Skip to content
This repository has been archived by the owner on Jun 12, 2018. It is now read-only.

Latest commit

 

History

History
56 lines (47 loc) · 5.49 KB

HackOrganizerTimeline.md

File metadata and controls

56 lines (47 loc) · 5.49 KB

Hackathon Organizer Timeline

A hack event for 150-200 people can be organized in as little time as a month, but the timeline below will help you get organized with some breathing room.

2-3 months before:

  • Start looking for a venue. The most important requirement is a good wireless network. Offices and co-working spaces can often support hackathons; hotels and restaurants aren’t as good venues. Soft seating, table space, and available power outlets are also important and may need to be booked separately or in addition to the venue rental.
  • Clarify your theme, if you have one. Are people building apps that use a particular technology, or solve a particular problem? Articulating the purpose of the hackathon will help you draw the right participants and sponsors.
  • Pick a date and time. Weekends are popular for hackathons. We suggest:
  • A minimum of 6-8 hours of coding time if you expect all-new projects.
  • A minimum of 2-4 hours of coding time if you are allowing modifications to existing projects.
  • Two days, especially if your venue allows people to stay overnight. Expect some drop-off over the course of a 2-day hackathon.
  • Decide if event sponsorship is appropriate. If so, reach out to potential sponsors for prizes and other contributions. Look for:
  • Companies that may want to recruit attendees.
  • API providers relevant to your theme (check out Programmable Web for a list).
  • Organizations that may benefit from the apps being built. Sponsors may provide funds, prizes, and/or co-marketing. In return, it’s standard to offer a certain amount of time in front of everyone who has gathered, table space, and branding on your event page.
  • Begin thinking about your marketing strategy:
  • Create an event site with location information, themes, sponsors, and agenda. This could be as simple as a Facebook page, hosted through a ticketing site, or built as a custom site.
  • Work with sponsors to make announcements about the event
  • Target relevant meetup groups and interest lists
  • Depending on your long-term goals, it might make sense to create a branded Facebook page, Twitter account, and other relevant event-branded social media accounts that you can use to promote the event.

6 weeks before:

  • Make sure your event page is live and has the latest information on agenda and theme.
  • Create art and place orders for event swag like t-shirts and stickers. Turnaround times on printed swag can be shorter than 6 weeks, but this will help you avoid rush fees on printing and shipping.
  • Continue to reach out to potential attendees. Remember that free events will have high no-show rates (40-60%), so aim to register 150%-175% of your capacity. Paid events will have a slightly higher attendance rate.

One month before:

  • Work with sponsors to organize the day’s agenda, including any workshops or other talks that will take place at the hackathon. Communicate clearly how many people they will need to send and at what times of day.
  • Establish what kind of A/V you’ll need: projector, audio, video, mobile device projection.
  • Begin organizing prizes.
  • Ask sponsors if they’d like to contribute prizes (you may choose to allow them some judging stake in the hack), whether in-kind donations, cash prizes, or objects like tablets, etc.
  • Place orders for any physical prizes that you plan to give away, such as devices, tablets, etc. Consider having these items engraved with your brand or the name of the event.

2-3 weeks before:

  • Have sponsors and other partners make announcements about the event via their social media channels, newsletters, emails, etc.
  • Get quotes from vendors for meals and snacks. You can place meal orders later, once you have a better idea of attendance.
  • Produce any necessary signage for the space: pop-up banners with your event name or logo for outside the venue, at registration, or around the space, directions to food, bathrooms, registration, and workshops or talks.
  • Coordinate any special A/V requirements like an ELMO projector.

1 week before:

  • Send a reminder email to registrants about the event, asking them to update their RSVP if they can no longer attend. Send any preparatory information (e.g. link to a cause you’re hacking for, or API sponsor sites) in this email.
  • Check in with your presenters and sponsors to make sure they know when they’re expected to arrive, and have everything they need to present. Remember to include information about your AV setup, and whether they’ll be able to use their own laptops to show slides or a coding demo.
  • Check in with the venue to see if they have any needs from you.
  • Place orders for food and beverages.

Day before:

  • Make sure you have materials like whiteboards and markers (or paper and pens), extension cords, and USB drives. These are always in short supply.
  • If your speakers are presenting off a single laptop, compile their presentations into a single deck to make transitions as smooth as possible.
  • If your speakers will be using their own computers, be sure you have a variety of connector cables for your projection setup.

Day of:

  • Get in the space early to check on connectivity
  • Make sure wireless information, agenda, and demo signup information is clearly posted in a place that is easy to see and will not move
  • If you’re tracking attendance, bring an attendee list (or check people in with an app). Be sure that your registration desk has the materials you need, such as name tags or badges and lanyards, swag or swag bags if applicable, and any information sheets, agendas, or handouts about the event.