The Business of Event Planning: Behind-the-Scenes Secrets of Successful Special Events

Event planning is like performing a high-wire act without a safety net. Once your event starts, there are no second chances. It is all done in one take, and there are no dress rehearsals. You cannot predict how your guests and suppliers will interact and react when you bring them together, but you can organize, plan, and be prepared for the unexpected.

The Business of Event Planning covers all the behind-the-scenes aspects of special events, whether it’s an event for thousands or a handful of guests. Before any thought is given to the timing or location of the event, before the menus are selected and the décor designed, there are strategic objectives to be determined, proposals to be written, fees and contracts to be negotiated, and safety issues to be considered.

The Business of Event Planning helps event planners and their clients produce outstanding events that meet and exceed both client and guest expectations, by going beyond the details of the event itself. This book explains every aspect of the business and the strategy behind successful events. Its comprehensive coverage includes:

• How to prepare winning proposals, and how to understand them if you’re the client.
• How to determine management fees and negotiate contacts.
• The safety issues that every even planner needs to take into consideration.
• Designing events in multicultural settings.
• New technology that makes operations more efficient (such as online registration and response management, database project management tools, videoconferencing, and virtual meetings, and more).
• Practical tools such as sample letters of agreement, sample layouts for client proposals, forms, tips, and checklists.
• A detailed case study that runs throughout the book—one company that is organizing two very different events.

About the Author

Judy Allen is highly regarded as an expert in the field of event planning. She is founder and President of Judy Allen Productions, a full-service event planning production company that specializes in consulting on strategic event design, as well as in designing, producing, and orchestrating special events worldwide.

Judy has created special events in over thirty countries for up to 2,000 guests at a time. She has designed and produced memorable events such as Michael Eisner’s theatrical premiere for Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, and coordinated Norman Jewison’s 25th anniversary celebration for Fiddler on the Roof. The events she has done range from very exclusive VIP events to multimillion-dollar, multimedia extravaganzas such as new car product launches. Judy has been involved not only in event design, but also in multimedia stage production and show flow.

Judy is the author of Event Planning: The Ultimate Guide to Successful Meetings, Corporate Events, Fundraising Galas, Conferences, Conventions, Incentives and Other Special Events (John Wiley & Sons, 2000). She has written a series of weekly columns on event planning for the New York Post Page Six.com, and is a frequent contributor to industry publications such as Meetings and Incentives Magazine.