Sending event reminders to vendors can help reduce confusion before an event, especially when vendors need to remember setup times, booth locations, parking instructions, or other important details.
The challenge is figuring out a system that works consistently without having to manually message every vendor.
In this guide, we'll go over how to create event reminders, what information to include, and how to send them to your vendors.
What Is an Event Reminder?
An event reminder is a message sent to vendors before an upcoming market or event.
These reminders can include details such as:
- Vendor setup time
- Event start time
- Booth location
- Parking instructions
- Booth map
- Important event-day instructions
- Contact information for the organizer
You can send one reminder a few days before the event and another on the morning of the event.
How to Create Event Reminders
How you create your reminders depends on the tools you use to manage your event.
Some organizers manually send emails through Gmail or another email provider. This can work for smaller events, but it becomes harder to manage when you have dozens of vendors or multiple event dates.
Another option is using event or market management software.
Marketlly includes vendor communication tools, automations, and SMS text messaging, allowing organizers to communicate with vendors from the same platform they use to manage applications, payments, and booth maps.
This means you can create workflows around your event instead of remembering to manually send every reminder yourself.
SMS vs. Email for Vendor Reminders
Email is still useful for longer messages, documents, and information vendors may need to reference later.
However, SMS can be especially useful for time-sensitive reminders.
Vendors may not check their email regularly, and some messages can end up buried in their inbox or spam folder. Marketlly includes SMS messaging specifically so organizers can reach vendors who may not regularly check email.
For important information such as setup times, last-minute instructions, or event-day reminders, a short text message can be easier for vendors to see quickly.
When Should You Send Event Reminders?
You don't need to send vendors messages every day leading up to an event.
A simple schedule could include one reminder before the event and another on the day of the event.
For example, your first reminder could be sent two or three days before the market. This message can include the booth map, setup time, parking information, and anything vendors should bring.
Your second reminder can be sent on the morning of the event with the most important information, such as check-in time and where vendors should enter.
Keep Your Event Reminder Simple
Try to keep each reminder short.
Vendors should be able to open the message and quickly understand what they need to know.
For example:
Vendor reminder: Our market is this Saturday. Vendor setup begins at 7:00 AM. Please arrive before 8:30 AM. Check your booth assignment before arriving and contact us if you have any questions.
You can link vendors to a booth map or event page if there is additional information they need.
How to Send Vendor Event Reminders With Marketlly
If you manage your event through Marketlly, you can keep your vendor applications, booth mapping, communications, and other market management tasks inside the same platform.
To create an event notification:
- Open your event.
- Go to your vendor applications.
- Open Event Notifications.
- Create your event reminder.
- Add the information you want vendors to receive.
- Schedule or send the notification to your vendors.
You can use these reminders to communicate setup details, booth information, event instructions, and other updates vendors need before arriving.
Final Tips for Vendor Event Reminders
The goal isn't to send vendors more messages. It's to make sure the important information reaches them at the right time.
Keep your reminders short, send the most important information closer to the event, and use SMS when the message is time-sensitive.
Having a repeatable reminder system also means you don't have to manually recreate the same process every time you host another market.