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
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Thankfully we were just sharing our expertise, not taking on or tackling this fund-raising event, and came in at the beginning to give them a heads up. In support of the charity, we did purchase tickets to the gala event and exactly as predicted “attitude” meant zip when it came to parents leaving at their appointed time when they had their children begging to stay and knew there was no way someone could tell if they were on the early or late invitee list. As all of us left at the “correct” time, we encountered Chatty CattyCathy out front begging the fire department—in not so nice tones—not to close their event down and not to walk through the building (which of course they did). The volunteer minions were trying to calm down a huge line of parents and their very unhappy children waiting to get into the venue and were racing to and fro trying to appease them by bringing out food and soft drinks. The press on hand were getting wonderful candid shots of a foot-stomping PettyPartyPrincess losing total control of herself and her event as the men in uniform marched through the building and worked to bring numbers down before shutting down the gala. A much different grand finale than had been planned.
A knowing attitude is very different than knowing attitudes—which we did. Dee Dee and Daniela made sure to stop by and pay their respects just when ChattyCattyCathy was turning different shades of red, which really did not go with her dress, as Daniela deliberately stage-whispered just a teeny tiny bit cattily to Dee Dee.
The event that was triggered by a frantic telephone call was one where major celebrities were attending and tickets had been sold out, but not one bit of work had been done on the actual event because none of the ladies-in-waiting had been able to make the meetings or time for this event and they were now in the middle of prime personal entertaining season and family getaways to second and third homes. Even though the event had been planned for months, the two PettyPartyPrincess co-chairs were so at each other’s throats and busy sabotaging one another—and trying to best each other in who could pull in the highest social ranking celebrities and guests—that actual event operations had gone unnoticed and undone until two weeks before the event was to take place. Now they were in full panic mode and rightly so.
We took a look at the venue and what had to be done. It’s one thing to pull off an event for 2,000 in under six weeks with professional help and a budget to pay for what needed to be done, but it’s an entirely different matter to try and take something high profile on and do it with no dollars, no expert supplier and no program director help. Because of the nature of the event—a celebration of someone’s lifetime of achievements—we jumped in and enlisted an army of event planning industry friends to save this event for the award recipient (who was greatly beloved by the world and had no clue what was going on or in this case not going on). We certainly didn’t do it to save the PettyPartyPrincesses’ faces or fates should the press who were coming out in droves catch wind of what had been left undone. While the two PettyPartyPrincesses battled it out for control as to who would sit next to the top guest of honor, etc., everyone worked around the clock for two weeks straight to pull this off. It was touch and go right down to the wire, with everyone doing it on their own end as a labor of love or respect for the guest’s talents and contributions to the world.
We met attitude again in suggesting that one of the PettyPartyPrincess chairs not try and arrive at the event with the celebrated guest but rather be on hand to welcome her guests and entertain the press while they were waiting, but nothing would deter her from making a grand entrance with the VIP. It would be a great photo op and all that, stepping out of the limo with them clearly showing that they were BFFs. She was hell-bent on stealing the limelight and following PettyPartyPrincess rule #1—It is always all about ME—to the max. For her, that night was about showing the guest, the press and the public at large that she, not her co-chair, was the reigning PettyPartyPrincess.
Sigh ... we tried to tell her. The newspapers the next day and television entertainment news clips showed Dee Dee proudly welcoming the guest as they stepped out of the limousine and the press surrounding them with flashbulbs going off and everyone asking for sound bites. And when the wannabe QueenPettyPartyPrincess dramatically stepped out of the limousine to grace everyone with her presence not a soul was left around, as everyone had followed the star of the evening in with her co-chair, linking arms with them and appearing not to ever consider letting go. The co-chair had also managed to be the center of attention, entertaining the press while they waited for the limousine to arrive. And it would have been her, not Dee Dee, who actually would have been the one to greet the guest had she not been pulled away to be interviewed by a news station live. Then again, it would have been the wannabe QueenPettyPartyPrincess doing the grand deed—being part of the live television interview—if she had been ready when the limousine and VIP guests arrived to pick her up. They had set off without her knowing how important timing was, but returned to pick her up when she threw an incredible tantrum when she discovered they were no longer waiting. She was adamant that she arrive in the limo with the celebrity guest. Have to admit that after all we had been put through, seeing wannabe QueenPettyPartyPrincess’s face when she stepped out of the limousine, and there was no one, to pose for was priceless.
