What is an Event?

An event can be described as a public assembly for the purpose of celebration, education, marketing or
reunion. Events can be classified on the basis of their size, type and context.
An event can be:

1) Social / life–cycle events

Events like Birthday party, Hen/Stag party, Graduation day, Bachelor's party, Engagement, Wedding,
Anniversary, Retirement day, Funeral etc.

2) Education and career events

Events like education fair, job fair, workshop, seminar, debate, contest, competition etc.

3) Sports events
Events like Olympics, World Cup, marathons, Wimbledon, wrestling matches etc.

4) Entertainment events
Events like music concerts, fairs, festivals, fashion shows, award functions, celebrity nights, beauty
peagents, flash mob, jewellery shows, stage shows etc.

5) Political events
Events like political procession, demonstration, rally, political functions etc.

6) Corporate events
Events like MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions), product launches, road shows, buyer-
seller meet etc.

7) Religious events
Events like religious festivals / fairs, religious procession, Katha, Pravachan, Diwali fair, Dusherra fair etc.

8) Fund raising/ cause related events

Any event can be turned into a fund raising or cause related event e.g. auctions.
People Involved in Organizing an Event
The number of people involved in organizing an event depends upon the size and scale of the event. While
organizing a small party may require only one or two people, organizing a very large event like olympics may
require several thousand people.
An event management company can have following event professionals:

1) Event Manager/Event Planner

He has following responsibilities:
1. He is responsible for planning and producing the whole event.
2. He is responsible for procurement management and resource management.
3. He formulates, prepares and implement risk management plan (risks related to event planning and
production).

2) Event Coordinator
He is responsible for coordinating with all event professionals and ensures that business operations are
efficient and effective.

3) Information Manager
He has following responsibilities:
1. He manages the information acquired through different sources.
2. He is responsible for the documentation of all business operations carried out pre-event, at-event and
post-event.
3. He maintains database of service providers, delegates, guests, organizers, sponsors, partners, clients,
target audience, media people and various govt. departments officials.
4. He formulates, prepares and implements the risk management plan. (risks related to information
management like loss of data)

4) Logistic Manager
He has following responsibilities:
1. Responsible for custom clearances and other clearances.
2. Responsible for warehousing of cargo
3. Cargo Insurance
4. He is expected to move goods and merchandise from one destination to the other in the most efficient
manner.
5. He is responsible for procurement management and resource management.
6. He formulates, prepares and implements the risk management plan. (risks related to logistic management
like cargo theft etc.)

5) Security Manager
He has following responsibilities:
1. He is responsible for formulating, preparing and implementing the security plan and strategies. i.e. how to
protect delegates, guests, service providers, organizers, sponsors, partners, clients, target audience, goods
and merchandise etc.
2. He does procurement management and resource management.
3. He formulates, prepares and implements the risk management plan. (risks related to security like
stampede, brawl etc)

6) Infrastructure Manager
He has following responsibilities:
1. He does procurement management and resource management.
2. He is responsible for setting up and dismantling the infrastructure for the whole event like:
a. Construction of boundary walls, entrance and exit gates, driveways, walkways and parking lots
b. Construction of AC/Non AC hangers/ halls, seating arrangement, stage design/ set up.
c. Construction of green rooms, staff rooms, storage rooms, power rooms, toilets, sewage systems, stalls,
counters, booths and kiosks.
d. He is responsible for setting up electricity, water and phone connections.
e. He is responsible for conservancy (i.e. cleanliness).
3. He formulates, prepares and implements the risk management plan. (risks related to infrastructure
management like sudden shortage of workers, materials, power failure etc)

People Involved in Sponsoring an Event

The following people are involved in supporting an event:
 - Organizers
 - Sponsors
 - Partners
 - Clients
 - Supporting Agencies
These people can either be an individual or a company. They
either finance the whole event or some of its part or provide
some service either at subsidized rate or for free.

Organizers
An Organizer finances maximum amount of money in an
event. Therefore he has maximum control over the event.
Among sponsors, principal sponsor finances maximum
amount of money. Depending on the amount of money financed, a sponsor can be a principal sponsor, co-
sponsor or associate sponsor.

Sponsors
Similarly, depending on the type of service financed, a sponsor can be: a venue sponsor, gift sponsor, crown
and jewellery sponsor, catering sponsor, badge sponsor, banner sponsor etc.

Partners
Partners generally provide services either at subsidized rate or for free like media partners (which provide ad
space), promotional partners (which do publicity), logistic partners (which move goods and merchandise
from one destination to the other in the most efficient manner).
Media partners can be: a newspaper partner, magazine partner, TV partner, Radio partner, Phone partner,
Online partner or Outdoor partner. Any college, institute or publication can become: a knowledge partner,
Research Partner, Scholistic partner, Holistic partner or Academic Partner to support an event.

Supporting Agencies
Supporting Agencies (either goverment or private) can also support an event by either financing the event or
donating some service.
Career in Event Management
Event management is a multi million dollar industry which is
growing at the rate of 150% per annum with events being
hosted almost daily. So making a career in event
management is a good choice.
Organzing a perfectly synchronized, well planned, well
conducted and memorable event, requires the supervision
and services of well trained and experienced event
professionals. Therefore event management companies are
always on a look out for event professionals.
The success of an event manger depends upon how well he
organized the event and up to which extent he is able to
achieve event and marketing objectives.
The salary of an event manager depends upon his
qualification, amount of exposure to events, media and corporate contacts. Working as an entrepreneur after
two or three years of work experience is strongly recommended. If you can give value for money to your
sponsors than sky is the limit for your income.

==>Click Here to Quickly start your event planning business<==

Event Manager Skills
Event management is a career which demands lot of hard work, high degree of energy, flexibility and
motivation, good communication skills, strong networking, excellent PR (Public Relation) skills, eye for
detail, strong organizational skills, leadership qualities, diplomacy, patience, market awareness and tons of
creativity.

Event Manager Qualifications

There is no minimum qualification requirement to become an event
manager for non-corporate events. Any person with strong
organizational skills and excellent PR Skills can organize non-
corporate events.
However for organizing corporate events a degree/diploma in event
management, PR, tourism, hospitality management, business
administration or marketing is a must. This is because corporate
events are organized to promote and sell company's products or
services or to build/enhance its brand image.
A person with 2-3 years of work experience in the field of
sales/marketing can also organize corporate events without any formal education in event management or
business administration.

How to become Event Planner

You can start your career in the event management field either by joining any event management company
as a trainee/apprentice or by joining an event management institute as a student.
The advantage of the latter is that you can learn things quickly and become a certified event professional
too. What other people learn over several years through work experience, you can learn in 6 to 12 months
through certified event management courses. Although such certification is not mandatory to work in an
event company but one from a reputed institute can be a head start for you if you want to excel in this field at
a faster pace.
By being certified you can demonstrate competitive distinction, and that you have the knowledge, training,
experience, judgment and ability to plan and manage a successful event. Event management companies
and media houses are slowly but gradually recognizing the value of certified event professionals and in the
near future they will be given priorities in event jobs.
Keep one thing in mind. No event management company organizes all type of events. There are some
companies which organize only corporate events; some organize only trade shows while some other may
organize only fashions shows, concerts or wedding. Therefore first decide the event which you like the most
and then join the company which is specialized in organizing that event. For example if you like music
concerts then you can join the company which is specialized in organizing music concerts.

Life of an Event Manager

Life of an event manager is very hard. This is certainly one of the
hardest jobs on the planet. You may have to work under the blazing;
scorching sun throughout the day. You may have to stay away from
your family for several months.
If you are not very social and flexible then event management is not
for you. By flexibility I mean, you must be ready to work/travel 24/7.
There are no fixed working hours in this field. You may have to work
36 hours in one stretch. You may have to report for duty at 4' o clock in
the morning or you may have to stay at the venue (your workplace) for
several days.
Organizing exhibitions/trade shows is one of the toughest job in event management. You should go in the
exhibition management field only when you are physically fit and can bear great amount of physical exertion.
Remember the real money in event management is only for the entrepreneurs. So if you lack leadership
qualities and entrepreneur skills or don't have any plan to start your own businesses later then don’t waste
your time here. Mark my words "There is either very little or absolutely no possibility of growth for those who
don't want to become entrepreneurs or those who are not MBAs/sales/marketing professionals." If you are
looking for 9 to 5 job in an AC environment with higher pay scales, higher possibility of growth and 5 working
days then go to IT field.

