Car shows are thrilling events that allow you to connect with genuine car enthusiasts, network with other car dealerships, support a cause and create a lasting impression. It's important to know how to market a car show, host it and organize it correctly. This guide provides 20 helpful tips on how to have a successful car show, from organizing the appropriate entertainment to ensuring you display cars correctly. 

Table of Contents

• Create a Budget
• Set a Date 
• Choose a Location 
• Get Permits 
• Brainstorm Car Show Ideas 
• Get Event Insurance 
• Organize Food and Entertainment 
• Prepare for Registration and Other Paperwork 
• Advertise the Event 
• Get Free Publicity 
• Call Local Dealerships 
• Sort Out Parking 
• Prepare Prizes and Awards 
• Do Emergency Preparations 
• Get Audio Equipment and LED Screen Rentals 
• Set up Car Show Stands 
• Prepare the Car for Display 
• Arrange Car Transportation 
• Record and Highlight Special Moments 
• Give Back to the Community 
• Display Classic Cars From Volo Museum at Your Car Show 

1. Create a Budget  

The first step to organizing a car show involves creating a suitable budget. This will set the tone for what your appropriate options are and which options to avoid. You may do this by outlining different areas of importance for the car show, such as display materials, insurance and venue costs, and calculating those expenses and your budget for each.  

This can also help you determine the limit for how many cars may attend and how much money should be made from attendance sales. It may help to incorporate some extra costs into your budget. Doing so may allow you to adjust the budget according to the correct number of cars and ticket sales closer to the car show date. 

2. Set a Date 

You need to be strategic about choosing an appropriate car show date well in advance. First, check when other car events in the area will take place. Learn about them by doing online searches, reading the local paper and asking local car clubs and community members. Cancel out those reserved dates and further narrow down dates to exclude national holidays and other special dates when most people might be busy. 

Sundays may be a convenient day for a car show since many may be off work. Make sure to reserve a rain date for the following Sunday if the weather is unfavorable on the initially decided-upon date. 

3. Choose a Location 

There are various location options for hosting a car show, from convention centers and empty fields to parking lots, airfields and golf courses. The location you choose must be convenient for your target audience and able to accommodate smooth vehicle inflow and outflow, food stands, tents and tables. 

You may also record the prices of different venues and their features and factor them into your choice. For example, if an affordable and suitable location does not have a public restroom, you may factor in the cost of portable toilets or restroom trailers. 

4. Get Permits 

After booking your venue, you should also speak with county officials and the local municipality to check which permits you might need. A permit ensures your event has the necessary insurance and security, and accounts for traffic flow. 

5. Brainstorm Car Show Ideas 

Brainstorm ideas about display props and the car show's general theme that will get your intended audience enthusiastic about attending. Some exciting car show themes might include: 

• Classic car revival: A vintage-theme car show can be an excellent way to celebrate old and classic cars. Many people are fond of classic cars, so you may gain an excellent turnout. 
• Hollywood movie cars: People may be excited to attend if the theme were iconic cars from famous TV shows and movies. This type of car show might have more glamorous and cinematic features. 
• Custom creations showcase: This event might feature one-of-a-kind masterpieces and custom-built models to show appreciation for outstanding craftsmanship. 
• Future wheels expo: A car show that only displays the newest electric and self-driving cars can be an exciting event for car enthusiasts. 
• Eco-friendly autos: Car enthusiasts who are becoming environmentally conscious may appreciate a car show that promotes eco-friendly vehicles and green automotive technologies. 

6. Get Event Insurance 

Getting insurance for a big car event may be crucial to protecting yourself financially. Depending on your area, this may even be a legal requirement. Make sure to check if there are insurance requirements and then discuss your event insurance needs with numerous insurance agents. Understanding their offerings and looking at their reviews may help you choose a suitable insurance company. 

7. Organize Food and Entertainment 

Food and beverage options can be valuable at a lengthy car show. You can either opt to contact local food vendors to sell food and beverages at the event or you might set up a barbeque and have your team sell food to attendees. 

Various entertainment options can create an ambience and atmosphere that makes attendees want to stay. Keeping in mind the car show's theme, you might plan to have a band perform live, or you could play select music from a loudspeaker or the radio. An excellent idea might be to partner with a local radio station and have them broadcast from your venue, allowing you to attract a larger audience. 

You may also arrange fun activities and games like raffles, car-themed trivia, burnout contests, engine blowups, auctions or a people's choice award for attendees to vote for their favorite cars. Winners can be rewarded with small incentives or free t-shirts. You might also offer parting gifts like keychains, stickers or coupons to give everyone something to take home. 

8. Prepare for Registration and Other Paperwork 

You may create a more organized event and gauge how many cars are coming by creating a registration system. Encourage entrants to pre-register with incentives like discounts or raffle drawings. On the day of the show, clearly mark where the registration table is so participants can find it easily. This helps you keep track of who is participating in the car show and which vehicles they are responsible for. 

You may then provide participants with placards that display their vehicle's make, model, year, owner and modifications. These will help spectators learn more about the cars and help judges identify award winners. 

9. Advertise the Event 

Advertise your car show to ensure all the right people know about your event. For local car shows, you might print flyers that include information about the car show, where and when it will be held, admission costs, contact information and where the show's proceeds will go. Ask shops and car parts stores to display these flyers or display them yourself on any public bulletin boards. 

