Ask any experienced organiser what they remember about their first event and you'll hear a version of the same story. The event went fine. The planning was chaos.
That's not because planning an event is hard. It's because nobody hands you the list. Experienced organisers carry that list in their heads, built from years of forgotten gas bottles, double-booked halls and posters printed with last year's date.
This article is that list, written down. It works for free community gatherings, market days, workshops, fundraisers, Pride events and everything in between. Follow it week by week and you'll arrive at event day calm, organised and able to actually enjoy the thing you built.
There's a downloadable version at the end, so you can print it, stick it on the fridge and tick things off as you go.
Five decisions before you plan anything
Every event stands on five decisions. Make these first, because every other task on this checklist depends on them.
1. What is it? One sentence. "A Saturday morning makers market for local creators." "A trivia night to raise funds for the netball club." "A free picnic to bring the street together." If you can't say it in one sentence, you're not ready to book a venue.
2. Who is it for? Be specific. "Everyone" is not an audience. Families with young kids, local creatives, the LGBTQIA+ community, dog owners, retirees who want daytime events. Knowing who you're serving shapes your venue, your timing and where you promote.
3. When is it? Check what else is on before you lock a date. School holidays, long weekends, major sport, other community events. Then check it again. A great event on the wrong date is an empty event.
4. Free, RSVP or ticketed? Free with open entry suits big public gatherings. Free with RSVP gives you a headcount for catering and capacity. Tickets suit anything with real costs to cover, from workshops to fundraisers. A small ticket price also cuts no-shows dramatically.
5. What does success look like? Fifty happy locals? Two thousand dollars raised? Twenty workshop spots filled? Write the number down. It will shape a hundred small decisions and tell you afterwards whether the event worked.
Got your five answers? Good. Start the clock.
Eight or more weeks out: foundations
This is the unglamorous stage that decides everything. Big events need more runway, and small ones still benefit from it.
- Confirm your budget. List every likely cost: venue, equipment, insurance, permits, supplies, promotion. Add a 15 per cent buffer, because something always comes up.
- Book your venue and get the booking in writing. Ask about wet weather options, accessibility, parking, power and what's included.
- Check whether you need permits or council approval, especially for public spaces, food, alcohol or amplified sound. Councils can take weeks, so start early.
- Sort insurance. Many community groups are covered through their association or the venue. Confirm it rather than assume it.
- Lock in the key people. Speakers, performers, stallholders, facilitators. The good ones book out.
- Create your event page so people can find it. Even a simple page with the date, venue and a short description starts collecting interest while you keep planning. On MyEventLane you can set it up as free entry, RSVP or ticketed and update the details as they firm up.
Six weeks out: shape the experience
Now the event starts becoming real.
- Plan the run sheet. What happens, in what order, at what time. Even a casual market day needs open, peak and pack-down times.
- Map the space. Where do people enter? Where are the toilets, the quiet corner, the first aid kit, the bins? Walk the venue if you can.
- Plan accessibility properly. Step-free access, accessible toilets, seating, quiet spaces and clear signage make your event genuinely welcoming, and they belong on your event page so people can plan ahead. For Pride and community events especially, attendees notice when you've thought about this and when you haven't.
- Confirm equipment. PA, marquees, tables, urns, eskies, extension leads, gaffer tape. Borrow before you hire, hire before you buy.
- Recruit your helpers. Most community events run on four to eight reliable volunteers. Ask early, brief them later.
Four weeks out: open the doors
- Finalise your event page. Full description, good image, ticket types or RSVP set up, accessibility details, the lot. This page now does your promotion work around the clock.
- Start promoting. Share the link personally with the people most likely to come, then post where your community already gathers: local groups, club newsletters, school networks, community noticeboards.
- Ask your network to share. Stallholders, performers and partner groups all have their own audiences. Make it easy by giving them the link and a ready-made blurb.
- Set a posting rhythm. One or two updates a week is plenty. Announce a stallholder, share the music lineup, show the venue. Every update is a fresh reason to share the link.
Two weeks out: the practical push
- Check your numbers against your success target. Slow RSVPs two weeks out are a signal, not a sentence. Push the personal invitations again. They outperform every post.
- Confirm everything in writing. Venue, suppliers, performers, volunteers. A short "just confirming Saturday the 14th, 9am access" message now prevents a very bad morning later.
- Brief your volunteers. Who does what, where, from when. A one-page roster shared in your group chat covers it.
- Do a supply run. Cash float if you need one, first aid kit, sunscreen, bin bags, signage, blu tack, the lot. Tick items off the printed checklist as they go in the boxes.
- Plan for weather. Know your wet weather call, who makes it, and when. Put the decision time in your calendar.
Event week
- Send a reminder to everyone who RSVPed or bought tickets. Include the address, start time, parking or transport tips and anything to bring. This one message lifts attendance more than any social post.
- Reconfirm volunteer call times.
- Pack the day before, not the morning of. Load the car. Charge everything. Print the run sheet and two spare copies.
- Sleep. Genuinely. Tired organisers make expensive decisions.
Event day
- Arrive early enough to fix one thing that's gone wrong, because one thing always has.
- Brief volunteers on arrival. Five minutes, everyone together, who handles what, where the first aid kit is.
- Put your phone on charge somewhere safe and nominate one contact person, so you're not the bottleneck for every question.
- Take photos and short videos during the event. Future you needs them for next time's promotion.
- Most importantly, lift your head. Watch people enjoying the thing you made. That's the whole point, and first-time organisers almost always forget to look.
After the event: the step everyone skips
The event isn't finished when the last table is packed.
- Thank people within 48 hours. Volunteers, venue, performers, attendees. A short genuine message keeps people willing for next time.
- Write down what you learned while it's fresh. What ran late, what you over-catered, what people loved. Ten minutes now is gold next time.
- Reconcile the budget against reality. The gap between the two is your real planning lesson.
- Tell people what happened, especially for fundraisers. "We raised $2,340 for the refuge" closes the loop and builds trust for the next event.
- Capture interest for next time. People who came once are your easiest audience ever again.
Download the checklist
Reading a checklist is one thing. Ticking one off is another.
We've turned everything above into a printable, week-by-week planning checklist you can stick on the wall, share with your committee or work through on your phone. It covers the five decisions, every planning stage and the after-event steps most first-timers skip.
[Download the Event Planning Checklist]
It's free, and no, you don't have to hand over your life story to get it.
You don't need to be a professional
Here's what the checklist can't give you, because you already have it: care. The thing that makes community events work isn't professional event management. It's a person who cares enough to put something on for the people around them.
The markets, the workshops, the fundraisers, the Pride picnics, the trivia nights — none of them happen without someone deciding to be the organiser. The checklist just makes sure that decision doesn't cost you your sleep.
Ready to start?
You've got the plan. The first real step is creating your event page, because an event with a page is an event that exists.
Create Your Event on MyEventLane
It takes about an hour, it's free to start, and your future attendees are already browsing.