How to Form an Event Management Company

Are You Ready?
Want to start an event management company? Wish to earn those
great bucks? First make sure you know where you are
You are heading into event planning business where you will need
solid social networking and business development skills to survive.
Your success in this business will depend upon, not only on your
experience and knowledge level but also on your contacts (public
relations), negotiating, marketing and entrepreneur skills.
Here I should assume that you have been working in the event
industry (or sales or marketing industry) for the last couple of years (at
least 2 years) and that now you are confident you can find clients for
yourself.
Just like in any other business, there are certain skills which you must
have in you, if you wish to succeed in the event planning business:
1. -You manage people effectively and get the job done.
2. - You know how to manage time and prioritize your tasks.
3. - You can find new and innovative ways to solve problems.
4. - You are good in decision making. You first evaluate your
options and then decide.
5. - You know how to talk to clients and close sales.
6. - You have the ability to sell your ideas.
7. - You have the ability to market your services.
8. - You know how to manage cash flows and keep track of financial transactions.
9. - You understand team formation.
10. - You have leadership qualities.
11. - You know how to motivate yourself and others.
12. - You have strong analytical ability and eye for detail.
If you wish to excel in the event management field at as faster pace, then get certified. There are many
event planning certification which can prove helpful in becoming a certified event planner. Such event
management certificates demonstrate competitive distinction and that you have the skills, knowledge,
experience and ability to plan and manage a successful event.

Good ideas for starting an event management company:

Step 1: Decide the services you wish to sell
A service is something which is intangible like: wedding planning, party planning, organizing music concerts,
fashion shows, conducting MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) etc.
Choose those services in which you have a strong hold, in which you have majority of your experience and
expertise and which can generate maximum revenue for you. Don't try to be jack of all trades and sell all
event planning services one can think of. If majority of your experience is in wedding planning, then wedding
planning is best for you.
Don't try to get into corporate meetings, just because the market is better. Corporate meetings are different
from the weddings in terms of planning, implementation and evaluation. In fact every event is planned,
executed and evaluated differently and therefore you can't organize all type of events.

Step 2: Do market research, competitor's analysis and SWOT analysis.

Market Research for Event Management Company
Market means your target audience i.e. people who may be
interested in your events. It also includes those clients who
may be interested in hiring your event management services.
If your target audience are least interested in the type of
event you organize, then you won't get any audience. Say
you want to organize a rock concert in the country of Oman.
But people there are least interested in such type of events.
It means there is no market for your event in that country. If
you organize the event there, it will fail for sure. Similarly if
you wish to organize a Christmas Carnival in an area where
majority of people are Muslims, then you can't expect many
footsteps.
Therefore it is very important that you find out in advance who are your target audience (i.e. their age group,
sex, qualification, profession, lifestyle, income, liking, disliking, customs, religions, traditions etc), where
there live and what are their desires and expectations from your event. To do market research you will have
to do survey in the area (town/city/state/country) where you wish to organize the event. If you wish to open a
wedding planning company and there are hardly two or three weddings in a year in your area, then selling
such type of services is not commercially viable.

Competitors' Analysis
Find out:
 - who are your competitors
 - Where they live?
 - What are their employee base (i.e. number of employees)
 - Client base (i.e. number of clients)
 - Market value (i.e. what is their reputation in the market)
 - Market share (i.e. how much business they have occupied)
 - Turnover (i.e. annual sales)?
 - How many events they organize in a year?
 - Why people attend their events?
 - What is so special about their events?
 - How do they get clients and sponsors for their events?
All this will help you in developing a better business plan for your event management company.

SWOT Analysis for Event Management Company

SWOT analysis is used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in your
event planning venture. In SWOT: 's' stands for strengths, 'w' stands for weaknesses, 'o' stands for
opportunities and 'T' stands for threats.
Strengths
Determine your resources and capabilities and how they can be used against your competition and in favour
of your target audience. What advantages do you have? What you can do better than the others?

Weaknesses
Determine the resources you lack. Determine the advantages your competitors have. What could you
improve? What you should avoid?
Opportunities
Look at your strengths and determine which opportunities are opened for you. Determine how you can open
up even more opportunities by eliminating some of your weaknesses.
Threats
Changes in external environment (like changes in economy or market trends) or any unfavourable situation
can pose threat to your company or business. Determine all present and possible threats to your business
venture. It can be the presence of a very powerful competitor or new or innovative ways of organizing events
or a heavy tax on entertainment.

Step 3: Prepare business plan for your event management company

You will develop your business plan on the basis of market research, competitors' analysis and SWOT
analysis of your event management company. Before developing your business plan, you should keep some
points in mind:
1. Be realistic and avoid optimism while estimating capital requirements, sales and profits.
2. Don't ignore developing strategies which may come handy in case of adversities in your business.

Following steps can be adopted for developing a business plan for your event management
company:
1. Outline your business objectives.
What do you want to achieve in short term and in long term i.e. what is the mission and vision of your event
planning company? However don't stick too much with long term objectives as they may become
meaningless after a long time or changes in market situation.
2. Determine your staffing needs and what should be their skill sets.
Develop the organizational structure of your event management company. Outline your own skills,
knowledge and experience and determine how they can be used to achieve business success. Prepare
resume of yourself and all of the people who will be involved in your business. These resumes will come
handy when you will look for partners/investors later on.
3. Determine how exactly you will find clients?
How you will approach them and how you will sell your services. How you will expand your business? What
will be your rules, regulations, policies and procedures regarding payments, reimbursement, penalties,
cancellation and behaviour?
4. Estimate your capital requirements for one whole year.
How you will manage the cash flow?
5. Prepare a contingency plan
i.e. what strategies you will adopt in case of capital loss, economic crisis or market downturn.

Step 4: On the basis of your business plan determine your operating cost
i.e. the cost to run the business.

Step 5: On the basis of the operating cost, decide your own fees and the staff salary.

Step 6: Get investors/ business partners for your event management company
on the basis of market research, competitors' analysis, SWOT analysis and your business plan.

Step 7: Decide name and logo of your company and its status
i.e. whether organization will be a company, firm or establishment.
Step 8: Premises, recruitment and marketing your business
Hire office. Buy office stationary and recruit staff. Launch a new flashy website which effectively describes
your business and services in great detail. Hire an internet marketing professional to promote it.
If you won't promote your website, then nobody will visit your website. So in that case your website will be as
good as nothing. Through your website, your business will get global presence, 24 hours a day and 365
days a year. You can also expect to get lot of clients once, your website becomes popular.

Step 9: Register your Company

If you have opened a company then get it registered under the Company's Act'. If you have opened a firm
then get it registered under the 'Indian Partnership Act'. If you have opened an establishment, then get it
registered under the 'Shops and Establishment Act'.An event management company is just like any other
company. So whatever rules and procedures are required to start a company, also applies to an event
management company.

Step 10: Register to pay tax

Following taxes are to be paid by an event management company. Income Tax, TDS (Tax deducted at
source), service tax, entertainment tax and taxes related to moving goods and merchandise from one
destination to others. Get PAN card to file Income Tax return. TAN card to file TDS return. Get registration for
service tax. The service tax on event management companies in India is 12.36%

Additional Resources
- Procedure for forming a company in India
- Procedure for forming a company in United States (US)
- Procedure for forming a company in United Kingdom (UK)
- Registration forms for Event Management Company in India
- Top Event Management Companies in India
- People involved in Event Management Companies
 Market Research in Event Planning
Market Research
Before organizing an event, find out whether there is a market (i.e.
audience) for your intended event or not. For e.g. you want to organize a
fashion show in Oman. If people there have little or no interest in fashion
shows, then it is not a good idea to organize such event there. The event
will fail for sure.

