For one, they’re extremely organized and know how to keep their cool under pressure. A big event has a lot of moving parts that must go smoothly, so it’s crucial that planners are able to streamline and multitask. The rental booking system has proved to be great for the event planners as it saves time and money by automating all time-consuming processes by keeping products, orders, clients, and accounting in one place, so the planners can focus on satisfying their customers.
For another thing, they’re skilled at networking. Event planners have to coordinate with various vendors, so if you’d rather work solo, this business is probably not for you. If you think these qualities describe you, and you’re dreaming of starting your own event planning business, these few tips will keep you on the right track.
Be meticulous with your bookkeeping
Being fully accountable for every penny you spend is essential from the very beginning. In this type of business, spending on both time and money can get away from you quickly. Consider hiring an accountant before you ever plan an event. Ask them to get your books in order and assist you in keeping meticulous records. There are now booking apps like After School Club Booking System that you can use.Take the path to certification
You don’t have to have certification to become an event planner, but those credentials can certainly help land your business. This is especially true if you’d like your business to include large corporate events for big-name companies. To get certified in event planning, you’ll need to take the Certified Special Events Professional Exam. You’re only eligible to take the exam after three years of full-time employment in the industry, but you can go about this in a couple of ways.One way is to attend an event planning program, such as the ones at International Institute of Event Management, Emory University, or QC Event School. These programs will prepare you in areas such as budgeting, aesthetics, contracts, and more. You can then either get an internship or branch out on your own. An internship is one of the best ways to learn the industry and get insider knowledge before starting your own business.
Another way to get ready for the exam is to simply start your own business from scratch and work at it full-time for three years. Doing it this way is more difficult, though, because it takes time to build up enough clients to make it a full-time venture.
Choose a niche
Picking a niche for any business is crucial for success. Many people see this as being counterintuitive because being available for all events should mean more business. But this is actually not true at all. Think about planning your wedding. If you used an event planner, did you search for someone who did party and event planning, or did you search specifically for a wedding planner? If you’re like most people, you wouldn’t trust your wedding to someone who planned your company’s corporate event.When you specialize, you create a niche for yourself and people are more likely to view you as an expert in your field. Also, choosing a niche helps with costs, because you’ll be purchasing just one type of supplies and working with most of the same vendors.
This usually gets you more discounts in the long run. For example, if you specialize in birthday parties and consistently rent equipment from the same company, they’re likely to give you a discount on arcade game rentals the next time you throw a party.
