Classification of events | Learn 4 types of event management

Events are classified into 3 main categories. All these categories are further classified into various types. Being an event planner, it is necessary to understand & analyze the classifications of events and types of event management.

Event is a growing industry worldwide. We can witness the tremendous growth in past two decades in this industry. The cause of this tremendous growth is the awareness among the people regarding what actually the event is, what is an event management and why should we hire the event managers.

All these questions have been justified by millions of Event Companies around the globe. Also people now a days attend one or more event a day just because event has been a part of their everyday life. 

It starts from a baby shower to baby welcoming, from engagement to the farewell of the bride, from company inauguration to the company’s 100th year celebration, from birth to the graveyard, from a local singer to the mega concerts, from small birthday treat to the grand party, proving that now people have developed the tendency to integrate event industry all over their work and celebrations.

The question here arises as to why people are now preferring to appoint an event manager rather than doing the things on their own???  

The reason is as simple as that today people want to enjoy their occasion rather than getting themselves involved in hustle and bustle of coordinating hundreds of things to start with their occasions. Another reason is also an “IMAGE”. IMAGE is a key word today. 

People nowadays spend huge amount of money just to keep head high. Modern world today give more importance to their professional life and hence preferring to spend a few bucks on event companies to get their work done with minimum efforts and time.

On the other side it is also a fact that the ideas, concept, design, uniqueness, perfect work, professional manpower, risk and time management  and like attributes that event companies can provide to their client is priceless.

Now it is also necessary to understand how we can do the classifications of event. 

So basically the events can be classified based on purpose, size and the type of events. All are interlinked.

Classifications according to the purposes of the events

1. To increase the awareness among people at large - exhibitions, trade fair, expo etc
2. To earn profits - concerts, festival events, paid workshops, paid seminars etc
3. To educate people - free workshop, free seminars, educational fairs etc
4. To fulfill rituals and customs - weddings, religious occasions, festival celebrations etc.
5. To celebrate- parties etc.
6. To incorporate professional meetings- corporate meetings, conference, AGMs etc.

(Also read: What is event management and who are event managers)

Classification according to the size of the events:

Mega events

Generally mega event is termed for the event where the audience or attendees are massive in size. The numbers are in some thousands or millions. These types of events are organized for targeting international audience & markets. Here the purpose of these events can be festival, parties, international sports tournaments, international trade fairs etc. 

Some of the examples can be "Federation Internationale de Football Association" FIFA world cup, Olympic games, sunburn festivals, mega concerts, common wealth games etc. the best that can be quoted here is of the Maha Kumba Mela, the largest religious gathering in history. 

During the 2001 event, approximately 70 million Hindu pilgrims converged on the Ganges and Yamuna Rivers in Allahabad, India for sacred bathing rituals that devotees believe will purify and break the cycle of reincarnation. 

The gathering takes place every 12 years. Here not only the crowd but also the funding, investments & manpower are huge. These are organized by some organizations or by event companies because an individual can’t manage this mammoth solely.

Local events

The purpose of local events is to get audience from local areas that are within 50-80 square miles of the location.  This type of event attracts crowd more of local markets. 

Overnight accommodation and logistics for event participants is not a barrier in these events. Around 80% attendees are from local markets. Some of the best examples are workshops, exhibitions, seminars, parties, educational fairs, local festivals etc. 

The investment is also not so immense. Here the crowd are in hundreds to thousands. 

Major events

This type of event ranges in between mega and local events. Here the gathering of crowd are in thousands but not in millions. This requires a good amount of investment and manpower to handle and manage crowd. 

Overnight accommodations and logistics are required for the people who are not from local areas. 

This can be a religious festival, concert, weddings, exhibitions, grand parties, business summits, business expo etc.

(Also read: Top 10 benefits of hiring event management companies)

Types of the events can be broadly classified into 3 main categories.

Private events

Private events are mostly hosted by individuals. The event mainly depends on the purpose of the organizer or the host of the event. Investments& gatherings are also limited to the size of the events. 

Here, Private events are used for individuals who want specific guests to arrive at the venue. Private events will have a guest list to ensure the venue is not open to the public. Some of the social events can also fall under the category of private events.

Examples: Wedding, parties, get together, festival celebrations, musical night etc.

Corporate events

As the word corporate suggests, these events are also organized for some official purposes. Corporates, professionals and businessman uses corporate events to help build professional relationships with their clients to expand their business or to appreciate or motivate their employees. 

Amount spend on these events are moderate.  Especially corporate event companies are being hired by the corporate clients.

Example: AGMs, conferences,
seminars, training programs, welfare programs, annual day celebrations, trade fairs, expo, inaugurations etc.

Sponsored or fund raising events

This is a special type of event which focuses on the fund raising activities and sponsored activities. The purpose of these events can be an upliftment of the society or to provide charity to the needy. This event does not aim to earn profits. 

Unconditionally it is organized by some organizations, foundations and also by event managers for special cause. Since past one decade, this type of event is getting more popular among cities to raise the funds and to provide support to the needy people. 

Sometimes this event is also organized to spread the awareness regarding public welfare.

Example: Cyclathon, marathon, concerts, pinkathon, charity activities, run for nation etc.

Educational events

The operations of this type of event is to promote education and learning. This education can be in any context or any sector.

These events are not restricted to specific caste, religion, age, community. It can include events such as,

Example: school and colleges events, educational fairs, educational workshops, motivational speech, annual sports etc.

(Also read: what are the future scope of event management and skills of event managers)

The above classification of events clearly narrates that this field has no limit of socializing, investment, concepts and also the people hosting the same. Organizing an event is a great art. Many people think that it is not a hard nut to crack but the truth is it’s not everyone’s cup to tea to successfully organize an event.

Some FAQ's

Q- What are different types of events?

There are basically 4 types of events as: Private events, corporate events, sponsored or fundraising events & educational events. All the other events like sports, weddings, parties, inaugurations and many such are included in this 4 main types. 

Q- What is an example of a social events?

Social event includes most of the social gathering events except of private events like sports events, college events, school events, reunions, festival events, contest events like fashion show, award nights etc. 

Q- How do you make an event unique?

Any event is unique when you add something customized or creative into it. This can be into decoration, audio-visuals, catering menu, artists, designing etc. This uniqueness comes from constant market survey and research. It is possible that what's unique for you may not be unique for someone else. Uniqueness in event is not always innovating something extraordinary or totally new. 

Q- How do you describe a successful event? 

The success of any events depends on the appreciation of the audience or guests who attended your events & the person who was the host of that event. These people defines whether event was successful or not. After-all every events is being organised for those people only.

Also one of the criteria to measure the success of events is to verify and evaluate if all the checklists of your events has been successfully delivered at time or not. 

This article has provided you a brief  introduction about various classifications and types of events.

So guys tell me which type of events you have attended most in the comment box :)

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