Who is the Perfect Event Planning Client?
Anyone with exposure to the event planning industry has had his/her share of nightmare tales involving clients.
A tough client can make the event planner’s job much harder than it needs to be. But for every difficult case, there are plenty of awesome customers that remind us why we got into this business.
The qualities listed below include a few of the attributes found in the best event clients.
Communication
Just as event planners need to be accessible, so do our clients. A project can grind to a halt if we don’t get timely answers and responses to questions.
A good client will respond to emails and voicemails within a few hours.
They will also ask their own questions to better understand their role in the event.
Communication requires both listening and feedback in order for everyone to stay on the same page.
Organisation
Ultimately, it is the job of the planner to organise the timeline and details for the big day, but the client must be able to fill in the blanks along the way.
Critical details, like guest and meal counts, need to be updated daily and itinerary changes should be noted well in advance.
In the end, planners can only work with the information they have, so it is the responsibility of the client to provide the most accurate data, while alerting the planner when unexpected changes arise.
Vision
It is much more efficient to work with clients who have a visual image of what their event should look like. Working without a concept is like blindly shopping for a new car. You won’t get very far until you identify your transportation needs first.
With events, every decision is filled with options. From venues and menus, to budgets and head counts, you need a starting point for negotiations.
Otherwise, too much time will be lost searching through all of the possibilities.
Challenge
Planners are creators. Most of us enjoy shaping our raw resources into a functional and attention-grabbing affair.
When clients come to us with a challenge or problem, it boosts the adrenaline flowing into the project.
Planners are expected to be the super heroes of making things happen, so when someone is in need, we want to help them. That can include making the most out of a small budget or even securing a celebrity appearance.
These are a planner’s strengths, and when clients constructively push the limits, it raises our stock in the event.
Gracious
Great events are focused on the guest experience. This is something that is not always easy for clients to visualise, because they are being looked to as an individual to make all the decisions.
However, guest will always look back on an event and associate it with their personal experience. If guests have trouble accessing the venue or if they feel dinner service is running too late, these small complaints will skew their perception of the occasion.
Even at your own wedding, you want be remembered as “gracious host,” someone whose event displayed a charm and welcoming atmosphere that made guests feel like they were at home.
Are all event planning clients perfect? Of course, not, but those who strive for the best event tend to recognise that a proactive approach will yield better results.
Planners aren’t perfect either, which is why everyone involved on a project should keep the attributes above in mind.
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1 Comments
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