Confessions of an Event Planner: Case Studies From the Real World of Events--How to Handle the Unexpected and How to Be a Master of Discretion

by Judy Allen

  Assignment

  Design a sample pre-cruise stay in Miami. Spend only with minimum dollars as this is not the true kickoff to the client’s program—that will take place aboard ship. On the sample cruise itinerary used above, look to see when a passenger or her luggage would be able to first connect with the ship.

  Maximizing Return on Investment

  Q: How do you direct the client with champagne tastes to choose a program designed to please their attendees and meet company objectives as opposed to fulfilling their personal wants?

  A: It is important to educate the client on strategic event design and the purpose a specific event element plays in helping their company maximize meeting all of their objectives. (Special note: The Executive Guide to Corporate Events and Business Entertaining covers how to determine all company objectives and which style of events will best deliver them.) It is important to keep bringing them back to the investment focus of their event. There are ways to meet their personal wants as well as deliver the right event style and inclusions for the participants.

  Assignment

  In this chapter it was discussed how one client’s personal wants were managed. Discuss other strategies that might work.

  Staffing

  Q: Is there a set event planning staff ratio for events that needs to be costed in?

  A: Each event is different. Some companies send one event director for 25 guests, some one for 50, others one for 75, but what ultimately determines the number of staff needed for successful event execution is the event elements and inclusions and what will be required to manage all effectively in different locations.

  On a cruise program where all events are taking board on ship, the number of staff required could be less than on a cruise program where something is scheduled to take place in every port of call, as you’ll require advance staff on location as well as staff onboard the cruise ship—but if the program that is taking place all onboard the ship is intensive the same number of staff may be required. You also need to have sufficient staff on hand both for land and sea programs in case of emergency situations. For example, on one cruise a participant became ill and had to be airlifted to a local hospital. An event planning staff member flew with them and their family members to make sure that they were looked after, and the balance of the event planning staff managed the rest of the program comfortably as they could still handle the workload minus one staff member. On another program, one event planner had to leave and fly home due to a sudden death in their family. You never know what can come up on program and you can’t afford to jeopardize an event’s success by not having adequate staffing. As you are designing your event, it will become apparent where staffing will be required and the numbers required.

  Assignment

  Using the advance stay in Miami and a seven-night cruise program with a special event in each port of call, work on determining the required staff members to operate the event.

  The Value of a Site Inspection

  Q: On a site inspection, is there anything that you can do to help build a better program that is a good fit for both the client and their attendees?

  A: Attention to detail is key on site inspections, as is being attuned to what the client is saying. In this chapter it was readily apparent that DiamondDiva loved white stretch limousines. That was an easy item to note and remember to have in place for all her individual limousine needs as well as when the group was traveling by limousine. Seeing a lineup of white stretch limos waiting for “her kids” was pleasing to her and there was no extra cost involved to do so except noting it and making sure that the non-spoken request was in place. The same applied to discovering DiamondDiva’s favorite brand of champagne and making sure that was the brand that was served (budget permitting) or at least in her room as a welcome gift from the event planning company.

  It is important to note and take notes on each client’s personal and professional preferences and build them into their events and build on them. One company president was an avid golfer and event destinations presented to him always featured desired courses that he personally wanted to play at. To have presented a location without a great course would have been a waste of time. The key was finding a destination that would be appealing to his participants and allow the company president to cross off his list playing at another dream golf course.

  Assignment

  Think about DiamondDiva’s likes. After the cruise and their upcoming trip to another tropical location (that fed her love of tequila, dance and music) and then Morocco (which appealed to her love of the exotic), what would be a recommended destination that might have appeal to her personally and to her attendees as well, and why?

  Personal and Professional Reputations

  Q: Why is it important to establish company policy regarding client care and handling?

  A: Personal and professional reputations are at stake. One foolish move can limit your career. For example, if DiamondDiva successfully asked Em to carry back some of her diamond purchases to aid her going through customs, the result could be a fatal career and personal move for Em. If she were caught doing something illegal, she would have that in her file forever and it could make flying into other countries difficult and work permits, if required, impossible to obtain, depending on the charges. Having a set company policy stating that event planners may only carry their own personal and business material in and out of country takes the burden off the event planner and protects them and their company.

  It is also important to find out where the client stands on certain issues. Some clients want the event planning staff to eat with their participants and are offended if their offer is not accepted, but it can be graciously declined citing a need to discuss event logistics for the next day over dinner away from their guests if event planning company policy is to maintain a professional distance. Others don’t want event planning staff to be included in their meal functions. In both cases the solution is to set up a separate room for staff meals close enough to monitor what is going on in the room but also give the event planning staff a chance to relax and recharge as well as discuss business without anyone privy to their conversation.

