Q&A Final with an Event Planner

          I recently had the opportunity to communicate with Virginia Biggins, to talk about her passion for planning and what it takes to pull off an event that truly sings and stands out. Virginia works for PSE&G and plans their events. She has taken all of her experiences and past events into consideration when planning future events. She is always looking for new ideas and innovation to improve her events. She is married and has a daughter that goes to college in New York. On top of planning events for the job she works for, she enjoys planning all types of events for her family members and close friends. I have learned a lot from her and her experiences. Most of the things we discussed I remember learning in class which was great because I knew everything she was talking about. This made it easier for us to communicate back and forth. This interview has been edited and made shorter for clarity.

1) How did you get started in professional event planning?

“Planning was natural for me. I grew up with parents who used to like to run many events and parties for the family and for their jobs. They had amazing skills that I was lucky to inherit and incorporate into my daily duties at work and home!”

2) What does your job entail? Where do you currently work?

“I'm the manager of internal communications and corporate citizenship and culture. I run large scale leadership meetings, live television broadcasts, oversee events that promote our corporate philanthropy, and employee engagement events to launch a new product or initiative. I work for PSE&G.”

3) Did you pursue event planning in school? If so, what school? How has your education prepared you for your career in event planning?

“No. I started in business administration and thought that I would lean towards finance or law. However my natural inclination was drawn towards events and eventually I found a job that allowed me to really do that kind of work on a full time basis.”

4) What type of events are you most interested in? Corporate events? Social events? And what is your favorite part about event planning, and what is the most challenging about event planning?

“I love all my events, but where I get the great joy is when I manage corporate citizenship events that bring the employees and communities together, such as a Veterans Day flag raising where our employees come out in force to support the troops. My favorite is very large and exciting events. Like the launch of a partnership with Sesame Street and I had a press conference in the morning, followed by a 500 employee event that took every ounce of energy I had! It was amazing because so many people were happy and excited to have the opportunity to take pictures with Elmo!! The challenge. It's always making sure things run flawlessly. I have a reputation for flawless meetings and the stakes are high. Weather it is a live broadcast, employee event or leadership meeting, I'm counted on to have everything run with precision.  So the investment in planning is critical!”

5) Can you describe a time where you felt it was very difficult for you to stay within budget? And what do you think is the most misunderstood thing about event planning?

“Yes!  During the 2007-2008 financial crisis. I used to manage events with a big budget and had to cut costs to bare bones. No food, no outside speakers and no giveaways.  And I still had to motivate employees! It was very challenging, but what made it easier on me  was that the events were employees so they understood why the events were bare bones. That it's ‘easy.’  There is so much work that goes into an event, and skills like project management, interpersonal skills, negotiation, etc. are a necessity.”

6) Is it hard for you to attend other events and try to relax and enjoy yourself? Or do you look around at all of the details and decor and look for different ideas to use in the future?

“Yes and yes!  I am a relatively quiet person and have spent a good portion of my life ‘behind the curtain.’ So when there is an event, I'm happier if I'm managing and keeping busy rather than making small talk.  And I definitely take note of any new ideas.  It's important to continuously improve!!”

7) How has event planning changed your life? And how has your past experiences shape how you approach event planning now?

“From a professional perspective. I am the go-to-person for events. I've worked really hard to earn that reputation of flawless meetings and it has served me well as I've been promoted to manger because it's a highly desirable skill -- and not many people can do it well!!! Every event has a learning experience tagged along with it. And I build off of one event for the next. Everything that went well I keep and anything that didn't go well I try to improve for the next meeting.”

8) What happens behind the scenes that you do not share with others or clients/customers?

“Great question!  Never share frustrations with clients, or any of the behind the scenes work that is chaotic or seems out of control. Every event has its share of chaos - such as finding errors in a program guide or displays or equipment not working. But, you have to remain calm and confident that everything will go off well. You have to be prepared and plan for anything and everything. That's why you never wait for the last minute for anything!  You plan and execute in advance so that if something does go wrong you have plenty of time to fix it!!”

9) What do you know now that you wish you knew when you started?

“Benchmarking and looking for the best practices in meeting planning. As a student, connect with people in the industry and see what you can learn from them to build your skills and make connections. That could mean hotels where catering/wedding events are held. Volunteer for clubs where you can help plan events and prove your worth while learning. Research software that can help you plan.  Learn time management and organizing skills. Often overlooked but critical!”

