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How to Plan an Event

Planning an event for a large number of people is never easy, but it’s a skill that many of us have to learn at one point or another. Whether you are planning small charity event at a school, a medium-sized conference for teachers or a large-scale wedding or concert, following the proper steps will ensure that your event goes off without a hitch.

The first element of event planning to consider is the venue. Make sure you find one that is appropriate in size and that can handle all of your technical requirements. If you are planning a large wedding, for instance, make sure you find a venue that has enough room for tables and a dance floor, if that’s what you require. If it’s an outdoor event, make sure the venue has contingency plans in place in case it rains. You should also inquire about technology that you may need, such as a sound system. An event can be ruined if a speaker or presenter finds out too late that a computer system he needs is suddenly unavailable.

Once you have booked a venue that seems appropriate for the event, it is time to take care of food service. If you are hiring a catering company, ask people you know for recommendations for a good one. Meet with the caterer and discuss what kind of food you want. Think about whether there will be places for attendees to sit and eat, or whether they will have to stand. If you are going without a caterer, find volunteers well in advance to contribute food items. Don’t forget that you will need plates, cutlery, napkins and drinks. Be proactive and plan ahead for people who might have food allergies and dietary restrictions. Always make sure you have a vegetarian option available for those who don’t eat meat.

Perhaps the most important aspect of event planning concerns the logistics and clean up. Once you know how many people are going to attend, think about how many tables, chairs and other equipment you will need. If you are organizing a craft fair, for example, you will need to consider how many tables you will need and where they will all be placed. Exhibitors might need tape and pens at the last minute, so be sure to have extra supplies on hand for their use. Be sure to coordinate with the venue about who is in charge of cleaning up afterwards. If you are responsible, ask for volunteers in advance to stay behind to help you restore order.…

Reduce Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt to Get More Event Registrations

Stories about credit card fraud and undelivered products and services that have been purchased online get a lot of attention. Fortunately, this attention brings awareness to the risks out there.

Event planners trying to get people to register and pay online may not think this way, but if you take a few easy steps to reduce fear, uncertainty and doubt in your registration process, it will give you a strong competitive advantage and get more people signing up for your events.

Ways to reduce fear, uncertainty and doubt to get more registrations:

Give the name, phone number and email address of a real person people can contact if they have questions or concerns.

Add logos to your form to show that you have met certain business and security standards such as the Better Business Bureau logo, the Security logo for the company providing the SSL certificate, etc.

Have a privacy policy easily accessible.

State the cancellation and refund policy and make it fair and friendly.

Make it clear what is and what isn’t included in the registration fee.

Avoid automatically redirecting people to a different webpage or trying to mask web addresses.

Tell people what to do with clear and concise instructions. What you think is obvious may not be to everyone.

Make your form clean and neat with everything nicely lined up, text wrapping in good places and sufficient and consistent spacing between elements to give it a professional appearance.

Don’t make people create an account with your registration company before they can register for your event.

Don’t have advertising on your form unless it’s a sponsor for your event.

Make sure the registration form is branded to match your website or event marketing material to give you a consistent look.

Make sure registrants don’t get any kind of pop up security warnings from their browser.

Finally, make sure that you choose your online registration provider carefully. A good provider will help you create a good form and make recommendations that will reduce fear, uncertainty and doubt to help your events succeed.…

How Do I Choose The Best Event Planning Courses?

Event planning is an interesting field for those who have talent, taste and are capable of taking the responsibilities. Nowadays people hire event planners to arrange their functions to make them successful. Earlier the event planners were considered to arrange big business events or commercial shows but now people want the same perfection in their home functions like wedding, parties and even children’s birthday parties and that is why many people are coming into this field and having a successful career. As the clients demand perfection in their events, the event planners also strive for perfection in their skills and opt for taking event planning courses. But the question is ”how to choose the best event planning courses?” well we can help you to decide that which type of course is better for you so you can think on the proper lines.

First thing you should consider is your own interest; find your own self and your aptitude. You already know that you want to become an event planner but what kind of event you can handle better? If you want to get a course for wedding and party planning or you are more interested in the other kind of events; there are different types of courses for specific fields.

