Expert, Schmexpert: 6 Details Even Professional Event Planners Overlook

This week, TrivWorks will be producing several large-scale trivia events in Manhattan and Brooklyn, including a fund raiser for VH1 Save The Music Foundation and a brand awareness event for The Economist. As any event planner will tell you, big events are made up of countless small details, and with the many stresses which inevitably creep up as you approach Game Day it’s easy to accidentally let a few slip through the cracks – especially if you’re like me, and not a naturally detail-oriented person (I find the big picture stuff way more fun).

Even though I have planned and produced events professionally for nearly a decade, I’ve unfortunately learned the hard way not to let certain aspects of the event slip off of my radar, especially when the turnout – and expectation – is huge. Below are 6 important event details which I’ve at some point forgotten until the last minute, and why I’ve learned never to do so again – so that hopefully you won’t, either:

1. Signage – Back when I was working as an advance staffer on the 2000 Gore/Lieberman presidential campaign, someone once told me, “If you think you’ve put up enough signs, you haven’t put up enough signs.” That stuck with me, and I encourage you to think the same way when hanging directional signs for your audience, talent and crew in an unfamiliar venue.

2. Comp List – There is always a list of people who are coming as guests. However, with all of the hullabaloo going on, actually putting this list in print and disseminating it to the right people is easily forgotten until the last minute. Get your comp list to the box office or sign-in table early, and you won’t have to worry about it when the crowds start arriving.

3. Cash – Is your event being handled off-site or low-tech, without box office support? Don’t forget to get plenty of cash in order to make change for people buying at the door, or you’ll find yourself in a bad way real quick.

4. Sharpies – I always carry one of these around at events. Perfect for making alterations to run-of-show schedules, on-stage scripts, passes and signage, it’s also the quill of choice for your talent to sign autographs with. Don’t be caught empty handed when something needs to be written down!

5. Cell Phone Charger – Most large-scale events are day-long endeavors, requiring countless calls, texts and intense Smartphone usage. In the heat of the function, the last thing you’ll be thinking about is whether or not your cell battery has enough juice to make it through the party.

6. Tape – So simple, yet you don’t realize how much you desperately need tape until you don’t have any handy. At the very least make sure you have scotch tape for signage & securing tablecloths, masking tape for talent stage direction & positioning, and duct or electrical tape to secure cables from electronic equipment, extension cords, microphone cords etc.

I’ve made more than my share of mistakes at events over the years, but have committed to learning from each and every one so as not to repeat them. Forgetting small details is so simple to do, yet so easily avoided; keep the above details in mind when you’re preparing to produce your next big to-do, and it will hopefully make things run a bit more smoothly for you.

What are some other easily-forgotten details that even the pros sometimes don’t remember?