The Freshman Informal Formal

The first event we wanted to throw a was ritzy and elegant "house party". We hosted it the Friday before school started as a way for freshmen to feel at home and known before college ever started. Created and promoted with a motto of "formals are too formal" we wanted people to feel welcome to come as they were and not be intimidated by needing to dress nice or bring a date. The majority of promotion was done at The Oaks, a weekend retreat for incoming freshmen held in July. I went with over 100 colorful paper flyers in hand and passed them out throughout the weekend to whoever I could and shared the vision of the party to those who listened. Over the next couple of weeks I engaged dozens of accounts on Instagram and DM'd invitations to people who attended the Oaks to follow up with them after meeting them in person. In the week proceeding the Informal Formal, I launched a series of posts designed to build up excitement and anticipation and used my friends as ambassadors to help spread the word. I also was collaborating with a core group of ten people to help fund and set up the event. We let black and gold be the primary colors for decorations and created black vinyl towers about 10 feet tall with gold designs on them. We blew up two balloon arches for two main walkways and decorated the doors and ceilings with streamers. In the entrance room, we used pipe and drapes, ferns, as well as LED lights to make the perfect photoshoot. We were able to commission a local artist to paint our banners. We made signs with our slogans and hashtags to encourage people to post and engage with our brand on social media In the ballroom we set up colorful flashing lights, a disco ball, and over 6 box fans. The box fans were to ensure air circulation and to prevent it from getting too hot as it was a smaller room with only two entrances. We set up speakers and ran them through my laptop and I was able to control the playlist with my phone. In the lounge, we provided a plethora of couches and there were stools at the coffee bar, where guests were able to pay their own price. We provided free finger food spanning across salty and sweet, cheeses, meats, and a few gluten-free options. There were also over 8 cases of water bottles for the attendees. One of my associates and I had spent hours carefully crafting and cultivating a playlist that would ebb and flow in energy throughout the night so we could avoid hiring a DJ but not sacrifice the quality of the music played. The event was a smashing success, we had close to 100 guests attend and I was thrilled and very pleased with how full and lively the dance floor stayed the entire night. With the success of our first event, we were able to build a core group of supporters of Jericho and became semi-established.