Putting on a corporate event is a huge undertaking, and just because the office manager throws a great company potluck doesn’t mean he’s the best person to plan an important event. Even “complimentary” event services that are available when you book certain venues can fall short when it comes to delivering the type of service your event deserves.
To pull off a top-notch event that will have the industry buzzing you need to bring in the professionals. A corporate event production company will provide you with the type of expertise and service that will make your event stand out. If you’re on the fence about hiring an event coordinator, take a look at the customer service you can expect from a reputable corporate event production company.
One of the downsides of organizing a big event is having to take employees off their regular projects to help plan and execute. With a professional event production company your staff won’t miss a second of productivity working on the event. Keeping tasks on deadline will keep your customers happy while the production company takes care of all the event planning.
Nothing is more important to a corporate event production company than your event. Your needs receive top billing every day. If you choose to work with a part-time event planner from your venue you will just be one of many clients they’re juggling at the same time they take care of managing the actual event space. If you want your event to receive undivided attention there’s no better way than hiring a professional event company.
When you bring in the pros, they’ve already been there and done that. They know exactly what to do to make the vision you have for your event turn into a reality. Because they work with a variety of different organizations putting on various events throughout the year, top event production companies use their past successes and connections to deliver exactly what you want. Plus, if a problem does come up, they’ll know exactly how to address it and will be able to get things back on track quickly.
Whether you want a replica of the Vegas Strip or an interactive, ramified keynote address, a corporate event company will know the right people to get the job done. Years of experience producing events puts them in the perfect position to know who the best vendors are for everything from catering to hi-tech wizardry. They’ll also know who to steer clear of. You won’t risk getting bamboozled by a sub-par lighting tech.
Chances are you don’t have unlimited resources to make the event of the century happen. That’s where your event production team comes in. Because of their experience and connections, they’ll be able to stretch your budget without compromising the overall vision for your event. It’s their job to get you in on (or under) budget, and they know how to make it happen.
One of the best reasons a corporate event team is so much better at sticking to a budget is that they know how much things should cost and they have collective bargaining power because of how many events they produce each year. Even if your event is on the smaller side and there isn’t an existing relationship with the desired vendor you can still benefit from group-size deals because the event production company is doing the negotiating and they offer the promise of a long-term relationship and several more clients.
It’s just as important to know what pitfalls to avoid as it is to know the shortcuts to success. Corporate event production companies have been around the block a few times. They already know everything that can wrong with a chocolate fountain or scavenger hunt that involves 2,500 participants. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, let a pro take care of things for you and steer you clear of potential disasters.
You might be planning a company-wide retreat, an industry conference, or an anniversary celebration. Whatever the reason, your event deserves world-class service. Guarantee a happy ending—and avoid a lot of headaches—by taking advantage of the expertise of an experienced corporate event production company.
In The Event™ could be the best corporate event production company for you! Click HERE to check out what one of the top event production companies in Utah has to offer.
Ask any professional event planner what their secret to creating a great event space is, and they’ll respond with three words: lighting, lighting, lighting. In the words of our local expert, lighting “sets the mood for the party. Something as simple as the color that walls are lit can change the atmosphere from calm and relaxed to super upbeat.” However, lighting is more than a string of lights on a wall, or tea lights in the centerpieces. Bringing a stunning event to life requires tying together innovative technology and work from a team of certified experts. From design to production, your next professional lighting team should always be ready to make your next event shine.
A professional lighting team starts with your event planner. These days, anyone can buy expensive event lighting, but it takes a real pro to make sure that the beam is living up to its full potential. With years of event experience, your event planner will always know how to take your next venue and turn it into a unique event space that your attendees will never forget. From knowing where the outlets are, to what color to light up the stage, your professional event planner will be a great resource when creating your next event.
Pro tip: Go wireless with In The Event™! Learn more about why you should ditch the wires at your next event.
