5 Stages of Event Management

Creating an event is not a short and easy task that everyone can do. To create an ideal event, you need to overcome some stages that need to be done so the event can run smoothly and successfully. Today, we will help you to know about the stages of managing an event during the event production process.

What Is Event Management?

Before we discuss further you should know about the definition of event management. We can describe event management as an activity that is done by a group of persons, a community, or a company to create and maintain an event. They did this activity from the start of the preparation to the end of the event. To put it simply, event management is an activity to create and manage an event from the preparation to the end of the event. A small and personal event may be done by a group of people because the scale of the event is not that big and requires short time preparation. For a big event, the preparation might take months to prepare because the scale is bigger and requires more things to prepare. To help people or companies holding an event, an event management company was born. This kind of company can help to plan, design, and execute an event as people or company order. For reliable event production in Bali, Alpha Seven provides event organizing, hybrid events, MICE, event planning, and wedding services.

5 Stages Of Event Management

Jump to the main topic, in managing an event from start to end many stages need to be done correctly to ensure the event can be successfully run. There are five stages of event management in total the research and planning stage, designing the event stage, preparation and promotion stage, execution stage, and evaluation stage. Those five stages are summarized and explained as follows:

1. Research and Planning Stage

The first stage of event management is research and planning. In this stage, the organizer needs to research the purpose or objective of an event. After researching the objective and purpose of the event, they begin to create plans for the event that include many things such as planning the target audience, planning the event time, creating the theme of the event, and creating a budget plan. The brief about activities in the research and planning stage is explained below:

a. Research The Objective and Purpose of The Event

During the early event production, the event organizer team will ask to their client about the purpose and goal of the event. The purpose of the event will describe the type of the event and how the event will be. This is crucial since the event organizer team, should know what the client wants before they create the concept for an event.

b. Plan The Target Audience

The event organizer team then plans the target audience according to the data about the purpose and objective of the event. The target audience can define how the style of the event will be held later.

c. Selecting The Date and Time

Another thing that needs the event organizer to consider is the date and time of the event. Time and date need to be planned with the client because they are the ones who own the event.

d. Creating Theme and Concept of The Event

Creating the theme and concept of the event is doable after the event organizer team knows about the purpose and the target audience of the event.

e. Creating Budget Plan

Right after the plan of an event created, the event organizer can start to count the budget that they require to execute the event production plan that they are created before. The budget plan include the total expense for the event.

2. Designing The Events Stage

The second stage in event management is designing the event. You may wonder, what differences between this stage and the first stage? The answer is the first stage is done to create a master plan of the event, while this stage is used to realize the master plan of the event. The event masterplan can be realized by adding more detail to the event and preparing it for real field conditions. In designing the event stage, the event organizer team needs to do many things such as finding the location, planning the layout and setup, planning the agenda, coordinating logistics used in the event, and planning vendor partners for the event. The activities of second-stage event production are explained as follows:

a. Selecting an Event Location or Venue

One of the steps in designing the event is selecting the event location. The team needs to select a suitable place for the event. They will use the event master plan as a point to decide the location for the event according to the nature and objective of the event.

b. Plan Event Layout and Setup

The event organizer also needs to make a plan for the layout and setup of the event. In this activity, they need to design the layout of the event which includes arranging seats, booths, stages, and many things more.

c. Plan The Event Agenda

The team also must plan the agenda that they will use for the event. They need to choose a suitable agenda according to the event master plan. It also includes planning the speaker and participants that will fill the activity during the event.

c. Coordinate Logistics for the Event

It is really important to arrange the logistics that are planned to be used in the event. The team must prepare logistics such as transportation, equipment, audio-visual, and other logistic.

e. Plan Vendor and Partner

The designer event team also prepares the vendors and partners that participate in the event. They establish a partnership with vendors of foods and goods, decoration, entertainment, and services for the event.

3. Promotion and Preparation Stage

The third stage in event management is promotion and preparation. The promotion and preparation are important for the event production. The team will promote the event by announcing it to the public, so the target audience can know about the event. This stage is also a preparation stage for the event because the day of the event is drawing closer. There are three main activities in this stage which are marketing and promoting the event, opening registration and ticketing, and finalizing the event details. Those activities in the third stage are explained as follows:

a. Market and Promote The Event

Marketing and promotion for the event is an important stage. The team can utilize many media and social media to promote the event. With creativity and inspiration, they need to gather the target audience's attention and invite them to come to the event.

b. Open Registration and Ticketing For Attendees

Registration and presale ticketing must be done at this stage. They can use the digital platform to conduct registration for attendees who want to come or sell the presale ticket that attendees can use later during the event day.

c. Finalize The Event Detail

In this stage, the event organizer team will check and ensure that everything is ready. They need to confirm every arrangement, review the contract, and make sure everyone who participates in the event is well informed.

4. Coordination and Execution

The fourth stage is the day for the execution of the event. It is the day when all the preparation in event production is executed into an event. Everyone doing their job to make the event run smoothly and successfully. during this stage, there are some jobs for the event organizer team to do such as:

a. Coordinate Event Activities

The event organizer team needs to coordinate with each other to ensure the event activity going well. They need to oversee setup, make sure that every element is working, and manage logistics during the event.

b. Handle Attendee Queries and Concern 

Handling the needs of the attendees is also a job for the event organizer team. They need to make sure to provide support for the attendees and address the concerns or issues that may happen during the event

c. Monitor The Event Flow

The event organizer team should keep track of the event. They need to ensure that the event progress, timing, and activities are aligned and stay on the schedule of the event agenda.

5. Evaluation

The last stage of event management is evaluation. In this stage, the event is evaluated whether it is good or bad the event. Not every company uses a formal evaluation but the evaluation process is really useful as a reflection especially if they are going to plan another event. There are three things that they do in the evaluation process which are collect feedback, analyze event metrics, and debrief lessons learned. Those activities are explained as follows:

a. Collect Feedback

Collecting feedback from everyone who participates in the event. Through the feedback, the team organizer might find things that they can improvise in the next event production.

b. Analyze Event Metrics

In analyzing Event metrics, the Event organizer team can review data such as attendance, revenue that is generated from the event, expenses, and other key performances.

c. Debrief and Document Lesson Learned

Hold a debriefing session with the event team to discuss what went well, and what could be improved, and document key lessons learned for future event planning. Event management is not a simple and easy task, because there are a lot of things to do and require preparations that are more than you think. To conclude, there are five stages of event management in event production which are the planning stage, designing stage, preparation and promotion stage, execution stage, and evaluation stage.