Market Analysis
If there is a market for your intended event, then do market analysis. Market Analysis means finding
information about your target audience. Find out who are your target audience i.e. there age group, sex,
qualification, profession, knowledge level, income, status, likings, disliking, personality, customs, traditions,
religion, lifestyle etc.
Knowing your target audience's customs, traditions and religion is very important so that we don’t hurt there
customs and religion unknowingly through our event. For e.g. if you organize a Hindu wedding and serve
beef there, then u will be in mortal danger as cow is considered as a sacred animal in Hindu religion.
Similarly serving pork in a Muslim function can bring havoc. Find out where majority of your target audience
live so that you can direct your marketing efforts towards them.
There is no point in advertising across US if your target audience belongs only to New Jersey. In this way
you can cut down your advertising and marketing cost tremendously. Find out what are the desires and
expectations of target audience from your intended event. Find out when (i.e. date and time) and where (i.e.
venue) they want the intended event to take place .For this you will have to do survey. All this information will
help you in developing a better event plan.

Competitors' Analysis
It means finding information about your competitors. Find out who are your competitors .i.e. their age, sex,
qualifications, knowledge level, experience in organizing events, turnover, market value, PR (media and
corporate contacts) and market share.
Find out how they promote and execute there events. What they do in there events? Why people come to
there events? For this you will have to attend each and every event organized by your competitors and then
create an event report. The event report will contain things like
 - seating and light arrangements
 - promotional materials used
 - blueprint of the whole venue
 - program and food menu
 - contact details of sponsors, partners, clients (for whom the event is organized)
 - service providers like DJs, Anchors, Make up artist, Performers, photographers, videographers,
decorator, florist etc.
Find out as much information as possible about events organized by your competitors.
SWOT Analysis in Event Planning >

SWOT Analysis in Event Planning

 Products/Services Research
If you are organizing a corporate event then it is necessary for you as an
event manager to do research of the products/ services promoted and
sold by your corporate client.
 - Find out how the company promotes its products
 - How the company wants to build/enhance the image associated
with its product (also known as the brand image)?
 - What is the market value and market share of the company and
its products?
 - Who are the customers of the product?
 - What are the features of the product?
 - What are the advantages and disadvantages of the product in comparison to competitors'
products?
All this research will later help you in making an effecting promotional campaign for your corporate event.

SWOT Analysis
In SWOT Analysis:
'S' stands for Strengths
'W' stands for Weaknesses
'O' stands for Opportunities
'T' stands for Threats
It is a strategic planning tool which is used to identify and analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
and threats involved in your project. SWOT analysis can also be done on your organization.
Strengths:
These are the attributes of your project/organization which are helpful in achieving project's objectives. For
e.g.: experienced event team, high motivation level, excellent PR, good market share etc.
Weaknesses:
These are those attributes of your project/organization which are harmful in achieving project's objectives.
For e.g.: social loafing, lack of funds, inexperienced event team, low energy level, lack of media and
corporate contacts etc.
Opportunities:
These are those external factors which are helpful in achieving the project's objectives. For e.g.: little
competition, favorable economic conditions, support from the local authorities, availability of the state of the
art infrastructure etc.
Threats:
These are those external factors which are harmful in achieving the project's objectives. For e.g.: high
competition, little or no support from local authorities, bad weather, poor infrastructure, high lab our rate,
unavailability of raw material etc. It is very important that you conduct SWOT analysis before developing an
event plan to develop a strategy which maximizes the potential of strengths and opportunities of your project
and at the same time, minimizes the impact of the weaknesses and threats.

Analysis Report
After conducting market, competitors, product/service research and SWOT analysis, create a report which
contain details of all the research work done by you. Documentation of your research work is important, later
for event evaluation. Your analysis report will also help you in getting sponsorship for your event.

Event Planning Tips

 We follow 5 'W's (i.e. Why, What, When, Where, Who) and 1 H' (i.e.How)
principle to create an event plan.

Why
'Why' means, why you want to organize the event i.e. event objective.
What do you want to get from the event? For eg: do you want to organize
the event to enhance your company's brand image, to increase company's
sales, to promote your client's products/services or to promote a social
cause etc.
Defining event objectives at the very start of event planning is very important as it gives you the direction in
which you should proceed to accomplish your objectives. Organizing an event without clear objectives is a
huge waste of both time and resources.

What
'What' means what you are going to do in the event i.e. what will be the:
Event Name
What will be the name of the event? For eg: 'Auto Expo 2007".
Food and Beverage Menu
It contains the list of food items and beverages you will serve during the event to guests and target
audience. Always consult a caterer while deciding your food and beverage menu as he knows the best
which wine is served with a particular course (i.e. meal).
Keep event theme, preferences and religion of target audience and guests in mind while deciding the menu.
If majority of your target audience are vegetarian, then it is not a good idea to serve non-veg in the event.
Similarly if majority of your guests are very health conscious then there should also be some low calories
food items in your menu. You don't want them to go back with an empty stomach.
Also keep climatic conditions into account. Don't serve out of season food items and beverages. Like
serving ice cream/cold drink in winter, food (like spicy food) that provides warmth during summer or food that
provides coolness during winter.
Event Profile
What the event is all about? For eg: This event is an International exhibition on new models of Cars and its
accessories
Guests Profile
Who will be your chief guest and other guests? Your guest list must include organizers, sponsors, partners,
clients and specially media people. Use your imagination to create good titles to woo your guests. Like
'Guest of honor', star guest etc. Never give special treatment to one particular guest or guests' group.
Event Theme
Theme means subject. An event can be based on a particular theme like : hollywood, hawaaian, egyptian,
balloon, clock, red, white etc. Theme based events are generally parties or wedding. Like we can have party
based on flowers theme. Such type of parties are known as theme parties. In a theme party, everything from
dress code, decoration, games, music, gifts, favors to food and beverages are based on a particular theme.
Service Providers
Who will be your service providers? Any professional providing any type of service in lieu of money is a
service provider. For e.g.: DJ, anchor, florist, videographer, photographer, make up artist, performers,
decorator, models, technicians, usher etc.
Obligations
These are the compulsions on the guests like dress code or the knowledge of salsa dance.
Type of Entry
Decide how will be the entry. Entry will be by ticket, pass or through invitation only.
Favors
These are the gifts given to guests. We can give gifts to guests when they enter a party, when they win a
game or when they leave the party.
Entry fees
What will be the entry fees? If you are going to charge entry fees, then be prepared to pay entertainment
tax. Your entry fees should be according to your target audience's status. If you overcharge you won’t get
any audience.
Event Highlights
These are those activities which you do to catch your taget audience and media's attention. Like
inagrauation of your fashion show by Tom Cruise, performance by Latin singer Shakira or display of the
world most expensive car etc.
Promotional Campaign
How you are going to promote your event, organizers, sponsors, partners and clients pre-event, at-event
and post-event.
Programe Menu
It is the list of various activities that will occur as a part of the event. Sample Programe Menu of a
Conference.
Event Budget
To determine your event budget find out what will be the cost for producing and marketing the event. To
determine production cost, create a list of logistics used in the event and then sum up there hiring/usage
cost. You can determine marketing cost on the basis of historical data like past advertising expenditure for
same or similar events.If you are a first timer, then take help from an ad agency. On the basis of production
and marketing cost, determine your operating cost (i.e. cost to run the business). On the basis of operating
cost decide your own fees and the staff salary.
If you are organizing event for a client, then the client will bear the production and marketing cost of the
event. If you are organizing your own event then you will bear the production and marketing cost. As an
event manager, you must be able to recover your production, marketing and operating costs plus you must
be able to make considerable profit also. Developing event budget and managing cash flow pre-event, at-
event and post event is quite difficult and requires help from an experienced professional. Better leave this
job to an Accountant if you are organizing