Step #2: Pack
Once you’ve designed your event, the next member of the lighting team is the warehouse staff! Your beautiful design for your event won’t mean a thing if you don’t have the professional equipment to back it up. Not only do you need that professional equipment, you need it looking its best for your event. With an inexperienced crew, you could risk having equipment showing up at your event that hasn’t been cleaned, charged, or was carelessly packed. Renting from a rental warehouse that is dedicated to flawless event rentals will make all the difference when the equipment is on show site. Making sure that you’re renting from a professional rental inventory is the key to any successful lighting setup.
Read more about why you should be renting from a certified rental house instead of the garage.
Step #3: Produce
You’ve got the design and the equipment; now it’s time to bring it all to life! Having event lighting staff on-site is a great way to guarantee your program goes off without a hitch. Lighting experts will also give you more freedom to create stunning displays. Professionally designed lighting setups will always look great, but having someone calling the shots on show site will let you run a programmed show of alternating lights, changing colors, designs, and more.
Are you ready to light up the night? Team up with the professional lighting team at In The Event™! From design to production, you can count on us to create and experience you won’t forget.
We had a great time in 2016. From new partnerships, to our place as one of the top Utah event planners, our team gave us a lot to be proud of this year. To celebrate, we wanted to show off a few of our biggest accomplishments in our 2016 Year in Review!
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
We planned more events this year than ever before, so choosing our favorites was definitely a challenge. From big conventions to intimate celebrations, we loved helping our clients create experiences they will remember for a lifetime. Our professional planners were able to merge innovative event design with unmatched customer service that launched us to the top of the list for your go-to event planners in 2017. Here are some of our favorite events from this past year, along with some kind words from our clients we managed them with!
STIHL
“The crew at In The Event™ are fabulous. We created together an event that had many many moving parts to it. Mist coming from multiple locations, strobes, lasers, killer sound, up lighting, wind effects, lightning coming from the ceiling, drones, multiple screens, over 50 standalone videos in one day plus power point….and more. The crew at ITE managed all of these moving parts flawlessly and never missed a cue.
The best way to sum this up…..my company has had killer events in the past with venues such as Disney. At the onset to this meeting, everyone, including my own management, said “you will never be able to top the last meeting!” At the end of the day…they all said, “Over the wall home run…never to be topped again!”
Thank you Robert and crew! If you’re a group planning an event and you want it done right….these are the guys you want!”
Pro tip: Check out our 3-part blog series about our tech we used at STIHL!
Silver Summit Events: Montage Wedding
“I own an Event Design & Wedding Planning Company called Silver Summit Events, and I’ve worked with In The Event™ for years, and they truly are one of a kind. They always go above & beyond for us and our clients. Their attention to detail is second to none and they are always willing to work closely with us and the rest of our vendor team (venue, florist, band etc) to make sure our events are flawless. Whether I ask for a giant custom made “Love” cake table (see photo), need special chandeliers so I can hang flowers from the ceiling, or just want my event perfectly lit, they are there for me. Additionally, all of their rentals are pristine, so I’m never worried about the quality of the items I rent for my clientele.
Most recently, they helped me with my own wedding! As a wedding planner, planning my own wedding, you can imagine how particular I was! They met every single one of my requests with an emphatic “Yes!” and everything they did for us was 100% perfect.
I can’t recommend Robert & his team highly enough!”
Western Governor’s University @ The Gallivan Center
For this event at the Gallivan Center, we had the chance to shoot an awesome partner video with PLTC to showcase our setup for this event. Check it out here!
TOP CONTENT
Our blog has always been a great resource for those looking to plan an event at any level. Inspiration from our event highlights, tips and tricks from our experienced team, and reviews of some of our favorite events are just a few of the things we like to keep our readers updated with. So here are some of our top posts for 2016!
Best Movie Parties We Wish We’d Been Invited To
Inspired by big bashes on the big screen, we review some of our favorite parties that
we wish we had an invitation to!
7 Myths About Hiring An Event Planner
After 35+ years of experience from our team, we’ve heard it all. In
this post, we debunked the top 7 myths about hiring the pros.
Pantone’s Color of the Year and Your Next Event
Pantone released their new color for 2017, and we wanted to know more. Read more for our interview with
our lead designer to get tips on using Greenery at your next event!
TOP TRENDS
We pride ourselves in our ability to stay at the forefront of trends in the event industry, and 2016 was no exception to our high standards. From new equipment to an expanding team, In The Event™ is more prepared than ever to handle any level of event. We’ve live streamed events from drones, connected bolts of lightning with Tesla coils, stocked up on intelligent lighting and so much more. We’ve even jumped on the social media train, creating unique and totally instagrammable photo ops. We also recently hired a second in-house designer to help with professional graphics and design at our events. It has always been our primary goal to be best in class, giving our clients the finest in anything they need for their event. We hope that 2017 brings even more opportunities to grow and innovate the industry that we’re so passionate about.
Did you enjoy our Year in Review? Be sure to follow along for all the awesome events to come in 2017 by following us on social media!
When it comes to your event, safety should be at the top of your priority list. Whether at a birthday party or a corporate event, there are always risks involved in renting and using event equipment. From loose wires to unreliable electrical equipment, anything that isn’t the highest quality has the potential to ruin a great event. As professional event planners who maintain an innovative rental house, we know the difference that safe event tech can make in creating a fun and secure atmosphere for your event.
To help with your next event equipment decisions, our team put their heads together to come up with the three most important reasons you should be investing in safe event tech for your next show!
Certified: At a professional rental house, like the one we maintain here at In The Event™, you’re guaranteed not only professional, top-grade equipment that has been certified for safe use, you’re also going to be working with a trained staff who strive to make sure that every piece of their equipment is ready to be used safely. A company that prioritizes staying on top of latest tech trends will be able to offer incredible design options for your event, which also means that you’re renting items at the top of their class in safety certification.
Cost Effective: A big concern for most clients is cost. Though we always work with our clients to make sure that they’re receiving the best value, it is true that better equipment means a bigger price tag. Some clients decide to go to a cheaper vendor, or look for a DIY solution for their event needs. What most don’t realize is that this poses a serious risk for the safety of your guests and the venue. If you decide to purchase your rental items from a design house that charges less, you’re likely to get equipment that isn’t up to the best standards, and isn’t maintained with the dedication of a professional rental facility. Hiring professional grade equipment may be a bit extra, but will be worth it in the end.
Carefree: Our favorite part about getting the best, safe event tech for your event? You don’t have to worry about guests tripping over exposed wires, or causing accidental damage to the venue and having to forfeit your deposit! Hosting any kind of event is stressful, and to add the possibility of an equipment problem is something you shouldn’t have to deal with. From basic party supplies to innovative event tech, you should always make sure that your rental provider is top of the line.
Pro tip: Check out all of our wireless equipment, the safest way to light up your next event!
Avoiding low quality equipment is crucial to hosting any event. It’s never fun to have spent time and energy creating a fun and engaging experience, only to have things go wrong with your equipment. If you’re putting in the time and effort, your equipment should meet your standards of excellence. Set your mind at ease and hire from a company you trust.
Hosting an event? Make it a safe event with In The Event™! Our professionally trained staff and innovative rental house are always ready to host an event designed to set your mind at ease. Get started here.
Last time we checked, being an event planner was ranked as one of the top five most stressful professions of 2016. Event managers need to coordinate what seems like a million different things and between linens, lighting, and lists, something is bound to go wrong. Sometimes a vendor will fall through or event attendance is double what you expected; no matter what happens, professional event planners are always expected to keep their cool and take control.
As we can attest, hosting amazing events never gets easier. Thankfully, we’ve learned a few tips and tricks from our years of experience, and we’re letting you in on our secrets for stress-free event planning!
We all know it’s not a good idea to loose your cool on show site. Blowing up at a colleague or staff member won’t look good for you, or your company. Unfortunately, people often fix this problem by bottling up anger, which can lead to problems with friends and family who have to deal with your breakdowns.
Instead of harboring an aggressive attitude, find a productive way to deal with anger or frustration. For some people, that’s writing it down. Get your frustrations out on paper and then toss it in the trash or type it out on your phone and then delete the draft. It’s important to express what you’re feeling if you want to be able to move on.
Another way to combat any frustrations or stress build-up is to learn a few breathing exercises. If you can take a minute or two to yourself, try these breathing exercises that expel anxiety and then re-energize you.
