How to Plan an Event in 9 Steps (+ Event Planning Checklist)

Hosting events that drive real business value requires more than just choosing a time and sending an invitation. Successful events involve careful planning around agendas, hosts, sponsors, and marketing.

This guide will walk you through how to plan an event step by step. You'll also get tips to improve your planning process and a checklist with everything you need to organize your next event.

Key takeaways:

• Before making any event planning decisions, start with setting goals and confirming budgets.
• Securing the right speakers and sponsors can set up your event for success.
• Event debrief sessions allow you to analyze valuable data and improve future events.

How to do event planning

Executing a successful event for your business doesn't have to be daunting. I'll break down the event planning process and go through one step at a time.

1. Clarify your event goals

Every aspect of your event should focus on the goals your team needs to achieve. Before you make any decisions about the event timeline, format, or venue, clarify your team's objectives.

Define specific, measurable goals that align with larger business objectives. For example, your goal for hosting a webinar might be to generate 100 marketing qualified leads. Or it might be to increase SaaS product adoption by 25%.

2. Set an event budget

Confirm your event budget as early as possible to guide planning decisions and avoid overspending. Use your goals and objectives to guide your estimate. In the budget, include:

• Venue rental costs
• Host, moderator, and speaker fees
• Technology costs
• Marketing and promotional material costs

Track expenses every step of the way to make sure you stay within budget. This way, you can reallocate budget if necessary or secure additional funds (e.g., via a sponsorship) if existing budget isn't available.

3. Decide on the event format

Select an event format that fits with your goals, budget, and audience preferences. First, decide whether to host an in-person, hybrid, or virtual event. While the Forrester Global State of B2B Events report indicates that the typical B2B organization hosts a mix of these event types, 58% of marketers have plans to prioritize smaller events.

Then, get clear on the setup. For example, will you host a multi-day conference with multiple keynote sessions? Or a webinar series based on an important theme in your industry? Or a single panel discussion featuring experts and thought leaders?

4. Choose event management technology

Once you've decided on the format, secure the technology that will ensure the event runs smoothly. Here are a few options to consider:

• Virtual event platforms that handle everything from registration and promotion to live streaming and event recording in one place
• Hybrid event platforms that support both virtual and in-person events, including registration, live streaming, and in-person engagement
• Event ticketing platforms that let you sell tickets for events and handle ticket scanning and audience registration at the event
• Mobile event apps that help attendees manage tickets, navigate the event venue, and respond to in-app notifications during in-person events

As a webinar and virtual events software platform, Livestorm simplifies registrations, email reminders, and event livestreams. Livestorm also offers automated event recordings, making it easy to turn your event into on-demand video content.

The Forrester Global State of B2B Events report indicates that event technology integration is a key challenge for event planners. With Livestorm, however, integrations don't have to slow you down. Livestorm has 1,000+ integrations that connect to your marketing automation, customer relationship management software (CRM), and other tools.

5. Find hosts, speakers, and moderators

After deciding on the logistics, coordinate the team that will help you execute the event and attract attendees. Depending on the format, you may need one or more:

• Host to welcome audience members and guide the flow of the event
• Speakers who share their expertise, insights, and predictions on stage
• Keynote speakers who are the primary speakers and take responsibility for setting the tone
• Moderators who lead events with multiple speakers and assist with audience engagement

To source speakers, work with team members and stakeholders to identify relevant experts and thought leaders. Consider prioritizing speakers who have a large or dedicated following that overlaps with your event's target audience.

6. Seek out event sponsors

One of the most effective ways to expand your event budget is to seek out sponsors. Event sponsorship can come in the form of financial sponsorship, media sponsorship, or in-kind sponsorship. All of these options can improve the quality of your event and make it more attractive to attendees.

Set up event sponsorship packages that clearly convey benefits (e.g., brand mentions in promotional materials) and requirements (e.g., a $10,000 fee). Establish sponsorship tiers to provide options for organizations to participate at various price points.