  Assignment

  List different areas under client care and handling where it would be important to have clear company direction and discuss why. For example, what do you do if a client has too much to drink and wants you to dance with them, or wants you not to dance with them or their guests?

  CHAPTER 4

  WEDDING DAZE

  Em saves the day—or rather the cake—when attending a personal not professional event. Every personal and professional event that you do or attend provides the opportunity to learn and develop your event planning design and operations skills and take your creativity to new levels.

  JANUARY 15

  What a day. Attending my friend’s wedding as a guest was almost as stressful as running an event. Part of the nature of the industry. Your mind never shuts off when an event is unfolding in front of you and it doesn’t matter if it’s your event or someone else’s. There are just so many opportunities to learn what to do and what not to do, if you keep your eyes open.

  I can remember when I was first starting out in the business and attending a supplier presentation at a new venue. That event was a true eye-opener of what to do and what not to do at that venue and little caring touches that would work at other events. I loved how they had people stationed in the parking lot across the street with double umbrellas to walk people from their car to the venue in case they were not prepared for the sudden thunderstorm. And the sax player at the top of the stairs by the entranceway set the tone for the evening ahead. That was the good.

  Stepping inside, the bad was very apparent. They had set up the buffet so that it was one-sided, not accessible from both sides. The waiting line was endless. They hadn’t set up multiple food stations to draw people into the room and create a better room flow. Instead, they compounded the problem by stationing the buffet right by the coat
check and the two lines were crossing and causing confusion and congestion. Those were great learning lessons and I had only just stepped 10 feet into the event.

  And I will never forget the disastrous boat cruise I went on for another supplier event. When people arrived at the dock, the first thing they saw was garbage piled around. Then, when guests went to board, it was discovered that the gangplank was missing. Imagine the women in heels, including me, having to jump from the pier to the boat. And the learning lessons did not stop there. During the cruise, the boat’s electricity went out and there was no backup generator. That disrupted the food preparation and service. When the boat finally returned to the dock, no one had done anything to resolve the problem of the missing gangplank and guests had to jump from the boat to the pier after spending time drinking, and not everyone was as surefooted exiting as they were arriving. I knew when I left that that was one boat cruise I would not be booking for my clients.

  The wedding today, overall, went pretty smoothly. From an event planning perspective, the one area of concern was that the children attending were running totally out of control with no one overseeing them. They were making service for the wait staff very difficult and you could feel the staff’s frustration mounting as no one stepped in to manage the kids.

  Then event planning disaster struck. The children began playing tag around the server who was in the process of carrying the wedding cake out to position it for photographs, and one of them collided into her. I watched the wedding cake tumble to the ground and land upside down. Luckily, the cake had been covered with a cloth to keep it from the guests’ view until it was ready to be unveiled, and with careful maneuvering—keeping the cloth in place—the cake was able to be righted and brought back into the kitchen to assess the damage. The entire top of the wedding cake was damaged beyond repair. One guest set off to see if they could find a local bakery that would be still open but that was very unlikely as it was past closing time on a Saturday night.

  I began to feel eyes focused on me to fix this problem—most knew what I did for a living—so that the couple could still take their wedding photos with the cake. Venturing into the kitchen I saw the chef, who was not a pastry chef, at a loss for what to do. To me, there was only one viable solution and I had one of the wait staff set off to bring me back one of the bridesmaid’s bouquets to see if we could create magic with the help of some visual aids. And that we did.

  The chef was able to create icing from ingredients on hand, a veritable miracle considering this was a catered event at a private venue so it wasn’t a fully equipped kitchen, and together we were able to create a beautiful floral wedding cake topped with some of the flowers from the bouquet that—with the help of the icing—covered the damage that had been done. Up to this point the bride and the groom were unaware of what had taken place but when told and they saw the results they were delighted. From what we could see from the digital proofs, with proper ambiance lighting showcasing the cake, the pictures turned out fine. Neither the chef nor I are especially talented when it comes to flower arranging but together we pulled it off. Life as an event designer is never uneventful. Note to self: Remember to take a flower arranging course in the future.

  WEDDING DAZE: Q&A

  Training Your Event Design Eye

  Q: How can movies, going to the theatre, etc. spark your creativity?