10) If you were stuck on an island, what would be the most important thing you would bring with you?

“Stuck on an island. Ha! Is this a trick question?!  Good planners wouldn't go to an island without knowing what's offered!!! (At least I wouldn't). But to answer: every planner brings a kit with them that can provide assistance. Before I leave, I would give a full itinerary to my family so they know where I am. And because I'm a good planner, I would know where I'm going.  But in my kit would be a  phone and charger, contact lists, food, water and extra clothing, meds and sunscreens. Plus some type of utensils. And yes I do do this!”

Jessica Matos

Tommy’s Hotel Design

Tommy Burgess

      I plan to design a hotel unlike any others that revolves around the millennial demographic. My hotel from the outside will look fun and inviting, for example it will be a very modern looking building with a beachy red roof surrounded by water with a cool looking bridge leading to the front entrance and palm trees tastefully placed around the complex. Now as we know most mllenials do not like to walk a lot especially from a parking spot which took them 5 minutes to find. My hotel will have valet service right out front and easily accesable to the guest free of charge (and the sign will say FREE because millenials dont like to spend money).

     Once you walk into the hotel our guests will be able to take the elevator directly to their room without having to check in because they would have already done so with our smart mobile application that automatically checks in when the phone senses it is on the hotel property. Another great aspect of my smart app is that you no longer need to use a room key or card to enter the room, all that is needed is your smart phone which you can tap against the smart door knob to unlock the door or use the 6 didget code the app provides you with to get in. 

     Once you walk into your room the temperture will already be set to your specified setting that you chose on the mobile app when booking your stay. The lights will also be on upon opening the door so there is no need to put your things down to find the switch. The smart app will also allow you to order food to arrive at your room ahead of time or at any time specified by you previously in the app if you happen to be in a rush or simply do not want to bother with the phone call to room service. 

     Finally, my hotel will be fully customizable to the clients whether you are on busisness and want a quiet room with a large desk to get work done with high speed internet and a printer. Or if you are visiting for leisure and want a comfortable room with couches and a smart TV to watch your favorite Netflix show and have a room close to the pool or night club where my guests would feel free to socialize with other guests thoughout their stay. All in all my hotel design revolves around a sinple and easy to use technologically advanced system with a “whatever you want” mentality. 

- Erin Layton

http://bridalguide.com/blog/negotiate-with-wedding-vendors

This article talks about the best ways to negotiate with a venue about a pricing for a venue.  They list 4 things one should consider when negotiating with a venue: the date of the wedding, the length of the engagement, the guest count and your ability to connect with the sales person.

I think that the last reason is the most important because if you are able to connect with them and show them that this venue is where you want to have your wedding (or event) they are more than likely to work with you.  If you show them respect, they will show respect back because they want your business.  

Many people believe that to have an ambitious and extravagant wedding, you'll basically have to spend your entire bank account. According to Neal Frankle, a certified financial planner in LA and the founder of the blog Wealth Pilgrim.com, there are several ways to save money that many people don't usually consider. In his article above, Frankle states that doing the simplest things such as going light on the alcohol serving, having the wedding ceremony during the day time, and cutting down the guest list can save one a heap of money; and according to Frankle as much money as $28,000. Having the wedding ceremony during the day and not on a weekend can save you a lot of money. Frankle states that many people tend to drink less during the day and caterers charge less because people don't usually have appetizers during the day. Another huge point that Frankle mentions in his article is the fact that you're not inviting your guests to get drunk at your event. So having a small bar with drinks that you purchase yourself can save you a lot of money as well. Finally, cutting down the guest list by only inviting your closets relatives and friends can save you money especially since you're paying per plate.

By Angela Fernando

This article discusses how to budget for an event: not specific to weddings, parties, or life events. Budgeting is considered one of the hardest challenges for event planners. They must be able to estimate costs and find areas to trim costs. Catering and venue rentals are usually the highest expenses but people want to spend a low amount while meeting their expectations for the perfect event. Once again, like discussed in class, weddings are the prime example of where budgets are challenged and families must save significantly to meet the financial obligations for their lavish day. 

Posted by: Aaron Freeman

This article goes in depth to discuss the average cost for a wedding without the honeymoon in the United States. This year measured to be $31,213 which grew by 4.5% from last year. This relates to what we talked about in class because may need to budget for years in order to afford a wedding. Most of the cost factors have to do with the venue, what time of year it is happening, and how many people. The other main factor is how lavish you want the wedding to be and budgeting may take a long time if you want your day to be perfect.

