An underrated aspect when booking entertainment for your college welcome week event is novelty. A rare event, something uncommon, out of the ordinary, or just plain strange! These events have a certain impact on students’ interest, attention, and participation in welcome week, and they can be used ot increase engagement throughout the campus.
At Neon Entertainment, we have decades of experience providing high-quality entertainment for orientations, welcome weeks, and other college events. Today, we’re here to share some of our secrets for creating an amazing welcome week that students will talk about for years to come.
Make it Special
When we are talking about novelty, we are talking about an event that students can’t easily experience on their own. Something that will draw eyeballs and make college students go “oh wow.” The sheer experience of seeing a novel event, such as a Portable Roller Rink or a Mobile Rage Room, will bring forth excitement and get students talking and participating in your campus events.
Now, there is nothing wrong with a down-to-earth, relaxing DIY Art Event; students LOVE those, but you don’t want your campus to be known ONLY for doing small-scale, intimate events. You want people to think of your campus events as big, ambitious, and most of all, fun.
Shatter Expectations
Oftentimes, new students will have no idea what to expect from the college experience. This can be especially true for commuters or students who are working nearly full-time while attending classes. Many of them are expecting papers, books, lectures, and a lack of sleep. Welcome Week is the perfect opportunity to show these new students that college isn’t simply education; it’s community, spirit, and it can be fun too.
Break up the routine
At a certain point during a semester, students can easily fall into a mundane routine: go to class, get schoolwork done, get something to eat, go to bed, and get ready for the same routine tomorrow. A novel event like a Live Game Show will stop that routine right in its tracks and get eyeballs looking.
You want your event to break this routine before it’s ever in place. Don’t give your students the impression that your campus is boring and that they are only here to learn; they are here to grow. Having events that look special, feel novel, and are unique can help stop students from developing these routines or break up the routines that returning students are expecting.
Give your Students Something to Talk About
When your events are special, novel, and unique, they give students something to talk about (and look forward to!) During the event, students will be telling eachother about the Mobile Axe-Throwing experience that is going on outside the union. Groups of friends will plan to go to the event together, or students who don’t know eachother will get the opportunity to engage with eachother in unique ways.
A story to share (on social media)
After the event is over, students will chat about how much fun it was and what a unique experience they had on your campus. This will be done in person, as well as on social media. You want your event to reach as many students as possible; even if they don’t participate in a specific experience, you still want them to feel the energy of Welcome Week. Novel events give students a story to share with eachother and get students communicating that energy during Welcome Week and beyond.
Shows your new students that you care
Welcome Week is likely the most important event for new students. This is your opportunity to tell students why they should engage with the campus community for the duration of their education and not become a student who shows up only to attend classes. Novelty is a great way to do that.
For all the reasons we discussed above, having a novel event does show students that you are willing to put the effort into your community, which in turn inspires them to put effort into the community. Having a special and unique event students can participate in makes them feel special and unique.
Novelty Event Entertainment
The power of novelty and uniqueness is great when booking entertainment, but that doesn’t mean that less novel events don’t have their place. DIY Events, Make & Takes, and other forms of entertainment make for great additions to a Welcome Weeks entertainment roster, or their own separate attractions!
Contact us if you are interested in bringing a novelty experience such as a Splatter Room, a Blacklight Event, or More to your next event! Alternatively, if you are looking to bring Live Entertainment, Comedians, Magicians, Musicians, or anything else to your event, we can help! At Neon Entertainment, we have an immense amount of experience providing entertainment for college and corporate events, so if you or someone you know wants to book something for their next event, we’d love to have a conversation.