  A: Going to the movies or attending live theatre can help grow your imagination and creativity and help to spark innovative event design. They are often filled with special effects that can be adapted and used in a variety of ways, e.g., seeing a movie where lasers are used to protect a valuable item can turn into a team-building event with team members having to work their way through a laser maze—helping one another—without setting off an alarm. Attending a live theatre performance will teach you about staging, lighting, the theatrical use of scrims and the different visual effects that can be achieved. And, you will see how best to strategically plan a dinner theatre event, identify a potential location where VIP receptions can be held, and discover ways that the theatre can be used as a venue to host a private performance, such as to serve a private dinner on the stage or do a product launch when the theater is “dark.” And it will also teach you to look at what needs to be reviewed, such as the visual sightlines and how many seats in the theatre are actually usable and in good repair.

  Event planners always need to be on the lookout for something new or something that sparks their imagination. It should be impossible to sit through a movie, watch a live stage production, or attend a concert or fashion show and not notice staging, lighting, timing, special effects and audience reaction to what they are experiencing. Your eye becomes trained to look for the good and the bad. And each learning experience, positive and negative, gets incorporated somehow into function sheets, pre-con meetings, contract negotiations and the like in the attempt to dot another i or cross another t on the event planning “to do” or “what not to do” list.

  Assignment

  Watch a movie or television show of your choice with event planning eyes and see what ideas for themes, food and beverage, entertainment, activities, etc. come to mind and assess how they could be used to create something new for an event.

  Sources of Creative Inspiration

  Q: What professional avenues are open for event planners to increase their event design knowledge and operations skills?

  A: There are many opportunities for event planners to take their event skills to the next level. The industry publications and industry associations offer many opportunities to learn and to grow through attending meetings, trade shows and seminars and through attaining industry certification. (Special note: Industry publications, industry associations and certification requirements can be found in the back of Marketing Your Event Planning Business.) In addition, there are many specialty courses that are available through many different channels.

  Added knowledge in sports, wines, cooking, flower arrangement, etc. are all valuable. Investing in learning golf, for instance, allows you to design a better golf tournament because you will be designing from a player’s perspective as well as an event planning one, and the bonus is that you will be able to take part in golf events with your existing clients and potential new ones. Cooking courses, with top chefs or featuring a specific cuisine, may bring new ideas forward with which to wow event guests. For example, edible bowls have been done for years and are now a matter of course, but one enterprising chef took that concept to the next step and designed edible spoons (made tortilla style with corn) that were served with different toppings nestled into the spoon (but you would need to be careful with ingredient choice and serving timing to ensure a spoon wouldn’t sit too long and become soggy and break). Such innovation gives partygoers something new to talk about.

  Assignment

  Review industry publications and industry association sites to see the range of opportunities to develop event planning on an ongoing basis. Also, list personal passions and pursuits that could be of value and the reasons why, as in the golf example.

  CHAPTER 5

  FROM CITY LIGHTS TO DESERT NIGHTS

  Em and her team are faced with handling their first death on a program, on top of handling the ongoing hijinks of some well known attendees during their event. Help comes from a very unexpected source, which teaches them to be open to people growing, changing, and rising to the occasion when needed.

  JANUARY 20

  Ah, a program with reinforcements.

  Our team, whose joint mission is to make the seemingly impossible possible and done with ease, is pretty amazing and we truly look forward to doing exactly that on each and every program. On this trip, along with Dee Dee, we have Troy, J.T. Marco, Yul, Myki, Vero, Jae and Lainy. Myki, Vero, Jae and Lainy are all top freelance program directors who have worked around the world with us—often out of country up to 300 days a year—and who are an integral part of our “working” family. Wills (who we are flying in to help run the program)
is also on board. On-site we are a very tight and highly experienced team. We’re so familiar with each other that running a program is like running a well-trained-for relay race—each of us could hand over/shift responsibilities to the next, knowing all would be expertly handled, with no one missing a beat and nothing being dropped. Daniela is at home at head office keeping things running smoothly in our absence and running “command central,” tracking the flights our groups are flying in on and alerting us to any delays or problems encountered so our program directors traveling with the affected group on the final leg of their journey—we have them positioned in Dallas and Chicago to meet connecting flights—can quickly respond to any emergency situations.

  We know this client and their guests well. Many of their participants have been on their programs for years. We’ve seen partners and spouses come and go, viewed pictures and heard stories of their children and in some cases, now their grandchildren, and looked forward with as much anticipation as they do for their programs to begin. We’re excited to see their faces light up and to get to savor their reactions to what we’ve planned. The sepia-tone “wanted” poster invitation to the company’s top sales producers set the tone for this year’s event of having their best meet in the Wild West.