Cancelling an event is never easy for an event organiser. Containing your disappointment, dealing with paperwork, balancing accounts… it all falls on you in record time. However, those who had purchased tickets for your event are just as affected by the cancellation as you are, and it’s your duty to inform them of what will follow — particularly in terms of the refund procedure. Here are our 5 tips for communicating effectively with your attendees if your event is cancelled.
Summary
- Contact your Weezevent advisors
- Inform your service providers and suppliers
- Stop your sales and announce the cancellation
- Communicate about refunds
- Call for solidarity and collect donations
1. Contact your Weezevent advisors
We support our organisers throughout every moment of their events, and cancellation is no exception. Trained on the issues involved in postponing and cancelling events, our advisors will provide you with answers that are relevant to your situation. To contact them, everything is detailed on our Help & Support page.
2. Inform your service providers and suppliers
Your obligations are not limited to informing and refunding your participants. Your service providers, suppliers and other contacts must be informed of your cancellation as soon as possible, if not before the cancellation is officially decided. Pay particular attention to your contracts in order to understand your obligations in the event of non-payment of services.
3. Stop your sales and announce the cancellation
Once you have decided to cancel your event, you must plan an announcement date and stop your sales as soon as possible. Whether or not the reasons for the cancellation are within your control, informing ticket holders is a priority.
The content and form of your announcement should be carefully considered and structured. This will allow you to get your message across more clearly, making the pill easier to swallow for attendees who are disappointed by the cancellation.
4. Communicate about refunds
You are free to set the terms for refunds relating to your event, including the application deadline, refund deadline, etc. It’s up to you to communicate intelligently so that your attendees remain patient and understanding towards you. Show them that you’re doing everything you can to ensure that the cancellation has as little negative impact as possible. Finally, remember to clearly specify the different procedures according to the distribution channels for your tickets (e.g. self-distribution, See Tickets, Ticketmaster).
Tip: Set up a request form in order to refund all attendees or only those who request this. Set a time limit if these operations have too much of an impact on your accounting or your cash flow.
5. Call for solidarity and collect donations
If the cancellation of your event and the refunding of all tickets threatens the continued success of your organisation, consider organising a fundraiser. This practice is not necessarily suitable for everyone, but if your event is important for social cohesion and/or cultural development around you, this can represent a low-risk gamble. Weezevent’s all-in-one solution offers you all the options for setting up a fundraiser in just a few clicks.
Choose the right emailing and marketing solution in order to communicate effectively at every moment of your event. Segment your audiences, send targeted messages and boost your sales with WeezTarget by clicking on the button below:
