Mums can be very well suited to setting up an event planning business from home. The opportunities are endless.
If you have always had a skill and a knack for planning birthday parties, work functions (pre baby days) family days and other events, you might want to think about starting an event planning business from home.
This is an ideal choice for mums who can do much of the planning from home and even have business meetings in their house. You do need to attend the party of event, of course to ensure the smooth running of the event.
What do you need to know?
If you want to start an event planning business, you should have either experience or training, project managment in event planning, or a combination of both. You can actually get a qualification in event planning or management. There are many private colleges and TAFE’s around Australia that are able to offer this to you, on campus or online.
If you have done event planning in any capacity in a professional manner in the past, you can use that experience to help you establish yourself in your own business. Think about the skills you might have acquired from other jobs. Have you had to arrange travel or luncheons?
In addition to any specific jobs you might have done before and your desire or ability to get a qualification in event planning, you also should know some basics of how to plan an event, how to organise people and how to acquire the necessary items for a party.
Although having planned your own wedding and your children’s birthday parties might provide some experience in event planning, you can’t rely on this alone. Try to acquire more experience through a professional job or specific training.
What skills should you have?
Aside from specific experience, you should have some basic skills. Most important of these is organisation and time management. You should know that you are very organised and can plan an event from beginning to end without too many bumps in the road.
You should also be a self-starter and independent worker. Some customer service skills are also necessary, since you will be working with clients who might or might not know exactly what they want. They might also be stressed while planning and during the event and your ability to stay calm and professional is essential.
How to start your event planning business
Knowing people is the most important component to getting your business going. You need to connect with people who can give you business, or connect you with those who can give you business. You should take advantage of the connections you do have and let them know that you have an event planning business.
For many mums, event planning businesses start as birthday party planning business. If you have a real skill at putting on spectacular birthday parties, you can make a small business from that, and often your contacts will turn up larger events, from formal dinner parties to weddings.
To get the word out, have business cards printed up, and perhaps make a flier offering information about the services you provide and sample prices. Include any information about previous experience you have.
This kind of business requires in-person networking skills. You might attend local community events and talk to people about their event-planning needs. You could go to the chamber of commerce luncheons and offer to do some event planning for free. You can build a website and offer limited information about how to plan events. If they want more information, they must call you for the information, which allows you to market your services further.
If you want to start an event-planning business, just make sure you have the contacts, the experience and the know-how to get it done. Best of luck with it all
Resources
