Sponsoring a local foodie event in your community can not only show your commitment to local farmers and food producers, it can also be a cost-effective way to bring the public together and provide the necessary publicity for your business, charity or municipality. With summer turning into fall, there are plenty of opportunities for event planning such as harvest dinners, farmers markets, and late-summer festivals. Seasonal events like these offer many ideas for local food marketing.

A well-planned local gastronomic event has 3 key elements for success:

1. Get to know your event theme and stick with it!
2. Fully promote your event
3. Stay within your budget

Get to know your event theme and stick with it!

A consistent presentation of the theme of your event is the key to success. Your theme should be represented by the food served, the decor, the music, and the atmosphere. For example, a fall harvest celebration might showcase local pumpkins, pears, and apples in traditional cakes and butters. Remember that your purpose is to sell local food, locally grown potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash and onions should be displayed as key ingredients in traditional fall harvest dinners. Having recipes on hand for customers will encourage them to buy ingredients and prepare dishes at home. Visually entice your customers with traditional harvest-themed decor featuring corn stalks, gourds, and gourds. Lively music will round out the event and provide a fun and lively atmosphere.

While this example may sound straightforward, I have been to several events where the presentation was inconsistent and the topic was lost. For example, a hoedown event should not feature music from the local church choir. While the chorus may be excellent and the lead singer may be his wife, the tone set by the music does not match the theme. Your message will get lost in the conflicting presentation and customers may lose interest. By comparison, a well-themed event will get your customers talking positively. Word will spread about your event and your local food retail business.

Fully promote your event

A well-attended event is a properly promoted event. While a local gastronomic event focuses on your community, a properly promoted local gastronomic event can attract new customers from neighboring communities. You should promote your event in advance and promote it frequently!

The first promotional decisions to make are the name of your local foodie event, the date, and the theme. Once you’ve made these decisions, go ahead and don’t look back! Use this information in every printed promotional material, on your website, and in your press releases. Also consider selling event merchandise, such as t-shirts and tote bags, and contact your vendor.

Four to six weeks before the event, start your in-store promotions. Make attractive banners or posters and display them prominently in key locations in your neighborhood, business district, and community centers. If you have a retail business, brochure printing can be an inexpensive promotional tool that you can slip into each customer’s shopping bag. Clearly state your event information on your brochures or invitations! Here are some avoidable mistakes that can be fixed with good planning and review:

• Your invitation must represent the event. If it’s a party, make sure your invitation or flyer is fun, inviting, and eye-catching! An event invitation was sent to more than 200 potential guests in a business envelope. Our guess is that for many, it looked like other spam and was ignored. Only more than 30 people attended.

• Make it easy for guests to locate your event! An attractive brochure advertising your event is great, but ineffective if it does not include the address where your event will take place. Including a map on the front of the flyer is an added bonus for your guests. An event you recently attended was poorly attended because although the many sponsors were mentioned on the event flyer, the host’s location was not!

• If you are sponsoring a charity event, clearly state the recipient charity or organization in your promotional materials. Even unintentionally misleading your guests can lead to bad press and a bad reputation in your community. At a harvest dinner hosted by an organic farm, a banner clearly read: “Support your local farmers in [this dinner]”However, the proceeds actually went to an international food movement.

• If you will be selling merchandise at your event, make sure the information is also included in promotional brochures and press releases. Some harvest dinners have a hefty admission price just to attend. Unaware that there would be merchandise to buy, many guests did not bring extra cash or credit cards and sales were lost.

Ask neighboring local businesses to put up posters for your event. Remember that the business your event attracts to the community benefits them too! They will be happy to answer your request.

Two to three weeks before the event, issue a press release to your local newspaper and those in the surrounding communities. Ask the newspaper to run this ad two weeks and one week before the event date. Newspapers often have a special section for Thursdays highlighting upcoming events for the weekend. This is the best tool for reaching those people who may never have been to your retail store or community!

Stay within your budget

Always remember that the purpose of sponsoring a local gastronomic event is to earn money and promote your business or organization. While the side benefits of fostering goodwill and fostering community spirit definitely exist, those elements alone don’t keep your doors open!

Costs – The first financial decision you must make is your budget. Your budget should be as detailed as possible, considering the cost of food, entertainment, décor, promotional materials, and municipal licenses. Brainstorm with your coworkers to capture all possible costs related to your event, then put them on paper.

Sales: Next, determine the immediate sales resulting from your event. Will you charge a fee for entertainment? Do you sell prepared food? Will T-shirts, handbags, or note cards be sold? Count the expected sales for each resale item and compare it to your costs. Be realistic with your projections: An easy way to forecast sales is to calculate the number of hours the event will take place multiplied by the average number of products you expect to sell in one hour. For example, a four hour event x one T-shirt sold every 10 minutes = 24 T-shirts sold. If your gross margin (sale price minus cost of the shirt) is $ 4.00 per shirt, you will earn $ 96.00 from the sale of shirts to cover other event expenses.

Are your sales covering your costs? If not, don’t start cutting out the gist of your event. Get creative and consider financing options. Reach out to other local businesses and offer them promotional space at your event in exchange for helping to supplement your entertainment costs. Ask your local printer for free event brochures in exchange for a free ad in your store newsletter. Promote a local restaurant in exchange for a free on-site chef demonstration. Cross-selling is a great way to stay within your budget, but still offer a fully themed and well-sponsored event.

Managing these three elements will provide a proven and successful framework for planning your event. Once the day arrives, have fun and enjoy your own local gastronomic event. You worked hard for it!