Eight Things Commonly Forgotten by Event Planners
If you’re an event planner, you’re most likely an exceptionally organized individual. After all, clients rely on you to remember everything that’s important for their event. However, keeping all those details in order for your clients, can inevitably leave you a bit frazzled at times and prone to forget things that all event planners should keep in mind.
Eight Things Commonly Forgotten by Event Planners
1. Printed Backups
In the modern age of smartphones, tablets, and cloud-based storage, it’s easy to overly rely on digital tools and technology. Although these tools can do amazing things to make the life of an event planner easier, they can also cause catastrophic losses if they malfunction.
Be sure to not only keep backup copies of digital information but also have multiple printed copies on hand during the day of the event. This includes schedules, session and speaker assignments, key phone numbers, and contact information for all stakeholders, vendors and suppliers involved in the event.
2. WiFi and Bandwidth Stability
Most event planners will check with venues about availability of WiFi; however, it’s easy to forget to consider bandwidth and stability issues if your event is attracting a significant number of attendees. Be sure to not only speak with your venue about these issues and what the maximum capabilities are, but also test connectivity before the day of your event during another similar conference size.
3. Liability Insurance
Depending on the type and size of your event, your client, and the venue, you’ll want to investigate what type of liability coverage is needed or provided.
In some cases, venues may carry liability insurance that covers events that they host. However, it’s important for you to find out exactly what is covered and for how much. You may want to purchase supplemental insurance for your operations.
Some clients may also require that you purchase supplemental insurance for accidents or other incidents that could happen at the event. In addition, you may want to explore professional liability insurance which covers errors or other negligent actions on your part as an event planner that could prompt legal action. NOW Insurance makes it easy by providing you with a fast online quote.
4. Lost and Found
Be sure to establish a single location or contact for lost and found items. This is frequently more important these days because it’s easy to lose critical things like a phone, charger, or mobile device, which can be important to participating in the event.
Although you can establish a central physical location for items, you can also create an online lost and found community board as well. Attendees can quickly post items they have lost or found and coordinate their returns quickly. This may be especially helpful if your event is spread out over several buildings or a large area.
5. Keep a Car Nearby
Depending on how large and spread out your event is, attendees as well as vendors may need to park some distance away. As an event planner, it’s a good idea to see if you can find a special place closer to where you will be located most of the time in case an emergency comes up during the event. You’ll save a lot of time if you suddenly need to run out and make a last-minute purchase or pick-up of some critical item.
6. License for Alcohol
If you plan to be serving or selling alcohol at your event and are not working with a venue that already carries an alcohol license, be sure to obtain one well before the event. Every county and state has different rules, requirements and time frames, but it’s a good idea to do this early in your planning process.
7. Hire a Photographer
If your event doesn’t warrant a full-fledged professional photographer, you may want to have a volunteer capture some pictures. These can provide multiple uses from promoting a follow-up event, illustrating the success of the current event, keeping those who could not attend engaged through live updates online or through social media, or simply as a keepsake of remembrance for those participating.
8. Be Thankful
It may seem old-fashioned and passe, but expressing gratitude to your speakers, sponsors, attendees, and volunteers will be much appreciated after a large event.
In addition to simply a pat on the back for a job well done, it can also serve to remind and promote the purpose of the event as well as keep you, as an event planner, on their radar for future business opportunities.
Fast, Easy, Affordable Insurance for Event Planners
NOW Insurance has experienced professionals, skilled in understanding the unique insurance needs of event planners. As a result, we are able to create customized commercial insurance packages that will meet your needs and mitigate risk.
We offer professional liability insurance that will protect you against a lawsuit filed by an unhappy client claiming you have been negligent in planning an event as well as coverage for bodily injury and property damage related to the rendering of professional services. Get a free quote today.