Definition:
Events that are well planned will have a higher chance of meeting the desired goals of the organizers and the enjoyment of the participants.
- What it is: The event planning process is a structured approach to defining and implementing the goals of the sponsoring organization and ensuring the enjoyment of the participant audience. This planning process will need to be comprehensive and exhaustive in defining what is required for a successful event. It will also need to have contingencies in place for the inevitable unexpected occurrences that are bound to happen at the worst possible time.
- What does it do: By having the planning process in place, the event can be planned and implemented with less effort and in a shorter amount of time than events that are implemented more randomly. Events without adequate planning are less likely to meet the goals of the sponsoring organization or create a satisfied group of participants.
Uses:
- How is it used: The event planning process is used by the organizing sponsor to define the purpose, identify the resources and create a plan that will lead to the success of the event
- Where: Events can be large and elaborate or small and intimate. Some elements are generally the same for most events and some are unique to the specific type of event you are planning. Some types of events that need to be planned include:
- Concerts and commercial programs: Large concert tours and other types of commercial shows will need to be planned for large venues and large crowds.
- Festivals and community events: These can include rodeos, county fairs, festivals like Strawberry days, Movie Festivals, Story Telling Festivals, Chock the block, Holiday Events, etc.
- Publicity events: These can be fun runs, Color Festivals, Latino festival, Dance or concert to publicize new ap, Athletic activities, tournaments, etc.
- Commercial Events (local or small) for profit or to raise money: Local food festival, Food truck rally, Asian night market, Gem show, craft show, and others
- Political event: Speeches, BBQs, rally, demonstration, etc.
- Conferences: clubs, professional societies, Business topics, Educational Conferences, Medical Conferences, etc.
- Business or group meeting: Businesses and organization groups will have onsite or offsite meetings for training, organization, and team building, etc.
- Charitable Fund Raising: Golf and other tournaments, dinners, contests, athletic activities, fun runs, concerts, dances, cultural events, etc.
- Why: For an event to be successful it needs a purpose, people need to be attracted or invited to come, people need to have useful or enjoyable participation and the event needs to be within budget. Without planning, it is unlikely that many of these purposes will be accomplished.
Limitations:
- Where it shouldn't be used: Spontaneous events do not need to be planned, but almost any other kind of event needs planning
- Any restrictions: none
- Warnings: Events can take on a life of their own. You must have continually followed up with the planning team to keep the event on the topic. You must make contingencies for elements of the event that might fall through, or where modifications need to be addressed.
Demonstrations:
Key Steps to Planning a Successful Event:
Five Steps to Event Planning:
Event Planning Tips: 10 Mistakes Most Event Planners Make:
Step-by-step process:
- Purpose, Goals, and Benefits: The first step of planning a project is making sure you know why you are holding the event and what outcomes you are hoping to achieve.
- What is the overall purpose of the event?
- What are the specific objectives of the event?
- Who is the audience for the event and why will they want to attend?
- How does the proposed event align with your organization's purpose, goals, and plans?
- What are the intended benefits or outcomes that the event will deliver (raise money, increase awareness, team building, etc.)?
- Is it part of an existing strategy or just a one-off good opportunity?
- What event activity will you plan and what stakeholders will be involved?
- Select Type and Theme for the event: What events have you considered, and what other events should you consider to meet the purpose and goals you have set out?
- How will you choose between the different event options you are considering? (Comparing Alternatives)
- Do we have capable people who are interested and willing to be involved?
- Who has a stake in the event? (individuals, relevant organizations, groups, clubs, etc.) that might work with us and/or co-sponsor the event?
- What are the expectations of the different stakeholders?
- Develop the specific plan for the event
- When will the event be held, and what is the schedule of the event activities
- What is the budget that is available for the event and what resources are available to the event planning team?
- What level of quality are we looking for in the results?
- What venue will we use for the event? (Venue Acquisition Strategy and Implementation)
- Who is the organizer and what is the team that will be working with the leader?
- What approvals are needed for the event specifics and what will be the modes and methods of communications between the team and stakeholders?
- What materials, equipment, and supplies do we have and what additional things do we need?
- What are the risks of the event and how will we mitigate the risks that are unacceptable?
- What contingency plans do we need?
- Invite special guests or celebrities to the event
- Advertise the event to the target audience (Gaining Coverage of Your Event and Pitching Media and Promotional Strategies Page)
- Create A Web Site for your event
- Secure the specific vendors to support the event (caterers, Police/security, entertainers, etc.)
- Solicit in-kind donations where appropriate
- Running the event is the execution stage
- Make sure that you have people assigned to all elements of the event and that you have managers in place to answer questions and make decisions at the event
- Day of the event: Arrive very early and come prepared with emergency phone numbers, first aid kit, office supplies, insurance paperwork, and contract confirmations, guestlists and extra copies of scripts and volunteer instructions
- Implement everything you planned
- Monitor each of the planned activities at the event to make sure we achieve the desired outcomes.
- Finalizing, Reporting and Lessons Learned
- What receipts/other documentation do we need to hand over? When? To whom?
- How well did the project achieve its intended goals?
- What reports are needed and which stakeholders need a debrief?
- Send out thank you notes and other appropriate recognition for all those that gave of their time and efforts to make the event successful
- How well did we manage this event?
- What went well and what could be done better next time?
Template for capturing data:
Event Planning Template
Fundraising-event-action-plan.pdf
Event planning process
Output representation and recommendations:
- Document the event plan as in the attached templates to review the event steps for success.
- A Gantt chart is another way to portray the planned event process.
- A summary of the outcome of the events is useful after the event is completed.
Additional resources:
