Let’s be honest, planning an event from start to finish can be a bit stressful at times, from choosing the perfect venue to managing the budget to coordinating everything – there can be times when it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Need some help? We have put together this quick guide with actionable steps to help you bring your vision to reality.
What Is Event Planning All About?
Event planning is the process of putting together a structured approach to achieving the objectives of an event. Or, put simply, bringing your event to life! You could think of it as laying the foundations. Without solid foundations and a clear vision of what you want to achieve, it is much more difficult to guarantee the success of your event.
From this foundation or blueprint if you like, you are able to put together the structural elements that work cohesively towards the common goal. These elements might include things like budgets, audience, timelines, equipment, staffing and logistics, and of course assembling your team!
Event planning isn’t just about the big picture though, there are countless details that make up every event. Managing these details is what event management and planning is all about. This includes handling everything from scheduling, missing staff members and incorrect seating arrangements through to the WiFi being down or sound equipment not working as it should.
Strong leadership is essential in event planning, helping to define the management process, offering structure, resulting in streamlined operations, risk avoidance, and the ability to deliver consistently successful events.
What Is An Event Plan?
A big part of running a successful event is keeping track of all components as a cohesive unit. This is where an event plan comes in – it forms an overall guide or birds-eye-view of the event. Detailing everything from design elements, lighting and sound, to marketing and security. An event plan is necessary because it gets all of the interested parties on the same page, reducing confusion, misunderstandings and costly mistakes, whether it be a virtual or in-person event.
A good event plan should cover all of the following event elements:
- Goals and objectives
- Roles and responsibilities
- Staff and Training
- Budgets
- Timing
- Master plan for the event
- Date, time, location
- Event management software (access)
- Speakers/special guests/VIPs
- Event sponsorship/branding
- Marketing
- Vendor/third party information (audio visual suppliers, catering etc)
Why Is Event Planning Important?
For most businesses, running successful events helps your organisation attract new customers, clients, and members while also providing opportunities for greater engagement with your current customer base, which is aimed at bringing in more revenue over the long term.
Aside from financial gain (and even if that is not the objective), events should portray the certain standards you wish to meet, whether it’s business or family, building and maintaining your reputation is essential when holding events. This means no unexpected mishaps, wasted time or miscommunication – you want your guests to get what they came for and, most importantly to have a good time!
Event planning offers overall guidance from planning to execution, keeping everyone on the same page better enabling these event goals to be met. When properly utilised, event plans help avoid wasting time and effort by better-allocating resources like time, budget, and staff. Taking this proactive approach to event planning ensures the event will run smoothly and efficiently.
Step-By-Step Guide To Successful Event Planning
Now that you have some understanding of what an event plan is, and why it’s important let’s dive right into how to create a successful one step-by-step.
Step 1 – Defining Event Objectives
Understanding your event’s purpose and objectives or what you want to achieve is an essential first step to event planning. Why are you holding this event, and what do you want to achieve from it? What are the measurables?
The answer to these questions could be as simple as revenue earning from things like ticket sales or a little more complex with goals such as creating valuable networking opportunities or building brand awareness. Each organisation will have different goals and priorities which means that setting the event objectives right from the start plays a key role in aligning and maintaining event focus in a broader sense.
Step 2 – Identifying The Audience
Who is coming to this event? And how many of them? What do they expect to get from it, and how can you best deliver on this? This includes everything from age, interests and background to employment background, interests and what they would consider value for money. Personalising the event to the expected attendees is the best way to ensure overall event satisfaction. Nobody wants to go to all of the trouble (and expense) of organising an event that people are unhappy with, as this will most certainly have a detrimental effect on the desired outcome.
Having identified your target audience also means you are better able to determine stage/interior design elements, promotional methods and approaches (which online platforms to use) and also seek out appropriate entertainments and activities. It also helps with setting ticket pricing, goodie bags/promotional freebies, and other minor details that can help set the tone.
Step 3 – Deciding On Key Event Details
While not set in stone yet, developing an outline of the key event details is a great way to better understand what you are trying to achieve. Be as specific as you can on this one, you will need to have some idea of the following:
- Event location/venue, day and time (always the first step – book as soon as decision is made)
- Capacity of the venue and number of attendees (these two must match – obviously)
- Theme/dress code/topics of discussion (clearly communicated to guests)
- Core entertainment/activities (book once venue, date and time are known)
- Audio visual requirements/staging (lighting, sound and audio visual equipment hire)
Step 4 – Setting The Budget
By this stage, you should have a clearer idea of the venue, numbers, staging requirements, and entertainment/activities. This will help you better estimate how much it’s all going to cost.
Whether it’s a wedding, corporate event, concert, conference, seminar, or production, generally speaking, the venue, food, entertainment, decor and staff are going to be the largest costs. You will also need to budget for audio-visual equipment hire and technical operators, plus lighting – one area not to cheap out on as the audio and visual components can greatly affect the overall experience for attendees.
Keeping track of the budget and where money is being spent is also a big part of the event management process. Budget tracking software or ticket management software is a great place to start on this one. Don’t forget to allow for contingencies too!
Step 5 – Organising The Team
Hiring the right people is going to make all the difference. Depending on the size and scope of the event, you will likely need to engage the services of a variety of staff and crew. This might include event managers, event designers, speakers/entertainers, event staging companies, audio visual experts, catering companies, marketing professionals, and additional support staff.
But it doesn’t stop there – communication is the key to great event management! Make sure you plan for how everyone will communicate leading up to the event and, more importantly, comms on the day. This might include PA systems, music systems, LED screens/tablets, or wireless microphones headsets and in ear devices.
Top tip for event planning: sometimes the key to great events is choosing the right vendors or third-party event specialists. For example, entertainment and event solutions companies that specialise in event audio visual and staging have highly specialised expertise and resources and can take the pressure off this aspect of your event completely, leaving you free to better oversee other aspects of the event preparations.
Step 6 – Developing The Marketing Plan
Circle back to your event goals and objectives and target audience for this one, and it will help you decide on the best promotional platforms to use and how to use them. Marketing strategies should be tailored to include the theme or key message points while also closing the gap between the event and its objectives.
The timing of promotional material should also be taken into account, and it should be strategically spread out in the months or weeks leading up to the event for the best results. Using online platforms such as social media to build excitement and engage with potential attendees is a great place to start.
Step 7 – Event Execution, Coordination And Management
The ultimate test of your event planning skills – this is where all the hard work pays off! Having put in all the effort planning every detail of the event, everything should theoretically go smoothly and seamlessly on the day. However, don’t be phased if there are a few hiccups this is entirely normal and to be expected.
Keep your team motivated and organised, making sure everyone knows exactly what they need to do and how to handle their tasks efficiently or address any unexpected issues. Remember – attention to detail and quick problem-solving are important to keep the event on track!
Step 8 – Post-Event Evaluation
Don’t overlook this step as it is important not only for success measurables but also for improvements to events going forward. Gathering feedback from guests, online reviews, staff and even vendors is crucial to get a good understanding of how the event was widely perceived.
Post-event evaluation also includes reviewing financial performance and ensuring all payments are completed. Take the feedback on board as a learning experience and strive for perfection next time!
We hope this guide has provided you with valuable insights and practical tips for planning your next event. Ultimately, successful event planning is a collaborative effort. By partnering with an experienced audio visual company, you can alleviate the technical stress and focus on creating an unforgettable experience. Contact Technical Event Solutions (TES) for all your sound, audio visual and lighting needs – let’s work together to make your next event a resounding success!