St. Patrick's Day Tips

Are you planning to go out to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day this weekend? So are thousands of other people. Whether you are attending a parade in your town or going out for an Irish meal, it is important to be prepared to fight the crowds.

We’re here to offer some advice on handling the crowds at various events. It’s important to have fun of course, but it is equally important to be safe.

Parades:

St. Patrick’s Day parades get very crowded, especially in large cities. If you plan on attending one, have a strategy. You cannot expect to show up as the parade starts and get a good spot to watch. Often you must also park blocks away from the parade and walk the rest of the way, so be prepared if you have young children. Traffic is often congested so give yourself plenty of time, and drive safe.  

Restaurants:

Restaurants that serve Irish food are likely to be packed with people, especially at mealtime. If you are hoping to avoid the crowds, try going out to eat at a time that is less traditional. You will be more likely to be seated right away. If you go in and it is busy, give your name and stand out of the way of the doors while you wait for your table.

Pubs:

Like any other night, pubs can get fairly rowdy, especially on a holiday. Exercise the same caution you would when going out. Keep an eye on your belonging and be responsible.

As St. Patrick’s Day is a weekday this year, it is likely the majority of parties and events will be held over the weekend. That does not mean nothing will be happening the day of, though! Check with your town or city to see when events are being held so you don’t miss the party.

Most of all, have a safe and fun St. Patrick’s Day and don’t let the crowds get you down!  

Mardi Gras Celebration Safety

Mardi gras will be here in under a week. While many celebrations will be happening all across the USA, no one can deny that the biggest celebration of the holiday can be found in New Orleans. Every year, an estimated 1 million or more people flood into the city for the “biggest free party on earth”. If you are heading to New Orleans for the first time, you need to be prepared to deal with the large crowds.

The best thing you can do is know the rules and read up on safety tips so that you can enjoy the celebration safely. There are crowd control measures in place but with so many people, you have to be vigilant. We’ve compiled some tips regarding crowds for you below.

~ Keep personal effect such as coolers, blankets, ladders, etc at least six feet away from the curve while watching the parades.

~ Do not take up more space than you need. There are many people there to enjoy the festivities. Blocking traffic and other people from claiming a spot is unfair and unsafe.

~ Arrive early. It is generally recommended you arrive to a parade you want to see four hours early or more if you want a good spot. Some people camp out all day for their spot. Do not try to fight into the crowds right before a parade starts.

~ Respect the police. They are experts at crowd control and are overworked during this time of year. Follow their instructions to stay safe and out of trouble.

~ Do not reach down to pick up beads, doubloons, etc. With all the crowds, excitement, and movement, it can be dangerous. You may be knocked over or stepped on. If something is on the ground that you want, put your foot on it until there is a gap in the floats, then pick it up.

~ Exercise caution around floats. Crowds may swell forwards without notice and this can cause accidents. Keep an eye on the parades and the crowds, especially if you have children with you.

~ Never run into the street. Floats cannot easily stop and it is easy to be injured. Stay off to the sides and enjoy the parades from the curves.

~ Do not bring or display valuables while attending the celebrations. Thieves are numerous in crowds.

~ Unless you know the area, stick with the crowds. New Orleans has many pockets of safe and unsafe areas. Attempting to take alternate routes when you don’t know an area just to avoid crowds can be dangerous.

Exercise caution and common sense during this celebration and you will have a great time with a lot of fun memories. Go, be safe, and have fun! 

Crowds and the Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is one of the biggest events of the year in America, and because of that it requires a great deal of crowd control. This event attracts an average of 1 million people.

So what is the city doing to keep people safe? The first step is to amp up security. There will be officers all around the stadium and around the Verizon Super Bowl Central, which is a 12 block entertainment area. In addition, private security and crowd management staff have been hired specifically for the event. There will also be experienced security experts on staff. This ensures that there are plenty of trained individuals to handle the large influx of people for the event.

There will be fencing around the stadium, and magnetometers for fans to pass through before they gain entry to the stadium. Bags and cars may also be searched to stop anything from getting past security.

Fans are encouraged to inform security of they see something suspicious happening at the event. By having no only security but fans on alert, the chances of something going wrong diminishes.

The FAA has declared that the Super Bowl is a “No Drone Zone”, in addition to the 10 mile no-fly-zone around the stadium. This is to prevent consumer drones from causing an accident and injuring other spectators during the game.

It is also encouraged that fans take steps to stay safe on their own during the event. Fans should prepare by going online to find parking policies, what can be brought and what can’t, etc. It will speed up the process if everyone is informed the day of. Attendees should stay aware of their surroundings, including the location of exits. Fans must also exercise patience, as the crowds will be large. These common steps can go a long way.

 

The Super Bowl has been occurring for many years and has a good track record. The steps that have been taking in crowd control should keep it that way.

Holiday Crowds

Christmas is only a week away, which means that the shopping crowds are likely to grow as people try to get their last minute gifts. While this is great for business, it is not so great for people who hate crowds. Today we’re going to offer our advice for beating the crowds, or how to endure them if you can't avoid them.

