Surviving County Fair

I have attended my county fair every single year for as long as I can remember. More than that, however, is that I have always been aware of all the different moving parts of what makes a county fair tick. This year, however, was my first year surviving a county fair as an employee and, let me tell you, it’s ten times harder than being on a committee or running an event.

Working about 16 hour days, I couldn’t help but take a nap in the middle of the day even if it was for just 20 minutes. It was much needed! Taking notes, creating graphics, creating coverage and so much more. I was excited at the opportunity for a few interns that I could enlist the assistance of by having them run around the fair grounds, posting pictures of the different events and so much more.

The game plan was to provide an “experience” when outsiders looked at our social media. I wanted them to feel as if they were missing out (because they were!) and that they NEEDED to be there (which they did!). Something I distinctly DISLIKE about Fair social media’s is that they are very cluttered and “wordy.” When you look at their posts, you are literally bombarded with PDF style flyers that you would expect to see taped to the front counter of the Fair office.

Our picture feed, not so much.
Everyday, I would post about the big hitting events such as livestock and the fair entertainment. Then, when it got dark, I was aware that the youth of the town, typically a 17-30 year old demographic, would use the phrase “Corvegas” in reference to the “night life” of the college town. We capitalized on it by using a #CountyFairAfterDark theme.

I used the amazing neon beauty of the lights on the carnival to create this amazing “after hours” feel of what the county fair was like. I highlighted, also, the stereotyped romance that comes with a date night at the county fair, winning a stuffed animal toy for your girl, and more. I also included the highlights of the action packed rodeo, our brand new ALL GIRLS rodeo that was a huge hit and the fun that came with our amazing concert acts.

I firmly believe in the future of County Fairs and State Fairs if only they have a strong, out-of-the-box thinker behind them and I am thankful that this fair does. I hope that in 2019 my business can add one or two more good sized fairs to the list and we can continue to enjoy to not only make an impact but provide such an amazing experience!