Marta’s Party Season Event Checks – What Actually Works 

By Marta, Senior Customer Success Manager at Obbi Club 

If you’re running three events on a Saturday in December, you’re not alone. I’ve worked in hospitality, and I’ve now set up Obbi for dozens of venues, from clubs to hotels, and I know what party season actually looks like… multiple events, contractors you’ve never met, and staff covering unfamiliar areas. 

The venues that handle December well have one thing in common – they know what’s happening in their building at any given moment. The customers I work with who’ve built solid systems tell me December is busy but manageable. Here’s what they’re doing. 

Catch issues while you can still fix them 

Pre-event checks give you time to respond. When you spot that a contractor has blocked an exit during your walkthrough two hours before guests arrive, you can sort it. When you discover it mid-event, you’re managing a crisis. One customer caught a damaged fire exit bar during their routine check twenty minutes before doors opened, it could have meant an evacuation if they’d found it later. 

Walk the space with fresh eyes while you still have options. Cover anything that’s changed… temporary furniture, additional equipment, modified layouts. It doesn’t need to be complicated. 

Set clear expectations with contractors 

December means working with people who don’t know your building. The AV company you’ve never used, the florist setting up in three rooms, the band arriving two hours before service. They’ll nod along to your verbal briefing, but that doesn’t mean much when something goes wrong and memories suddenly differ. 

Getting contractors to acknowledge your site rules in Obbi means everyone knows what’s expected from the start. I’ve seen this save venues from messy disputes where it became one person’s word against another’s. Clear documentation isn’t bureaucracy – it’s clarity. 

Remove the guesswork from daily tasks 

“Has this been done?” shouldn’t require a murder mystery investigation each time. The venues running smoothest are the ones where the answer is immediately visible. One customer places QR codes in each function room and behind every bar. Staff scan, complete the check, and move on. Everyone can see it’s done. Before this, they spent significant time each day hunting for paper checklists and asking around. 

Your team shouldn’t need to interrupt each other to confirm basic information. That time adds up. 

Log incidents when they’re fresh 

Memory degrades quickly, especially during busy periods. The slip that seemed straightforward at 8pm can become remarkably complicated by the time someone’s writing it up the next morning. I’ve watched venues get caught in disputes over incidents that should have been straightforward because they relied on staff recollection rather than contemporary notes. One customer logged a guest slip within ten minutes – photos, witnesses, exact circumstances. When a claim arrived two months later with a different version of events, the contemporary report was definitive. 

Logging things immediately also helps you spot patterns. Several small incidents in the same location might indicate something that needs addressing. 

Close properly, even when you’re tired 

Five minutes at the end of one event saves you from starting the next one already behind. A quick post-event check (room state, equipment condition, any issues to follow up) means you’re not discovering problems when the next event is due to start. Your morning self will thank you. 

What makes the difference 

The venues handling party season best aren’t the ones with the most resources. They’re the ones with reliable systems they actually use when things get busy. Clear checks, documented accountability, and a habit of recording things when they happen. 

December will be demanding, but there’s a real difference between busy and overwhelmed. You can’t prevent every problem, but you can make sure you know about them early enough to respond properly. 

If you’re not using structured event checks yet, this is a good time to start. If you are, make sure your team understands they’re not box-ticking, they’re what keeps everyone aligned when the building is at capacity. 

And if you need me, I’m always happy to talk through what’s worked elsewhere. Get through December doing it right, and your members will have the events they expect. That’s worth something. 

Marta