First, thank you for volunteering to lead an activity for MARS Associates and their guests. Some of the steps outlined below may not be needed, or you may need to add or revise steps depending on the event you’re leading. For any questions or clarifications, contact the Special Events Coordinator.
Steps to help this process:
- Select a date that works best for you and the vendor, taking into consideration what is already on the MARS master calendar. Weekdays are encouraged to hold an event. Confirm with Special Events Coordinator that your date is indeed available, they will get it placed on the master calendar. Establishing a date several months ahead is necessary to allow for adequate communication of the event in the MARS Star and Satellite.
- Work with the venue to obtain any discount rates for groups and/or seniors. Ask about cancellation policies, both for individuals and the group. Determine if there are any types of terrain, weather, exposure to allergens, etc that members need to be aware of before they sign up for your event. Keep in mind what some members might need to know to be safe participating in your event.
- Ask vendors about how many participants they can accommodate. Splitting into separate groups is usually fine, but you should determine if this is appropriate for your activity.
- Determine a final price for the event. Be sure to ask about room fees, taxes and gratuities; vendors don’t always offer that information up front. You must also calculate in the Stripe fee – what the credit card companies charge MARS for our members to use their card for our events. This charge is 29 cents plus 3% of the total charge. Add this to the total cost and round up to the nearest dollar.
- Determine deadlines for when any invoices from vendors are due to be paid. Members must sign up and pay before invoices are due. This deadline should be a reasonable amount of time before the event, usually 1-2 weeks. Inquire from vendors if late sign-ups are possible. To pay the invoice, work with Special Activity Coordinator or club Treasurer.
- Collect all paperwork from the vendor (estimates, invoices, etc) and forward on to club Treasurer for their records. Never sign a contract or any official paperwork on behalf of the club, that responsibility is restricted to certain officers of the club. Notify the Special Events Coordinator if you are asked to sign anything.
- Fill out the online Special Event form, entering all the pertinent information. Be prepared to add a description of your event to let people know what to expect. The webmaster asks for one weeks’ notice between your submission and their placing your event on the website. You will need to indicate how you want your event publicized – published in the next quarterly MARS Star, monthly Satellite, Facebook page, etc. Include your contact information for people with questions.
- Sign-ups to your event will be automatically collected through the club website. You will receive regular updates from the Special Events Coordinator as to numbers, names and emails of those who have signed up. You will receive a final roster when sign-ups are complete.
- Once sign-ups are complete, send a group email reminding participants of the details of the event as well as any new information. Include date, time, meeting place, appropriate clothing/footwear/sunglasses/water etc. If possible, include options for parking, public transport and/or a map. If gratuities are not included in your event, inquire to vendor if individuals will or can be asked at event for a tip. Be sure to communicate this information to participants.
- On the day of the event, arrive early and prepare to greet participants. Have a list ready to check off participants as they arrive and have names tags to help the club photographer identify participants in pictures. Name tags can be handwritten or printed on your computer. If the club photographer is unable to attend your event, please take several pictures, including a group picture, to be posted on the club website.
- The club does have an official club photographer and they will attend many of our special activities to take pictures. If they cannot attend an event, they will notify the Special Activities Coordinator who will then let the event lead know. The event lead then should arrange for either themselves or another participant to take pictures. After the event, photos should be processed in the following manner-
Email pictures to cybearbear200@gmail.com. Include the following information:
Name & Date of Event:
Event Lead name:
Include names of people in pictures
If possible, take a group picture. The event lead should post a wrap-up and a few pics of event on FB.