A Few Minutes Into the Future
If you are like a lot of other independent event planners, you are facing some of the most uncertain times of your professional life. No one will deny that events at the end of 2008 made 2009 look pretty scary. The worst thing was, many of us were not prepared for that–it requires more than socking away funds for dry times to be ready for that kind of economic upset.
So exactly what does it require? That answer is usually different for everyone, but planners can make some general assumptions based on what is going on right now in their field. For instance, many companies may be planning to hold fewer events than in the past, but meeting planners can circumvent some of that. On way is by being prepared to help the companies that are on the fence realize that they can hold their meetings and not break the back–or destroy their public image.
Finding Deals
Of course, finding deals means more than saving money. It means spending money in the right places. For instance, if you are planning an event for food aficionados, you may want to spend more on the menu than you would for a puppet master’s convention. Although this is common sense, what happens if you have to cut costs in a major way for the food convention participants?
See what you can get in all-inclusive packages if you need to spend more on food. Try using venues that are better with menus but are lower in quality in an area you don’t need–the days of using the best venue possible and having the best food catered in may be in the past.
Look for Value…and Values
You can actually save money in certain circumstances by “going green,” and there are countless ways to do this. From paperless conference materials to recycling and energy efficient travel modes, you can do much to pinch pennies and save the earth at the same time.
There is no doubt that your job is going to change over the next year or two, but there also doesn’t need to be any doubt about your survival as a planner. Look for ways to be more efficient and go with the change.
