The Real Potential of the Event Arc

If you make one change to your event, let it be the structure of your program. With every event, there is a natural arc of energy and engagement, and if your program works with the arc, you’ll see fundraising and guest experience exceed expectations.

The event arc is the science that makes a great event, and it looks like this:

The natural group dynamic is something you can use strategically when building your program. Based on this inevitable rising and falling energy and engagement of your audience, there are 3 key sections of a program:

1. Storytelling—building the case for support and encouraging the rising energy in the room
2. Fundraising—actualizing the support at the highest moment of engagement
3. Honorees, awards, party—celebrating the support as the energy winds down, sending your guests home feeling good

What this looks like in action: When people arrive, their engagement is low. But as they are given a drink, see people they know, eat dinner and hear stories of your work, their engagement goes up and up. When your guest engagement is approaching its highest point, this is when you conduct your fundraising in order to maximize the energy in the room. And when your audience is full, tired and ready to go home to put on stretchy pants, you send them on their way with fun and sometimes celebratory inspiration.

This year, we saw the power of the event arc take shape at the Hispanic Heritage Dinner & Celebration. Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber has put on this annual gala for more than 30 years, supporting their work as a launchpad for Latino leaders in Oregon and SW Washington. And this year, they made 2 very strategic shifts to their program that mirrored the event arc and transformed their entire event.

First, they created a script that put storytelling first, fundraising second and their award ceremony last. Then, they engaged an emcee to act as the conductor for the program.

They scripted every speaker who came to the stage—including the emcee, the board chair, the executive director and the honorees—to follow the event arc. This was a significant shift from past years when they, like most organizations, had relied on speakers to bring their own talking points. And they engaged an emcee close to their organization who was an amazing partner the night of the event, bringing a passion for the work and energy to keep the program both genuine and engaging.

The theme of the night was “Sueña con Nosotros,” Dream with Us, and this message was carried through the script into each speakers’ talking points with power and commitment. This allowed the organization to build support for their work in a compelling way by inviting people to dream of what’s possible by supporting Latino leaders.

Working with an emcee and scripting every part of the event to match the event arc helped Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber create a tight, engaging, inspiring program that included great stories, set a fundraising record and gave their biggest supporters an enjoyable and inspiring night.

When you’re putting together your event’s timeline, think about your audience and how to use their time most impactfully. If you work with their natural energy levels and engagement, they will feel great about their time spent with you and supporting your work.

Photos by Jaime Valdez & Justin Houk