You would have thought we’d learned our lesson by now, but nope. It’s hard for those in the industry who take event orchestration very seriously not to step in and try and do something if they see an event about to go off track. We still did what we could when we could but at a distance.
We jumped in the day before an event to try and track down over 1,000 martini glasses for a fund-raising event that advertised a martini bar. No one had remembered to check if the venue they were holding the event at actually had them on hand. Nope. Had to be rented at a cost in the thousands and paid for by the nonprofit organization.
Another time we found a restaurant willing to lend a gala event bottled water when the donated shipment got tied up in customs and would not make it on time and of course it was a brand not easily found. This was high-society palates, after all, that we were saving from being parched and ordinary tap water would not do, and if water was purchased it would come off of the charity’s bottom line.
We even ended up doing bussing and dish-washing duty at one fund-raising event that featured gourmet food tasting—one that we were paid guests at—when it turned out that volunteers did not show and it appeared the expected number of guests was more than the restaurants had dishes, glasses and cutlery for. With each sampling guests were laying down their dirty plates and heading off in search of fresh ones. Matters were made worse when one restaurant decided to use the wine glasses on hand for their desserts, and so there we were dealing with patrons’ parched throats again. The dishwasher in the venue was slow; no one had tested or timed it and they had not hired staff to bus, load, unload or replace, counting on volunteers to take on that duty. No wonder the volunteers didn’t show when they were given their assignments. And major upsets occurred in the cloakroom when the volunteers that had checked in the coats checked out and left.
We should have done the same when we arrived and saw the stage for the fashion show being carried out because it didn’t fit and we watched bottles of champagne disappearing upstairs with the models. The writing was on the wall right there, but we didn’t get out while the getting was good. Dee Dee said she was mortified when one of our top clients saw her carrying a stack of dirty dishes to the kitchen, praying that they did not think this was an event that she was responsible for. That was a wake-up call to the damage we could easily do to our reputation if we did not step away from run-and-rescue missions.
And we tried to tell them that one bathroom serving hundreds of guests in a venue that was about to be torn down was not a good idea. And you can imagine the outcome. It wasn’t pretty nor pleasant and guests left early because within an hour they could no longer use the facilities. Luckily for the PettyPartyPrincesses the fire marshal had not caught wind of what they were doing.
We decided we were much safer and could contribute in a way that would be better for all involved by working with our corporate clients when they decided to sponsor a gala fund-raiser to help them create standout events that produced desired results for all involved as well as protecting their interests, the nonprofit organization’s and our own from those with a social agenda and hopefully bring nonprofit event planners a bit of a break from working nonstop with the PettyPartyPrincesses and their ladies-in-waiting.
The holiday tea we did with one corporate client was a tremendous financial success. The ballroom was filled with designer and celebrity decorated Christmas trees—you could smell the scent of pine from the lobby—that were to be auctioned off and delivered to the winning home (or hospital, nursing home, etc. of their choice). The event was heartwarming from beginning till end and put everyone in a festive mood. The silent auction offered items perfect for holiday gifts. Everyone came out a winner. It wasn’t a case of building an event that was all about ME, the chair, but crafting one that would be of value to all involved.
One corporate sponsored nonprofit event that always warmed our hearts was the travel company that flew terminally ill children to the North Pole every year on a flight to nowhere. Santa and his helpers would emerge from the cockpit and distribute gifts to the children and give their family members a lifelong lasting memory. Doesn’t get much better than seeing children’s faces filled with happiness and wonder after returning home from the North Pole.
Yup, give us our DiamondDiva’s attitude of caring instead of catering to a DemandingDiva’s any day. Dee Dee, Daniela and I all agreed that doing what we do and how we do it is a fit for who we are and what we love to do, and that our Ladies That Lunch club (with only PettyPartyPrincesses and their ladies-in-waiting as members, who operate very differently from the Ladies That Lunch club/Respected Society Mavens members) experiences left us the wiser as to what is truly important in life. We discovered that being masters of discretion had served us, and those we worked with and for, well.
SOCIAL AGENDAS: Q&A
Corporate Events vs. Nonprofit Events
Q: What is a one of the main differences between working on a corporate event and on a nonprofit event?
A: With corporate events you have an assigned budget and multiple event objectives to be met and you are working with an executive team committed to reaching those goals. With a nonprofit event you have the added challenge of raising, or waiting, for sponsorship dollars to be raised and you are often working with committee chairs and volunteers who do not have an event planning background and do not necessarily understand all the timing and logistical requirements of some of their demands. They are also giving their time, and their personal and professional responsibilities can often take priority over volunteer time commitments.
