Event Planner Job Description Information

To an outsider, event planning may seem like a fun, social career path, but upon closer inspection, it is a difficult job that requires a lot of skills. Event planning is not about planning parties. It is about details, vision, organization and the means to pull off both big and small events without a hitch. Event planners can work on a freelance basis or for an event planning company, which is popular in wedding planning. In addition, many nonprofit organizations and for-profit corporations hire event planners as part of their staffs.

 

Conference and Convention Planning

• Businesses may hire an event planner to coordinate corporate meetings and conventions. These are usually large-scale events that require the event planner to arrange meals, travel, hotel accommodations and activities for the attendees. He will also arrange multimedia equipment and room setup and sometimes help put together handouts for attendees. This must all be done within a specified budget.

Fund-Raising Events

• The planner for a nonprofit fund-raising event is usually a hired staff member. She works closely with the CEO and board members in brainstorming ideas for the event. Once the theme is decided, she is responsible for implementing it from start to finish. Responsibilities include booking the venue, advertising, inviting attendees, ordering food, arranging activities, working with vendors and setting up the event. She must work within a very tight budget and may need to solicit sponsorships from major donors.

Wedding Planning

• Weddings require detailed planning and for this reason many couples hire wedding planners. The planner works closely with the couple and books the venue and church, plans the meal, hires the entertainment and a photographer, helps guests book their hotels, plans a schedule for the day and makes sure everything goes smoothly.

Skills

• An event planner must have above-average communication and organizational skills. He must also be able to multitask, think outside the box, think on his feet and troubleshoot problems. The planner must have the ability to work with all types of people and be able to visualize an event not only from start to finish, but also the steps he will take to accomplish it.

Requirements

• There are no set educational requirements for an event planner. Most employers require an undergraduate degree in a related field, such as hospitality management, communications or business. Aside from a college degree, an event planner must have experience. Most employers want to hire someone who has planned similar events or has at least planned several large-scale events. A good way to get experience is to volunteer to help plan a local event or offer to plan events for friends and family. For example, an aspiring planner could offer to plan a friend’s wedding for free.

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Event Planner Salary Information

An event planner meets with clients to help plan events, writing proposals for meetings, parties and weddings, and contracting musicians, photographers and caterers. Event planning is a fast-paced, amazingly varied career that can bring in $25,000 to $75,000 annually, as of 2009. Some key factors separate the high dollar earners from the crowd.

 

Experience

• Large corporations often have event planners on staff to coordinate company events, annual meetings, trade shows, award ceremonies, executive retreats and more. They will develop everything from the theme to the invitations to the decorations. So If the company has an annual Christmas party, you can bet the event planners have been working hard. Event planners who work for large corporations and have three to five years of experience averaged an annual base salary of $42,373, according to a 2005 study. But those with 10 years of experience increased their salaries by three per cent. Experience also led to promotion, and meeting planners who moved up to senior status reported a $10,000 annual increase over those with less experience and status.

Corporate Advancement

• Meeting planners in corporate life need to do more than maintain the status quo. To keep advancing in status and in income, they need to improve their skills in overall business savvy, management and strategic planning. To continue their climb, they often become experts in communication and marketing, mastering Web 2.0 potential for reaching out to the corporate public.

Association Level

• Almost every industry and affinity group has its own association, whether it is a group just for hotel managers, medical specialists or model train collectors. Marketing professionals, tourism groups and government and public health officials all belong go to these associations to keep up to date on industry standards and trends. Their conventions, trade shows, meetings and events all have to be planned and coordinated. Because associations are usually non-profit, their meeting planners have a lower pay scale than corporate planners. In fact, at all levels of experience and status, association planners earn an average of 16 percent less. Base salary differences are even more dramatic at the director level in associations, as they make as much as 36 percent less.

Independent Planners

• One-person shops make up 45 percent of independent event planners, including those specializing in weddings, private parties and fundraisers. They may have started out at corporations, associations or event planning companies, then decided to to out on their own, usually taking a pay cut to do so. A very small percentage of independent event planning companies have more than 11 employees, the majority having a staff of two to 10. In these small companies, profit margins are not hefty. Yet, having a lower overhead and leaner staff makes it possible for the smaller event planning businesses to charge less and provide more personal service. Those in the private sector value working one on one with an event planner and appreciate the economies they achieve in planning weddings and parties. Although the earning potential may not be as high for an independent event planner, the work and job satisfaction can be more gratifying.

Average Income

• Overall income averages for event planners vary in the United States. For instance, in California, independent planners made $30,000 to $40,000 a year in 2005, while in Texas, pay started at $25,000. The good news is that planners who handle events as diverse as movie premieres, weddings, trade shows and banquets often receive tips.The standard gratuity is15 to 20 percent of the cost of the service. For the long hours and weekends event planners put in, tips are certainly warranted. It may take about 150 hours for an event planner and staff to produce an important event, whether it is a political rally or an awards ceremony.

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How to Become a Event Planner

Event planning can be a great business for someone with a knack for hosting parties. Event planners usually succeed once they have a good client base and referrals.

1. Figure out what you are good at when it comes to party planning. This can be weddings, corporate events, birthday parties or any number of other events that need planning.
2. Calculate what your startup costs are. This can be small to large, depending on what services you want to offer your clients.
3. Gain some experience in event planning by getting some certificates and taking classes marketing, accounting and sales.
4. Market yourself as a businessperson to everyone you intend to work with, even though you don't. You want to appear professional in every situation so people want to hire you for the job. This includes email and phone calls.
5. Pass out business cards with your contact information, logo and tagline to as many people as possible.
6. Develop a website that lets your potential clients know what you offer. Optimize your site for search engines as well. The higher up in the search engines, the more hits you get, the more people look through your site and the more likely someone hires you.
7. Create a portfolio with past projects, including personal ones, so people can see your work.

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