Event planning is full of exciting problems to solve. Discovering new venues, making a theme come alive, and coming up with activities for attendees are things that may come to mind when someone thinks of an event planner’s job. Nonetheless, hiding underneath the surface is something that can make or break your event: budgets. Not quite as fun, to say the least, but neglecting to think through an event budget results in even less fun.
We made a blog post about budgets back in 2022, and while that was only three years ago, times really have changed between then and now. We often hear that people are working within tighter and tighter budgets. This is in stark contrast to the messaging we were hearing right after the COVID shutdowns were over – the buzzing anticipation as the events industry picked itself back up and people were more eager than ever to host bigger and better events.
So, budgets are getting even trickier, but people still want to put on amazing events. This blog post will focus on a very simple thing: priorities. What are the “must haves” for an event, and what are you willing to let go of? Being clear on the answer to this question is the best way to navigate the dilemma in which expectations and wallets are at odds with each other.
Before we delve into that, some miscellaneous budget tips worth mentioning:
- It can never be said enough – never neglect to think about inflation’s effect on costs. Comparing this year’s budget to a previous year is a moot point if not taking inflation into account.
- This might sound silly, but remember that nothing is free; even things that might seem simple can be incredibly costly. When in doubt over whether something will be free, it probably won’t be.
- If bringing an event planner on board, involve them early on to get their input on the budget. Event planners will be more familiar than anyone with standard industry pricing and can easily spot a lowball number.
- While event planners often get discounts from having good relationships with vendors, we aren’t wizards, and at the end of the day the vendors deserve to be compensated for their work. Keep your expectations of discounts realistic.
- If you’re pulling your hair out trying to get a budget to work, it might be worth considering making the event virtual, less frequent, shorter, or any combination of these things. Even events that have been the exact same year after year for over a decade have to change at some point – and that’s okay.
- While many budget struggles stem from trying to cut back on expenses, it is worth thinking of diversified ways to make revenue. This can be as simple as raising registration fees and as complex as rethinking your sponsorship strategy.
- Always plan contingencies!
Now onto the meat and potatoes – deciding what can be sacrificed and what can’t. Keep in mind that these are general lists, and that each event will have its own priorities, so these lists are more of a guide than a rule. The “nice-to-haves” are things that won’t make or break an event if they’re reduced, whereas the “must-have” items are things that we wouldn’t recommend cutting back on.
“Nice-to-haves”:
- Live entertainment or a DJ. Having these things is a fantastic way to get people on their feet, but at the end of the day, they aren’t necessary when music can easily be played through speakers for a fraction of the cost.
- Open bar. Explore options such as drink tickets and table wines if you’d still like to give attendees some free booze, but open bars are not a friend of tight budgets.
- Florals. They are beautiful, but they come at a hefty price. There are ways to make centrepieces that pop without florals, and sometimes less is more.
- Decor. This is a tricky one, because here at Tycoon, we love decor. But if your budget is tight, it’s best to keep it minimal. When cutting back on decor, a good question to ask yourself is whether you would rather make an impact with a single focal statement piece, or have the decor more spread out around the space. You can’t have it all with a small budget, but you can still make something creative that pops by committing to one approach.
- Event swag and gifts. Attendees often appreciate a simple, consumable gift much more than a bag of random things they don’t really want. Something like a small treat or a single, quality item will bring your dollar much further.
- Bathroom amenity baskets, room drops, etc. While these kinds of things are always appreciated by attendees, they won’t make or break an event.
- Parking, Uber codes, flights and accommodations. To be clear, these things should never be cut back on for speakers and vendors who are providing an important service for the event, but if your event covers travel and/or accommodation costs for attendees it might be worth revisiting that strategy. If your event has offered this in the past, some attendees might miss it, but they would rather lose that and keep good food than the reverse.
- An event planner. If your budget doesn’t have much wiggle room for an event planner, that’s okay – we would honestly rather not be involved in an event where the budget is a constant source of stress, and great events can happen without a hired event planner. That said, if having an event planner is important to you, make sure there’s space in the budget for one.
“Must-haves”:
- A good venue. There is some nuance to this one because there are certainly ways to get fantastic, cost-effective venues. Some ways to reduce venue costs could be a change of location (ex. moving from Banff to Jasper) or choosing “conventional” venues that include more in their services rather than getting separate vendors for things like catering, bar services, accommodations, etc. Regardless, the key message here is to make sure you’re using a quality venue, because even the best planned event won’t turn out great if the venue doesn’t measure up.
- Audiovisual and show services. This is consistently the item that we see being under-budgeted for the most. These services can be very expensive – sometimes almost as much as the venue itself. But something as crucial to the event’s success as AV is absolutely not the area you want to skimp out on.
- Graphic design and printing. This is also a frequently underestimated big-ticket line item. Graphics tie an event together, and key event objectives such as sponsor recognition often rely on the graphics. Plan for there to be several rounds of revisions involved in the development of the event design.
- Event marketing. You can’t have an event without people going to it, so making sure people are signing up is incredibly important. Some events don’t need much marketing to get people in the room, but others can hugely benefit from paid advertising initiatives.
- Emcees, auctioneers and speakers. They don’t need to be celebrities, but they do need to be good. Good speakers know they’re good, and price accordingly. Especially if speakers required for the event are needed for things like a live auction or highly specialised subject matter, expect to invest a significant amount into them.
- Attendee activities. It’s important for an event to have at least one activity for people to do, whether it be something as simple as a photo booth or karaoke, as creative as an art activity, or as elaborate as a competitive scavenger hunt game. Not everyone participates in activities at events, but the ones who do LOVE them. These don’t have to be expensive, but you should still budget for something that people will genuinely enjoy.
- Event platforms. This includes platforms for registration, abstracts management, auction management, and surveys, among others. The nature of the event will change what platforms are needed, but regardless of the type, invest in a platform that is intuitive to use and provides useful post-event data.
- Security and/or accessibility services. Not every event needs these, depending on the time, location, audience, and nature of the event’s content, but it’s important to evaluate whether these services are necessary and to budget accordingly.
We hope that this helped you think about and build your next event budget!
Your Tycoon,
Elizabeth