On Mon, 9 Jan 2012, Tim Williams wrote:
I've started an event proposal[1] for a BarCampDC. I'm gathering that the next step[2] is to recruit a mentor, which would be great because I have loads of simple questions e.g.:
I'm happy to help advise, but I'd suggest you try to get someone based in the US to assist too
o) Many venues have different 'charity' rates - does this count (there will definitely not be a profit)?
You would need to ask them, but generally Apache BarCamps have got lower prices (if not always the lowest) at venues
o) Where are people doing the real organizing? private mails? google groups? or?
I think most commonly it's done on a new google group for the event. (Or the google group from the previous year, for repeat events!)
o) What's an acceptable for sponsorship? It seems most will, at a minimum, want a shout-out in the intros. Is an advert near the coffee acceptable if they've sponsored it? etc.?
In the past, sponsors have typically had a mention on the barcamp.org page for the event, and been thanked at the start and end. One risk with allowing one sponsor to cover say "the lunch" (with signs up at lunch) is that the sponsors who cover things that are vital but less obvious (eg the venue, the stationary used etc) can feel short changed. Related, if someone sponsors loads for the venue, then someone else sponsors $50 for some coffee, if the coffee sponsor has a big sign and the venue sponsor doesn't then they'll probably feel a bit miffed...
So, is this all I need to ask for a mentor?
Partly you want the mentor to help answer questions, and partly you want them to say "hmm, shouldn't we have thought about / done X by now?"
Nick