You can also create a social media page dedicated to promoting the event online and posting any other essential car show information not on the flyer, such as special cars and guests, registration information and fun activities. Speak with local car clubs and classic car shops about your event and ask them for recommendations on people to contact. These groups are great resources for clubs that may help you spread the word. 

10. Get Free Publicity 

Write a press release and email it to your local newspaper's editor. If they are interested in the car show, they may write an article about your community event in the newspaper, offering you free publicity. Similarly, you might contact your local radio station or television news station so they may interview you about your car show or film the event.   

11. Call Local Dealerships 

Some local car dealerships are owned by genuine car enthusiasts, making them a great connection during advertising your car show. If this is the case in your area, let them know about your event and ask them to attend and contact car owners or bring new cars from their dealership for the car show. This also allows them to advertise their dealership at the event. 

12. Sort Out Parking 

Organize how you're going to arrange the cars before the event. For example, you might organize them by make, year or model. Plan for event staff to wear distinguishable uniforms and have them direct vehicles to the correct spots. It may help to arrange different times for each car to come, helping create more order. 

13. Prepare Prizes and Awards 

Before deciding on prizes, you need to establish award categories to add variety to the awarding event. Some categories you could create include best antique, best domestic car, best import, and best late model car. This also helps you choose more qualified people to judge the car show. Once you know the number of awards and prizes that need to be provided, you can shop for first and second-place trophies, plaques and medals for the award ceremony. 

14. Do Emergency Preparations 

Let the police know about your car show in advance and have your permits with you. For emergencies, keep a first aid kit, fire extinguisher and oil spill kit on-site — also, bring some basic hand tools, jumper cables and a gallon of gas for car-related issues. 

If you need to prepare for extreme weather, have cooling or warming stations ready. It's also nice to offer earplugs, especially for the younger attendees.

15. Get Audio Equipment and LED Screen Rentals 

Audio equipment and LED screen rentals can help create an immersive atmosphere, dynamic entertainment and engaging presentations. They ensure that speeches can be heard throughout the venue and attendees can hear car engine sounds more clearly. 

You could rent high-quality audio equipment as an affordable alternative to buying. Some places to look include online rental platforms, event production agencies, local event rental companies, audiovisual service providers or trustworthy recommendations and referrals. 

16. Set up Car Show Stands 

Strategically arrange car show stands for an appealing layout and easy navigation. You can also consider the following as exciting display options: 

• Display props: Podiums, banners, signage and stylish backdrops may make cars stand out, highlight unique car features and make the event easy to explore. 
• Car information displays: You can share car specifications and interesting details about cars on digital displays or informative placards placed near each vehicle. 
• Lighting effects: The right lighting techniques can enhance the ambience and car aesthetics, helping you showcase them as the main attraction. 
• Interactive installations: Showcase more than just cars and create an immersive experience for visitors with driving simulators, virtual reality (VR) car experiences and photo booths. 
• Unique decorations: Creative decorations that match the event theme might make the theme more well-rounded and enhance the visitors' experience. 

17. Prepare the Car for Display 

To properly prepare cars for display, there are a few steps you'll need to follow. You can start by preparing the bodywork, which generally includes fixing scratches, dents and rust, replacing or repairing the necessary components, considering paint jobs and modifying other areas on the surface. 

You may then prepare the exterior by using cleaning supplies designed for cars, cleaning the car's entire exterior, including under the hood and under the car and waxing and polishing the car last. Preparing the interior and car wheels is also essential to improving the car's appeal. 

Inform owners of display cars about the aspects they'll need to clean or have someone clean. Otherwise, you might hire a car cleaning service to do extensive cleaning for all registered cars. 

18. Arrange Car Transportation 

If your car show will feature classic or rare cars, you need to carefully consider how to best transport them to the venue without damaging or damaging them. You can either work directly with a carrier or a broker who will connect you with a carrier that best meets your needs. 

Brokers can be an excellent option because they listen to your specific needs, evaluate a nationwide database of carriers and negotiate suitable contracts according to your specific requirements. This allows you time to focus on other aspects of the car show. 

19. Record and Highlight Special Moments 

Marketing your car show after the event has ended is also important so that attendees can stay engaged even after the show and those who haven't attended may see the value of the event. This may encourage both audiences to go again when you advertise another car show, helping you enhance your car show's popularity. 

You could do this by having designated photographers and videographers capture snippets of the event and candid shots of cars and attendees enjoying the show. You may then compile the best moments in a single video and share these photos and videos on social media. 

20. Give Back to the Community 

Are you arranging a car show to promote your business? If your primary goal is not to make money from the event, you might consider donating the proceeds to a local charity or a cause your company stands for. This may help you raise awareness about the cause and attract a larger audience from the charity organization's target audience. Statistics show that 81% of U.S. donors attend nonprofit fundraising events, making it a valuable opportunity. 

This makes it important to include the cause in your flyers and social media advertising so people are aware of it. You can also update them on how much the event raised and how it helped the nonprofit after the car show ended. 

Display Classic Cars From Volo Museum at Your Car Show 

If you're looking to add unique cars to your car show collection, Volo Museum has a collection of classic vehicles that may be suitable. Volo Museum is a museum and classic car dealership with experience in hosting car shows. Whether you require more classic cars or help to find a reliable auto transportation service provider or car cleaning supply provider, we may be able to assist. To learn more, browse our range of vehicles or contact our knowledgeable team today.