Conference Planning
Monday, 30 April 2007 Tuesday, 1 May 2007 Wednesday, 2 May 2007
8:00 Registration 8:30 Chair: M. Eisenhut; 9:10 Session 7: Angiogenesis
Heidelberg, Germany
R Haubner; Innsbruck, Austria
Session 4: Amino acids, peptides
and proteins
9:00 Chair: H.H. Coenen 10:00 Coffee break 10:00 Coffee break
Opening and welcome addresses
10:00 Coffee break 10:30 Chair: K.Suzuki, Chiba, 10:30 Chair: J. Fowler; Brookhaven,
Japan USA
Session 5: Interdisciplinary Session 8: PET-nuclides II
10:30 Chair: A. Luxen; Liège, Belgium 12:00 Lunch and Posters 12:00 Lunch
Session 1: PET-nuclides I
RADIOCHEMICAL YIELD DEPENDENCE
OF 3’-DEOXY-3’
12:00 Lunch and Posters 13:30 Ann Arbor, USA 13:30 Chair: S. McQuarrie,
Session 6: Click labelling methods Edmonton, Canada
Session 9: Radiopharmacology
13:30 Chair: S. S. Jurisson; Missouri, USA 16:30 Adjourn 16:30 Closing & Farewell
Session 2: Radiometals
15:00 Coffee break

16:30 Adjourn
 Event Venue Selection
Keep following things in mind while selecting a venue for your event:

1) Target Audience/Guest Size

This means the number of people you are expecting to attend your event.
Make sure that your venue can easily accommodate your expected target
audience. Your venue should not be too small or too large for your guests.
If too small, then your guests will feel discomfort. If it is too large then you will unnecessarily end up paying
more for the venue.
Get firm indications whether guests plan to attend your event by sending R.S.V.P clearly printed on the
invitation.
The term R.S.V.P is a French acronym. Its meaning in English is 'Please Respond'. If R.S.V.P is printed on
the invitation then the invited guest is expected to tell the host whether or not he/she is attending the event.
Since many people don't understand the meaning of this term or don't bother to reply back, it is advisable to
individually call and ask your guests about there plan to attend the event. In this way you can get quite
accurate idea of the guest size which will help you in deciding food and beverage quantities also.

2) Target Audience Status

If you target audience are rich people then your venue must be a five star hotel or resort and all the services
provided during the event must be of very high quality.

3) Target Audience Convenience

Select venue according to target audience convenience. Your venue should not be very far from the place
where majority of your target audience live. Your venue should have proper lighting and ventilation. It should
not be in a noisy or polluted area. It should be absolutely neat and clean and free from any type of
infestation.

4) Climatic Conditions
Keep Climatic conditions in mind while selecting a venue. If you are going to organize an event during rainy
season or during peak winter then selecting an open-aired venue is not a good idea. Always try to organize
indoor events if possible as there production cost is lesser than the outdoor events.

5) Venue History
Before hiring a venue check out the history of the venue. Find out how many events have been organized in
the venue so far. In this way you can find out whether or not venue and the staff there is event friendly. This
will help you immensely when you later organize event there as you will have to do less amount of work in
making the venue suitable for the event. If venue has noise ordinace problems in the past like neigbours
calling the cops to shut down the event, then it is not a good idea to organize event there especially outdoor
event.
 Contracting the Event Venue
What is a Contract?
It is an agreement that is enforceable by law.

What is an Agreement?
An agreement is a promise or set of promises.

When a contract is considered to be valid?

A Contract is considered to be valid when:
1.) The agreement has been made between two or more parties who are legally competent and authorized
to enter into a contract. For e.g. you can not enter into a contract with a minor.

2.) The agreement has been made on the free will of the parties. Free will means, the agreement has been
made:
- Without giving threats or use of physical force.
- Without any undue influence i.e. party in the dominating position didn't take advantage of its position or
authority to get consent from the other party.

- Without fraud. Fraud means deceiving or misleading someone intentionally.

- Without misrepresentation of facts.

- Not by mistake. You can declare a contract as Null and Void if your are able to prove in the court of law that
the agreement has not been made on the free will or the other party is not authorized or legally competent to
enter into a contract.

3.) The contract contains consideration (i.e. benefits and detriments). A contract without detriments (i.e.
damages and harms) is legally insignificant.For e.g. if your contract doesn’t contain the
penalty/compensation if a certain clause is violated, then it has no significance.

4.) The objects and consideration in the contract are not lawful either wholly or in parts. For e.g. the following
contract is considered to be void: 'After getting payment of US $ 1.22 million from Black Rose Corporation
you will kill person 'A' or you will do a robbery on our behalf.'

Important points to remember while contracting Event Venue

1) Whatever you negotiate, whatever that is offered to/by you or mutually agreed upon (including venue
services, fees, items' cost, rules and restrictions), should be specified in a written format on a stamp paper
duly signed by the parties who are entering into the contract and who are legally competent and authorized
to enter into a contract.
Never negotiate anything verbally. If the other party refuses to accept your proposal or there own promises
in a written format, then don't do business with them.

2) Decide the compensation in case your event is forced to shut down or cancelled because of: noise
ordinance, venue staff strike, change in the management staff, change in the ownership of the venue, buy
outs, bankruptcies or other guests housed by the venue who are not associated with your event.

3) Make sure that the contract guarantees:

- The booked dates, time, venue space, return of deposits.

- Exact, itemized list of all the services promised and the fees associated with those promised services
including maximum cost (i.e. the cost will not go over this amount)
 - Promises and commitments discussed and agreed upon.

4) Never sign a contract immediately after the venue inspection. Take a

copy of the contract agreement home/office. Read it thoroughly several
times and discuss it with your team members and attorney. Compare the
contract with contracts of other venues and then accept/reject it.

5) Always Consult your personal attorney to review the contract for you
and make sure that the contract protects your interests against forceful
shutdown of the event, venue staff's strike/shortage, change in the management staff or ownership of the
venue, buy outs, bankruptcies or violation of any agreement or clause.

During contracting with the venue manager make sure that your contract contains the
following clauses:
1) There should be no construction/repair work of the venue building or any of its parts without prior approval
on the day of the event. (Decide the compensation with the venue manager if this clause is violated.)

2) No other event can take place in the venue on the day of my event. (If this is not possible then make sure
that the other event doesn’t affect the services provided to you by the venue like shortage of staff or parking
space. It should not produce any party noise, music or announcement that affects your event's programs.
Decide the compensation with the venue manager if this clause is violated.)

3) This contract is all inclusive and no other oral or written contract exists between the two parties stated in
this agreement.

Event Marketing
Steps involved in creating a promotional campaign for your event
Note: Before creating a promotional campaign get the basic idea of some business and marketing terms.

Step 1: Setup advertising objectives.

Why you want to advertise? What is your objective of advertising? What do you want to get through
advertising? For e.g
- You want to advertise to create awareness about your event.

- You want to advertise to get sponsors and clients for your events

- You want to advertise to thank you your sponsors and clients.

Step 2: Decide your promotional Activities

How you are going to promote your event company, your organizers, your sponsors, your clients and your
partners, pre-event, at-event and post-event. Before I go any further, let's get an idea of what is media and
what is media vehicle.
Media refers to various means of communications. Broadly speaking there are five categories of media:
Print, Electronic, outdoor, Transit and Miscellaneous media. Print media includes: newspapers, magazines,
press releases, tickets, passes, invitations, banners, posters etc. Electronic media includes TV, Radio,
Internet, Telephone, electronic signage etc. Outdoor Media includes Hoardings, Billboards, and Balloons etc.
Transit Media includes promotion through cars, cabs, buses, trucks, trains, planes etc. Miscellaneous media
includes everything else like: events, word of mouth publicity etc.
Media vehicle is a specific medium. For e.g. if 'Internet' is media, then MySpace, Facebook, Twitter,
Google, Yahoo etc are media vehicles. If 'TV' is a media, then specific TV program like 'Celebrity Apprentice'
is a media vehicle. Similarly if magazine is a media, then specific magazine say 'playboy' is a media vehicle.

