CC: picture is from and originated from www.eventplanningblueprint.com
In the last article we covered the list of follow up every event planner has to organize a successful event. The question is who are these service professional called event planners and what qualities a successful event planner must have?
Every event planner must have certain characteristic directly related to their profession requirement. These qualities and characteristic of an event planner mostly is natural and in others easily got developed within the person pursuit this exciting career.
What is an event planner quality characters?
Here are important list of qualities and character an event planner must possess:
- - Proposal builder
To gain a potential business and to get its contract, every event planner is obligated to create proposal based on knowing specific details about the event. This is a time consuming process and requires show casing and excellent presentation skills. Need to know how to build a proposal?
- - Organized
This is an important quality in every professional event planner. Being organized is related to every venue in event planning and requirements.
- - Excited
As an event planner, you must love what you do and bring that excitement energy and transport it in every event. Your excitement brings ideas and enthusiasm in event planning.
- - Creative
A skilled event planner is dependent on his or her creativity. Manifesting an idea requires an extensive inspiration, creativity and being able to think outside the box.
- - Communicative
This special quality is particularly important in the event planning profession. Without communication, an event planner cannot perform just as a driver cannot drive with eyes covered. To create the steps every planner follow, he or she must communicate the need, vision, budget, extent and concept of the event before drawing it into manifestation.
- - Leader
This is a quality that is mostly naturally built within some people. With Practice and making decisions, you can grow the leadership seed within you. As a leader, you are watching over the quality of performance of your crew as well to manage the need of every detail.
- - Teamwork
It is quite important as a leader to be able to work with your team and perform a teamwork environment.
- -Multitasking
Working long hours and dealing with constant changes, it is important to multitask your way to speed things up.
- - Sociable
A winner event planner is the one that is very sociable. The sociability quality in an event planner goes the long way to book more appointments and further events and consequently making more income.
- - Network Builder
Ask yourself this question. You might have a big list of numbers and friend’s list that you know, but how many of them know you. This is a simple networking success. Everyone has an access to yellow pages and can get lots of contact. The important point is to let these contact to know you and of your profession. Networking quality is vital to build a crew, clients and more credibility.
The crews needed and essential for every event planner are caterers, entertainers, design and decorating team, handymen, computer and IT team, marketing team. Each group is responsible to create certain assignment related to the events need.
- - Budget saver
Many clients work with the event planning service professionals to save on costs. Sometimes not knowing the right people and right channel can cost more. So another quality of an event planner is to find channels and know right connections to save money and create better budget.
- - Going above and beyond
The event planning profession is as important as any other hospitality and customer service. To show your love, dedication and enthusiasm for your profession genuinely and to build healthy clientele.
- - Excellent customer service
In every event, large or small, an event planner manages all service and operation. Handling problem and knowledge of customer service is crucial to every event planner.
- - Calm under pressure
In every planning there are last minute changes, delays and or problems that can pressure you to make certain adjustment. To be able to make a right choice, an event planner must be calm under pressure.
How to become an event planner?
- - Research what event you want to plan by learning more on event planning
Find out what kind of event planner you are willing to become. A general event planner to help people or a professional certified planner in high-end events such as wedding, industrial and corporate planning. You can learn more on event planning before investing in it education and certification to determine your match for this profession. Choose a right avenue where you find excitement and research its requirement such as traveling, full commitment, and all qualities mentioned in this post above.
- - Find colleges for event planning program certificate
Investigate which college and learning institution offers event planning certification program and enroll before its deadline registration. Although certification is not required to be an event planner, it certainly helps build the required qualities above.
- - Find volunteer experience opportunity
If not planning to go to college, you can find your way to volunteer in an organization and help in events and organizing it. The best training is hands-on training. Work as an assistant to many field related to event planning requirement such as caterer, flower artist, marketer, PR firm and so on. Another most effective way is to become an apprentice to a professional event planning firm. Every experience is helping you to get closer to your dream of become an event planner and getting involved in different venue and building network, will build you credentials and portfolio.
- - Apply for certification
Get a certification from reputable event planning association and trade organization offered by the Certified Special Event Professional (CSEP):
- Meeting Professionals International (MPI)
- The International Special Events Society (ISES)
- The Convention Industry Council (CIC)
If you are targeting certain event planning theme, you can obtain targeted certification from that specific trade firm. As an example if you are planning to be a wedding planner, get a certification from wedding trade organizations.
Are you an event planner and want to extend your client list and build a potential network? Join Bids By Pros community as a “Pro” and you can freely respond to any relevant project post, in project message board and insert your referral links for free. Answer the questions genuinely and participate in commentaries to gain reputation. You also get notified of any posted project related to event planning to put your best bid.
Don Zilleri
