Successful St Louis Corporate Events Are Planned By Professionals

By Jerry King


Big corporations host functions all the time. In some cases they introduce new products, in other cases the celebrate an award or a particular achievement. They may host an event to honour valued clients or simply to make sure that they remain visible in the public eye. Many corporations support their favourite charities by hosting a fund raising event. St Louis corporate events are often memorable occasions well known for being planned meticulously.

Big corporations pay for large functions because they expect a return on their investment. They need to know that their event will be remembered and talked about. That is why they hire the services of highly professional and experienced event planners. These professionals know how to make sure that an event is planned, hosted and publicized in exactly the way the client wants it to be.

Planning a successful large event is a complicated affair. Planners need to be excellent project managers. They need strong leadership skills because they need to direct the efforts of many professionals toward the achievement of a common goal. They need to be aware of potential pitfalls and they need to have extensive contacts in the fields of hospitality, catering and entertainment. This requires highly intelligent individuals with numerous valuable skills.

No professional planner can be expected to plan and manage an important function without a thorough prior briefing. The planner needs to know exactly what the objectives of the function are. They need to know who the guests of honour will be and how the program must proceed. Of course, the need to know exactly what the budget is and if the client has any special preferences, the planner needs to know about them.

Proposals need to be submitted in writing and they should be presented personally. Ideally, such proposals will present the client with more than one option on issues such as venues, menus and entertainment. If the planner points out the main benefits and drawbacks of each option the client will be able to make an informed final decision. No client should ever allow a planner, regardless of how professional he is, free reign.

Only once the proposal is approved can the planner go ahead and develop detailed action plans. It is important that every small detail is covered, that responsibilities are clearly indicated and that progress on every detail, however small, is constantly monitored. It is also important that the planner provide written feedback to the client from time to time.

Important functions can cost a huge amount of money. The worst thing and big business can do is to try and save money by organizing the function in house. This is almost certainly a sure recipe for disaster. Amateurs, often a secretary or a junior employee, simply do not have the skills, contacts and experience to plan and control a large function. There are simply to many things that can go wrong.

Professional event planners are certainly expensive, but they are worth their salt. Senior managers of the client involved know that everything is under control and that they are free to focus on what they are best at. The planner will pay attention to the proceedings and make sure that no mishap occurs.




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