How To Get The Best Out Of Your Events Planner
Our advice is to get in touch with someone who has experience. Someone who has all the industry knowledge and know-how you may be lacking; an Event Planner.
In this article we outline all the qualities a good Events Planner should have and what you need to do to get the best out of them.
One of the biggest advantages to working with a specialist Event Planner is you can hand over pretty much every aspect of the organising and execution of it to them. But, an Event Planner is only as good as their brief so it’s crucial to give them as much information upfront as possible. Any reputable planner worth their salt will bombard you with questions from the outset, not because they’re nosy but because they want to ensure they deliver on your event’s objective while providing a great service to make you look good in front of the boss!
Ultimately this is the Event Planner’s opportunity to build a long-standing relationship with you, by delivering an experience you won’t forget. In short, they are your right hand and the greatest support you can have when organising a corporate event.
The Brief
So what does the initial brief process look like? Well, here at Gray Dawes one of our experienced Event Planners would ask you various questions, some obvious and some that you may not have thought about, all with the goal of understanding your wants, needs and expectations from the event. This exploration process starts as soon as we receive your enquiry. This usually comes in the form of a video call, where you can put a face to a name as we introduce ourselves and ask you for the initial details, such as destination preferences, theme ideas, dates, attendee numbers and budget.
But it doesn’t stop there. We like to get as granular as possible as early as possible, so we’ll aim to find out your likes, dislikes, the must haves (and have nots), the objective of the event and what does the ROI look like for you? This is also the perfect opportunity to understand your appetite for trying something different! This will all help us form the very best proposal that’s right for you, meets your objectives and delivers a positive ROI.
The Proposal
One of the biggest hurdles a good Event Planner must overcome is managing expectations. But keeping you updated at every step of the process, so you can report back to your internal stakeholders, should be an essential factor when selecting your Planner.
If you have requested a proposal for a fully managed, all singing and dancing event, you need to appreciate that won’t be emailed over to you within a few hours. If you’re told it will be, then you need to question the validity of the Events Management Company you’re talking to and their ability to deliver what you need. On the other hand, a proposal shouldn’t take any longer than a week, either.
Likewise, if the location is overseas then it’s the Event Planner’s responsibility to let you know it can take longer due to time differences, local challenges and the complexities COVID-19 has added. At Gray Dawes Events we always aim to give realistic timeframes every step of the way and organise regular check ins to keep our clients up to date with progress and get their valuable feedback.
The Budget
When approaching an Event Planner, one of our top tips is to make the budget clear from the outset and do some research of your own to see what you could plan yourself for the money. This will give you a good idea of what’s achievable on your own and therefore place any subsequent proposal into perspective. It goes without saying that when commissioning an Events Management Company, you’re paying for a service and the peace of mind that everything is done for you; but you are also paying to ensure budget doesn’t budge.
Any good Event Planner should give as realistic and accurate costs as possible, but a really good one will be mindful that costs and exchange rates can change and should factor these fluctuations into a proposal. They should also use all their industry knowledge and connections to secure you the best deals on flights, accommodation, venues and activities. Transparency is key and being as accurate as possible from the outset, during planning and execution, will help avoid any nasty surprises post-event. Nothing can spoil a great experience like an unexpected invoice!
To summarise, these are our top tips to getting the best out of your Events Planner:
- Think exactly what you are trying to achieve from your event before approaching an Events Management Company.
- Brief the Event Planner as much as possible so they know what you expect from your event from the word go.
- Ensure that you are kept regularly updated but be mindful that there may be multiple time zones which can affect wait times.
- Do your own research on what is achievable on your own before approaching an Events Management Company.
- Set your budget and don’t budge but be realistic about what you can afford.
- Remember, your Event Planner is there to support you from start to finish; advice is free so you can never ask enough questions.
The next time someone throws an event your way, don’t panic. Use the professionals at Gray Dawes Events – we’d relish the opportunity to take the stress out of your hands, make you look good in front of the boss and deliver a corporate experience you and your colleagues will never forget… for all the right reasons!
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