Each year I post the final attendance numbers and budget for Protospiel San Jose.
In terms of 2017 attendance we had:
80+ Designers
600+ Players (Uniques, not turnstile)
Honestly, that is as big as I want to get. I was at Unpub 7 this year, which is much larger. Unpub was a great event, but it didn’t have the same feel at that size. To maintain the community feeling, I want to stay about the size we were at in 2017. If needed, I can expand to two events per year instead of doing a single larger event.
Protospiel San Jose 30 Second Video Recap
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What I plan to do different next time:
1. Book the back room for media and panel(s).
We didn’t do a panel this year as the noise level from last year made hearing difficult. The back roomat Game Kastle MV is now set up with lights an some sound. Next year we can try some panels again. Also I want to carve out time and space to encourage podcasting and interviews from the back room.
2. Try Adding Basic Sandwiches to the snacks
Year one and year two I tried offering full meals. Meals proved too expensive and time consuming. Year three and year four we had just snacks, which worked much better. I had a volunteer that did ALL of the food this year and did a fantastic job. Next year I plan to add basic sandwiches (Bread, Peanut Butter, Jelly, Cheese and small amounts of cold cuts) to the food budget.
3. Offer More VIP Player badges.
I planned a very limited quantity of VIP player badges this year. They quickly sold out much faster than in past years. Next year, I’ll aim to offer 50 VIP player badges.
4. Diversify Raffle Prizes
In 2017 I bought raffle prizes from three sources. The quantity was not as high as it was in 2016, but the variety was greater. Next year I plan to do something similar and expand to several sources of raffle prizes.
Finally, here is our final budget for 2017. Drop me a line if you have any questions at (boardgamebuilders@gmail.com).
Protospiel San Jose 2017 Budget