How to Plan an Event

Planning any event can be very stressful, overwhelming, and confusing.  It is easy to forget or overlook an aspect that you needed for your event.  This how to will hopefully help remind you of everything that should be done for your event!

Before planning any event some type of budget needs to be set.  The budget can be set in stone, or it can be flexible, but to have an idea on how much you are able to spend is very important in planning any event.

After figuring out the budget of the event you are having, the next aspect that should be dealt with is location.  Where are you going to have your event?  You should be calling venues months before the event, if you wait too long finding a venue will be difficult.  Call different venues and get an idea of what they provide, how big the room is, and of course how much they cost.  Venues can provide services such as catering, decorations, and set up.  Yet, not all venues will provide these services so ask specific questions to make sure you know what is expected out of you as the event planner.  Visiting the venues before you put down the deposit is a must.  This way you can see the room and also meet with someone who works with the venue who will be able to answer any questions.  Once you find a venue, put down the deposit.

Now that you have a date, and location you need guests.  Start recruiting people for the event as soon as you can.  Get people interested early so that they can tell their friends and you can have a large amount of attendees.  If your event involves selling tickets, you have to let people know where and when to buy them.  You can put up posters, and make announcements about the ticket sales.  Make the event seem fun and exciting, and an event that should not be missed.  Using facebook or other social networking sites can also help to promote your event, and let a lot of people know about tickets sales and other aspects of the events quickly and cheap.

People need to eat.  Now some events may not provide food, but for the most part your guests are going to want to eat.  Discussing with the venue dining options is important.  If they have catering at the hotel you have to pick a menu, decide if you want a sit-down or buffet style meal, and make any other decisions that have to be made.  If you plan on providing your own food, figure out how you are going to do it.  You can buy platter from a local supermarket or have a caterer come, but you need to feed your guests.

One of the most important aspects of any event is entertainment.  If the event is a concert, make sure that you get a great band who can put on an amazing performance for the crowd.  If your event is a prom, or wedding, having the right band or DJ can make or break your event.  Getting the best entertainment is not an easy task.  You can go online and look on websites but how will you know if who you are hiring will provide what you need in the event?  Take into consideration hiring an agent who works with bands and DJs and will be able to provide you with entertainment that they know will be right for your occasion.  You can find these on event planning websites.  Once you have looked around and found the entertainment that you feel will be the best for your event book them.

Depending on the entertainment you have hired you may have to do some more work.  Some entertainment will bring everything they need to perform while others may not come so prepared.  Know what, if anything, you need to provide for your entertainment so that the night will run smoothly and they will be able to perform to their best ability. 

Now that you have got a date, place, people, food, and entertainment you need decorations.  Decoration prices can range dramatically depending on what you want.  If you are making centerpieces it is important to know the number of tables that will be at the venue, a question that can be asked of a staff member.  If you want fresh flowers arranged professionally you are going to have to spend a good amount of money, yet if you go to a craft store and get fake flowers you can spend a small amount of money. 

Decorations can be balloons, flowers, candles, anything you want can be used to decorate.  You can hire a professional to help decorate or you can get some friends along with yourself to hand make the decorations.  After deciding what you are going to use to decorate, you need to figure out how you are going to get the decorations to the venue and when.  If you are working with a professional they will most likely do the set up for you.  Yet, if you make the decorations yourself you are going to have to figure out how to get the decorations to the venues and when to set them up.

Now that everything for your event is pretty much set and ready to go, make sure people know how they are going to get there.  You can provide busses for your event or have people get their own transportation.  But it is important for you to give people ideas and ways that they will be able to get to and from your event.  If you want to provide transportation calling different companies and finding the best deals for busses and other transportations is the way to go.  These busses can be for free or you can charge people a fee.  If you do plan on charging for the transportation you will probably want to sell transportation tickets when you are selling tickets to the event.

Once you have done all of these things your event should be set and ready to go.  Your guests will be excited and ready for the event and you will finally be able to relax and enjoy what you have created!

To Do List
Set a budget
Pick a Venue
Sell Tickets/Get people excited for the event
Will you provide Food
Find Entertainment
Make/Get Decorations
Will you provide Transportation

Sara Forino

Providence College