How to ensure the security of exclusive private events

Five easy ways to ensure your private events are secure

With the growing popularity of virtual events as a permanent alternative to some in-person options, some event planners may have understandable security concerns for the information of themselves and their guests. For brick-and-mortar events, there are obvious options for protecting sensitive data like payment information or attendee lists. But the good news is, there are some equally easy options for keeping your event secure in a virtual format also (or when collecting online registrations for in-person private events).

Before we get into the tips, it’s worth noting why event security should be at the top of your list of planning concerns:

• Especially for exclusive events with VIP guest lists, letting your guests know the steps you are taking to secure their information is an important step to building trust and maximizing event registration.
• Taking proactive steps to setup your event with comprehensive security can significantly reduce any liability concerns, which may have event insurance implications.
• For corporate event planners, brand integrity is always an important focus of any event. Event security measures can help you communicate trust alongside your brand to your attendees.
• Developing a reputation as a foreword-thinking event host can also help bring attendees back to future events.

So what steps should you take to ensure your event is airtight from conception until completion?

Tip #1: Use guestlist management tools to maintain complete control over attendees and potential +1’s

The more you know about who is attending your event beforehand, the more you can plan effectively and avoid any unwanted guests or unexpected surprises at your private events. This is where guestlist management tools, like those included with the RSVPify platform, can help. Among the steps you can take to maintain the integrity of your guestlist, RSVPify offers the following custom options and features:

• The ability to lock (or allow) your guests to bring a +1, or have to pre-register their +1’s to ensure proper vetting (or for contact tracing purposes for an in-person event)
• Toggle your guestlist to only allow pre-entered attendees to be able to RSVPify, by creating or uploading a guestlist from Excel
• Create custom QR codes for your guests to display when checking in at your in-person event, to allow for an easier screening and event registration process at the door

Tip #2: Limit the ability of guests to edit or change their information for your private events

Building off Tip #1, the more you take ownership and control of event attendee information, the less you need to worry about unwelcome surprises. This should go beyond the setup stage of your guestlist in terms of who can RSVP, and include removing guest customization options. For example, you probably want to restrict the ability of guests to change their names. While this may require a bit more work upfront when compiling your attendee list, it also ensures that you have a fixed guestlist to plan for or screen for security purposes that isn’t changing as guests interact with your event website.

Tip #3: Require upload of photo ID or other identity verification or screening documents during the event registration process

Requiring guests to display ID cards, event invitations, QR codes, or proof of vaccination at the door of an in-person event can lead to some logistical headaches and unhappy guests if the wait times start to get out of control. Fortunately, an easy solution to avoid those headaches is to require guests to upload their photo IDs, vaccine passports, or any other documents needed for event registration as the RSVP to your event. This allows your security team to pre-screen attendees and clear them for attendance ahead of time, while also minimizing the need to screen multiple documents or forms of identification when guests actually arrive. By both ensuring your exclusive event’s security and streamlining the entry process, you can deliver the safe and convenient event attendance process that your guests (and you) will appreciate.

Tip #4: Generate unique passcodes for every guest or guest group you are expecting

Another easy feature that RSVPify offers for ensuring event security is the ability to generate unique passcodes for individual guests or guest parties to use for accessing your event website, as well as to produce during in-person event registration. Similar to using custom QR codes, guest passcodes can ensure that only the guests you are expecting can gain access and offer another easy way for event or security staff to screen guests on their way in to your private events.

Tip #5: Consider investing in professional private security staff to augment your in-house team for in-person event registration

While any event planner would prefer to conserve their event budget for bells and whistles at the event itself, investing in trained private security staff is an easy way to limit liability and ensure you have dedicated professionals protecting the exclusivity of your event throughout its duration. There are dozens of private security services in most major cities and even smaller ones, most of whom specialize in handling crowds and ticketing processes at large events that share the same security and liability concerns that you have. With your event planning team, consider vetting a few trustworthy options and devoting some of your budget to trained staff to augment your own staff. Even the presence of private security can both communicate security to your VIPs, as well as offer more “front-line troops” to ensure only the attendees you anticipate seeing are able to attend.