What can a congregation or an individual chazzan do to make the Hoshanot work as well as possible, logistically?
I've been to many Sukkot services, especially on Hoshana Raba (HR), in which the physical process of people circumambulating the bima doesn't run as smoothly as I'd prefer. In some cases, the procession is over before some or even most people have made it all the way around (seven times on HR). In some cases, congestion causes people to spend a great deal of time standing still. In some cases, people trip over or squeeze past obstacles.
What strategies or tactics work best for making the Hoshanot run as smoothly as possible, with everyone getting around enough times by the end? I'm interested both in measures that a congregation can plan for ahead of time and that an individual chazzan or gabbai can do unilaterally in real-time.
Please indicate clearly in your answer what its basis is, whether practical experience (much preferred), hearsay, theoretical reasoning, or some published source, with as much relevant detail as you can include.