THE FORUM GROUP – Sydney Event Management Company

Event Planning has never been made easier with this great new tool we discovered called Yuuguu. When working with our clients, suppliers, partners and inhouse event coordinators, there is sure to be someone who is pressed for time or can make that travel arrangement to the ever important meeting.  Event Planners are using Yuuguu to meet virtually and screen share so important documents can be viewed and still approved.  Be sure to add this to your Event Planning Guide.

• Are you interstate or overseas but need to meet?
• Are you pushed for time and need to go over important documents in a hurry?
• Do you need to organize a committee meeting and share important documents visually?

We’ve discovered Yuuguu can solve all these problems.  You can still meet face-to-face (virtually) via Yuuguu (more…)

When it comes to event planning, it can be tough. You not only have to worry about all the major details but you have to deal with all the little things as well. Each problem that you run into should teach you some kind of lesson for your next event.  Knowing about some common pitfalls upfront before getting into the thick of event management can save a great deal of stress and time.

5 Pitfalls to Avoid!

1. Don’t get overwhelmed with the details
The first thing that you should avoid when it comes to planning your next event is getting overwhelmed with details. If the event is getting bigger and bigger and you’ve seemed to have lost control over things, you may need to get help.

2. Make sure you get help or outsource tasks early on in the planning phase
If you don’t have an assistant or a colleague to help you, you could ask for some external help from an event management company otherwise you will get in a lot of trouble and it could ruin the event. This is why it is important to get help, and make sure it is early on in the planning phase. You have to plan where you are going to have the event, the theme, the decorations, the caterers, confirm the suppliers you want to use and draft a budget and lots more!! Don’t make this decision too late in the piece.

3. Always have contracts
The third pitfall to avoid is not having contracts. You must have a written contract for everything. Just make sure that you have it in writing what you are paying them, why you are paying them, what you expect from them and the day and times that they need to show up with the goods. If you don’t, that supplier could overbook or increase the costs on you and there is nothing you can do.

4. Budget to include a profit
The fourth pitfall to avoid is not making a profit on your event. The way to successfully set a budget is to draft a budget depending on how much income you have confirmed and then itemize all your expenses. You can’t start planning your event until the budget is signed off and approved by all parties. The most important tip when drafting a budget is to have a ten percent contingency included in your expenses.

5. Don’t relax too far in advance
The fifth and final pitfall to avoid is relaxing too far in advance. A lot of people will plan an event so far ahead that they think that they can take it easy the day before or even the day of the event. You need to realize that when you find extra time to relax, make some phone calls to reconfirm all suppliers.

For more nuts and bolts ideas for event planning download The Forum Group’s 25 page FREE EBook.