Here’s some of our favorites: Start with an abdominal breathing technique to relax. With one hand on your chest and the other on your belly, take a deep breath through the nose so that your diaphragm inflates. Take six to 10 slow, deep breaths.
Re-energize using the Nadi Shodhana or “alternate nostril breathing” technique. Hold your right thumb over the right nostril and inhale deeply through the left nostril. At the peak of inhalation, close off the left nostril with your ring finger and then exhale through the right nostril. Continue this pattern for 10 breaths.
Pro tip: Preparation is key to managing event stress. Make sure you’re prepared for a new year of events with our free, downloadable 2017 Event Trends Guide!
Simply smiling has been scientifically proven to make us happier and less anxious. Although smiling may be the last thing you want to do when things are going wrong, you can give yourself a little boost by making the effort.
Furthermore, smiling helps you relate with others. By smiling when things get tricky at your event, you don’t only convey confidence to your team, but also encourage them to connect with you and help you with whatever you need.
As an event manager, you have to deal with stressful changes all the time. If you find yourself having a hard time coping, you may want to find an uplifting mantra or short, meaningful phrase that you can repeat to yourself when it’s time to overcome a challenge.
If mantras are really your style, try listening to music. Music has been proven to have the power to physically calm us down, or excite us. Find a “pump you up” song you can listen to when you need a boost, and an “everything will be okay” song to keep you calm when things go awry.
When it comes time to problem solve, don’t put all of that pressure solely on yourself. Event managers and control freaks have a tendency to do this, usually because they think it will be faster to do it themselves than to assign the task, but it isn’t the most efficient way to manage an event stress-free.
Delegate all of the responsibilities you can so you free up your time to deal with the big stuff and make sure everything stays (or gets back) on track. If there really is a task only you can do, take a coworker along to watch how you do it so they can take over that job next time.
Rely on your staff or event production company to take care of the small stuff. It might be hard to relinquish control, but it’s essential during crunch time if you’ve got a mess to clean up.
It’s easy to use words like “disaster,” “mess,” and “failure” when things aren’t going according to plan, but those negative words don’t help you overcome challenges, they just cause stress.
When we use negative words, our brain releases the stress hormone cortisol, which impairs our ability to think big-picture and has major impacts on our physical well-being like heart rate, blood pressure, and digestion.
Keep cortisol at bay by re-labeling challenges as “opportunities to get creative” or “learning experiences.” If you can change the way you think about difficulties, you not only keep yourself from becoming stressed, you may also find a new way of looking at the problem that allows you to solve it better.
Being an event manager is no easy job, but these stress relief techniques can help you keep your cool when it seems like everything is going wrong.
To avoid that feeling from the get-go, get In The Event™ involved. Our event production specialists are experts in producing seamless events, and our large in-house inventory of event rental furniture and technology can help you overcome any challenge that comes your way.
Check out how we solved the problem of boring, old events with one killer event planners secret with our free guide!
This is part two of a two-part series about transforming a boring meeting into an exciting corporate event. Last week we looked at how to devise a corporate meeting strategy that is focused and delivers a cohesive theme. In addition, we discussed how to inject surprise into your meeting and ways to save your sanity by using resources like a corporate event planner.
Today, we conclude this series with information about using the environment to reinforce your message, tech-savvy ways to engage the audience, and how to pay attention to the tiny details that can become big problems if overlooked.
Nobody ever said a corporate meeting has to take place in a stale ballroom or nondescript lecture hall. The environment of your event sets the tone. Consider unusual spaces that will enhance your purpose and theme. With the right corporate event experts on your team you can transform any space into the perfect venue for your meeting.
If your focus is to rejuvenate your team consider a teaching space in a local spa, yoga studio, or wellness center. To stimulate both the right and left brain of your attendees look for available spaces in art galleries, museums, or concert halls. Depending on your theme, an aquarium or library may be the most suitable environment to reinforce your message.
The key is to free yourself from the constraints of traditional meeting tropes. Shaking up the venue choice is one of the easiest, most effective ways to instantly alter your employees’ usual expectations.
Meetings are a great opportunity to recognize employees for accomplishments, time served, and their unique contribution to the overall success of the organization. Depending on the size of your organization you may want to find a way to acknowledge every participant. This is the perfect way to tie in your theme—and it doesn’t have to be complicated. If your focus is about celebration, buy a box of party horns and label each with the name of an employee and a characteristic of theirs that you want to celebrate.
In addition to acknowledging milestones like work anniversaries, include personal highlights like birthdays, births, marriages, completion of higher education, etc. This will reinforce the organization’s investment in the whole person, not just the part they bring to work with them each day.
If you give out awards for MVPs or outstanding workplace accomplishments add comments and congratulations from colleagues and family members to your presentation. Using video or audio to share these personal messages will make the award that more meaningful—and will inspire everyone to shoot for the same kind of acknowledgement and validation in the future.
When it comes to making your meeting interactive, you can’t do much better than gamification. The idea is to turn learning into an experience that’s similar to a video game. The focus is on learning, achievement, and rewards. Look into renting iPads or offering a smartphone app for all attendees so everyone can participate in gamification activities throughout the hours or days of the meeting.
The simplest form of gamification to add to your event is audience participation. Audience response systems let attendees interact in real time with fellow attendees, speakers, and panels. It instantly transforms a traditional lecture into an interactive learning event. Poll Everywhere is an app that turns any mobile device into an interactive tool that allows participants and presenters to ask and answer questions and provide feedback. Responses can be shared instantly and incorporated into a web or PowerPoint presentation.
If you have a multi-day event, use a tool like SCANVenger Hunt or Go Game to create interactive scavenger hunts that encourage participation, networking, and learning. You might be thinking, “Ideas like this are appealing, but who has time to put it all together?” That’s where a professional corporate event planner can make the difference—they have all the time and resources to integrate gamification into your event and make it truly memorable.
You can have the most exciting speaker ever, but if no one can find the restroom, let alone the location of their afternoon breakout session, that frustration is what they’re most likely to remember. Participants shouldn’t notice any of the behind-the-scenes details that make an event go smoothly. Take the time to have the forethought and personnel in place to prevent simple mistakes that make you look disorganized or careless.
Have an organized welcome and orientation station. Provide name tags that include something about each attendee such as their job title. And never use name tags with pins—participants invest in their clothes and expecting them to poke holes in them is disrespectful.
Be sure to clearly mark all rooms on a map and throughout the building. If you’re in a particularly confusing building, place guides in strategic spots to help direct attendees. Other things to consider include fresh water and coffee in all meeting rooms or a central networking area, enough wastebaskets to accommodate discarded cups and napkins (and make sure they get taken out frequently to avoid overflow), and a plentiful supply of paper products in the restroom.
Create a checklist of all the small things that need to be attended to and assign someone to be responsible for each one. If you’re using a corporate event planner they probably already have a list that covers everything. Let them help you identify the most common blunders and make a plan to avoid them.
It’s been said that you can’t repair a bicycle while you’re riding it, but that’s exactly what you need to do when you’re presenting a corporate meeting. Designate yourself and a couple key members of the leadership team to check in with participants throughout the day. Ask them if they like the format, if the speakers have been engaging, and if their expectations have been met or let down so far.
Events that take place over multiple days give you the most opportunity to adjust course if needed, but even if you only have a one-day event you can still take advantage of participant feedback. Make sure someone in the room is monitoring the mood and levels of participation. Empower them to jump in and steer the direction of a presentation if things start to get off course or add something to infuse the room with energy.
Your designated monitor should also keep an eye out for the physical comforts of the space including ample seating, appropriate temperature, audio-visual issues, and easy access to refreshments and restrooms. Constant diligence will create an experience that is focused on your message rather than the little things that can fall through the cracks.
One of the best parts of modern technology is the ability to integrate social media into your corporate event. If you use gamification, build in a follow-up aspect that encourages participation beyond the dates of the meeting. You can also have speakers make additional content available to participants to reinforce the goals of your event.
