Micro Events Could Result in BIG Community Impact –Rethinking Fourth of July

By Richard Mahler

In the annals of event planning, there has been a long-standing belief that “bigger is better.” This mentality was driven by the idea that larger events could attract more attendees, generate greater revenue, and leave a bigger impact. Large festivals and massive gatherings became a symbol of success and prestige in the events industry, with organizers striving to outdo each other with grandeur and scale. Though still applicable in certain conditions with the proper funding, this mindset is now evolving as organizers and attendees alike are recognizing the benefits of smaller, more intimate events that prioritize quality over quantity. The shift towards community-focused gatherings reflects a growing appreciation for meaningful connections, personalized experiences, and sustainability in event planning, challenging the notion that bigger always equals better. As the industry continues to evolve, there is a greater emphasis on creating unique, engaging, and impactful events that resonate with community members on a deeper level while returning to the core values of community engagement and collaboration.

Following the event season for the City of Boca Raton, the Community Events staff had extensive conversations regarding available programming for its annual Fabulous Fourth of July program. Featuring dozens of food vendors, free carnival rides, a movie on the lawn, and live music culminating in a fireworks spectacular, it was a behemoth of an annual event. Spanning over half a century, the existing program had continued to grow to a level where the current situation was untenable. From severely limited parking to unusable green space, the available event site did not meet the needs of the existing event or needs of attendees. As such, considerations on how to refine and focus the event were key to the development of a reimagined Fabulous Fourth program.

Listening Before Acting

So how does one take a long-standing city event and reshape tradition for its residents? It begins by breaking down your event to aspects that are most valued by attendees and making strategic decisions to emphasize those elements to create a more impactful and cohesive experience for attendees. To do so, surveys and comment forums are critical to ensure staff are making informed decisions regarding the event. At Fabulous Fourth 2023, event staff conducted informal and formal surveys of attendees. More important than affinity for the rides or fireworks were a need for queue line reduction across the board from the trolley stops and rides to food and seating, attendance and large crowds were at the forefront of a majority of responses. Key event components for attendees were “kids crafts”, “quality food vendors”, “live music”, and “games or sports” on the lawn. Taking these into consideration, the staff would generate the building blocks for a revamped Fourth of July program.

In addition to the on-site discussion with attendees, over the next few months the planning group assessed data collected by the city’s Community Advisory Panel. Two important takeaways from public meetings conducted by the Panel expanded on previous conversations with attendees. Attending community members noted that they “envision a dynamic city with a small-town feel” and wanted emphasis on “resident friendly and family focused” programming. (CRA, 2024)

Furthermore, data showed that a large number of attendees were not from the City of Boca Raton. Rather, these individuals had travelled to benefit from the free event offerings at Fabulous Fourth. While balancing the economic benefits of attracting non-residents to city events are critical to the development of tourism and business in the area, the staff’s focus remained on prioritizing the local community members and how to make their experience more positive and meaningful.

Building Blocks

The building blocks for a successful event include clear event goals and objectives, thorough planning and organization, effective communication and promotion, a dedicated team of staff or volunteers, reliable vendors and partners, attention to detail, flexibility to adapt to changes, and a focus on attendee experience and satisfaction.

First, in determining goals and objectives, the staff’s approach to Fabulous Fourth was relatively simple: 1) Strategically decrease current event attendance, 2) Provide a higher quality experience through reduced queues, and 3) Incorporate key event components highlighted by past attendees. These three objectives served as the foundation for the event planning process. As the program schedule developed, community-focused events were at the forefront of the conversation. The goal was to achieve the promotion of genuine connections and relationships among attendees and foster a sense of belonging and camaraderie within the community. Meaningful interactions and tailored engagement would be the key to success.

Taking the key components of “kids crafts”, “quality food vendors”, “live music”, and “games or sports”, the team went to work on generating four unique events for the day. Scattered throughout the city, these would be a creative way to split the anticipated crowd out of the large evening event into more manageable micro-events. Not only would each of these provide one or more of the elements indicated previously, but they provide an experience befitting the wants of individual attendees while creating a scenario where attendance by an individual at all or numerous events would be rare.

Offering a more intimate and inclusive atmosphere for attendees, not only do these events achieve the overall goal of smaller community-focused programs, but the emphasis on selecting locations around the city also provide opportunities for highlighting municipal offerings and exposing community partners or sponsors to new audiences. These events allow staff to focus on impactful and shared experiences of the individual over the principally commercial aspects of largescale festivals.

Event Branding

Ensuring cohesive branding across four distinctive events can be a challenge but not impossible when constructing a marketing strategy. To guarantee consistent branding across events, it is essential to establish clear brand guide- lines that encompass visual elements, messaging, tone of voice, and overall identity. Develop a style guide that outlines specific logo usage, color schemes, typography, and imagery for each event, while maintaining a cohesive brand theme that ties them together. Utilize consistent language, taglines, and key messaging points across all promotional materials, websites, social media platforms, and communication channels to create a unified brand presence. By proactively managing brand consistency across the four events, organizers can strengthen brand recognition, foster audience trust, and create a cohesive brand experience for attendees.

