All You Need to Know About How to Start Event Planning Business

Step-by-Step Guide to Start Your Event Planning Services

Here is how you can set up a successful event-planning business.

1. Build a Solid Business Plan

No business ever became great without planning. Your skills need a solid foundation to be useful to clients who are willing to invest their trust in you. Thus, you need to carefully scrutinize multiple aspects including ideal customer profiles, budgets, locations you plan to cater to, competitor analysis, marketing initiatives, and your 5-year goals. Here are some things you will need to add to your business plan. This will come in handy when you prepare for your pitch for investors.

• Overview- This must include your business background, legal structure, and other important attributes
• Executive Summary- A description of your business and your success metrics
• Industry Analysis- Market research analysis including opportunities, size, and trends
• Competitor Analysis- Detail out the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors
• Marketing Strategy- The channels of communication and platforms that will be used to reach out to your potential customers.
• Operational Management- How do you plan to manage day-to-day operations and handle breakdowns?
• Financial Plans- Estimated expenses, revenues, and profits will come under this section

2. Register Your Business

Your business idea for your event will see light only when you register it. For the same, you first need to pick out a business name before any of your competitors pick it. We suggest selecting a name that does justice to your niche, and expertise and highlights your USP. If you are not sure of which name to pick you can brainstorm with your close circle or try a business name generator. The next step is to register your business. Take the help of a lawyer to make sure you adhere to all legal proceedings.

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3. Determine Your Legal Structure

Selecting a business structure means complying with local and state regulations. Thus, it is a must that you explore all the business structures available before you make a decision. The options include opening a business in partnership, as a corporation, or as a sole proprietor. You will have to keep in mind that they will have different financial and legal implications.

Thus, it is a must that before you start finding your first clients, you register your business with local and state authorities. The next step is to get your employer identification number (EIN) for simplified tax calculations.

4. Open a Business Bank Account

Now that you have an EIN in place, you can open a business checking account. It will also help you in applying for business loans and keep your personal and professional expenses separate. This will help you in the long run as mixing the two will make it difficult to track revenues as your clients increase in number. Additionally, it will be easier to calculate taxes and report your income and expenses.

5. Get Insurance and Licenses

As a first-time wedding planning business owner you can forget about insurance. However, when it comes to dealing with such large public gatherings, uninvited breakdowns can creep in. Thus, every event planner needs a solid insurance plan. So, make sure you consider all benefits and disadvantages and get a plan that covers all losses.

The next step that will take your reputation a notch higher with clients is having all the permits and licenses. Some of them include:

• Building Permit: These permits are needed to arrange for outdoor events that require tents. These include musical performances, carnivals, political demonstrations, and even concerts.
• Liquor License: If your clients need to get alcoholic beverages served, having a liquor license is a must as per state guidelines.
• Noise Permit: This is a must if your event is being performed in the open and would continue till late night
• Seller’s Permit: You will need to sell a few items as an event planner
• Temporary Use Permits: One such permit is to organize events at a vacant land while the other is for vendors, parking, and loading areas
• State Business License: Must for all businesses operating within state boundaries
• Fireworks Permits: You will need to check if your city guidelines allow for displaying fireworks for your event

6. Set Up an Accounting System

Establishing an accounting system for your event planning services will ensure you have information about your business finances in real-time. You can choose to track expenses via spreadsheets in the beginning. However, you will need dedicated accounting software as your clientele starts growing. This will help your team track income, and expenses, and generate reports as needed to get timely financial insights.

7. Have A Dedicated Invoicing System

If you are happy with late payments, then there is no point in having a dedicated invoicing system. However, if you look forward to smoother cash flow, you must invest in good invoicing software. We suggest choosing one that offers the maximum event planning invoice templates. This will help you get paid on time and even before, customize invoices, and foster long-term relations with clients.

8. Hire Your Team

However skilled you are, you cannot singlehandedly run a great event planning business. You will need to hire staff like chefs, marketing professionals, vendors, office assistants, and accountants. Initially, you can hire these people on a part-time or freelance basis. Thus, it is a must that you start networking at the earliest to get referrals. This way you will be able to sub-contract them in the future.

9. Print Business Cards

If you are keen on networking offline, it is a must to have business cards. However, you might be strapped for cash in the beginning. Thus, you can always make business cards on Canva. This will not only help you create multiple designs, but you can also get them printed for affordable prices.

10. Build Your Portfolio

The next step in our step-by-step guide on how to start an event planning business is collating all high-quality images of past events you have organized. If you have not started this yet, you must start ASAP. Also, if you cannot find many images, try searching for pictures of past family events you have organized.

They can be parties, marriages, birthdays, or even holidays. It doesn’t matter if they were of small or large scale, they can serve as a testimonial to your planning skills and attention to detail.

11. Work on Your Social Media Accounts

As a new business owner, you can be wary of using social media, as you have a lot on your plate. However, if you don’t wish to start your social media journey, it will be helpful to create an account on social media platforms. This will prevent your competitors from claiming those names. As your business grows in size, you might change your mind about being active on social media. Thus you will be able to choose from a variety of options. As an event planner, we suggest you promote your business on Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok (depending on location).

12. Market your Business

The event planning industry is rife with competition. However, marketing your business with proper channels will set it apart. Your first few clients may come from referrals, online offline ads, word-of-mouth marketing, or even your blog. Thus, it is a must to invest in the right marketing channels to reflect your professionalism and get access to high-quality leads. Another way to get customers and spread the word about your business is to print out pamphlets and distribute them.

How Much Does it Cost to Start an Event Planning Business?

Coming to your favorite and most important part of our “How to Start Event Planning Business” blog. Well, the average cost of starting your event planning services can be between 600- 5000 USD. You will need to consider multiple costs and then make a budget that best suits your requirements.

Marketing and office expenses along with human resources costs can vary from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. Not to forget material costs, website costs, and business cards. Moreover, you will need to consider the time costs as it will take some time to get your business up and running.

Furthermore, you will need to outsource some services as you will not be able to manage everything on your own. This will further add to your costs. Thus, you must plan your costs and follow a dedicated budget.

Final Words

Starting an event planning business is highly rewarding. From setting business bank accounts to selecting the right event planning invoice templates, selecting the right event management software to hiring the right event professionals, the tasks are plenty.

However, even with competition, you must not forget that event planning is a $3 billion industry and if you have your USPs set your services will always be in demand.

Thus, the possibilities for your party planning business are endless. Now that you are armed with all the knowledge, it is best to kickstart your operations and make your entrepreneurial journey unimaginably successful.

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