Are you planning an event requiring AV equipment?
Everyone knows that audio-visual equipment is vital to any event, be it a small gathering or meeting of officers or a big business conference.
This is particularly true for large events with presenters and speakers – one of the worst nightmares of any event planner or organiser is for audio-visual equipment to fail at a presentation, slide show, speech or song. Not many of us are entirely familiar with AV equipment, and if something goes wrong, there’s not much we can do about it.
But there are things you can do to avoid AV errors in the first place. So are you planning an event requiring AV equipment? Here are your top tips to avoiding AV errors and, worse, failures.
Get an AV specialist or technician to help you
One of the most useful things you can do for your event is to get an AV specialist or technician to help you. Factor this into your budget because it will be worth it, especially for big events. Better yet, seek help from a good AV hire company that can not only provide you with the equipment you need but also a team of technicians to be on-hand at your event. These AV specialists can recommend the kind of AV equipment you may require, bring it to your event, and set it up. They can also show you how to use the equipment, and since they are there during the actual event, then they will be able to address any potential problems before they become disasters.
Conduct a survey of the location
You should also conduct a survey of the location or venue, and you can even bring your hired AV specialist with you so they can make sure the equipment and layout you are planning to use will be a good fit for the space and its acoustics. They can also test the venue’s power and Internet connections and suggest how you can maximise the use of the venue for your AV needs.
Book the venue as early as possible
Another thing you can do to avoid AV errors or failures is to book the venue as early as possible. Make sure you have full details of the area’s floor plan so you can set up your AV requirements (and all other requirements) in advance. If you have an AV specialist or technician helping you, they can also be there ahead of time and prepare whatever gear or equipment is needed. If they need to make adjustments, then they can do so before the event starts, therefore avoiding any disruption to the event.
Make sure you have your backup
Often, even if you already have everything prepared and set up, you can still go through AV failures. Equipment can wear out eventually, and the more you use it, the more likely it is to fail. That being said, make sure you have your backup equipment at the ready. This means preparing extra projectors, laptops, microphones, and the like. Swapping one piece of equipment for another rather than trying to troubleshoot what is wrong with a specific piece of equipment will save you valuable time – and it saves you from embarrassment in front of a big crowd as well.
