WORLD

POLIO DAY
EVENT
PLANNING
GUIDE
[Link]
This guide is a tool to help you determine
how to plan an event to drive awareness for
World Polio Day and polio eradication efforts.
It provides thought-starter ideas and a checklist
to begin planning. It also identifies resources to
help you execute a successful event.

Register your event at [Link]/worldpolioday.

1 DETERMINE THE TYPE OF EVENT YOU WANT TO HOLD

You may want to consider:
Becoming an exhibitor at an event: Reserve space at a
local farmers market, block party, convention, etc., and secure
a booth or table in the exhibit area. Plan on having other
volunteers to help staff the booth and hand out materials
about Rotary and World Polio Day.

Sponsoring a major event in town: Perhaps you can

sponsor or create an annual run/walk and name it the
World Polio Day Marathon. Create an event that will naturally
incorporate the issue into the fabric of the community.

Establishing a one-day World Polio Day festival:

Organize a one-day festival with music and local artists, food
from local restaurants, and booths representing businesses in
your community. Be sure to have your local Rotary members
on hand throughout the day to speak with attendees about
what Rotary is doing to end polio globally. Establish a way to
collect emails and phone numbers of attendees — these will be
valuable resources for spreading awareness.
2 PROMOTE YOUR EVENT
To promote awareness about Rotary’s role in
polio eradication efforts:
Host a presentation in the community: Attend a meeting
or event of another association or organization and give a
presentation about Rotary and World Polio Day. Make sure to
bring membership and club materials and brochures to hand
out to attendees so they learn more about how they can get
involved. Remember to invite interested community members
to your next meeting.

Co-host an event with another organization:

Cross-promotion is a great way to grow awareness. Host an
event with a like-minded organization or association that gives
both of your members an opportunity to network and learn
more about how they can get involved.

To promote fundraising for

World Polio Day:
Host an artisan market: Invite local artists and designers to
come and sell their work. The vendors can pay a fee for space
and your club can take a small percentage of sales. Use your
resources and connections to really hold your event to a high
standard. Invite local chefs or restaurateurs to serve small
samples of their food and drinks to get people in the door.

Host a fundraising event with a silent auction: Sell tickets

to a full-service event that includes fun, food and beverage,
dancing and an engaging speaker with a connection to
Rotary and World Polio Day. A great way to drive additional
funds is to add a silent auction. Gather packages and items
from corporations and community partners or even feature
professional services from your members.
To promote community engagement:
Invite a speaker to your event: Host local corporations,
professionals, community activists, and leaders to speak
at your event. Have them share why polio eradication
is important to the community and the world. This will
raise your event’s profile among other influencers in your
community and could lead to much larger and long-term
partnerships.

Host a panel event: Invite thought leaders to participate

in a panel discussion about polio and global health issues.
Potential speakers could include representatives from local
organizations, polio survivors, academic or professional
experts, politicians, and Rotary members. Other tips
for success: Include an interactive segment in the panel
discussion, and invite exhibitors related to the issue to host
a booth so community members have a place to get more
information, network, and socialize.
3 ASSESS YOUR RESOURCES
Once you have chosen the type of event you want to host, begin to assess the resources available to
execute it. You’ll need to consider factors such as available time, money, materials, and people to
support the event properly. Here is an example of a project timeline and checklist to get you started.

Sample event planning guide timeline

TIME FRAME TASKS

18-12 weeks before ¨ C

 reate event plan (topic, audience, speakers, sponsors, promotional
plan, venue)
¨ Book venue
¨ Build team and assign roles
¨ Speaker outreach
¨ Sponsor outreach
¨ B
 id out vendors (graphics, printer, audio visual, catering, music,
photographer, etc.)
¨ Create a distribution list for promotional materials
¨ T ake an inventory of existing marketing materials for re-use and
determine new items that need to be created
¨ Begin designing your promotional items
• Event sign-up page
• Event poster
• Flier
• Social media graphics
• Email campaign
• Videos
• Other advertising materials
• Materials for a Rotary booth at the event (pop-up banners, branded
table cloth, and collateral materials)
• Signage for the event space (banners, photos to exhibit, backdrop, etc.)

12-8 weeks before ¨ Send out invitations

¨ Begin promoting the event
¨ D
 eliver invitations and promotional materials to speakers and partners to
distribute to their networks
¨ Post your event listing on other external sites
¨ D
 eliver promotional materials and talking points to other key influencers
in your network
TIME FRAME TASKS

8-6 weeks before ¨ Email reminder

¨ Start phone campaign to key audience targets
¨ Continue to distribute promotional materials

6-4 weeks before ¨ Email reminder

¨ Work with speakers to get their materials or presentations
¨ Develop the host organization presentation
¨ Continue promoting event

2 weeks before ¨ Email reminder

¨ Develop run-of-show for the event and day-of checklist
¨ Create shot list for photographer
¨ Confirm all speakers, vendors, and logistics

1 week before ¨ Send last-chance email reminder

¨ Rehearse program with speakers
¨ Determine any last-minute vendor needs
¨ Prepare goodie bags, handouts, giveaways, etc.
¨ Contact media about event

2 days before ¨ Send one last email reminder and continue to pitch media

Event day ¨ Set up: signage, event tables, program materials, etc.
¨ AV and sound check
¨ Greet vendors and speakers
¨ H
 ave someone to greet media and usher them around to meet key
speakers and partners
¨ Identify key people for photographer
¨ Collect attendees’ contact info for follow-up

Post event ¨ Send thank-you notes to speakers

¨ Send/post photos from the event
¨ Thank attendees for coming and encourage guests to give
4 YOU’VE HELD A SUCCESSFUL EVENT!
You have successfully completed your event. To maximize the long-term impact of the event and lay the
foundation for other, future successful ones:

Send thank-you notes: Make sure to thank your attendees,

speakers, event partners, and volunteers.

Keep in touch: Ask those involved for feedback about the

event. Also remember to send periodic updates to those
that expressed interest in your event or Rotary to keep them
engaged.

Pursue event coverage: Media cannot always cover your

event the same day, so make sure to send follow-up materials
about the event. Include prepackaged photos and videos that
highlight noteworthy speakers and attendees that are relevant
to that outlet or reporter.

Tell us how it went: Leveraging social media is another way

to amplify coverage of your event. Share a recap of what took
place and any media coverage you have received. Be sure to
include the hashtag #endpolio with any posts. We can help
share your event with the world and inspire others to donate.
5 EVENT RESOURCES
Available at [Link]/worldpolioday
Rotary has created assets and templates for you to leverage for your event. Available resources
include:

World Polio Day Toolkit: Event resources:

– Sample press release – Sample invitation
– Outreach guide – World Polio Day signage
– Sample letter to the editor – Banner designs
– Social media messages – Donation box sign
– Social media graphics – Button designs
– Coaster template
– Tent cards for tables

If you need any help getting started, we are available to assist.

Contact polioplus@[Link]

EN—(516)