Blog
What we learn
putting events together.
Field notes and methods that hold up on the day. Written for production managers and producers, not for blog readers.
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- Suppliers
How to negotiate with event vendors: levers, limits and the deposit
Set your target and your walk-away price, trade instead of haggling, and settle the deposit and balance dates before you sign. · 15 min - Budget
Gala budget template: costs, revenue and the $75 ticket rule
Costs, revenue, net and cost per dollar raised, and what a US charity must tell a guest who pays over $75 for a ticket that is partly a gift. · 16 min - Production
Corporate event planning checklist: what a company event adds
A 38-task Excel checklist for seminars, parties, launches and annual meetings, with the approvals, rules and follow-up a company event needs. · 18 min - Production
Conference planning checklist: what a conference adds, with a template
Speakers, rooms, sponsors, AV, access and follow-up: what a conference adds to an event checklist, and a sheet that dates every task. · 18 min - Suppliers
Event cancellation clause: what to read before you sign
Who may cancel, what each date costs, what happens to your deposit, and what force majeure really covers, read from the organizer's side. · 14 min - Suppliers
Event RFP template: one request for every venue, one scorecard
One workbook to send the same request to every venue and hotel, then track who answered and score each proposal. · 10 min - Team
Event call sheet template: who is where, and when
The sheet for the day before: where each person reports, at what time, and who to call. · 9 min - Suppliers
Event vendor list template: every vendor, status and paper
One sheet for every vendor on an event: who they are, what is booked, what is paid, and which papers are missing. · 9 min - Production
Day of event schedule template: one page for the whole day
One page for the whole event day, from venue access to venue handover. · 10 min - Team
Event committee roles and responsibilities: who decides, who spends
The roles of an event committee, and the part many lists skip: how far each role can go, what it can spend, and who signs. · 9 min - Production
The run of show template that keeps a hard stop from slipping
A cue-by-cue running order, built backwards from the moment the show has to stop. · 9 min - Suppliers
The event scope of work template that makes vendor quotes comparable
One overview, one line per vendor category, and vendor quotes you can finally set side by side. · 9 min - Production
The event production schedule template that survives week three
A schedule template built backwards from show day, with the deadlines a vendor or a license will not move for you. · 12 min - Budget
An event budget template needs three columns, not two
Two columns show what you have paid. Three show what you have promised, while you can still change it. · 10 min - Suppliers
The event vendor quote comparison template — built for suppliers too
The cheapest quote is usually the one that leaves the most out. Compare scope first, not price. · 7 min
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