Find a good institution; always investigate about the institution and the teachers who are training the students. Make sure that the students who have taken courses from that institution are satisfied with the studies and working well after taking course from there.

Check the courses for quality; if you are taking distant learning course then make sure the institution is providing you with proper course. Does the institution assign you to a personal tutor? Check if there are any tests or assessments you have to complete during the course? And what is the procedure to take the tests.

Check the price of any course and see if there is any financial aid available, and check if the price of the course includes all material you will require.

You can check the curriculum of the course and see what is being taught in the school as the curriculum may vary in the institutions because some focus on basics, some courses cover many things such as budgeting, creating guest list, hiring vendors, and other general topics and some look into the way of starting business.

See what the duration of the course is and make sure the school will give you a certificate or diploma after completing the course.

Focus on these points before taking any event planning course and find out which one suits you better.…

Event Planning Training – How To Start Your Own Event Planning Business

Today event planners play a major role in every aspect of life. The reason is that people are incapable of organizing their own event and they rely on them. The world has advanced so much that it is necessary for the businesses to organizing various events in order to maintain a good image of their firms and to increase the sales of their products through marketing. On the other hand, people want to organize so many types of event in their personal lives and without the help of event planners they cannot do so.

Therefore it has become a very flourishing business in which people earn a great deal of money. If you are interested in event planning then it is the best time to start your own business. No matter how deteriorated the economic conditions of the world have become, different firms are still organizing various conferences because they have to keep marketing their products, satisfy clients and staff by providing banquets and conventions. They do not have enough time to make the arrangements themselves therefore they want event planners to do this job. Hence, you can earn great deal of profits.

However, you need proper event planning training before starting a business of your own. You need to be highly organized and energetic to become an event planner as this profession requires a lot of dedication. The good part is that there is no start up cost to start this business, as long as you have a computer, 24/7 internet facility, stationary and telephone you can do pretty well.

The first and the foremost thing that you have to do are to gain as much knowledge as you can about how events are organized in your area. This information can be easily found over the internet and in abundance. Event planning training is also given by many reputable institutions that will be very helpful for you. These institutions offer short courses and certificates in different kinds of event planning that can be completed in a short period of time.

After you have obtained event planning training then the next step is to find vendors and make friendly relations with them. An event does not only need an event planner but it also needs reliable services like catering, lighting, decorations etc. On the other hand they will also help in attracting more clients.

The last part is to advertise your business. Even in this aspect, you do not have to spend a lot of money because your event planning training will be enough to impress the consumers. Make pamphlets and banners which tell all the benefits that your firm will provide, the certificates that you have acquired, the dedication that you will show in working with others and your contact information.

Slowly you will start making customers and then you can think about increasing your staff.…

The Art of Mixing and Matching in Event Design

The art of mixing and matching is a trend in weddings and many events that will stand the test of time. It is done all the time in fashion, so why not transfer those styles into your wedding? This is a positive trend for couples on a budget and it transforms your wedding from the everyday ordinary to the extraordinary. It brings your event into another dimension with visual layers and an eclectic twist.

The trend of mixing and matching still maintains a cohesive style while mixing both natural and colorful elements, allowing a fun, relaxed and joyful atmosphere for your guests.

Tables: Mixing table shapes is a great and simple way to add visual interest to your event. Using round, square and even rectangle-shaped tables together is an easy way for couples to assign seats for guests and group different numbers of people together.

Chairs: A great way to give your reception a funky and eclectic twist is mixing the style and color of your chairs. Pick 3 to 4 hues and styles and evenly distribute them around the reception space. You could also pick 3 to 4 different structures of chairs that are the same color. There are several ways to complete this trend and convey your own personal style.

Patterns and Textures: Mixing various patterns on your tables using linens, napkins, menu cards and more is a beautiful way to show your eclectic and whimsical sense of style. Your guests will talk and it also adds a unique element to the overall design of each table. Don’t be afraid to mix polka dots with a chevron pattern, or stripes with circles, or flower patterns with solid shapes.

China: Using various styles of mismatched china is another fun way to exemplify this trend. Mix and match various styles of vintage china that have different colors and patterns. To keep the look coherent, choose pieces of the same size.

Centerpieces: Mixing and matching various styles of centerpieces is a very impactful way to create unique visual interest, bringing your guests attention to the center of each table. You can certainly have tall and short centerpieces, one large arrangement or five small arrangements on each table. Just make sure there is a commonality amongst each centerpiece. Choose similar flowers, vases, candles, or a general color palette.

Wedding Party: The fashion and look of the wedding party is one of the top elements in a wedding following the mix and match trend. In the last few years, couples are getting away from the idea that everyone has to look exactly the same… dress, shoes, hair, nails. Couples are now venturing out of their comfort zone, picking different colors completely or choosing the same color but different dress styles. The unifying theme could be the same shoe or jewelry. This trend sets the tone of the wedding, telling guests to get ready for a fun and festive evening ahead.

The most important thing to remember when applying this trend is to make sure there is a cohesiveness or “common thread” that runs throughout the ceremony and reception. Whether you use all of the above styles of mixing and matching or just a few, remember that to execute this successfully, choose an element that ties it all together.…

5 Trends From the Last 10 Years for Students in Event Planning Courses

Event planning is a profession that has seen a lot of change and innovation in recent years. Some of the change is linked to change in our culture at large (the omnipresence of gadgets, the new reliance on social media networks), but some of it has to do with the fact that event organisation is a fairly new profession: as such, it is still finding its way, making it a particularly exciting time to be enrolled in event planning courses.

The staples of the curriculum in your event planning courses may change between now and graduation. But here are some recent trends that you may encounter in your classes or in the field.

1. Compostable meal buckets.

Are you contemplating a career organizing large outdoor events such as concerts and music festivals after your event planning courses?

One of this decade’s major trends – sustainable event management – will then most likely influence the choices you make after completing your event management courses.

Increasingly, concert and festival organizers want to be able to advertise that their larger scale events are low-carbon or carbon-neutral.

Graduates of event planning courses need to identify service providers that can help meet these goals, including caterers that can provide compostable food in compostable packages.

2. Emphasis on interactive.

If you can learn just one thing in the time that you are enrolled in event management courses, it will probably be the importance of innovation, especially when it comes to engaging guests.

Event organisation professionals are experimenting with such new practices as providing every table with an iPad where guests can help “plan” the event as it progresses, e.g., request a song, order a particular cocktail, change the colour of the lighting, etc. New ideas like this are in such constant evolution that it is hard to say if and when they will make it into event planner courses textbooks. At this rate of innovation, the textbooks themselves may require daily digital updates.

3. Waste-reducing recyclable button badges.

Name tags are just one aspect of event planning that has seen a lot of experimentation in recent years. Increasingly, disposable labels and buttons are a no-no. In your event planning courses, you will learn about the new range of options, including recyclable badges designed to hang from buttons.

4. Welcome bags (swag bags) for out-of-town guests (conferences, weddings)

As with so many things in our culture, event planning often takes inspiration from Hollywood celebs. Enter, the swag bag, aka the goodie bag for adults, containing such treats as restaurant coupons, taxi coupons, moisturizer, breath mints, headache medication, etc. You may learn in your event planning courses to add in place-specific items, e.g., maple candy for out-of-country visitors to Canada.

5. Advice keepsakes for mothers-to-be

In your event planner courses you will learn different ways if involving guests in certain kinds of events. One type of event that you may end up organizing is baby showers. It has become increasingly common over the past ten years to encourage guests to leave written words of advice for the guest of honour. These messages double as a keepsake, long after baby is born.

Many of the tips that you learn in event planning courses will serve more than one purpose, e.g., increasing the feeling of community at an event and serving as a reminder of the event afterwards.

These trends are just the tip of an iceberg in an industry that itself is trending.…

Event Planning – How to Make an Event Successful

Event planning is not an impossible task of ordinary people however, it is difficult. If you are not hiring any event planning firm to organize your event then you will need a lot of stamina to handle every task accordingly. There are going to be times when you will feel very frustrated and want to leave everything but if you manage to be patient and energetic then your event will definitely be successful.

Proper event planning depends on how much knowledge you have regarding it. Therefore, before you start making any arrangements; gain as much information about event management as you can. There best way is to write down all your aims and goals on papers and keep track of your commitments and appointments daily. Moreover, following is a method given, which will help you in organizing an outstanding event:

1. DECIDING THE VENUE:

This is the first task that you have to fulfill. While you are deciding the location of your event you have to keep following things in mind

a. The venue should be easily reachable for everyone.

b. The space provided should be enough for the guests you are inviting

c. It should match your theme and

d. If there is a need for any changes in the location

After discussing all the above queries with the location manager, fix a confirm date for your event.

2. WRITE DOWN THE ACTIVITIES OF THE EVENT:

After deciding the theme of the event, you have to choose activities accordingly. Write down those activities on paper and then make them in order. Moreover, write down the time each activity will take for example how much time the ceremony will take, the meals, entertainment etc. Plan an activity or two that will keep the interest of your guests and they do not get bored.

3. CREATE A BUDGET:

This is one of the important aspects of event planning. It will be really helpful if you write down all the expenses that you have to make to arrange the event so that you can gather enough funds for it. Furthermore, keep extra money aside for unexpected expenses.

4. DEVELOP GOOD RELATIONS WITH THE VENDORS:

If you want your event to be perfect then you need to maintain good relations with your providers. Choose those services that you have come to know from reliable sources. Avert those vendors who do not give you much attention because of their other clients. There is no harm in negotiating with them about lowering down the prices and whatever deal is made, get it written down on paper so that no confusion develops later on.

Hence, these are most important steps that you should take when organizing an event so that it goes smooth till the end of the day. Remember not to take too much stress in this task because then you will be ruining your own health.…

Some Exotic New York Venues For Your Next Event

Are you planning to host a great party in New York City? It is always known that NYC is a great place which has been hosting thousands of parties or events every year on all scale. It is a hotspot for any kind of event be it any wedding reception, corporate event, meeting or any special moment. New York City has great venues on its list which organizes parties and big events. Venues like restaurants, hotels, conference centers, resorts, exhibit places and convention centers are very famous for organizing the events. Your event may be either big or a very small get together and NYC has everything for all its guests and people. These venues in New York have an ideal atmosphere and offers A class services along with great range of the amenities. The casual grace of the venue and the yummy food offered simply makes your event superb.

Some of the most famous and exotic venues in New York City for hosting any event are as follows:

Park Central New York Hotel: This hotel is a perfect place in order to plan out any meeting, party or any gathering. The hall is very spacious and it is perfectly arranged with numerous chairs, lighting and beautifully decorated. The hotel has some of the most relishing food for its guest which contributes a lot to the event. The staff and the services are simply great which makes your day even smoother.

Waldorf Astoria: It is a very well known hotel in New York City. It has earned a lot of fame due to its elegant accommodations and very special amenities which includes boutiques, banquets and restaurants. It has very spacious conference hall which accommodates thousands of people for any event. The sumptuous cuisine and chic décor makes your event even greater.

New York Marriott-Marquis: This very famous hotel is situated in the focal of heart of the New York in the Times Square and has a policy of smoke free. This huge place has very big restaurants which counts six in numbers and has the bars with high speed elevators and very sparkly rooms. This huge place is an ideal place for hosting a special event for any special person with the cost effective services.

New York City is blessed with numerous superbly decorated and great amenities which promise to make your event a memorable one not only for you but also for all your guests.…

I Love it When a Plan Comes Together

Way back in grade six I was a huge fan of the A-Team… so big in fact that I even had the lunch box. Watching Faceman and B.A. Baracus mess-up those bad guys was a great way to unwind from a stressful day in the classroom and the pressure of practicing my Corey Hart lip sink act for the all-school air band competition. However, it was Hannibal (Col. John Smith) who made that show one of my all-time favorites (Knight Rider and Air Wolf were #2 and #3). What inspired me about his character was that he always new how to deliver justice; he knew that the only way to fight chaos was to make a plan and then kick some ass. I like that kind of action.

In the event world planners so often tackle their projects by simply focusing on the logistics and I think that’s only half the plan. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge advocate of managing an event project scrupulously but event planners need to realize that so often they’re brought in to make sense out of chaos but that’s only a small part of the bigger picture. Simply cleaning up someone else’s mess is not a great scenario for a professional who knows how to make a gathering into a memorable event that has a flare no one else but you can bring. Now, if the event is reoccurring, or you’ve been slotted in as the flavour/planner of the year, or you’re taking over from an employee, you’re likely to have very little input into the strategic nature of the project. The best you’ll be able to do is simply organize the tasks, deliverables, timelines, suppliers, and people in order to pull off the gig. That’s just the way it is sometimes.

Now, please know that I wouldn’t recommend to any event professional that they mess with an event right out of the gate as it’s important to build trust with your client. As well, you rarely know all of all the factors, stakeholders, and have a big enough picture when you first get involved. However, if you’re going to do more than be an event administrator you’ll need to put a plan together that does more than just make sense of chaos but it actually helps transition the project into an event that creates better results and elevates you to the stakeholder level. It’s like your own little act of justice against the previous perpetrator (planner).

I suggest creating a report that shows your client the best and worst of their event and make sure your recommendations are quick to follow. Do this by doing two simple things: 1) Take detailed notes throughout the project planning period and the actual event that shows the growth areas and strategic outcomes that were missed. Then, with permission of course, send out a detailed post-event evaluation for stakeholders, suppliers, and guests (personally I like to use SurveyMonkey) so that you can collect feedback to support your vision. Try not to ask to many leading questions but highlight the areas that you perceive as critical to helping your clients get the most out of their event.

At the end of the day it’s all about putting a plan together and making sure that it’s helping build your legacy with the event and your client. Trust me, the A-Team is never wrong.…

Event Lighting to Make Your Event a Success

Normally the two main lighting categories can be classified into Entertainment and Agriculture lighting. In the entertainment industry, event lighting is booming since technology plays a huge role in it.

Event lighting has huge scope to improve since more and more people understand the advantages of having proper luminous lighting to make any event successful. Weddings, discotheques and weddings use these gimmicks to transform any empty space into an elegant and sophisticated venue.

In the entertainment industry lighting plays a supporting role with the other elements use for that particular event. Without lighting the event will look dull and boring. So it is very important that you take very good care of your guests by giving them a night to remember. You will always be able to find Event lighting bay area companies that are affordable and who are known for their professionalism.

Event lighting can be used for:

Cake Lighting: So that when the birthday girl/boy cuts the cake the decoration around the cake is visible and noticed by your guests. When it comes to your children you want to give them the best on this special occasion so that it can be captured are a beautiful memory and will stay with you for a lifetime.

Bar lighting: At any occasion where there are beverages served majority of your guests will surround the bar. So that it looks exceptionally exquisite and unique proper lighting must be around to highlight the d?�cor around it.

Buffet lighting: Lights are put around the buffet table to even enhance the beauty of the food presentation.

Dance floor lighting: When it comes to having fun at any event, the dance floor is the place where it all happens. You need some very good lighting to give the dance floor a more vibrant and inviting look. If the lighting is good your guests will have a wonderful time since the lights and the music will go hand in hand.

Different Event lighting bay area companies analyze the project and check which kind of equipment is required. Once they know which lights are needed they start to install them, probably one day before the event or on that same day. It is always advisable to get all the work done from one service provider so that there is no chaos during the event. Another thing to keep in mind is that the company you decide to hire should make full arrangements of any backup that is required.

The lighting that is used for an event should have a purpose and a theme to it. It should highlight areas like the stage, ramp, bar and so on. It’s also important that you keep the lighting simple so that there is not too much going on in one space, so that the impact of the lights is distributed equally.…