Plant the seeds for implementation and provide a forum for attendees to share successes and ideas weeks and months following the conclusion of the event. Invite enthusiastic adopters of event principles to participate as speakers or facilitators in follow-up webinars or mini-events. Offer rewards or tokens of acknowledgement to people caught trying something new after the meeting.
Your consistent reinforcement and application of the message and theme will validate the purpose of the meeting and demonstrate the organization’s commitment to excellence. Leading by example and congratulating employees you “catch in the act” afterwards are the best ways to make sure the efforts you put into your corporate meeting pay off.
Meetings are an inescapable fact of corporate life, so why not make them as painless as possible? By adopting these strategies you can create an intentional, meaningful experience that will propel your employees and organization to new heights of accomplishment and success.
As we wave good-bye to 2015, we can’t help but think about the amazing year we had at In The Event™.
We began the year with Google’s recognition in their 2014 Economic Impact Report, in which In The Event™ was chosen to represent Utah as one of the fastest growing and technologically savvy businesses in the state. That was a huge honor for In The Event™, but our momentum certainly didn’t stop there.
In 2015, we doubled our revenue, moved into a 10,000 square-foot building, and hired seven new employees. In essence, we were the poster child for Utah’s outstanding economic growth last year.
Among all of the wonderful things that happened for In The Event™ this year, however, designing and moving into our beautiful new building was the biggest. The move represents our continued growth and lends itself to a more collaborative company culture that will really help In The Event™ thrive in 2016.
We decided it was time to get out of the cramped six small buildings we lived in the last few years and move into a single building that could really help us continue to grow. The new building was merely a warehouse when we got it, but we’ve spent the last six months remodeling and designing a beautiful space we can really call our own.
The building has been split into thirds. One-third houses our corporate offices, which are complete with an open floor plan and high-tech conference room. And the other two-thirds are the warehouse, where we manufacture everything we rent from start to finish.
“This move really encapsulates what we’ve been doing this year,” says our co-founder and CEO Robert LaSpina. “The best part of the entire year has been finding and designing this building that we can grow into and do it the way we want.”
The new building’s open floor plan will be the catalyst for our continued growth in 2016. “It’s an open office floor plan so everyone can communicate. Designers, sales, and creative are all hearing and working together on the same projects as one team,” says LaSpina.
Increased teamwork and creativity is essential in the event production business. And we are excited to see our autonomy grow in 2016 with the addition of two new trucks and our custom warehouse to our repertoire. We know these assets will help us take our already acclaimed events to the next level.
“We can control what we put out there,” LaSpina says. “We don’t have to rely on other companies. We can have a flawless, non-issue event every time.”
Although the excitement of 2015 is just coming to a head, we sure aren’t slowing down. You can expect to see a lot from us in the coming year, but a few of our big projects include launching an Amazon store that will allow event planners and designers the opportunity to buy some of our custom-made LED furniture.
On top of that, we will continue to add new inventory to our vast event rental catalogue. We’ve doubled our furniture and drape inventory and have more AV equipment than we ever have before.
We hope you look back on 2015 as fondly as we do, and we hope you look forward to 2016 with the excitement and energy that surrounds our new, beautiful building. As always, everything we do at In The Event™ is to help us serve you better, and we are thrilled to work with you to throw the most rocking shindigs of 2016!
Whether it’s a conference, client appreciation bash, or seminar, throwing a successful event is tricky. It’s going to take time, money, and personnel resources, so you want to make sure your investment pays off. If you’ve got a corporate event on the calendar in 2016, you need to know these insider secrets to putting on an event that brings in the crowds and keeps them engaged.
Fortunately, you’re not alone when it comes to deciphering the keys to success. We’re unlocking our event planning vaults to give you an insider’s look at what makes an event a flop and what makes it fabulous. Before moving forward on your 2016 event plans, you need to check out the event planning secrets we’re blowing the lid off, below.
It’s impossible to pull off the event of the year (or the century) without proper planning. Before you even start considering the menu or lighting, you need to hold a kick-off meeting with all interested parties. Your planning team should consist of everyone that has a hand in the production of your event — from corporate event planners to whoever’s in charge of logistics, social media, or the invitation list. Make sure you address these key items in your kick-off meeting.