For the Fabulous Fourth program, the team began with a general brand concept for the day long calendar of events. The iconography of this piece would be carried into every subsequent logo, so the core elements had to be strong yet flexible. As shown below, the central components of a constitution themed font paired with a waving American flag evoke deeply rooted patriotic themes. Moreover, these features were easily manipulated to build new pieces for other events.

By borrowing elements such as color palettes, shapes, fonts, or graphic motifs from the main logo and integrating them thoughtfully into new designs, organizers can establish a connection or relationship between the two entities while maintaining their unique identities. To make certain of unified brand presence, visual queues were key in the development of these logos. Flag stripes from the overall identifier can be seen as primary pieces in the Liberty Cup’s paddle board design as well as adjacent to the typeface in Fabulous Finale. When executed strategically, using design elements of one logo in another can strengthen brand recognition, convey a sense of unity, and create a harmonious visual identity across multiple entities.

Comprehensive Communication

Communicating such a drastic change to a traditional city event must be done proactively and imaginatively. It is important to be transparent, clear, and provide ample notice to prospective attendees. Essentially, as an event planner is a storyteller, the communications strategy must be one that clearly speaks to the changes in a way that connects with the individual. Leaning into the events history or nostalgia is a terrific way to mitigate initial conflict as the community digests alterations. Incorporating elements that pay homage to the event’s past while introducing new features can strike a balance between tradition and innovation, preserving the event’s heritage while adapting to current trends or preferences. By linking event updates to historical offerings, organizers can create a sense of nostalgia, continuity, and authenticity that resonates with both long-time attendees and newcomers. With Fabulous Fourth, event staff connected to the past in unique and direct ways. The newly added athletic competitions were linked with community baseball games that occurred in the program’s early years. In addition, to represent the event’s years on campus at Florida Atlantic University, the 5K was added to the slate in partnership with the FAU Alumni Association. These, strategic placements, though subtle, provide a baseline for understanding and rationalization for changes in the program. Utilizing various communication channels such as social media, email newsletters, website announcements, and traditional media outlets, the goal is to reach as many members of the community as possible. With a marketing plan implemented months in advance that clearly outlining the changes, and how attendees can provide feedback or seek further information is critical to easing the transition period between the known and unknown. A full media blitz and information campaign is required for the first two event cycles at a minimum to educate the public on programming changes and how it will positively affect their experience. For each of the stakeholder groups identified, planners must ask themselves some key questions.

• Why do you want to communicate with the community? (What’s your purpose?)

• To whom do you want to communicate it? (Who’s your audience?)

• What do you want to communicate? (What’s your message?)

• How do you want to communicate it? (What communication channels will you use?)

• Whom should you contact, and what should you do to use those channels? (How will you distribute your message?)

(Fleet, 2012)

For the Fabulous Fourth team, responses to the questions listed above were all geared toward the education of municipal residents on the changes and benefits to the revamped program. By strategically selecting media partners, advertising avenues, and targeted social media campaigns with a specific reach and geographic focus, the planning group was able to convey these changes directly to city residents without highlighting the event for those in the surrounding area. Assessing the communication method of a target population is just as important, if not more, as determining their wants or needs in programming. As such, the aforementioned questions are crucial to the successful marketing of an event.

Not for Everyone

The events industry is undergoing a significant shift towards smaller scale and community-focused events, as

large festivals prove to be increasingly challenging to organize amidst ongoing uncertainties and rising costs. Though the shift to micro-events will not work in every situation, nor will it be of benefit to every event organizer, the inherent benefit of hosting smaller, more intimate gatherings is a fostering of stronger connections among attendees and local communities. While large festivals may still have their place in the events landscape, the pivot towards smaller events highlights a growing emphasis on quality over quantity, creativity over scale, and meaningful interactions through community building over mass gatherings. This shift in focus will reshape the events industry and present new opportunities for innovation and creativity in event planning while rooting municipal event professionals in the core purpose of their programs, increasing affinity and relationships in the community.

Richard Mahler is Community Events Coordinator in the Parks and Recreation Department at the City of Boca Raton, FL. He previously served as Community Events Coordinator in the City of West Palm Beach and as Associate Director for Student Activities and Involvement at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, FL. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of South Carolina-Upstate and a master’s degree in education from the University of Florida.

Citations:

Fleet, D. (2012, March 21). Strategic Communications Planning. Strategic Communications Planning. www. slideshare.net/davefleet/strategic-communications-planning-a-free-ebook

CRA, Boca Raton. (n.d.). Community Conversation Panel Report. City of Boca Raton. bocaraton.granicus. com/GeneratedAgendaViewer. php?view_id=9&clip_id=2642