Five Event Planning Mistakes to Avoid

When planning an event, regardless of size or industry, it is safe to assume that you have visions of greatness dancing through your head. You expect everything to go as planned. You expect everybody in attendance to have an enjoyable time.

Before we go any further, here is something you should always remember: even when you think everything is perfect, something will pop up and require you to find a solution on the spot.

By avoiding common event planning mistakes, you can increase your chance of success while decreasing the chance that something terrible will happen.

Here are five mistakes to avoid:

1. Don’t wait too long to start the event planning process.

The sooner you get organized the better off you are going to be. If you wait until the last minute, you will find yourself rushing around to locate a venue, hire vendors, and spread the word.

As soon as you get word about an upcoming event, the planning process should begin. Even if you feel you are beginning too soon, you will be glad that you did as the days go by.

2. Allow enough setup time.

You’re already going to be facing enough stress as it is. The last thing you want is to find that you have not given your team enough time to setup.

In addition to leaving enough setup time, there is something you may be forgetting: if anything goes wrong, it could push back your schedule. You have to “build in” enough time for unexpected occurrences.

3. Don’t underestimate the amount of space that is needed.

Before you ever book a venue, you need to get an accurate idea of how many people it can accommodate. If you feel you will be cutting it close, it is time to look for a venue that has a larger capacity.

Tip: it is better to have too much space than not enough. Can you think of anything more embarrassing than exceeding capacity limits and being shut down by the local authorities?

4. Make sure you have enough help.

As an event planner, you may feel that you have to do everything on your own. However, you know that there is not enough time to handle each and every task.

Surely there are others within your company who are more than willing to dive in and provide you with assistance. Along the same lines, you can reach out to vendors for help with many of the finer details. We do this all the time at Tweetwall.

More help doesn’t necessarily mean less power. It just means you have more time to devote to the tasks that are most important.

5. Plan out your check-in process.

Who needs a check-in process? If you’re thinking this way, it is time to change your mindset before you find yourself in big trouble.

Without a well planned check-in process, you will soon find long lines and attendees with no clue of what they should and should not be doing.

Settle on a check-in process you are comfortable with, and rely on it to handle this important part of your event.

Common Mistakes are Easy to Avoid

As you look at these five planning mistakes, you will begin to realize they are easy to avoid as long as you remain organized and give yourself enough time to plan for each and every aspect of the event.

Do you have any suggestions to offer other event planners that can help them make their event go off without a hitch? Let them know in the comments!