DePaul Rock Charity Showcase
1.) Brief description of the project
Our group organized a show to raise money for The People’s School of Music Chicago. Hosted in the DePaul Student Center, there were two performances, a solo artist named Jane Lieberman, followed by a band called WISKO. Apart from the main performance, we also hosted a promotional bake sale to raise money and get the word out for the upcoming show.
2) Brief description of the charity
The People’s School of Music Chicago is the largest completely free music school serving Chicago metropolitan area children. They set high expectations for all students, delivering a rigorous curriculum that demands musical excellence and personal commitment. Teaching 21 different instruments, 30+ ensembles of diverse music genres, and 10+ performance opportunities per student a year, the school was a perfect charity for a musically inspired project.
3) Factual analysis of success in terms of project objectives
We reached our minimum goal of $500, and ended up raising a total of $806!!!
4) Lessons learned about managing projects
- Before you can begin promoting an event, you must try your best to have details set in stone. We had a strong feeling we were going to secure a bar in Wrigleyville to host our event. We waited two-three weeks for confirmation, until we were told they’d be unable to host us in the week we needed to have the show. That meant two-three weeks of not putting out flyers, word-of-mouth, and not posting stories on social media to promote the event.
- When it comes to providing links for attendees, it’s important to discuss with your team which are most necessary. To have a separate link for donations, RSVPs, tickets, and a social media page can be too much. We decided on a combination link for Donation and Tickets as well as one for RSVPS. While that seemed like a solid minimalistic approach, in hindsight, having just two links for Donations and tickets would have been the better choice.
- When it comes to leading a team, often the most important thing you can do is help the team members do their best. That doesn’t mean just giving them the tools to build the house along with some blueprints but welcoming ideas and fostering the communication between members that allows them to do so. If it wasn’t for that, we wouldn’t have had Hannah’s idea for the promotional bake sale, or Cally’s idea for a photoshoot of the performing band.
5) Advice for future teams doing similar projects
- Solidify details about your logistics as soon as possible. When producing a Gantt Chart or WBS, it may be beneficial to consider venue logistics an activity that precedes other important activities, especially related to marketing and advertising.
- Create a foundation for strong communication within your team, it is invaluable for a successful project.
- Remember to have fun and enjoy the process, it’s a great thing to raise money for charity, but it’s a privilege to get to enjoy the process.
6) Photos