Post by: Aaron Freeman

This article states five mistakes that event planer needs to avoid when making deals with a customer or venus, and when writing up a contract.

1) Lack of Confidence: This could be very difficult to adapt to in the beginning, but with constant practice it will get easier in the end. It will be hard to predict the direction the conversation is going, but knowing what you are talking about and showing your skills makes it harder for the customer to argue with you.

2) Not Asking For Enough: Somethings that seem to be impossible to ask for could be asked for during the negotiating period. It is expected for a planner to sound selfish and be straight forward. 

3) Taking Things Personally: The negotiating process could become challenging and awkward at times, but no matter what is said, it should never be taken personally. The customer is not aware of all of an event planners skills and is under stress trying to make sure you understand everything they want. The event planner needs to learn to keep emotions out of the planning, which will be learned more and more as he/she does more events.

4) Losing Your Cool: Getting angry or upset is not an option because it then shows that you might be immature and then the customer will not choose you to plan their event. Better things will happen in the end if the event planner is always calm and in a relaxed state.

5) No Prior Relationship: It is important for the event planner to know everything about the venue and to build a nice relationship with the people that work there. It is also important to do this early on so the planning process is made a little easier when customers hosting the event get involved. 

We talked about negotiating in last class, and how there are so many things to consider before and during the negotiation process. Event planners need to worry about the price budget, and how to negotiate with venues and the customers to do something for a cheaper price, or to see if there is more money to pull out for the event. Everything within a contract needs to be negotiated with the venue planner and the event planner to make sure it is a win/win situation for all sides. The contract and negotiating will discuss the date and time of the event, deposits, cost of everything, liabilities issues, and so many other things. Event planners became experts in negotiating because most of their job revolves around it.

http://www.eventmanagerblog.com/negotiation-mistakes 

Jessica Matos

Brides will most of the time hire you if they don’t want to think/ worry about the logistics. A huge part of those logistics is contracts and permits. This article on the Knot outlines everything that should be included in your venue contract. We talked in class about your client relying on you to do the job to the best of your ability. Any sort of slip up on your part could cost you your reputation as a wedding planner.

posted by Emily Kelley

History of Event Planning

This article was a great read. It is not about the first ever event planned, or the first major failure of an event. But instead, it gives us a brief look into the greatness of meetings and what comes out of it -- the social aspect, the ability to change the world and the power to come together as one. 

Now that event planning has become a profession, the focus is on the job itself and the money made. This article does not teach any type of pro tips or past experiences. This article reminds me of the beauty of holding an event and why they generate so many great opportunities. 

Link: https://www.socialtables.com/blog/event-planning/history-event-planning-coordinating/

Posted by Michelle Wood

Mistakes in Event Planning Budgets

When looking for advice or tips on budgeting for an event we are planning, we gravitate towards the articles and books that try to layout a plan step by step. We focus on the articles that tell us we are doing it all right by following their rules and hey, we are doing everything great! But this article takes it in a different sense.

This article clearly outlines the most common mistakes made when making an event planning budget. Instead of what to do right, this article plans you for what to avoid and what can go wrong. The event budget is the vital aspect to the success or failure of your project - so do your homework.

Link: http://www.eventmanagerblog.com/5-event-budget-mistakes

Posted by Michelle Wood

This blogger gives you 8 inexpensive ways to cut back on your wedding budget without decreasing the quality of your wedding. It’s all about being creative with the decorations, how you display certain things (like food) and utilizing color.

These tips can prevent you from going overboard or exceeding your budget if you have a low one. We talked in class a lot about how to cut back on certain things if you’re spending too much money so I thought this article was helpful as far as decorations and overall “look” of the wedding. You don’t necessarily have to cut down on the menu, etc.

posted by Emily Kelley

Wedding Budget Breakdown & Check List

Last week we came up with typical venues needed for a wedding and that the average cost of each venue may be. Well, this article breaks down and talks about what to expect during a wedding. From flowers being $100 for one bouquet and one boutonniere to a $800 (an hour) for a photographer. I think the first step when planning a wedding is to decided what the individual or couple really wants. I think it may become intimating to over due it just because everyone else is but one size wedding isn’t fit for everyone. I believe that someone who decides to have a DIY (do-it-yourself) wedding can be just as beautiful (if not better) than someone who spends tons of thousands (no pun intended of course).

