Main Conference

Thursday, May 2

KEYNOTE:

Show Me the Money

2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

While most festivals and events are nonprofit organizations, that does not mean they shouldn’t strive to maximize revenues to assure ongoing sustainability. Afterall, 501(c)(3) is not a vow of poverty! Bruce Erley, APR, CFEE, has nearly a half century of experience in event sponsorship and revenue generation. He’ll kick-off WFEA with an informative and entertaining keynote on some tips and tricks to increase your bottom line from maximizing sponsorship dollars, to creating VIP packages and add-on experiences, to monetizing trade partnerships.

Round Tables

4:00 – 5:30 p.m.

Dinner With an Expert

6:00 p.m.

Sign up for the topic of your choice -- here’s your chance to pick the brain of an expert in your requested subject.

Event Experts at Selected Spokane Restaurants

Friday, May 3

Why We Sponsor What We Do

8:00 – 8:45 a.m.

Too many times we look at sponsorship through our event’s eyes, instead of through the eyes of our sponsors. Learn how you can increase your sponsorship revenues by learning what drives the needs of your prospective partners.

Liz Hooker, Spokane Downtown Association

Kyndra Gamache, Northern Quest Casino

Matt Gibson, Northern Quest Casino

Beth Hegde, Providence Health

9:00 – 9:45 a.m.

For Large, Mid-Sized and Small Markets

• Learn new ways to cultivate a prospective grantor
• Effective writing techniques that will set the stage for a future grant award
• Diversifying your revenue sources from government, corporate, trusts and foundational grants

Wendy Tyner, Tyner and Associates

Researching Potential Partners: The Sponsor Perspective

10:30 – 11:15 a.m

• How to research your sponsor’s needs
• How to discover how your sponsor’s mind operates
• Why ongoing partner research is important
• What is important and valuable to sponsors
• What’s important at fundraising events

Big Market Events

Erick Peck, BECU

Paula Beadle, Caravel Marketing

Peggy Doering, Spokane Valleyfest

Small to Mid-Sized Markets

Chuck Denney, Tumwater Parks and Recreation Department

Liz McLaughlin, Boys and Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties

Network Supplier Lunch

EXPO Speed Dating

11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Discover the latest trends in our industry! Each table at the lunch will be hosted by a vendor/supplier, who will distribute materials and discuss the merits of their products with fellow table members. During this lunch, each table will be visited by multiple different suppliers

Non-Sponsorship – How to Increase Food and Beverage Revenues

12:45 – 1:30 p.m.

• Controlling inventory
• Training servers
• Price determination
• How to maximize beer garden results
  

Large Markets:

Phil Megenhardt, Bold Hat Productions

Small to Mid-Sized Markets

Rose Thompson, Victoria Jones, Dungeness Crab and Seafood Festival

Sponsorship - How to Develop a Proposal and Pricing

1:45 – 2:30 p.m.

• Customizing a sponsorship proposal for a business category
• How to present added value and benefits that will get a proposal noticed
• Demographic information about your event that will match with your potential sponsor
• “Creating the Right Fit”
• Helping sponsors differentiate themselves from their competitors

Large Markets

Melissa Jurcan, Compass One at Amazon

Small to Mid-Size Markets

Anne Moneymaker, Central WA State Fair

Meredith McIlmoyle, Anacortes Arts Festival

Sponsorship – The Importance of Retaining Your Sponsors

2:45 – 3:30 p.m.

• Renewals and retention is EVERYTHING in sponsorship
• Stats and trends
• Best practices to improve your sponsorship renewals
• Pre-event
• During event
• Post-event
• Renewal Process
• Post event reports
• Recap and renewal meetings
• Renewal documents

Large Markets

Bruce Erley, Creative Strategies

Small to Mid-Size Markets

Amanda Korb, Blue Ink

Sponsorship – Developing a Benefits Package

3:45 –4:30 p.m.

Benefits: The Formula for Sponsorship Success and Growth”

• Adding Value to Your Sponsorship Packages
• Sponsorship exclusivity vs. non-exclusivity
• Using the demographics of your event
• Business-to-business opportunities
• The importance of activation
• How to provide the best in sponsorship hospitality
• Using post-event evaluation statistics

Large Markets

Amy Lindsey, Riverfront Park, Spokane

Small Markets

Tawnia Linde, Clark County Fair

Keynote:

Producing the Mega Event

4:45 – 5:30 p.m.

• Special events are a lot of work, increase your event’s scope

• Thinking outside the box

• Maximizing revenues

• Minimizing expenses

Jon Neill, Community Cancer Fund

Dinner With an Expert

6:00 p.m.

Sign up for the topic of your choice -- here’s your chance to pick the brain of an expert in your requested subject.

Event Experts at Selected Spokane Restaurants

Saturday, May 4

Events and Tourism

8:30 – 9:15 a.m.

Events have been a key part of tourism efforts throughout the Pacific Northwest – hear how they can generate economic impact and put heads in beds. Also, learn how you can work with your local tourism entities to help market your event.

Rose Noble, Visit Spokane

Sponsorship – The Key to Successful Sponsorship Sales

9:30 – 10:15 a.m.

• Just another form of the sales process
• Building relationships, people buy from people
• Developing a potential list of sponsors
• Leveraging your board and other sponsors to sell

Large Markets

Adriana Berndt, Spokane Lilac Festival

Annika Marshall, Marcon Renovation

Small to Mid-Sized Markets

Amy McGuffin, Kittitas Chamber of Commerce

Mary Kae Repp, Genesis Marketing

How Budgeting Can Save You Substantial Money

10:30 – 11:15 a.m.

• The importance of forecasting
• Conservative budgeting
• Developing a process
• Who’s accountable

Large Markets

Eric Corning, Seattle Seafair

Tom Stebbins, Vision Marketing, Spokane

Small to Mid-Sized Markets

Jim Jones, OMC Foundation, Port Angeles, former Clallam County Administrator

Keynote:

How to Be Creative With Sponsorship

11:30 – 12:45 p.m.

• Events = creativity
• Brainstorm ideas to help your sponsors
• Look for that unique idea
• Creative activation

Beth Knox, Seattle Sports Commission

Sponsorship – Expanding Your Partners and Growing Revenues

1:00 – 1:45 p.m.

• Sponsorship categories
• Creating a sponsorship menu
• What companies should you target
• How your event can fit a sponsor’s needs

Large Markets

Riley Stockton, Spokane Hoopfest

Small to Mid-sized Markets

Victoria Jones, North Olympic Discovery Marathon

Kari Chance, Juan de Fuca Festival of the Arts

Lori Lancaster, Benton Franklin Fair

Non-Sponsorship – Ticketing and How to Expand Your Revenues

2:00 – 2:45 p.m.

• Using data from your ticket sales
• Why online ticketing can increase your revenues
• How to improve your cashflow

Large Markets

Amy Maxwell, Ticket Tomato

Small to Mid-Sized Markets

Georgia Johnson, Field Hall, Port Angeles

Behind the Scenes at Bloomsday and the 50^th Anniversary of EXPO ‘74

3:00 – 3:45 p.m.

Spokane is known for producing large scale events, including Hoopfest, the Lilac Festival, Valleyfest in Spokane Valley, Bloomsday, several others, and now the 50^th anniversary of EXPO ’74. Go behind the scenes at two of them and learn how they develop and produce them.