Every event is built on its available resources, both physical and financial. So far, we’ve focused on the human and physical resources required to run an event, but now it’s time to examine another important consideration in every esports event: costs and funding.
Keep in mind that every event will have different resources based on availability, so do not be afraid to adjust these guidances to fit your unique situation.
The first limiting factor for most events is the costs associated with hosting a live event. These costs will often dictate the scope of the broadcasting, operations, and publicity teams. The best events happen when teams find new, budget-friendly, and creative solutions to these costs. Here are some of the key areas of cost concerns to keep in mind when planning your event:
Venue: What’s the cost of renting/reserving the physical space?
Power/Internet: Is there an additional fee for power/networking? Do we have enough power strips and routers to support our event’s needs?
Prizing: Are we providing winners with physical or monetary prizes?
Food/Drink: Do we need to provide players, staff members, or spectators with refreshments? The longer your event goes on, the more you’ll need to feed attendees.
Hardware: Do we have access to hardware capable of running the games we need?
Software: Do we need to purchase more copies of a game to run the event? Does our broadcast or publicity teams need any specialized software?
Marketing: Does our publicity team need to pay for additional promotion of their event posts?
Graphics: Do we need to outsource and graphic design work to a freelancer or can we handle it all in-house?
All of these questions can pile up and feel overwhelming, but a majority of these concerns have cheap or free-work alternatives. In fact, if this is your first time running an event, it’s encouraged that you keep your costs as low as possible. Paying for additional freelance services can be a valuable tool for future events, but a strong foundation in understanding event organization fundamentals is far more important.
Now that we’ve taken a look at the costs associated with running an event of this scale, we can start to talk about event funding. There are multiple ways of generating funds for your event, and here are a few examples for your consideration:
Merchandise: Generate funding by selling team-branded merch to school supporters.
Sponsors: Collaborate with local businesses to fund the event in return for brand exposure, typically in the venue or on the broadcast.
Buy-In Fees: Charge competitors an entrance fee to compete in order to cover tournament costs or prize pools.
Partnerships: Collaborate with local businesses to provide products or services in exchange for exposure.
Fundraising Events: Hold a car wash, bake sale, the possibilities are endless. Get creative!