Assignment
Discuss how event planning companies can work effectively with nonprofit committees and stay in control of their time and not be fielding numerous calls coming in. (Answer: one way is by appointing one specific person to be the main contact person as opposed to having all the committee members have access to calls.)
Cause Marketing
Q: Why would corporations want to partner with nonprofit organizations and run their own event with them?
A: Cause marketing is very important today. It gives a corporation a chance to showcase their company and the good work that they are doing. It brings brand awareness and good PR and introduces their company to a very targeted market audience.
It is important to align the corporation, the cause and the event. For example, holding a charity golf tournament and having strippers doing lap dances and serving drinks on the course would not be appropriate nor play out well in the press. There needs to be a fit. For example, one financial district does a very successful race through the downtown streets with the runners dressed in business suits and carrying attaché cases. They make it fun and have created a way to get more press coverage than had runners worn traditional workout clothes.
Assignment
Discuss some examples of corporate fund-raising events and whether or not they were a good fit.
Nonprofit Event Challenges
Q: What is one of the most difficult aspects of doing a nonprofit event?
A: Making sure that there is sufficient time to secure sponsorship dollars. It takes time to research and contact the right corporate sponsors and get them to a yes, as well as to get dollars in from charity supporters. An event can run at a loss if there is not sufficient time to turn everything around. You need more than six months of planning time. With a corporate event you can turn it around in a matter of days or weeks if the dollars are there to make it happen.
Assignment
Choose a random charity and think about which corporate sponsors would be a fit—where there would be a mutual benefit and why.
Nonprofit Event Essentials
Q: What essential item should be costed in, as it will help the event be a success and pave the way for additional corporate involvement the next year?
A: Budget for experienced event planning staff as opposed to relying on volunteers to try and save dollars. If the event execution is not seamless, it will be difficult to attract the potential and existing corporate sponsors who may be attending to participate the following year.
Assignment
Where could volunteers be most effectively used during an event and what areas should be managed by event planning experts for best results? (Answer: securing and manning silent auction goods is one area at which volunteers excel.)
Managing Chairs and Their Committee Members
Q: How can you avoid having a clash of the egos between chair person heads?
A: Give each a specific area or areas of responsibility. They can compete to bring their best to their assigned areas as opposed to competing among themselves on whose direction to follow if they are both overseeing the same area.
Assignment
What would be some of the event element areas that the event chairs could be actively involved in that would not cause upset but allow them to shine. (Answer: some areas would include preparing the guest list, selling tickets, managing RSVPs and allocating the table seating.)
Non-financial Profits
Q: Is it ever okay for a charity event to run at a loss?
A: Yes. Sometimes cause awareness is the main objective, as may be good media exposure that will help to pave the way for sponsorship dollars for a major upcoming event.
Assignment
Discuss various types of charity events that receive excellent media coverage year after year and why that may be. (Answer: one would be tied to celebrity event endorsement.)
Nonprofit Concerns for Event Planners
Q: When taking on a charity event, what do event planning companies need to be aware of?
A: They will be judged on the event execution. And they need to realize that some of their corporate clients could be there as guests, and it will reflect back on the planning company should an event not come across as polished and professional because volunteers and not expert event planning staff were being used to save dollars.
Assignment
Discuss other ways that event planning companies can take part in charity events and stil
l maintain complete event orchestration control. (Answer: one way is by proposing that a corporate client create and underwrite a charity event in full and work closely with the charity to make sure that both sets of event objectives are met.)
Aligning Client and Cause
Q: What do corporate sponsors look for when selecting a charity?
A: Corporate sponsors want to work with charities that are professional, appeal to their target market audience, attract maximum attendance and media exposure and whose cause is in alignment with their corporate culture.
Assignment
Discuss ways that a charity organization can effectively market their event to potential corporate sponsors. (Answer: one way is to invite corporate decision-makers as their guests to this year’s event so that they can see firsthand how their event is run.)
Volunteering
Q: Can professional event planning companies and event planners benefit from volunteering their time and their talents in a controlled manner?
A: For event planners starting out and looking to gain experience with different styles of events, nonprofit gala events can be an excellent place to learn what not to do and what to do. One event planning company used volunteering at nonprofit events as a marketing tool to grow their client base. They deliberately sought out high-profile events chaired by PartyPrincesses because of their social standing, the circles they moved in and the business contacts they could—and did—introduce them to.