Suggested Action Plan

Action Plan Outline

1. Register your plans to participate (even if you're not sure what you'll do)
2. Recruit help and hold a planning meeting
3. Develop an Action Plan
4. Recruit speakers and performers
5. Obtain permits if necessary
6. Register changes so we have your final event plan
7. Conduct promotional and media outreach
8. Obtain materials: equipment, displays, handout, food samples, etc.
9. Conduct event
10. Send report, clippings, and photos to FARM

Details

1. First, register your event, even if your plans are not finalized. You can register online or call 800-MEATOUT (632-8688). Registering is very important, as it allows us to keep you up-to-date with Meatout happenings, provide you support and materials, post your events on our website, inform activists and media in your area of your event, and use our international events directory to promote Meatout to national media. Registering is also a great way for you to get support from local activists and media. You should update your registration when your plans are finalized or if they change.
2. Schedule a planning meeting and promote it within your own group, as well as other local vegetarian, animal, environmental, health, hunger, and religious (Seventh Day Adventist, Jaina, and Krishna) groups. Be sure to post announcements at libraries, co-ops, and health food stores. At the planning meeting, select one or more events and identify individuals to take on responsibilities.
3. Every event deserves an Action Plan — a list of specific tasks with a brief description, the name of the individual responsible for completing each task, and start and completion dates. For any event more complex than an information table or leafleting, an Action Plan is essential.
4. Speakers, musicians and other entertainers are often willing to participate at no charge for nonprofit events such as Meatout, both to assist the cause and to increase their exposure. For help finding a speaker in your area, email us.
5. Permits for events on public property are required only if you are impeding traffic or otherwise interfering with free use of such property by others. Even if you don’t need a permit, a courtesy call notifying local authorities of your plan is generally a good idea. Shopping malls and their parking lots are supposedly open to public access, but for the purpose of conducting business. Solicitors are generally expected to get permission.
6. Register any changes with us so we can keep the Events page up-to-date, thus providing the most accurate information possible to activists and media in your area.
7. Effective promotion of your event generally involves flyering, e-outreach, and taking advantage of local media. It may also include public service announcements, calls to talk shows, letters to editors, and advertising. Tips for getting the most out of your local media can be found in our Getting the Word Out section.
8. Most equipment and materials will be obtained locally. Display and handout materials are available from our Materials page, as are Action Kits. For banners, posters and other display materials, request an Event Pack when you register and we will send you the display materials in March.
   
   Food samples are provided by some of our sponsors. Check the Working with Manufacturers page in February and March for detailed information of who is providing what, and how to apply.
   
   You can also use handout materials of your own or from another organization. We recommend ordering the colorful booklets Why Vegan? from Vegan Outreach - fantastic brochures for only 25 cents each.
9. Conduct your event! Have fun and enjoy the celebration!
10. Send a brief report of your event(s) to Meatout Headquarters. By postal mail: 10101 Ashburton Lane | Bethesda MD 20817. By email: info@meatout.org. Include sign-up sheets, photographs, and originals of any news clippings.