Every event planner should stick to the phrase “expect the worst and hope for the best.”
Planning out events comes with plenty of unique challenges but if you're able to overcome them you'll achieve remarkable results. Being up for whatever is thrown at you, thinking outside the box, planning and preparing ahead for all sorts of hurdles are possibly some of the best ways to ensure that your event goes off without a hitch and the attendees are left astonished.
Here are a few of the major challenges confronted by event planners and how to deal with them:
1. BUDGET
Adhering to a budget and not overspending is a very critical aspect of event planning and also a challenging one. There are so many expenses (venue, caterers, labour, decor, etc) that it’s difficult to abide by the limitations. Planning for unpredictable expenses while organising an event is one of the most crucial stages that many event organisers don't emphasise on and this negligence often leads to overspending or realising that there isn't enough money to finish the project when it's too late. Don't be a victim of such forgetfulness. Instead, analyse the items you will need for your event, create a spreadsheet of approximated costs and if needed review it with appropriate people and then settle on a budget. Also, make sure that you set aside some money for unforeseen expenses.
2. TECHNOLOGICAL CHALLENGES
The latest and greatest technology trends can help you streamline and automate processes, engage attendees and enhance experiences. The more you integrate helpful tech trends into an event, the more you can elevate your event. But with new technologies being constantly developed, keeping pace with the latest trends and integrating them into events proves to be one of the biggest challenges faced by event organisers.
You have to be savvier about technology solutions you can use around your events. You have to persistently update your skills to assure that you streamline administration, communication, and other internal processes of your events in a very smooth manner and successfully bring the latest innovations to your event attendees.
3. OVER-AUDIENCE
Every event planner has an estimate of the number of people who will be attending the event. In an event, organising the food for the audience and the seating arrangement is done as per the estimate of the audience attending and follows a plan. But if more people show up then it turns out to be quite chaotic.
An event planner must track the website analytics, event forums and social media mentions to get an idea about how many people are engaged with the event and thus plan and make arrangements accordingly.
4. TIME
A short lead-time provides many challenges, like venue availability, caterers, and finding resources. Organisations and businesses give a very short period of time to event organisers to plan everything. The better you organise your time, the more productive you'll be and It's also necessary that you start planning as early as possible.
Figure out a plan, write down your goals and priorities then prepare a schedule, and stick to it. By prioritising you’ll be more efficient and you'll know where to start from. By starting out early, you'll be prepared, you’ll be able to pay attention to all the details and successfully pull off the event.
In Conclusion
It is obvious that event planning is extremely stressful and as an event professional, you surely know how challenging and demanding it can get. Unanticipated obstacles will inevitably come in your way. However, with the help of a cautiously devised plan and the right kind of tools in your hands, you can at least be able to recognise and solve them. All you've got to do is keep trying and gradually with time and experience, you'll be capable of tackling them without any difficulty.