How Print Media can be used for Promotion

1. Promote your event, sponsors and clients through newspapers ads,
magazines ads, trade journals, press releases, tickets, passes,
invitations, banners and posters.
2. Imprint you sponsor/client's company name and logo on your staff's
shirts and caps and on the pens, diary, gifts, exhibitors' manual and
other promotional materials.

How Electronic Media can be used for Promotion

1. Promote your event, sponsors and clients through TV and Radio Commercials
2. Provide free ad space on your company's website where your sponsors and clients can promote their
products and services for particular period of time.
3. Develop an event website just to promote your upcoming event and provide a facility for online
registration. All the details regarding the event must be available on the website. For e.g. if your event name
is say 'spark2009', then come up with a website like www.spark2009.com
4. Use electronic signage like visual display signage, Plasma Screen, LCD Screen, LED Screen, Projection
Screen, Video Walls etc to promote your sponsors and clients.

How Outdoor Media can be used for Promotion

1. Promote your event, sponsors and clients through billboards and
hoardings ads. A very large hoarding is known as the billboard. There
are two types of billboards: Scrolling message billboard and mobile
billboard. Hoardings can also be front lit, back lit, painted, poster,
mono pole, unipole and tri-vision.
2. You can also do promotion through Kiosk, Canopy, Flex and giant
balloons.

How Transit Media can be used for Promotion

1. Road Shows are generally used in transit media.
2. Mobile billboards, mobile LED Display and caravan can also be used for promotion.
Steps Involved in Producing an Event
Step 1: Do event analysis.
Step 2: Prepare an event plan.
Step 3: Exhaustively test market your event plan
Discuss your event plan with other people to know there opinions and suggestions.
Step 4: Get organizers, sponsors, partners and clients for your event.
Step 5: Prepare an event calendar.
An event calendar is an ordered list of activities which are needed to be executed in order to produce and
market the event. These activities are of three types: pre-event, at-event and post-event activities.

Steps involved in preparing an event calendar

Step 1: Create a list of pre-event, at-event and post event activities.
Step 2: Set deadlines for each event activity.
Step 3: Assign event activities to individual team members.

Note: For large scale events, you will have to prepare a separate event calendar for each field of event
production.

Various fields of event production:

Event Team Management
Stress Management and Events
Risk Management
Information Management
Procurement Management
Logistic Management
Event Security Management
Infrastructure Management
Technical Management
Program Management
Food and Beverages Management
Attendees Management
Quality Management
Marketing Management
Finance Management
Human Resource Management
General Management
 Event Team Management
You need a team to organize an event. You can’t do everything by
yourself. So I don’t need to tell you further, how important a team is for
your event. Event mismanagement is mostly about team mismanagement.
Do the following things for effective team management:

Know your team

Just knowing the names, faces and job profile of your team members is
not enough. You must have good knowledge of there personality, life style, likings, disliking, family
background, status, educational qualification, knowledge level, customs, religion and especially there needs
and wants. By needs and wants I mean there physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, esteem
needs, cognitive needs and self actualization needs.
Every person has different needs and different priority to fulfill them. While for some getting recognition is
more important than job security. For others job security is more important. Determine the needs of your
team members and fulfill them in order to get optimum results from them.

Physiological needs
The need to have food, water, warmth, shelter and other things necessary for survival.
Your team members will not feel anything, if these needs are met but can cause them discomfort, sickness
and pain if these needs are not full filled. So as an event manager it is your job to make sure that all the
physiological needs of your team are met from time to time. Just imagine how a team member who hasn’t
eaten anything all day will perform his duty in the evening and you will get my point.

Safety needs
It includes need to be safe from physical and psychological harm. It also includes job security and financial
security.
As an event manger you have to ensure safety of your team especially women. A person can’t give his best
in an unsafe environment.
To protect your team from psychological harm, make sure there are no internal conflicts (like ego clashes,
altercations, conflict of interest etc) among team members. If there are conflicts, then resolve them
judiciously.
Providing job security to your team is also very important. At no point any team member should feel that his
job is under threat either by your actions or by someone else actions.
Take care of your team beyond the work place. If any team member is facing a financial problem, then help
him as much as you can.

Social needs
It is the need to feel a sense of belonging and acceptance. Need to love and be loved by friends, intimate
partner, family and social groups like your team.
To fulfill this need, there must be cordial relationship between you and the team and among the team
members. A team member will not perform his best if he has considerable family problems. Try whatever you
can to reduce his family problems. If you can’t do much at least accept his problems and empathize with
him. Try to reduce his stress by giving him a day off or engaging him in the sport he likes the most. Ask you
team members to be as supportive to him as possible. All this will help.
People who have strong social needs should not be placed in a job where they have minimum interaction
with people. They are the best for marketing or PR type jobs.

Esteem needs
It is the need to get respect, recognition, fame and status.
Some people have stronger esteem needs than the other. You will have to identify those team members who
have strong esteem needs and then find ways to fulfill those needs. For e.g. if a person is working very hard
to get recognition among the team members and you are not giving him the recognition he deserves (by
openly praising him or giving him promotion) then sooner or later his motivation level will go down and he
will not give optimum results or worst will not perform and quit.
 Cognitive needs
It is the need to understand, learn, discover and explore.
People who have strong cognitive needs should not be placed in a job which is monotonous and
which doesn’t offer any possibility of intellectual growth. Frankly speaking, people with strong
cognitive needs are not suitable for event management jobs.

Self Actualization need

It is the need to be the best. It is the need to become everything, one is capable of becoming.
Very few people have such type of need. If you have some one in you team with this need, then
you have both advantage and disadvantage. The advantage is that you can always expect
optimum results from him. The disadvantage is that he will tirelessly seek for the position of
leadership and if he didn’t get it, then he will leave you soon and may even become your competitor.

Risk Management Plan for Events

An event is full of uncertainties like power failure, equipment failure, medical emergency, brawl, stampede,
fire, sponsorship withdrawal, last minute turned down by an artist etc. How will you deal with all these
contingencies without a well thought out risk management plan.
Risk management is done at each and every stage of event production. For e.g. when risk management is
done in the information management field, then it deals with loss of data due to data theft or hard disk crash.
When risk management is done in the security management field, then it deals with brawl, stampede,
medical emergency, accidental fire etc.
Similarly there are risks associated with: human resource, finance, marketing, quality management,
attendees, food and beverages management, programs, technical management, infrastructure, logistic,
procurement and team management.

Developing Risk Management Plan for Events

Since risk management is a very important part of event management therefore it should be carried out in a
planned and professional manner. Following steps are involved in risk management:

Step 1: Identify those elements or activities which could carry a risk.

A list of such elements is already specified above like information management, security, procurement etc.

Step 2: Identify the risks associated with each element or activity.

For e.g. cargo theft is associated with logistic management. Similarly, data loss is associated with
information management.

Step 3: Determine the possibility of occurrence of the risk and the severity of the consequences if
the risk does happen. For e.g.
Elements Risk Possibility Severity

Information Management Loss of data Low Very high

Data theft High High

Data Corruption Very high Very high

Security Management Brawl Low Low

Step 4: Risk Prioritization
Risks with high severity of the consequences should be handled first.

Step 5: Formulate, prepare and implement strategies to manage risks.

Some common strategies used for risk management are:
*Risk Avoidance
Avoid those elements and activities which could carry a risk.
*Risk Retention
Accept some or all the consequences associated with a particular risk.
*Risk Transfer
Transfer the risk to a third party. For e.g. transferring the event security responsibility to a security agency.
*Risk Reduction
Reduce the risk associated with a particular element or activity by developing an effective contingency
action plan.
Step 6: Monitor the risks periodically
so that the strategies used to manage the risks can be updated or reviewed.

Information Management in Events

Information Management includes acquiring
information from various sources and then
organizing, retrieving and maintaining that
information.
For small size events, you can do information
management all by yourself. However for big and
very big events you will need an information
manager. This information manager may have
several assistants depending upon the size of the
event.
An information manager is responsible for
maintaining database of service providers (like
decorators, technicians, DJ, anchor, florist, artists,
ushers etc), guests, sponsors, partners, organizers,
delegates, speakers, media people, clients and
target audience.
The information which is usually managed is the contact details and all the business operations and
monetary transactions carried out pre-event, at-event and post event. For e.g. when you hired a particular
DJ, how much he asked for his service, how much advance you paid, what were the terms and condition on
which there was mutual agreement and things like this.
An information manager is responsible for documenting all such activities. In case of meetings and
conferences, he is the one who records the proceedings. He also formulates, prepares and implements the
risk management plan i.e. risks related to information management like loss of data due to data theft or hard
disk crash.
There are many event management software programmes available on the market which can help with
information management.

Logisitic Management in Events

 Logistic management is all about moving goods and merchandise from
one destination to the other in the most efficient and cost effective manner.
For small or local events you can do logistic management all by yourself.
But for large events, especially national level or international level events
you will have to take the services of a logistic manager (also known as
clearing and forwarding agent).

A national or international level event may require:

1) Guidance on pre and post shipment services
2) Liasoning with various govt. departments and organizations.
3) Preparation of documentation required for import or export of cargo.
4) Multimodal transportation by road, air or sea.
5) Warehousing and distribution of cargo
6) Cargo Insurance and tracking
7) Cargo consolidation
8) Custom clearance, shipping clearance and various other clearances.
9) Various types of procurement management and resource management services.
10) Formulation, preparation and implementation of a risk management plan i.e. risks related to logistic
management like cargo theft.

A logistic manager is expert in all the aforesaid areas. He has extensive knowledge of the rules, regulations,
policies, procedures and documentation necessary to import, export or move goods and merchandise. He
has extensive knowledge of the transportation cost, custom clearance, banking practices etc. Therefore he
is indispensable for national or international level events.

Security Management in Events

Security Management includes formulating,
preparing and implementing security plans and
strategies for events i.e. how to protect delegates,
guests, service, providers, organizes, sponsors,
partners, clients, target, audience, media people
goods and merchandise and yourself from
unforeseen circumstances like:

1. Fire
In case of fire at the event venue, use fire
extinguisher to extinguish the fire. In the mean time
take everyone out of the venue safely. Develop a
separate emergency exit plan for this. If fire is
uncontrollable then call the fire brigade.
Follow fire code and safety regulations to prevent
the fire as specified below:
1. Don't place any combustible or inflammable material in the venue esp. near green rooms, guest rooms or
seating area.

2. All materials including prop must be properly treated with fire retardant solution.

3. Make sure that the entrance and exit ways are not blocked by any material or by any means.
4. Make sure that the event venue must have separate entrance and exit ways, fire alarm system and fire
extinguishers.

5. Use only those electrical equipments which are branded and which use three core wires.

6. At least one doctor with first aid box along with the ambulance must be there at the venue to handle
medical emergency.

7. Your staff must be well trained about giving first aid like CPR and must be able to handle fire extinguishers
and crowd in case of fire.

2. Power Failure
If you are organizing event at a place where power failure is common, then you should have adequate
power backup.
In case of a power failure, switch on the emergency lights and then turned on the generators. If you have
UPS (uninterrupted power supply) system, then it is the best. If you cant arrange such types of power
backups, then at least you should have torch or candles.
Create a separate emergency plan to handle crowd and guests in case of a power failure.

3. Equipment Failure
Use equipments of only reputed brands so that the possibility of their failure is least.
Hire only those light and sound technicians who know how to fix up their equipments in case of any problem
and who carry backup equipments also.
Create a separate emergency plan to manage programs and performers in case of a power failure.

4. Medical Emergency
A paramedical team along with ambulance must be present
at the event venue. If this is out of budget, then at least a
doctor with first aid box must be present.
Your whole event team must be well trained in giving first aid
like check for breathing, CPR, controlling bleeding, effecting
a prompt rescue.
If possible try to know the medical history of your guests in
advance and then prepare your medical emergency plan
accordingly. For e.g. if a guest is allergic to grass and weed
pollens, then you should make sure that he doesn't sit near
grass.

5. Brawl/Stampede

6. Bad Weather

7. Last Minute Turn Down

8. Sponsorship Withdrawal
Event Evaluation
Steps Involved in Writing the Evaluation of an Event
Event evaluation is necessary to make you and your team more
efficient and effective, the next time you organize an event. It is all
about finding your mistakes and learning from them.
Event evaluation should be done immediately after the event is over or
the next day. Conduct a meeting with your team members to evaluate
your event.

Step 1: Determine the extent to which event and advertising

objectives have been achieved.
If you are not able to achieve your event and advertising objectives
through your event, then no matter how much people enjoyed the
event or how much popularity your event got, it is a complete failure on
a commercial level.

Step 2: Get feedback from your clients and target audience.

One good way of getting feedback is through feedback form. To make
sure that your clients give you feedback, make the feedback form part of your Exit pass form. The exit pass
form is required to get exit pass for security clearance, to remove exhibits from the facility.
To get feedback from target audience/ guests, make feedback form part of your gift voucher. A guest can
redeem the gift voucher only when he/she fills the feedback form and give it back to an attendant. These
tactics are required to get feedback, as people are generally reluctant to give any feedback in writing.
You can ask following questions in your feedback form:

Q1) Did you enjoy the event? If no, then please state the reason.

Q2) what do you like most in the event?

Q3) what do you like least in the event?

Q4) what are the problems you faced during the event?

Q5) what could have been done to make this event better?

Q6) How do you rate the various services provided by us (please check one of the
option):
Hospitality: Excellent, good, average, poor
Catering: Excellent, good, average, poor
Transportation: Excellent, good, average, poor
Management staff behavior: Excellent, good, average, poor
Management staff services: Excellent, good, average, poor

Q7) would you like to participate in our next event?

Note: Your questionnaire should not have more than 10 questions. You don't want to irritate your guests.
Ask only relevant questions and keep the questionnaire short to 5-6 questions. Of course the type of
questions you will ask may change from event to event.
And don't forget to mention the following line in you feedback form: "Thank you for taking the time to
complete this feedback form" .
 Event Equipment
DJ Equipments

DJ Sound

DJ Light

Pyrotechnics

Special Effects in Events

Promotional Materials used in Events

DJ Equipment for Event Planning

1. DJ Dance Floor
A DJ dance floor (also known as illuminated dance floor, LED dance floor or disco dance floor floor) is made
up of fiber sheets or panels (tiles) which light up with different colours. The floor can display different lighting
patterns which can be changed through a controller or according to dancers' movement, provided tiles have
pressure sensors.
The dance floor size ranges from 12' X 12' to 28' X 28' or according to customer's requirements, type of
dancing and room size. The number of panels used in a dance floor varies according to the size of the
dance floor or the size of panels themselves. For e.g. a 9'X9' dance floor may require only 9 panels,
whereas a 30'X30' may require 100 panels or more.
Generally, installation of a dance floor is included in the rental price but sometimes there can be additional
fees for installation if it has to be done on an irregular or uneven surface.

2. Turntable
A turntable is a circular horizontal platform that rotates a phonograph record and is primarily used by Club
DJs along with a mixer to manipulate sounds and create music through beat mixing (a DJ technique of
mixing two tracks so that the beats of both tracks occur at the same time), scratching and beat juggling.

3. DJ Mixer
A DJ mixer is a type of audio mixer which is used to combine (two separate sound sources and play them as
one), route and change the level and dynamics of audio signals. It is one of the key equipments of a DJ and
is generally used along with turntables.

4. DJ Headphone
This equipment is used to hear a track while mixing.

5. DJ turntable stand
DJ Stand or Turntable stand is used to keep DJ equipments like turntables and mixers.

6. Groove Box (Music Workstation)

Groovebox (or Music Workstation) is a synthesizer cum sequencer which is used to do sampling, producing
loop based electronic music or for integrating audio and video in a performance. The main advantage of
using Groovebox is that you don't need to know piano/keyboard in order to use it.

7. Sampler
This equipment is used to play pre-programmed samples. A sampler is DJ equipment which generates
sounds from samples of sounds added by a user.

8. Beat Counter
Beat Counter is used to count number of beats per minute of a track. Majority of mixers have beat counters.

9. Beat Machine

10. DJ Case (Coffin)

Fig. DJ Coffin (It is used for carrying DJ equipments.)

 DJ Sound for Event Planning
1. Reverberation
Repeated resounding or echoing
2. Attenuation
To reduce the intensity of sound waves
3. Decibel
It is the unit to measure the level of sound.
4. Microphone
It is a device which is used to convert sound waves into electrical signals.
5. Microphone Mixer
It is a device which is used to combine two or more electrical signals.
6. Amplifier
It is a device which is used to amplify (i.e. increase the strength of) electrical signal.
7. Amplified Speakers
This speaker contains a built in amplifier.
8.P.A. System
It is an abbreviation for Public Address System. P.A. System consist of microphone, mixer, amplifier,
speakers etc.
9. Feedback
It is a ringing nose which is produced when a microphone regenerates the sound picked up from a speaker.
10. Sound Source
It can be a speaker, vocalist or an instrument or any device which produces sound.
11. Frequency Response
It is a way a device like microphone or environment like a room respond to different frequencies.
12. Flat Response
It means a device like microphone respond in the same way to different frequencies i.e. whether the
frequency is high or low, the device is going to respond in the same way. No device or environment can
have a flat response. However they can have a nearly flat response.
13. Ear Plugs
This device is used to attenuate sound waves. It is worn by people who work in noisy places like clubs to
prevent permanent damage to hearing.
14. Noise Reduction Rating (NRR)
Any device which has a NRR of less than 20 DB (decibel) is not of much use.

Types of Microphones
1. Corded Microphone
It is a microphone connected to a wire.
2. Wireless Microphone
Microphone without wire
3. Handheld Microphone
4. Lectern Microphone
This microphone is connected to a microphone stand or is placed on a lectern.
5. Lavaliere Microphone (or clip-on microphone)
This mike is placed on the upper part of a tie or the collar of a coat or a shirt. The head of the lavaliere mike
should be as close to the mouth as possible.
6. Head worn microphone
7. Hydro phone
It is a water proof microphone.
8. Miniature Microphone
9. Condenser microphones
These microphones are generally used in recording studios as they are more sensitive.
 10. Dynamic microphone
These microphones are generally used in live shows.

Microphones can be classified on the basis of sound pick up pattern or

response pattern as:
1. Directional Microphones
These microphones are of two types:
a. Unidirectional microphones
This microphone picks up sound only from a particular
direction. The most commonly used unidirectional microphone
is Cardioid microphone. Hyper cardioid and shotgun are other unidirectional microphone.
b. Bi directional microphones
This microphone picks up sound from the front and back of the microphone but reject sound from
the sides of the microphone. It is also know as Figure-8 microphone.
2. Omni directional Microphone
This microphone picks up sound evenly from all directions.

DJ Lighting for Event Planning

1. Incandescent Lamp
It is the light bulb which we usually use in our homes.
2. Halogen Lamp
It is a type of incandescent lamp. However it emits whiter light, last longer and cost more than the traditional
incandescent lamp.
3. Lighting Fixture
It is the lighting unit which comprises of a lamp, a lamp housing and some type of clamp to attach it to a
mounting structure.
4. Gel
It is a color filter which is used to change the color of a projected light.
5. Dimmer
It is a device which is used to control the intensity of lighting fixtures. Most of the dimmers are computer
driven.
6. Cue (light Cue)
It is a signal given by a controller to a lighting fixture to perform certain actions like:
* Decrease the intensity of light
* Move the light beams in a particular direction
* Chase the lights
* Blackout etc
7. Controller
Any device which can control the functions of lighting fixture, dimmers, rope lights, strobe lights, PAR CAN,
Pin Spots, Smoke machine etc from a remote location is a controller.
8. Intelligent Light
Any lighting fixture whose functions can be controlled from a remote location is an Intelligent Light.
9. Stand Lighting
10. LED Curtain
There are two types of LED Curtains.
1. White LED Curtain
It has only white LED lights
2. Multi-colored LED Curtain.
It has red, green, blue and yellow LED lights on it.
11. Light Stand or Truss
12. Clamp
It is a device for holding things together.
 13. Mirror Ball
This ball is used to create a dazzling effect of light and movement. This
dazzling effect is crated by rotating the ball through Mirror Ball Motor and
focusing a narrow beam light on it.
14. Blacklight
This equipment produces ultra violet light that makes luminescent
(emitting light without heat) materials glow in the dark.
15. Beacons
Beacons are just like the lights which are used on the roof of the
ambulance, police vehicle etc. They are used to create police light effect.
16. Pin spot
This lighting fixture is used to produce spot light. Spot light is a beam of light directed on small area.
17. Rope light (or Chase light)
It is a rope which illuminates when powered on.
18. Centerpiece Lights
These lighting fixtures are used to create centerpiece effects. Centerpiece effects are type of special effects
like moonflower effect, strobe ball lighting effect, star ball lighting effect, flowing water effect, Flame effect. A
center piece light can have 1 to 6 heads. Heads are also known as wheels. Each head has many lenses or
lamps. Each lamp produces a light beam. Each head can shoot 15-180 multi-colored beams. A beam can
rotate (or spin), can crisscross or move back and forth. We can have static, rotating or sound active (light
beams move according to the beats of the music) centerpiece lights.
19. Helicopter
This lighting fixture is use to produce center piece effect. It can be mounted on the floor or on the ceiling and
rotates 360 degree.
20. Flood light
It is a lighting fixture which produces broad field of light. A flood light can uniformly illuminate an area.
21. Follow Spot
It is a manually operated lighting fixture which is used to follow performers as they move on a stage. Like pin
spot, follow spot also produces a spot light.
22. Strobe Light
It is a lighting fixture that turns on and off quickly. For e.g. a strobe light can produce 1 to 15 flashes per
second. Both chase lights and strobe lights may cause discomfort or even injury to guests with disabilities
such as hearing loss or epilepsy. Therefore when using these lighting fixtures, tell your audience in advance
that you are using strobe lights and chase lights.
23. PAR CAN
It is a lighting fixture which comprises of a Parabolic Aluminized Reflector lamp. It size ranges from PAR 36
to PAR 64.
24. Oscillator (Rotating light)
It is a lighting fixture that moves back and forth 90 degree, then automatically reverses and then again move
back and forth 90 degree. It creates a search light effect.
25. Laser
It is a device which produces strong and flat beams of light. It is used to create 2D or 3D geometric patterns
and other special effects like laser tunnel, ascending or descending laser sky, scanning effects, rolling
effects etc. Majority of lasers are either red or green in color. Majority of laser devices produce lasers of only
one color either red or green. But some laser devices are 2-color or 3-color i.e. they can produce lasers of 2
or 3 colors. For e.g.: 2 color laser device can produce lasers in both red and green color. Similarly 3 color
laser device can produce lasers in red, green and yellow color.
26. Flash Tube
It is a type of strobe light which produces 140 flashes per minute. It can be used both Indoor and outdoor. It
creates a dynamic strobe effect when used in multiples.
27. DJ Scan
It is a type of pattern projector which uses color and gobo wheels.

Pyrotechnics for Event Planning

1. Pyrotechnics
 It is the art of making and displaying fireworks.

2. Confetti
Small bits of paper usually launched during a special moment in an event. Confetti can be
white or multi colored.

3. Flutter fetti
It is a type of confetti that remains suspended in the air 5 to 10 times longer than the
traditional confetti.

4. Streamer
It is a long narrow ribbon of paper.

5. Types of Pyrotechnics

Indoor Pyrotechnics
Launchers (or cannons)
These device are used to launch confetti, flutter fetti, streamers and glitters into the air. Some launchers can
create sound effects also.
* Electronic Launchers
These launchers use electricity or battery to launch confetti, streamers and glitters into the air. There are two
type of electronic launchers:
Disposable electronic launchers
As the name suggest, these launchers can be used only once.

