It's happening! Your
event is going smoothly and it appears that your guests are having a
great time! All of the worrying, stress, and detailed oriented
planning has boiled down to this day, this time and this point. You
look around, you soak in the moment and ultimately a sense of ease,
and accomplishment spreads through your emotions. All that is left is
for the band, Dj or entertainment to simply amuse your guests for a
little while longer and then this event will draw to a close. It
should be smooth sailing from here! By the way, what time is it now
anyway? How much time remains before your DJ, photograher, photo
booth and other vendors have to leave? You check the time. OH
NO!!!!!!! That time is NOW!! Or even worse....that time has
passed!!!! And we only have the venue until 10pm and it's 9:45pm!!!!!
When in the above
illustrated scene, an event planner may have 2 resolutions to swiftly
solve this dilemma, which are
- Attempt to see if the vendors as well as the venue will allow you to extend your purchased time, which most likely will be at an additional charge that could completely ruin your event budget. Or option
- #2 Getting the heck out of there as soon as possible!!
Sadly, 85% or more of
the customers that Top Notch has worked with in the past, have
selected option #2. The result, is ultimately a chaotic fluster of
guests exiting, family, friends or acquaintances assisting, and
vendors swiftly packing to bring what was a successful evening of
enjoyment to a screeching halt. Your guests final memory of the event
could be one of dissatisfaction, simply because “closing time”
was not planned accordingly. It is a scene that Top Notch witnesses
continuously. As an experienced Disc Jockey, I strive to advise
future clients of this principle. It may seem like an elementary
concept that should go without mentioning, but, unfortunately, a
large majority of event planners do not consider the closing time for
an event.
With that being said,
a good rule of thumb to consider ALWAYS is this “The last hour
reserved for the venue and vendors should not be considered as the
“until” time frame to conclude an event” For example, if a
bride and groom have booked a venue until 11pm for their wedding, it
usually does not mean their wedding reception should last until 11pm.
In fact, a large majority of venues require all vendors, family
members and even decorations out of the vicinity by the last hour
booked. In other words, that same bride and groom in actuality, are
required to conclude their wedding reception, guests should have
left, and the venue should be clean by 11pm. In this specific case,
it may be wise to plan on concluding the event at 10, and allowing
the additional hour for all “closing factors” that one must
consider. What are “closing factors”? The actions and
circumstances that one must consider while attempting to end an
event.
Consequences for
customers that neglect to consider all closing factors may be forced
to expense a large, inconvenient, overtime fee from the venue and
even from the vendors that are hired. It is therefore, essential
while planning an event to consider the appropriate time for
concluding the affair. Furthermore, an event planner should be aware
of the time frame all vendors involved in the event may require to
exit as well. By simply practicing this simple notion, one can insure
that their event should conclude at a planned time accordingly,
without sudden disruption. Even more so, guests will egress joyfully
and satisfied, instead of experiencing the frustrating,
helter-skelter that can derive from an unplanned conclusion of an
event. For yourself, for your guests and for your budget, always
consider “closing time” when planning an event.
