How to Start an Event Planning Business

Jan 09, 2017 Dr. Kristina Nelson

With the market for event planning, with a heavy concentration on birthdays and anniversaries, continuing to boom in the coming years, it’s not a bad time to start an event planning business. If you are getting ready to get your business going, a few things you need to consider are startup costs and running the business.

Most individuals starting up an event planning business want to know what the expense will be to begin one as they work to launch their brand name. However, much of the cost can vary depending on where you live and your location, whether you decide to rent an office or work from home, and your specific goals with the company.

How much money will you need to start your event planning business? That will depend on the cost of living in the area your business serves and whether you work from home or rent office space. It will also depend, to a lesser degree, on your taste and lifestyle choices. However, to kick off this type of business, you need to keep in mind that it will most likely cost you some money whether you attempt to take your business to the higher-end of or the lower-end, but you are also likely to gross a decent amount of money.

Most start-up costs on the lower-end of the scale for an event planning business run at around $8-10k. On the other hand, higher-end start-ups can cost as much as $30k. Most event planning businesses make about $85k to $250k yearly.

What can you expect when running this business? Most event planners earn most of their income at night, over the weekends, and on holidays. So, the nature of the job means planning for this type of schedule. While many social events require a greater emphasis on weekend type work when compared to corporate events, for the most part, this is what you can expect from an event planning business.

As an event planner, there are a few things you will be required to do for each event. First, make sure you do your research on your event and plan it according to the audience at hand as well as vendors and suppliers. Research for your event also means you need to make sure you understand your client’s wants and needs.

Next, you need to prepare and design things, which is probably the most enjoyable part of event planning, and also allows you to get your special touch into the event. When you design, make sure to plan with your employees and also focus on your client’s wants and needs to align them with the success of the event.

After you’ve completed your design step, you want to focus on making a proposal to review with your client. This action is probably the step that will take most of your time, and you should make sure you charge your client around $150, which is the average, as a consultation fee for the proposal. Remember to then review the proposal with your client.

Next, organize and make decisions. First, make sure you keep your contact with your client as you plan, and start hiring vendors and planning the necessities of the event.

After you have finished this step, start coordinating your plans. Make sure you review each planned detail in the event and make sure you are on the same page as your client. This step requires communication between yourself, the client, and the vendors and works as a way to solidify your planning stages with your client.

Last, you want to evaluate your performance. Make sure you get feedback from the client about how the event proceeded. You want to make sure you please your clients and have them return to you, as well as value your services.

For more information about event planning, stay with us at Eventcombo. Here at Eventcombo, you will not only find helpful information about how you can succeed with your event planning business, but you can also sell your tickets online through us in order to increase your ticket sales.