User:Achiahe/Organizing A Maker Fair

What is A maker Fair?
Exhibition of what makers do, what they make, how they make it and the enthussiasm and passion that drive them http://makerfaire.com/mini/planning/

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Maker Faire is open, inclusive, encouraging and generous in spirit. Maker Faire celebrates what makers do — what they make, how they make it and the enthusiasm and passion that drives them. Maker Faire is deliberately diverse in content, and embraces not just the novel in technical fields, but innovation and experimentation across the spectrum of science, engineering, art, performance and craft. Maker Faire is interactive, with plenty of opportunities for hands-on DIY interactions for adults as well as kids. It’s OK for Maker Faire to be a bit rough-edged, messy, and at times over-stimulating. Maker Faire is about exhibition, not competition. We don’t see makers competing against each other. We hope each maker gets positive feedback on what they exhibited, and that the feedback is useful to them. Anyone who comes to a Maker Faire should have fun, be surprised and delighted, try something new, and leave inspired. Each Maker Faire should contribute to the growth and development of maker culture. We see the lasting value of Maker Faire extend beyond the event, by expanding the connectedness of the community of creative and technical people that are brought together. We know from organizing these events ourselves that the planning and production of any Maker Faire is demanding and difficult. Making a Maker Faire might sound fun, and it is, but it is also exhausting. However, seeing Maker Faire come to life in your community and seeing what it means to people—not just during the event, but months later—is incredibly rewarding and deeply satisfying.

Considerations
Three things are considered when organising a maker fair: 1) Number of makers 2) Number of attendees, and 3) Capacity of the venue Five Considerations for a Maker Faire Before deciding to organize a Maker Faire, consider each of the following areas. This will help you complete the Mini Maker Faire Application.

Leadership Team
To create a Maker Faire, you need a leader and a leadership team who will work to make it happen. A leader is essential. You must be devoted to the vision of the event and willing to organize others to bring it off. However, you can’t do it alone. You must have several other people on the team whom you can count on. There are lots of tasks to do to produce an event of this kind, and a committed, core group of folks is required to get the job done. You will also need to develop an extended community of volunteers behind you to physically produce and staff the event. (This is where a network of co-sponsoring organizations can really help.)

Host Organization
Just about any scale of a Mini Maker Faire will require a host or partner organization. As soon as you begin to organize a venue rental, it will become clear that an entity will need to take the responsibility for signing on the dotted line. Ideally, this is a community-based non-profit. It could be a school, a library, museum or science center.

An existing organization may bring valuable infrastructure in the following areas:

Marketing and promotion Payment processing Receiver of money from grants or sponsorship A pool of volunteers Access to existing relationships in the community Relevant experience from hosting other events Yet, it’s also important that Maker Faire not be defined in a limiting way by that organization’s mission and goals. Maker Faire needs to reflect the community’s culture in a very inclusive way. Even with a host organization, as many decisions as possible should reflect community involvement from lots of different groups. It’s key to their participation. Organizers of Maker Faire can help these groups reach important goals. For instance, a hobbyist club may have a goal of recruiting new members; a science center may have outreach programs that they’d like to bring to those who don’t already go to the center. In fact, leveraging the different audiences, network and resources of several groups can really help your event succeed. But keep in mind that one organization will need to step up as the business lead.

Location
Your venue is the “frame” of your event. The design and feel of the space hugely influences the experience for Makers and guests. Some venues include: public fairgrounds, science centers and history museums. Each venue has its own character and resonance.

Consider the following in choosing a location:

Indoor and outdoor space Accessible restrooms Sufficient parking nearby Required permits Convenient access for families and safe surroundings Good load-in access for trucks, etc. Electricity and Internet access Protection from inclement weather Some Mini Maker Faires have been co-located with other events. The host event can often take care of logistics and promotion, helping to provide access to an audience and reducing costs. A venue that requires rental fees will become one of your largest expenses.

Date and Time
Typically, Mini Maker Faires are single-day events, usually a Saturday or a Sunday, and they run from about 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Some run longer. Most take place in nice weather to take advantage of the outdoors.

In selecting a date, determine the best time of year for your event and, of course, avoid important holidays and other local events that might compete against yours. Ask the venue or host for available dates and consider how long in advance you must book the venue.

Make sure to allow sufficient time in advance to organize the event. As a rule of thumb, allow six months of planning for an average 25-maker first-year event. Allow a year for events with 50-100 makers.

Resources
Mini Maker Faires have been produced with a budget of about $3K. Of course, each event will be different. Some find sponsors or sell tickets to underwrite costs. Sometimes the host organization contributes to cover costs. In-kind sponsors can donate supplies and equipment to reduce costs.

It’s important to create a budget that identifies what resources are available to you and their associated costs. If nothing else, have a budget number as an initial target. Up-front costs you might have include:

Venue rental Furniture rental (at a minimum, tables and chairs) Advertising Insurance Security Permits Design and printing of marketing collateral Equipment rentals Fuel Website and social media development You’ll likely need local sponsors to underwrite the event but it is not always easy to find funding.

There are some risks from a number of factors including weather, which could affect turnout.

A first-year Maker Faire could very well lose money. Plan carefully and create a budget to estimate income and expenses. Make sure you have a core team member devoted to tracking costs and managing revenue.

guidelines
Maker Faire has developed a set of guidelines that Mini Maker Faires are required to follow before applying for a license.

Call for Makers Maker Faire is an inclusive event, with a publicly promoted and open “Call for Makers” process.
 * Who Can Apply: Anyone can apply for a Mini Maker Faire license. Licenses can be granted to non-profits, businesses, institutions and museums, schools, community organizations, government entities, and individuals.
 * License: You must have a signed license agreement in order to organize a Mini Maker Faire. You may not use the Maker Faire brand or trademark without this license.
 * Advance Planning: Apply for a license no later than six months before your proposed event date.Frequency Licenses are for one event over a 12 month period.
 * Renewal: Organizers must reapply each year to renew their license, and must be in good standing (with all requirements fulfilled) to qualify for renewal.
 * Location: Applicants should live in the city where the event is proposed.
 * Size: Mini Maker Faires are more than 5 and less than 200 makers; attendance is less than 10,000.
 * Duration: It is highly recommended that first-year events are no more than one eight-hour day in duration.
 * Sub-Events: Maker Faire will consider applications for Mini Maker Faires as part of festivals or other events, assuming all requirements above and below are met.
 * Endorsements: A minimum of three letters of support from a deliberate range of makers for your proposed event and organizational team is requested before approval of license.
 * Budget: Applicants must submit a draft event budget for review through the Mini Maker Faire budget worksheet.
 * License Fee: Fees are applicable for both free and paid ticket events. Given the variety of types of organizations that apply (and the varying range of resources), fees are determined in conversation with the applicant.
 * Naming: Mini Maker Faires are named for a community, district, or city—but not for large metropolitan areas (e.g. Chicago, London, Paris), states, or countries. In the case of large cities, fairs can be named for areas or districts. In the case of approved sub-events, fair can be named for parent event.
 * Logos and Visual Identity: Maker Faire will deliver a complete logo set to licensed fair organizer for use during the term of the license, for use only in conjunction with your event.
 * Subject: Maker Faire is primarily designed to be forward-looking, showcasing makers who are exploring new forms and new technologies. But it’s not just for the novel in technical fields; Maker Faire features innovation and experimentation across the spectrum of science, engineering, art, performance and craft.
 * Character: Maker Faire is a family friendly event; content should be appropriate for the entire family. Maker Faire is not a platform for politics or religion.
 * Exhibitor Fees: Makers do not pay to participate—unless they are a “Commercial Maker” and are primarily at the event to sell. Maker Faire is not, however a trade show; the percentage of Commercial Makers should be no greater than 25% of total exhibitors.
 * Maker Information: The MAKE editorial team is interested in learning about makers all over the world! Thus all maker exhibit and contact information is shared with MAKE to the extent permitted by local law.
 * Registration and Ticketing: Mini Maker Faire registration and ticketing for both free and paid events is run from the Maker Faire Eventbrite master account. Exceptions can be considered.
 * Approaching Potential Sponsors: Maker Faire is a family-friendly event; sponsors must align with the interests of this audience. Organizers are asked to share lists of target sponsors with MAKE through our Sponsorship Form before approaching them. Aspiring organizers may not pursue sponsorship until license is secured.
 * Editorial Control Sponsors shall have no editorial control over Maker Faire content.
 * Insurance: Organizers are asked to evidence event insurance listing Maker Media Inc. as additionally insured no later than 30 days before the event.