Non disposable electronic launchers

These launchers can be used again and again and can be mounted on the floor or on the ceiling.
* Hand held Launchers
These launchers launch confetti, streamers and glitters without using battery or electricity. There are two
type of hand held launchers:
Disposable hand held launchers
These launchers can be use only once, are generally pre-loaded with confetti, streamers and glitters and are
generally triggered by just flicking the wrist.

Non disposable hand held launchers

These launchers can be used to produce up to 12 shots and are generally triggered by pushing down a
lever.

Outdoor Pyrotechnics
Aerial Pyrotechnics
These pyrotechnics effects can go up to 2000 feet in the air. Here is a list of some famous aerial
pyrotechnics effects:
* Brocade crown
* Chrysanthemum
* Multiple shots
* Roman Candles
* Comets
* Mines

Stage Pyrotechnics
These pyrotechnics are used on stage. It can be both indoor and outdoor. For e.g.
. * Flash Pot
It is a firework which produces flash followed by small amount of smoke. It is generally used to give the
appearance of a ghost or a genie or some magical moment. Fire ball is a type of flash pot effect.
* Flame Shooter
This firework shoots a ball of fire (up to 10 feet in the air) without producing smoke.

* Flash Portal
This firework produces a wide wall (2 feet wide) of fire.

* Rockets

* Body fire

* Gerbs / Fountain
It is a firework which produces upward shower of sparks. This effect is known as the fountain effect.

* Waterfall
When the gerb is suspended upside down (usually from a ceiling or truss) then it produces the waterfall
effect.

* Airburst
This firework emits bright silver sparks effect and is either suspended from the ceiling or from the truss.
Note: All stage pyrotechnics except body fire use battery or a low voltage source for ignition.

6. Pyro Music (or firework music)

It is a music which is played during the firework display. This music can be a live music or a recorded music
(like a sound track). The music used for the firework display must be very popular, so that your audience do
not distract from the firework display. The music must synchronies with the firework display. For this, firework
music choreographers are employed.

7.Some famous Pyrotechnics organization

1. American Pyrotechnics Association (APA)

2. Pyrotechnics Guild International (PGI)

3. British pyrotechnics Society (BPS)

4. International Pyrotechnics Society.

8. Famous Pyro technicians in India

1. Cineyug entertainment

2. Samba Cine Special effects

Special Effects in Events

1. Balloon Drop
It is a type of special effect in which a bag full of inflated balloons is
suspended from the ceiling or truss and then at a particular moment it is
opened to release hundreds of balloons. This type of special effect is generally used on the new year's eve,
inauguration/ closing ceremony or during the celebration.

2. Fog Machine
This machine creates fog (thick mist) by vaporizing fog juice through a heater.

3. Haze Machine (or heater less fog machine)

This machine creates haze (mild mist) by atomizing fog juice. Since this method doesn't use a heater
therefore there is no warm up time.

4. Dry Ice fog Machine

This machine creates low lying fog or the ground fog by immersing solid carbon dioxide (i.e. dry ice) in hot
water or by immersing simple ice cubes in hot fog juice. Dry ice fog machine is generally used to cool the fog
produced by other fog machines.

5. Colored Smoke
There are two ways of producing colored smoke:
1. By washing the smoke with colored lights.

2. By using the colored smoke cartridges. These cartridges can produce smoke in red, green, blue, yellow,
orange etc colors and are available in 7 seconds or 30 seconds duration. The colored smoke produced by
these cartridges is not pleasant
to breathe and can stain fabrics and materials in the vicinity.

6. Bubble Machine
This machine is used to produce bubbles. It can produce hundreds of bubbles per minute.

7. Snow Machine
This machine is used to produce evaporative or non evaporative snow flakes. Evaporative snow flakes
evaporate in 30 seconds to 120 seconds. whereas non-evaporative snow flakes last for few days. The snow
flakes produced by the snow machine must be bio-degradable, non toxic, environmental friendly and they
should not leave any water stain. Size of the snow flakes can be adjusted i.e. we can have small, medium or
large snow flakes.

8. Foam Machine
This machine is used to produce foam and is generally used in foam parties. Foam machine looks like the
snow machine. Foam can damage anything that a regular water can. Therefore cover your walls with
waterproof cloth and floor with plastic carpets when you are organizing a foam party.

9. Wind Machine
It is a large high powered fan and is used to create illusion of wind.

10.Gobo
Gobo means pattern. It is a stainless steel or glass etched cutout which is placed inside a pattern projector
to project desired pattern on walls, ceiling and floor.
Types of gobos
1. Stainless steel gobos
2. Glass gobos
3. Colored glass gobos
4. Commercially available gobos (.i.e. gobos available in the market)
5. Customized gobos (i.e. gobos made according to customers' specifications)

11. Pattern Projector (or ellipsoidal projector)

This projector is used to project patterns on the walls, ceiling and floor. It uses gobos for displaying patterns.
These patterns can be a corporate logo, stars, graphics etc. For best result use this projector in a darkened
area.

12. Holographic Projector

This projector is used to create a holographic image i.e. a three dimensional image without a projection
surface.

Promotional Materials for Events

1. Signage
Signs collectively are know as the Signage.

2. Sign (or sign board)

It can be a metallic board or LED display board
which is used to display information.

3. LED Display
Also know as LED screen, LED display board and
LED panel. LED panels are used in:
1. Bus Station to display information about the bus
timings (arrival and departure time), routes names etc.

2. Railway Stations to display information about the trains (train number, train name, arrival and departure
time etc.)

3. Airports to display flight information like flight number, arrival and departure time, flight status, origin,
destination etc.

4. LED Panels are used to display current time and temperature.

5. They are used for commercial advertising like LED Signage.

6. LED panels are used in restaurant, clinics and hospitals to display token information.

7. They are extensively used in stock market to display market information, shares' rates, exchange rates
etc

8. They are used as score boards in sports events. They are also used in conferences, fashion shows,
 concerts and other live shows to show the close up video images of the
speakers, performers or programs on the stage to the far silted audience.

4. Mobile LED Display

It is a self contained unit in the sense that it does not require any external
power supply, truss or technicians for its set up. It can be easily moved
anywhere through a vehicle (like car). The LED screen can turn around
360 degree. It works well in direct sunlight also. Resolution of LED display
is measured in 'mm' like 3mm, 6mm, 22 mm etc.

5. Electronic Signage
1. Visual Display Signage

2. Plasma Screen

3. LCD (liquid crystal display) Screen

4. LED (light emitting diode) Screen

5. Projection Screen

6. Video Wall
It is wall of several video screens (like CRT monitors, LCD monitors etc) which are placed on top of each
other and side by side. Each video screen displays only a section of the whole image.

6. Projector
It is a device which is used to display data and image on a screen usually projection screen. Four most
commonly used projectors are:
1. LCD Projectors
2. Slide Projectors
3. OHP (overhead projector)
4. Film Projector
Note: Now a days LCD projectors are used in place of slide and OHP projectors.

7. Flex
It is a flexible insulated wire.

8. Scroller
It is a moving display unit. Scrollers are available in different sizes also.

9. Canopy
It is a roof like projection

10. Kiosk
It is a light open structure, generally used to sell newspapers, food etc.

11. Backlit
illuminated from behind
12. Front lit
illuminated from front

13. Types of hoardings

1. Front lit Hoarding

2. Backlit hoarding

3. Painted hoarding

4. Poster hoarding
It is that hoarding on which a poster is pasted.

5. Hoarding with single sided visibility

6. Hoarding with double sided visibility

7. Mono pole
It is a outdoor promotional material which has double sided visibility with front lit or backlit option. A mono
pole can be from 15 feet to 40 feet high.

8. Unipole

9. Tri-Vision
It is a hoarding which displays three images one after the other, after a certain time interval. It can be used
both indoor and outdoor. A tri-vision can be from 5' X 5' to 10' X 10' in size.

10. Billboard
Very large hoarding is known as the billboard. There are two types of billboard:
Scrolling message billboard

Mobile billboard
billboard which is moved from place to place through a truck.