Shop on Less Busy Days

With so few days left until Christmas this can be difficult to implement. The weekend before Christmas is a very busy time for malls. Christmas Eve is another day to avoid, and even December 23^rd has a history of being busy. If you can manage it the best day to shop to avoid the crowds would be Monday, December 22^nd. Shop during the week while most people are busy at work to get holiday shopping done without the crowds.

Shop Small Businesses

Small, local businesses are generally not nearly as busy as malls and department stores. Not only will this help you avoid the crowds, this will help support the local community and allow you to purchase a less commercial gift for your loved ones. Maybe you know of some already, or maybe you need to do some research. Either way, a local business is a great way to avoid being packed in with hundreds or thousands of other shoppers.

Shop Online

This close to Christmas getting your gifts in time is going to cost you. To some people however, it is worth it to avoid the crowds. Don’t wait much longer though! In 2013 many people waited until the last minute, and shipping companies did not have the resources or time to get everyone their packages. If you want to buy online, do it now.

Shop the Mall Early, or Late

Stores will be less busy in the early hours of the morning as well as closer to closing time. The biggest crowds will materialize in the middle of the day, roughly between 10:00 AM and 7:00 PM. This gives you a limited shopping window, but if you just need a couple last minute items this is a good strategy.

Shop with Acceptance

If none of the above options work for you, it may be time to accept that you are going to have to deal with the crowds. Approach this with acceptance and a good attitude. No one likes waiting in long lines and fighting through people to find the items they want. Be polite as you do your shopping and schedule a little extra time into your day than you may normally to account for the crowds.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year from all of us to you. Here is to the start of a great 2015!

Crowd Control for Black Friday

Black Friday is just over a week away. If you are a retailer, are you prepared for the big day? With such large sales happening across the country, it is important to have adequate crowd control to prevent accidents from happening, to both the customers and your employees. It is essential you take the proper steps to ensure everyone has a safe Black Friday experience. Today we’re going to offer our tips for proper crowd control on one of the biggest shopping days of the year.

~ Schedule additional staff to help take the pressure off your employees. Not having enough staff during a big promotion can become a big problem.

~Use crowd control items such as barricades or rope lines well in advance of the big sale. Customers will often line up a day or more before Black Friday, so have this ready early! This will ensure that the lines outside of your store are organized.

~Place big sale items throughout the store to prevent overcrowding in certain areas or departments. This will reduce the risk of injury.

~Provide a separate store entrance for staff for their safety.

~Place security or crowd control managers near the doors, but never in front of them. Customers have been known to rush the store, and someone may be injured.

~ Place staff outside of the doors to prevent customers from entering as the doors are being unlocked. Have them remind customers of your entrance procedures to get your customers inside in a safe and controlled way. 

~Be sure to have an emergency plan, and communicate it to all staff members. 

Follow these steps to keep your store, employees, and customers safe during this big retail holiday! You can never be too cautious when it comes to an event like this. Practice smart crowd control, and enjoy the boost in sales!

Election Time

 It is election time, and soon there will be lines of people waiting to cast their important vote. The one downside to voting? The crowds. Today we’re going to give advice to try and beat the crowds on election

day.

First off, go early if you can. A lot of people head to the polls right after work, and lines will be long. Plus, who wants to stand in a long line right after they got off work? Consider building time into your schedule to go before work. Lunch breaks are another peak time at the polls so we suggest avoiding then as well, unless you happen to take an early or late lunch.

If you do not have a traditional 9-5 job, this puts you in a great position for voting. You can choose any time of the day to go in. Late morning and early afternoon will have smaller crowds as many people will be at work, decreasing your wait time.

If you do get stuck waiting in a long line, follow instructions. Switching lines or allowing different lines to intersect will only make the process take longer. Just be a little patient until it is your turn.

Even though the crowds aren’t fun, don’t use that as a reason to not vote! It’s an important right as an American to have a voice in who is elected. So get out to the polls and cast your vote next week!

Crowd Control Options

We talk about crowd control a lot on this blog, but we don’t often feature our own crowd control items, and how they all fit together to fit your needs. So this time, let’s go over exactly what it is we sell here at DirectCrowdControl.com, and how you can buy the different components to customize your crowd control experience.

Tape Posts

 Tape posts are a great, economic method of crowd control. Tape posts are easy to move, adjust, and more. Great for events and retail alike, you simply can’t go wrong with a tape post. We have many options to choose from. Go for a more budget friendly tape post, or go formal with something like our formal colonial posts to add some flair to your event.

Rope Posts

 Rope posts are a classic, and often more elegant, form of crowd control. From our selection you can find everything from colonial rope posts to more industrial styled rope posts. No matter what type of crowd control you need, we have the tools to help you do it. We even have a category specifically for those of you on a budget. 

Ropes

 Having rope posts without the ropes will do you no good with crowd control! We have many different styles depending on the type of look you want your retail establishment, business, or event to have. Choose one of our cheaper options, or go for glamour with your upcoming formal events. 

Signage & Accessories

So many mistakes in crowd control come from a lack of signage. For example, if you are holding two events at the same time in one building, most awkward situations can be avoided with correctly placed signage. Use it to indicate that one particular room is for a science fiction convention, so that wedding guests do not accidentally enter the wrong space. A simple sign saves a lot of confusion, time, and staff energy.

As you can see, there are many different methods and looks when it comes to managing your crowds. Go to our site to browse our full selection, today!