Prioritizing Production Budgets
Often, Event Planners have a fairly consistent set of questions on their minds: I have a limited budget, yet I need AV. How do I set priorities in my budget? Why do I even need Lighting, Sound, Video, Staging, Decor, etc? Should I just give each part of the production a smaller piece to make sure I get some of everything?



Event planners are excellent at people skills. They can meet with the client, reassure them that the event will go smoothly and work to pull it off. They schedule, and timeline, they make the calls and get the vendors. In short, they take the headaches away from the client. Our job, as production managers and event designers, is to remove the technical headaches for the planner, so the you, the event planner can concentrate on the most important thing: The Client!



Get Help!

Your first call, when setting the budget for production, should be to a producer or production manager you trust. Or two different Production Mgrs., for a good sense of what your money will get you. The first things we will ask you are:What is the budget? How many people? Where is it? Is there a theme?



I realize that some planners are reluctant to get into budget discussions this early. You absolutely need to. Why is it very important to get to the numbers sooner rather than later? Some production companies specialize in large-scale events and some in intimate gatherings. Some do both and need to get a sense of which this will be, who to assign within our company, and what resources to provide.



Size Does Matter

We, as producers and production managers need to know, "Are we dealing with the Olympics or are we dealing with a small dinner party for 8?" The general scope of the budget will dictate a lot of decisions about the elements that make up your event. I know producers who can deal with hundreds of staff and dozens of subcontractors. Put them in at small party of 30 and they break down. It is a very different mindset.



Location, Location, Location

Is it indoors or outside under a tent? Is it here or across the country? Is it in the US or overseas? Some companies are regional only. Some are national. Some are international. Each has its strengths and weaknesses. A smaller company will get you personalized service. A larger company may get you a better price on certain things, but may not be as focused on your one event. Large national companies may be able to provide anything, anywhere, but sometimes at a big cost. Not all companies are the right fit for your event or you.



The ELEMENTS:

On to our dilemma: How do we set the priorities in our budget?

Here are the basic production elements for most special events:

Lighting, Sound, Video, Communications, Décor, Staging and Effects

There are others, such as choice of venues, caterer, insurance, etc, but that is beyond the scope of this article.

Lighting

How do you know whether you need lighting? Try these two steps: Go into a ballroom turn all the lights off. Start the event. My guess is, the client won't be happy. On the other side of the spectrum (sorry, couldn't resist!): Go into a room, turn on hundreds of flashing and spinning lights, and try to conduct a board meeting. The CEO will definitely NOT be happy.



Sound

Go into a well-lit ballroom (...in the beginning, there was light...), start the meeting for 1500 people and have the presenter whisper. Or, go into a breakout room for 50, with a massive sound system for the Rolling Stones, now watch the attendees as they head for the doors! Here's a scenario that is frequently missed: In a large meeting, a board meeting or perhaps a product demo/marketing session, there is often a question and answer period at the end. It's very hard for anyone in the audience to hear the questions without microphones for the Q & A. And the presenters need to hear the question, so they need their own speakers. The point is this: if you have information about the event, share it with the production designer, producer or production manager. Don't worry about the actual equipment, the production people will take care that.



Video

In a large ballroom, you need more than one screen. The people in the back can't read the small print in the Powerpoint presentation from 40 rows away! Use smaller screens in the back of the room. Use flat panel displays. Careful: Too many screens can be distracting. Flip the coin and realize that there is video overkill. A large screen requires a sizeable distance from the projector to be effective. You end up loosing more than half your room to production. Put a 15 x 20 or even a 10.5 x 14 ft screen in a small breakout room and watch the results. Nobody's face looks good that close up!



Scenery and Décor

The room needs to be dressed appropriately. Florals can dress up a room. Thousands of florals would be absurd. A set, props and décor will carry the theme for a sales meeting or product rollout. Scenery or props are probably not appropriate for a somber discussion of layoffs, product recall, or financial disaster. I would probably also not recommend them for a political announcement of press conference. That event is all about the speaker!



What are we talking about?



Apple and the iPod

When Apple Computer shows ads of the iPod, they don't even show you the product! Sure, you see a shadow of something. It could be the iPod. It could be a small box of tissues with string coming out. The message of the campaign is HIGH ENERGY Fun! It's music and color.



My Doctor

I can design a very exciting show, with all of the latest and greatest high-end video and lighting. But recently, I was at an event that made me stop and think. A good friend, my doctor (a surgeon) was at the meeting, getting the latest information about some technique. I am glad this event had smooth even crisp lighting and high definition video. I want to make sure this guy is not distracted by moving lights, fuzzy video, and he can hear all of the words of the presenter! It hit home: make sure the production elements fit the event. Don't try to overdo the flash! Last thing I would want is to need that surgery and find out, he was distracted on step 4 of the procedure and only remembers from step seven on!



So really... how DO you decide: Lighting, Sound, Video, Staging, Decor, etc? How do you set priorities in your budget? Should you just divide the budget evenly to make sure to get some of everything? The answer is, you already know!



What is the GOAL of the event?

Somewhere along the way, either the client or you in cooperation with you client defined a set of clear goals and objectives for the event. After all, we're spending money here, and it's no longer the event planning hey-day! These days, everyone wants a return on investment. Well, here's why we have a goal and here is one of the metrics that can be counted! Divide your budget based on the objective of the event.



Is this a celebration or party? If it is, spend more on the scenery, lighting and props. Hands down, you get more bang for your buck with lighting and scenery during a party. The look and feel of a room can be quickly and effectively changed with lighting and scenics. We've taken a large sterile warehouse and made it into a party. We turn off the fluorescents, light up the place with theatrical lighting, and place some strategic scenery around and even the major bank corporate officers, we smiling!



Is this a product rollout? High energy Lighting and sound are very important! Get the sales team FIRED UP! Get the press corps bouncing in their seats! Music, Lighting and Energy will get them moving. And if they really enjoy themselves, the reviews of the product will show it. I've seen it first hand!



Is this a medical meeting to learn about new techniques? High definition video, and clear even lighting are key. Do you need to have handouts and giveaways or is the presentation itself the goal? Is this something where the information is king or the energy and feeling is the goal? Decide these things and talk to your production staff or contractor.



Communicate, email, phone, talk, talk, talk!
I can't stress enough about the importance of getting together EARLY on with production people about the event. Rarely do we say, "Oh man, I wish I didn't have this much information about the show!" How often do you hear, "Oh man, it would have been nice to hear about that before we got to the venue? By working together early on, you each get a sense of what the goal of the event is, and what the production elements needed are. This ensures: we can take care of the production while you take care of what really matters: The Client!