7. Build an event agenda

Next, develop the agenda by planning details like the session topics and schedules. Structure the agenda to capture audience attention right away and deliver maximum value throughout the entire event.

For example, scheduling a keynote speech at the beginning of the event often ensures that audience members attend the first session and stay engaged for the rest of the event. This approach also sets the tone for the event.

Between sessions or during longer events, make sure to include audience engagement activities. Use polls or Q&A sessions to encourage questions and data gathering. Set up breakout discussion groups to allow for networking.

With Livestorm, audience engagement is easy. You can add polls and invite questions during any online event. And you can divide attendees into breakout rooms to create space for discussions.

8. Send event invitations

After deciding on the event details, invite your target audience. In your invitation email, link to a simple landing page that outlines event information like the title, date and time, location, and agenda.

Set up a landing page that doubles as a registration portal so attendees can easily opt in. With Livestorm, you can use our templates to create an event landing page in minutes. Then, you can start accepting registrations right away.

9. Design an event marketing plan

To invite a wider audience, sending invitations to your customer list or to specific people might not be enough. Instead, you need an event marketing strategy.

Through trial and error, our event marketing team has learned that email should be at the center of every event promotion and communication plan.

"When done well, email is the best performing channel, with a catchy subject line, and clear value proposition in the body of the email," explains Pauline Mura, Livestorm Senior Marketing Partnerships Manager.

But email shouldn't be the only channel you use to promote your event. Create a social media promotion strategy to reach attendees on LinkedIn, Facebook, and other social networks.

Consider incorporating advertising into your promotion strategy. Paid social ads and pay-per-click ads can both target your ideal audience, drive registrations, and get you closer to reaching your goal.

For more promotional banners and event templates, download Livestorm's Webinar Kit.

Tips to plan a successful event

Add these event planning guidelines to your project management workflow to make your next event easier to manage.

Host a dry run before the event

Between tech issues and speaker mishaps, mistakes can happen. Reduce the risk of them affecting the day of the event by hosting a dry run beforehand.

A practice session gives everyone a chance to get comfortable with the agenda and technology. It also creates space for participants to ask questions.

Hold an event debrief after the event

Did the event go as planned? Did you meet the goals you set? Would you do anything differently next time?

Track your event results and analyze them as a group. Organize an event debrief meeting to give stakeholders a chance to weigh in about event success. You also allow everyone to discuss aspects of the event that didn't go well — and how to change them for future events.

Develop reusable event planning templates

When you're managing an event every week, month, or quarter, there's no need to build your event planning process from scratch every time. Instead, save time by creating a reusable template.

Start with our event checklist below. Then, add details like the event planning software your team uses, your typical sponsorship packages, and your marketing plan.

Event planning checklist

Keep this checklist handy to make sure you don't skip any event planning steps:

• Clarify event goals
• Set an event budget
• Decide on the event format
• Choose event technology
• Assemble the event team
• Seek out event sponsors
• Build the event agenda
• Send event invitations
• Design the event marketing plan

Frequently asked questions about event planning

What are the 5 C's of event planning?

The 5 C's create a helpful framework, no matter the type of event:

• Concept: Define the purpose and theme
• Coordination: Manage the logistics and timeline
• Control: Oversee budgets and quality standards
• Culmination: Bring everything together as you execute the event
• Closeout: Review the data and gather feedback

What are the seven stages of event planning?

The seven stages of event planning follow these steps for paid or free events:

1. Initiation: Set objectives and scope
2. Planning: Create budgets and timelines
3. Confirmation: Secure contracts and agreements
4. Promotion: Carry out marketing campaigns
5. Final preparation: Create contingency plans
6. Delivery: Execute the event
7. Evaluation: Analyze the event results

What exactly does an event planner do?

An event planner coordinates every aspect of virtual, in-person, and hybrid events. This includes everything from planning the concept to collaborating with team members to reviewing post-event data.