This article is part of a series of book excerpts from The Pop Culture Business Handbook for Cons and Festivals, which provides the business, strategy, and legal reference guide for fan conventions, film festivals, musical festivals, and cultural events.

When organizing a festival or Con, the economic model used to develop the event will drive many of the key decisions. If one accepts that the designing of the Con is a form of building a complex game for the attendees, then the Con economy will define many of the structural design choices which will come later in the planning. These chapters describe the revenue sources and the types of expenses that will be incurred and the approaches to help assure that the revenue exceeds the expenses.