Follow up the kick-off meeting with bi-weekly or monthly meetings leading up to your event. Use this time to review timelines and deliverables, and revisit event goals to make sure you’re staying on track and keeping with the original intentions of the project.
Once you determine who your audience is, you need to let them know why your corporate event is an industry must. Make sure that everyone who’s anyone marks their calendar with your event by using these smart promotion strategies.
Include a creative giveaway with your promo materials or as a reward for registering, re-tweeting, or liking your event on Facebook. Tie the freebie in with your event’s message. If you’re all about going green, hand out event flash drives or attendee links instead of printed materials. If fitness is the focus provide BPA-free reusable water bottles or a code to access a week of online workouts. Anything that supports your message and gives them a preview of coming attractions will do the trick.
The best way to ensure a fruitful return on your event investment is to give the people what they want. If you’ve been able to entice your audience and secure their attendance, you’d better make sure they get what they came for. Here are the biggest ways companies let their attendees down and how you can avoid making the same mistakes.
Throwing an event is easy, right?
That seems to be the common misconception in the event planning world. Many people think event rentals are cheap, venues are plenty, and guest are ready and willing to attend just about anything.
But we know that isn’t the case and we’ve spent years helping those who hold this misconception save their struggling event at the last minute.
We want to make sure your event doesn’t fall into the same boat. To help you do that, we’ve compiled a list of the most common, most essential event rentals that always seem to slip people’s mind.
Don’t fall into the common traps of ill-conceived event planning and make sure your shindig goes off without a hitch using these must-have event rentals.
What? You need lights at an event?
Although lighting seems like common sense when you hear it out loud, it’s one of the most often forgotten pieces on event planners’ agendas. They check out their venue during the day and don’t even register that the room will look much different at 8 p.m.
In The Event™ makes it simple to light up your event. Our LED lights are not only clean and modern in design, they come in cordless modular pieces so that no one trips or burns out the fuse box. Forget wasting time at your event crawling on the floor looking for outlets and spend time taking care of much more important details.
If that isn’t enough for you—bonus! They come in an array of colors so you can do anything from simple and elegant white to outrageous technicolor. Regardless of the hue you choose, lighting event rentals is a necessity.
First, let’s talk about the importance of having a bar at an event. Bars, whether stocked with elixirs to wet guests’ whistles or virgin delights, create a communal space where attendees can refresh themselves. Bars add a level of sophistication to any event and give shy guests a crutch as they meet their peers.
While many event planners understand this concept, bar stools are often a forgotten part of the equation. They may not be necessary at every event, but if the bar is your main socializing space, giving guests a place to rest while they converse with attendees is essential. This is an event rental you don’t want to miss.
Also known as lounge seating, these larger, comfortable seating pieces add dimension to an event. Although it may seem like guests can stand and entertain themselves, you’ll find that guests are itching for a place to park it.
Create some separation between your conversation and dance spaces with a sleek soft seating set up or encourage guests to get to know each other in comfortable sections outfitted with a leather couch and chairs.
And yes, this can include more than just table cloths. Linens can include napkins and other fabrics and are perfect for establishing a strong accent color at your event.
Color themes really make an event pop and left unchecked can resort your event to a bland occasion or rainbowed mess. Clearly define your color scheme ahead of time and use linens to bring out the secondary colors that will compliment your main hue.
Plus, these event rentals can be relatively inexpensive, but add an entire level of sophistication to any event.
What is an event without music? Even if guests were giddy enough to fill the silence with enthusiastic chitter chatter, music occupies empty spaces and helps to define the ambiance of your event.
Better yet, with proper audio equipment, you can transform a drab event into a fabulous foray by simply hitting play on a groovy playlist. No event is complete without tunes so make sure you move AV equipment to the top of your event rental list.
Showcase your stuff with a classy display case that really lets it all hang out. Whether you’re hawking wares or showing off your latest product design, a display case can act as the main attraction of your show or side entertainment for wandering guests.
Use an enclosed LED case or hi boy display to really let your goods shine.
Winter is upon us so it’s only polite to offer to store your guests’ jackets. Check to see if your venue already has a designated coat check area and if not you can create the perfect space with a few coat racks, drapes and a table.
