Coordinating corporate events, like most events, have many logistics to consider. Depending on the objective of your event, and the number of staff your organization has, you might consider hiring an external event planner. Having an “outsider” come in and support your corporate event might seem daunting, so we have put together our top five tips to consider.
Personality Matters
When looking to hire external support for your corporate event, having the right personality mesh with your internal staff is important. Does this person or company have experience working well with internal staff and external vendors? This is important, as the external event planner will need to keep all the event details on track while working with many different team members. As Melanie Woodward from Event Planning Blueprint explains, “your goal, if you’re also an outside vendor, is to build trust and secure long-term business with your corporate customers. Demonstrating the ability to work with both internal and external staff helps cement that trust. And if planning special events is part of your corporate job description, being able to work well with vendors and fellow employees enhances your value”.
Cost – Less Isn’t Always Best!
It’s important to review the external corporate event coordinator experience, and see if it reflects within their fees. Let’s be honest, businesses are used to being overpriced for just about everything. As Ana Scholtes explains from Pointers for Planners, external event planners need to “be portrayed as the business that offers the best value (not necessarily the cheapest price)…and should be prepared to explain why their experience, education, partnerships, etc. makes them worth the extra cost.” Once you determine if the event planners experience is reflective of its costs, start talking budget and see if your dream event will be feasible.
Reference Checks
Do your homework on the event planners past experience and current clients. Cross references their references is a must! As The Balance notes, “be sure to ask for names of clients the candidates have worked with previously, but also dig into each planners’ history to find events he or she may not have mentioned—you might find out he or she botched a few events with a particular client that didn’t make his or her resume.” Taking this step will hopefully eliminate any surprises or hiccups in your corporate event.
Once you’ve verified that the corporate event planner’s personality jives well with your company, costs are reflective to their expertise in the field, and references check out, it’s time to review attention to detail and flexibility!
The Devil Is In the Details
One of the most important aspects to review when hiring an external event planner is their attention to detail. Most planners have A-Type personalities, ask situational questions when interviewing, and jot down how the person stays organized for each minor detail. The ability to multitask while staying focused can make or break your corporate event. As Jessica Miller-Merrell from Eskills Blog explains, “most event planners know how to handle the big aspects of an event, but a great planner also knows how to focus on the details. These are the things that people leave remembering, and an event intended to raise awareness about your company can accomplish its goal if guests are left with a memorable impression. The perfect details can help you do that.”
Flexibility
No, we are not referring to yoga! Can this external event planner explain real life situations where he or she needed to be flexible to resolve event hiccups? No matter how hard one plans, there are many elements that can come up, which are out of our hands. How an event planner handles them as a representative of your brand is important. As Simon Davies from Small Biz Daily explains, “don’t be afraid to ask about incidents of this nature when interviewing event planners; the one you want to work with will likely be the planner who was faced with a major roadblock and found a way around it.”
Hiring an external event planner doesn’t need to be overwhelming, we have a great list of preferred vendors to help you coordinate a memorable corporate event at LIUNA Station.
Be sure to head over to LIUNA Garden’s blog if you are planning a wedding, and need some tips for scouting a wedding planner.
Stay tuned for weekly blog updates and make sure to connect with us on Instagram and Facebook as we deliver fresh, new content to inspire, excite and assist as you plan your dream event.
From all of us at LIUNA Station, thank you for following along!
