Planning a successful event can be challenging. One of the most important partners you can have as an event planner is an experienced event production company. They bring knowledge and experience in logistics, setup, and execution. They can help make sure your event runs smoothly.
To get the most out of working with an event production company, you need to understand the process, communicate, and work together. Here’s a guide to help you get the most out of this relationship.
Determine Your Event Goals
Before you start contacting event production companies, take the time to determine your event’s goals. What’s the purpose of the event? Who is your audience? What kind of experience do you want to create? Knowing your goals will help the team tailor their services to meet your ideas and goals. This will help make sure you’re both on the same page.
Set a Budget
Knowing your budget is a critical step when you work with an event production company. Event production costs vary depending on a variety of factors, like how big the event will be, location, technical requirements, etc. An experienced company will be able to advise you on where to spend your money — whether it’s for lighting, sound, audio/visual, staging, live streaming, etc. Make sure you tell them about your budget, and they will work with you to create a plan that maximizes your dollars.
Work Together On The Creatives
An event production company isn’t just about logistics; they can also help with creative ideas. Share your ideas and themes you’d like to bring to your event. The more they understand your vision, the better they can execute it. This can include things like decorations, LED walls that can help present your ideas visually, stage designs, and more. Working together creatively ensures the final product is something that aligns with your goals and visually impacts your audience.
Talk About Your Audio and Visual Needs
Audio and visual technology is a key component of any event — and it’s essential to get this right. Whether it’s a speaker presentation, live music performance or just creating the right atmosphere at a meet-and-greet, your AV setup can make or break an event. When working with an event production company, it’s important to communicate your AV requirements early on.
A professional event production team will go out and look at your venue in advance to determine the right audio and visual equipment — whether that’s microphones, speakers, or LED screens. They’ll ensure that the sound levels are balanced, the lighting creates the right mood, and videos are properly displayed.
Lighting, video, and sound make your event more engaging. So make sure you discuss these details ahead of time so the production team can make suggestions and have the right equipment and team at your event.
Establish a Timeline
A clear timeline is important to keep the event running on schedule. Event production companies are experienced at managing these types of timelines. Together, you should create a timeline that covers every minute/hour of the event — from guest arrivals to speaker presentations to event breakdown. This includes confirming the timing for deliveries, rehearsals and how you will all handle any last-minute changes that might occur with the schedule. Be sure the timeline includes the name of the responsible team member(s) and their contact information.
Having a solid timeline helps keep everyone accountable and organized.
Trust the Experts
When you hire an event production company, it’s important to trust their expertise. These companies work with a variety of events and have seen it all. Let them guide you through the process and offer their insights based on their experience. They’ll give you advice on everything from lighting design to how to effectively live stream your event to people around the world.
The more you trust and use their knowledge, the smoother the event will run.
Post-Event Evaluation
Once the event is over, it’s a good idea to have a “post-mortem” with your event production team. This lets you evaluate what worked and what could have been better. Also, get feedback from attendees and other stakeholders to make sure you’re prepared for your next event.
Working with an event production company should be a collaborative process. With the right partnership, you can create a seamless and impactful event. From the creative to brainstorming to the final AV setup, taking the time to communicate your needs and trust the process will ensure your event is a success.