Keep your next event from being a dud by securing these top event rentals ahead of time. But if you’re already coming up on deadline, the experts at In The Event™ are here to make sure your event gets all of the essentials it needs before your guests get to the door.
With great event planning comes great responsibility, and to pull off an event that will have all the tongues wagging (in a good way), you need to plan like a pro.
An event floor plans is the blueprints to your event’s success. To make sure participants are able to move freely among all the activities and amenities you need to consider crowd dynamics, space, and capacity. Tackling this sticky wicket first will make the rest of your event planning go a lot more smoothly. Here are the headaches you’ll avoid when you put the floor plan first.
Not only do you need to accommodate all the attendees you expect, but you need to make sure there’s plenty of room for eating, socializing, networking, speaking, dancing, and any other activity that will be part of your event. Mapping out your desired event floor plan in advance will save you from a nasty surprise when you start setting up and realize there’s nowhere for the DJ to stand.
Most modern-day events require some kind of technology. Whether it’s a sound system, a video presentation, or something interactive, nearly everything we use needs power. When you determine the floor plan early you can make sure to keep access to outlets and other power sources free and clear.
Seating charts are the key to a happy, harmonious gathering. Whether it’s a wedding or a corporate training it’s important to seat the right people together and keep those with active grudges far apart. Include a detailed seating chart as part of your event floor plan to make it easy to avoid awkward silences and angry confrontations.
If you wait until the last minute to decide where the stage will be you can end up with a speaker who has to regale the audience from a black hole. Lighting is crucial for ambiance and highlighting the right things. When you know exactly where everything should go you’ll be able to plan lighting accordingly and won’t have to worry about leaving anyone in the dark.
You’ll be hosting a lot of people, and the last thing you want is everyone clogged up outside the bathrooms or in front of the registration table. Be mindful of the flow of foot traffic when designing your floor plan and make sure everyone is able to easily get from one area to another without getting hung up or trampled.
Nothing’s worse than ordering the beef and being served the fish instead (or vice versa). Protect your event participants from these kinds of mix-ups by including meal choices in your seating chart and floor plan. This is a simple way to keep everyone happy and make life easy for the catering and serving staff.
Make sure your attendees, presenters, staff and volunteers don’t accidentally show up in the wrong place at the wrong time. A clear, well-planned event floor plan gives you the time to make sure every detail of your event has a home, making it easy to communicate what is happening where to everyone involved. You’ll avoid a pileup of unnecessary confusion by making the floor plan your first priority.
You need to make sure all attendees have access to every part of your event. Planning things in advance gives you the chance to address special needs for elderly participants, children, and those with disabilities. Your floor plan should include alternatives to stairs, wide enough rows to accommodate wheelchairs or crutches, and things like handrails for those who need some extra stability as well as keeping dangerous items out of little hands. The only way to make sure everything’s covered is to plan in advance.
When it comes to creating an event that people will remember, it’s great to consider the food and how to stock the bar, but the foundation to any successful gathering is an impeccable floor plan. A little extra time up-front will pay huge dividends when your event goes off without a hitch.
We talk about lighting so much, but it truly is the biggest way to change the entire tone and mood of an event. It makes such an impact. You can have great décor and other elements, but without good lighting the space will fall flat.
From towers to uplighting around the room, lighting had a lot to do with the look of the space for this event. Guest entered along a red carpet, past a large LED Spandex wall and into the main space. LED Towers with graphics on them made statements in the center of the room and stood out with a different colors of LED’s. Bars were placed on each side of the space and plenty of Wireless Wall Wash lighting dotted the perimeter of the room and gave plenty of lighting to the entire room.
Pro tip: Learn about LED furniture from the pros. Download our free guide to making the most of your next event.
After the dinner portion of the evening, the room was flipped and in a matter of 20 minutes the space transformed into a lounge for the after party and remainder of the evening. We brought in our lounge furniture, LED Coffee Tables and LED HiBoys.
Be sure to check out the rentals section of our website for the full line of LED lighting and everything else you need to make your event a smashing success.