideas in the first week of July. So, you need to start planning in June.

You could organize:

• A fireworks festival: You’ll have to hire a professional fireworks display company, and select a location where families can come enjoy colorful fireworks. You’d need to sell tickets.

Scenario #2: Festivals More on this below.

July and August

Scenario #1: Labor Day

People start searching for Labor Day ideas in the first week of September so, you need to start planning at the end of July or early August.

You could organize:

• A local concert: This involves hiring a band and renting a venue. You’d need to start selling concert tickets a few weeks in advance.

Scenario #2: Festivals More on this below.

September

Scenario #1: Halloween

People start searching for Halloween ideas in the first week of October so you should start planning in early September.

You could organize:

• A Halloween party: You’ll need to pick a venue, think about decorations and snacks, and plan Halloween activities. You’d also need to sell tickets and add it to your events calendar.
• A Trick-or-Treat party: Organize a meeting place where parents can take groups of kids around town for trick-or-treating. For this, you’d need to open registrations and add it to your events calendar.

Open registrations: At the latest by the end of September.

Scenario #2: Fundraisers More on this below.

October

Scenario #1: Thanksgiving

People start searching for Thanksgiving in the first week of November. So, you should start planning in mid-October.

You could organize:

• A Thanksgiving dinner party: You’ll have to arrange a Turkey dinner along with pumpkin pie. You’d need to open registrations and add it to your events calendar.
• A Thanksgiving fundraiser: This can involve a pumpkin carving contest, a pie eating contest, or a Thanksgiving walk. You’d need to open registrations, sell tickets, and add it to your events calendar.

Open registrations: At the at the latest by early November.

Scenario #2: Fundraisers More on this below.

November

Scenario #1: Holiday Parties

People start searching for holiday party ideas in the first week of December so, you should start planning in early November.

You could organize:

• A holiday gala: You’ll have to select a venue, choose the entertainment, and arrange catering service. You’d need to open registrations and add it to your events calendar.
• A holiday movie costume party/ugly sweater party: Have attendees dress up as characters from their favorite movies or host an ugly sweater party. You’d need to add it to your events calendar and share on social media.

Scenario #2: Christmas

People start searching for Christmas ideas in the last week of December so, you should start planning in late November.

You could organize:

• A secret Santa party: This involves putting attendees’ names in a hat and assigning a secret Santa to each participant. You’d need to add it to your events calendar.
• A Christmas bake-off: Consider organizing a baking competition by arranging the venue, utensils, and ingredients. You’d need to open registrations and add it to your events calendar.

Open registrations: At the at the latest by the last week of November.

December

Scenario #1: New Year’s Eve

People start searching for Christmas ideas in late December and early January so, you should start planning in early December.

You could organize:

• A New Year’s concert: This involves hiring a band and renting a venue. You’d need to sell tickets, open registrations, and add it to your event calendar.
• A masquerade ball: Decide on an event theme, select a venue, and determine how many tickets you’ll need to sell. You should also consider adding it to your event calendar.

Open registrations: At the latest by early December.

Planning and Promoting Non-Holiday Events

Some popular events are at different times of the year:

Fundraisers

The goal is to collect funds from attendees by organizing a variety of events like a 5K run or bike race, board game night, or a bake-off/cooking contest. You’d need to sell tickets, open registrations, secure sponsorships, and share it on social media.

Open registrations: At least 2-3 weeks before the day of the event.

Camps

You’ll have to decide on the type of camp. For example, you could organize art camp, fashion camp, or summer camp for kids. You’d need to offer group registrations, sell tickets, open registrations, and share it on social media.

Open registrations: At least 2-3 weeks before the day of the event.

Reunions

You’ll have to choose the venue, seating, and evaluate multiple vendors for catering. For promoting the reunion, you’d need to open registrations, sell tickets, and share it on social media.

Open registrations: At least 2 months before the day of the event.

Classes

You’ll have to decide on the type of classes you’re going to offer. For example you could organize classes that teach people how to cook, bake, DIY, or perform CPR. You’d need to open registrations, sell tickets, post on social media and share it on your events calendar.

Open registrations: A few months in advance or at least 3-4 weeks before the day of the event.

Golf Tournaments

You’ll have to pick a date, find the course, and secure sponsorships. You can make things interesting by offering prizes. You can offer group registrations, sell tickets, and share it on your events calendar.

Open registrations: At least 3-4 weeks before the day of the event.

Festivals

You’ll have to decide on what type of festival to organize. For instance, a music festival, book festival, or parade. You can offer group registrations and sell ticket bundles – depending on the type of festival you’re organizing.

Additionally, you can expect to send tickets to attendees and enlist festival vendors.

Open registrations: At least 3-4 weeks before the day of the event.

Conclusion

We shared some of the most popular seasonal trends in event planning along with some useful tips to organize successful events. Hopefully, you’re in a good position now to plan for events ahead of time, secure more registrations, and sell more tickets.

Do you use event registration and ticketing software to organize events? Let us know by commenting below.