Great events take time to plan. Whether you’re putting together a massive conference or a small shareholder meeting, you need time to set your event goals, hire the right vendors, and find a great venue. Many event professionals recommend starting your planning a year before the event, but it can be tricky to come up with an actionable timeline beyond that. Colortone’s Event Producers want to change that.
We’ve created a timeline to serve as a foundation for your planning needs. Use it as a guide and customize it to fit your event’s size, scope, and priorities.
DISCOVERY & STRATEGY (8-12 MONTHS BEFORE EVENT)
- Establish event goals and success metrics
- Identify target audience and estimate attendance
- Define scope, format and duration
- Set budget categories and allocations
VENUE LOGISTICS (6-8 MONTHS BEFORE EVENT)
- Conduct site visit(s) with your production partner
- Assess capacity, layouts and storage
- Confirm venue availability (make sure to account for setup and strike)
- Review load-in/out logistics
- Review contract obligations, and make sure to account for:
- Vendor restrictions
- Union regulations
- Power and internet fees
- Rigging requirements and fees
- Insurance and permitting requirements
PRODUCTION (4-6 MONTHS BEFORE EVENT)
- Identify AV and technical requirements
- Develop pre-production timeline
- Define branding, scenic and stage concepts
- Plan signage (print and digital)
- Coordinate content creation
- Source and coordinate additional vendors, such as:
- Photographers and videographers
- Food and beverage
- Furniture/ soft good rentals
- Decor
- Entertainment
- Security
- Accessibility needs, like:
- ASL interpretation
- Live Captioning
PROGRAM PLANNING (3-4 MONTHS BEFORE EVENT)
FINALIZE CONTENT (2-3 MONTHS BEFORE EVENT)
- Finalize and collect assets and presentations
- Confirm audio-visual requirements
- Plan Q&A and session interactivity
- Define post-event usage of record
FINAL PREPARATION (1 MONTH BEFORE EVENT)
- Complete run of show
- Finalize rehearsal schedule
- Confirm that your venue and all vendors are aligned on logistics
EVENT EXECUTION
- Conduct final rehearsals
- Manage speaker flow
- Monitor attendee experience
- Execute run of show
POST-EVENT DEBRIEF (1-2 WEEKS AFTER EVENT)
- Conduct planner and production debrief
- Collect attendee feedback
- Deliver final media assets
- Issue and pay final invoices
- Review and discuss next event
We hope this event planning timeline becomes a go-to resource for your team. And if you’re looking for a production partner to help you stay on track every step of the way, we’re here when you’re ready!
Here’s a graphic laying out this timeline, on us.
