How To Organize A Flash Mob
Updated December 17, 2017 by Staci Lawrence, Founder, Flash Mob America
We’ve been putting on some of the world’s most popular flash mobs since 2009.
Through the years, we’ve learned A LOT about what it takes to bring joy through surprise, spontaneously bringing people together in a public space. Like most events, flash mobs require a lot of careful pre-planning. We’ve created a list of our top three strategies for anyone looking to plan a flash mob of their own.
Apply our Flash Mob Expert tips to ensure your flash mob event is a success!
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Plan Ahead.
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Advertise!
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Find a Venue
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Choose a Song
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Recruit Your Crew
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Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse.
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Communicate ALL of the Details to ALL of the Peoples!
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Document and Share.
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Or, You Can Leave It To Us.
Choose a date and time that works for the most people. Keep in mind that your volunteers might have to make work or school or babysitting arrangements. Also keep in mind that time of day will have an impact on both your audience and your venue.
Also, do a little research. Put social network search engines to use! Find other people who are planning a flash mob, or looking for volunteers. Learning from others will help you identify any gaps in your own plan, as well as inspire creativity for your own event!
Watch videos of flash mobs and take notes. Make lists of what you want, and what you’ll need: Costumes? Coordinated outfits? Props? Technology?
Harness the power of social networks.
Announce a call for auditions and volunteers online.
Choose your preferred social media sites where people can find out about your flash mob. Use social networks like Facebook and Twitter to keep people in the loop and direct them to important details like your rehearsals, meeting spots and contact info. Make sure to keep all your details up to date!
The venue plays a HUGE role in the logistics, access, and the overall feasibility of your flash mob. Ideally, you want to choose a location where a lot of people congregate. Choosing a high-traffic location ensures that you’ll have the largest audience for your performance!
Make sure you have permission to be there! Venue permits can be pricey, and can require booking well in advance. Having your flash mob broken up after all that hard work is disheartening, so be sure to get the venue details arranged to perfection!
Finding the perfect venue and choosing the song that will bring people together are not only the two key factors for a successful flash mob, they’re critical to getting people to participate in and observe your flash mob event. You’ll want to choose a song that gets the participants excited and will wow an unsuspecting audience and have them singing along.
If you’re going to play music, make sure you’re allowed to in your chosen venue or location.
If the song is not yours, you’ll need permission to share any content that features the song. Are you going to hire a DJ? If so, make sure that person has access to power and space to set up speakers and equipment. If you’re handing music on your own, make sure to bring in a portable speaker. Will there be live musicians? Make sure you have permission and ample space and logistics for the band to perform as well. Also, make sure you consider weather! The weather can have a HUGE impact audibility, and can impact your ability to use technology (wind, rain, snow, etc.).
One of the key visual elements to a successful flash mob is the amount of participants taking spectators by surprise. You’ll want at least 50 people present. Getting people to volunteer and be a part of your flash mob means asking your family and friends. Tell everyone you know and everyone they know. Call in all of your favors. Don’t know 50 people? Try calling local organizations like recreational groups and student clubs at colleges and invite them to join your flash mob event. You never know who would be willing and able to do a flash mob. The more the merrier—literally.
Before you can do your live flashmob, you’ll need to teach your volunteers the choreography and make sure you are all as synched as possible. You’ll also need to run through how the event will play out in real time. To do this, you’ll need to plan out and confirm a rehearsal space that will accommodate everyone. Alternatively, find a space to rehearse outside to ensure that everyone knows the dance.
You’ll also need a choreographer to coordinate the dance for your flashmob. You can’t just freestyle or improvise a dance for your flash mob. It will look like an unorganized mess! If you are going to teach your volunteers yourself, do your best to make the moves accessible to anyone and the choreography will fit the venue and audience.
Never assume people “just know.” Detailed, consistent communication is vital to a successful flash mob! Write clear instructions for all of the people who will be involved in your event and make sure they are clear and specific.
Keeping your participants informed helps ensure a smooth coordination process and enables people to understand how they can participate and be involved. Don’t forget to include important safety, traffic, and parking information to everyone as well!
Flash mobs are priceless events that draw so many emotions from participants and spectators. You’d be doing a great disservice to all of your hard work and efforts by not recording and capturing the event from start to finish.
If you can’t hire a professional photographer and videographer to film your flash mob, designate a few trusted friends to capture photos and video of the event. Both you and your guests of honor will want to look back at all of the dancing and amazing reactions. The best way to make a keepsake of the event is to have it digitally documented. That way everyone can cherish the memory forever.
Once you have the best photos and videos compiled, share them online for the world to enjoy! Add an extra touch and share links to all of the photos and videos to all of your volunteers and participants as well.
Flash mobs provide an unforgettable experience to participants and spectators alike. These top tips will guide and ease your event planning process. Feeling overwhelmed?
If you want to coordinate a flash mob but don’t know where to begin, leave the planning to us.
We’re the Flash Mob Experts. Contact us today!