This article breaks down literally everything one needs to plan an ideal wedding for themselves. What I especially like is that it offers different wedding scenarios one where there were no venues (so $0 spent there), $200 for champagne and iced tea for 50 people, etc.

There are also free budget sheet and a mini prioritize checklist printable available within the page.

Link to article: https://apracticalwedding.com/creative-sample-wedding-budgets/

Posted by: Modjina Ovil

Last-Minute Venue Change

What happens when you have to make last-minute changes for an event that is due to begin within less than 24 hours? At Surviving Actors, an agency that focuses on empowering and promoting actors, shared with the public their horror story follow by the good news of taking up the challenge of changing a venue that had issues the very last minute. As we’ve discussed in last class last week, unexpected changes can occur at any given time. The best way to prepare for those times is to always plan ahead, pretty much expecting, the unexpected.

Surviving Actors shared their ‘secret’ by doing some google search on available venues that they could afford. Spending hours emailing and printing maps and on the day of the event, a staff member was stationed at the old venue to direct anyone who showed up to arrive at the new and correct venue. Talk about planning for the worst. But because their team was well organized and dedicated, they worked together in solving the issue.

Link to article: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/blog/12-stories-of-events-gone-wrong-ds00/ (under “The Last-Minute Venue Change”) Linked to Surviving Actors: http://www.survivingactors.com/

Posted by: Modjina Ovil

Ballin On A Budget

- Tommy Burgess

We talked a lot in our last class on the actual costs of hosting a wedding and the fact that it costs more than most people anticipate. That being said I went out and found this great article from APW (a practical wedding) for some help understanding on how to appropriately plan a wedding. According to the article and according to what we were discussing in class is obviously you need to as a couple honestly get together and discuss how much you are actually comfortable spending and from there plan a good budget. One obvious thing that this article brought to my attention is to at the pre planning stage find if and how much you will have any financial support from other people willing to help pay. Another great thing this article offered is to prioritize you budget. Find the top 3 most important things to you and your spouse and make room in the budget for those 3 things first and then plan around them. One final great point this article makes is that you as a couple will almost always be either over or under budget. IF you are over budget you need to reassess and replan, but the most common mistake is when you think you are under budget and then continue to spend more and more just because you can which is always a mistake. 

https://apracticalwedding.com/creative-sample-wedding-budgets/

Another article I had found was making a profit for the event planning business. In class, we also talked about types of fees. The Price Is Right talks about market segment served, locations, experiences of event planners, and all the factors of being an event planner. Going over these factors can really help profit in your business. 

-Susan Garofalo 

Planning a wedding can be extremely expensive but according to Trent Hamm, there are several ways that one can plan a wedding on a budget without making it look too shabby. Several ways that the wedding planner and client can come into agreement to cut down the costs of a wedding such as hiring family help for catering and entertainment, and shooting for a cheaper venue and time. One of the biggest ways that one can save money on their wedding is through the change in venue. By having your wedding on a weekday instead on a weekend can save you money and depending on the weather, having the event outdoors during the day instead of indoors can save you money when it comes to the cost of lighting. Secondly, changing items in the menu such as serving chicken instead of seafood can save you money as well.

Trent Hamm also mentions several other ways that one can save money on their wedding such as going minimal with the flowers, doing your own invitations on websites such as VistaPrint.com, and even displaying "vendor cards" in return for reduced rates. Hamm states that it would be in vain to spend a heap of money on flowers that are going to die after the reception. Instead, Hamm states to keep in simple but elegant by giving a single rose for each bridesmaid and even having a couple of fake flowers in the mix. He also mentions having vendor cards at the event in return for reduced rates. For example, you can place the business card of your caterer by the plates or the card of your florist at the foot of a flower display.  By Angela Fernando

http://bridalguide.com/blog/negotiate-with-wedding-vendors

This article talks about the best ways to negotiate with a venue about a pricing for a venue.  They list 4 things one should consider when negotiating with a venue: the date of the wedding, the length of the engagement, the guest count and your ability to connect with the sales person.

I think that the last reason is the most important because if you are able to connect with them and show them that this venue is where you want to have your wedding (or event) they are more than likely to work with you.  If you show them respect, they will show respect back because they want your business.