ANTICIPATING NEEDS: THE ART OF EVENT PLANNING // PART 1: THE PLANNING PHASE

Event planning is a complex process that involves anticipating needs and asking the right questions at the right time. Whether you're planning a lunch meeting, scheduling a speaker, or helping run a conference, it's important to understand the fundamentals of event planning.

Defining Your Role

The first step in event planning is to define your role. Whether you're taking the lead on the event, or supporting someone else, it's important to get clarity from your supervisor about their expectations and where you fit in with the rest of the team.

No matter what your role is, you can make a significant impact on the event's success. Every detail, no matter how small, can communicate something to the guests of the event. Knowing your role and taking ownership over specific features of the event is key to making it memorable and stand out.

Phasing Out The Process

Phasing out the process is about creating an organized and effective plan for your work. There are many applications available for event planning, such as Asana, Notion, and GQueues. The key is to find an application that is easy to use, consistent, and provides the specific features you need for your event.

When organizing the event planning process, it's useful to divide it into four different phases: The Planning Phase, The Pre-Event Phase, The Event Phase, and The Post-Event Phase. Each phase has its own set of tasks and processes that need to be completed in order to ensure the success of the event.

By understanding your role and phasing out the event planning process, you can ensure that your event is organized, effective, and successful.

Phase 1 - The Planning Phase

Are you tasked with planning an event but don't know where to start? Event planning can seem like a daunting task, but with a little bit of preparation and organization, you can plan a successful event that everyone will enjoy. In this first of four blog posts, we'll dive into the planning phase and provide some tips for event planning beginners.

Determine the purpose and goal of the event

Before you begin planning your event, it's important to determine the vision and scope of the event. Ask yourself questions like:

  • What is the goal and purpose of the event?

  • Who is the target audience?

  • How many people do we want to attend?

  • What do we need to promote the event?

  • What is the timeline for the event?

Once you've answered these questions, you'll have a better understanding of what you need to do to plan a successful event.

Establish a budget

Before you start booking vendors and making purchases, establish a budget for the event. This will help you stay on track and avoid overspending. Be sure to include all of the costs associated with the event, such as venue rental, catering, decorations, and any entertainment or activities.

Create a timeline

Creating a timeline will help you stay organized and ensure that you don't miss any important deadlines. Start by working backwards from the event date and identifying key milestones that need to be met along the way.

Establishing a program or agenda

Creating a detailed itinerary will help you stay organized and ensure that everything runs smoothly on the day of the event. When creating your itinerary, be sure to consider the purpose and goal of the event, determine the order of events, and include time for breaks, meals, and other activities.

Book a venue

Once you've established the purpose and scope of your event, it's time to book a venue. When looking for a venue, consider factors like the size of the venue, the location of the venue, the availability of the venue on your desired date, and the amenities offered by the venue.

Hire vendors

Depending on the type of event you're planning, you may need to hire vendors like caterers, florists, and photographers. When hiring vendors, be sure to get multiple quotes, check references, ask about their availability on your desired date, review their portfolio or sample work, and consider any dietary restrictions or special needs of your guests.

Create a marketing plan

Creating a marketing plan will help you determine how much food, beverages, and other supplies you'll need for the event. When creating a guest list, be sure to consider the purpose and goal of the event, determine other businesses and organizations that can help you promote the event, create a social media strategy, and establish a plan for using email to promote the event.

Planning an event can be a daunting task, but with a little bit of preparation and organization, you can ensure that your event is a success.

In our next blog, we’ll look at the next step in the process, The Pre-Event Phase.

 

| Credits: Author: Jacintha Payne; Photography - Ali Henderson |

EVENTS, BUSINESS, HOSPITALITY, ORGANIZATIONJACINTHA PAYNEEVENT PLANNINGComment