Becoming an event planner can be a rewarding side hustle that allows you to utilise creativity, attention to detail and organisational skills. Event planning as a side hustle involves managing events of various sizes. You will be responsible for turning moments into memories for your clients. Tasks required include meeting clients to understand their vision for the event, creating a detailed plan, coordinating logistics and overseeing the event. Excellent communication skills are required and the ability to manage budgets and negotiate with suppliers. Event planning is an exciting side hustle that can be profitable and fulfilling.
How to start your event planning side hustle
Determine Your Niche. Identify the types of events you enjoy planning and decide what you will focus on. For example, weddings, corporate events or themed parties. You might be interested in planning luxurious weddings for high-profile guests. Or perhaps you are interested in organising virtual corporate events. Deciding your speciality and defining your target audience is essential to ensure your event planning side hustle succeeds.
Develop your brand. Creating a memorable and recognisable brand identity and signature style is crucial for your business. Think about what differentiates your business from the competition and use these insights to develop your brand. Firstly, you will need to select a name for your business. Consider your target audience, research competitors and choose something unique to help you stand out from the competition.
Next, create your event planner logo – one of the most important aspects of your brand. Ensure you define your brand identity including your target audience and the overall brand personality you want to convey, before starting the design process. These insights will help guide your design choices. Read about how to develop the perfect logo for your event planner brand.
You will also need to create brand guidelines and select brand colours and fonts. Colours and fonts are powerful tools that shape how your brand is perceived and remembered by existing and potential clients. Select colours and fonts that align with your brand’s personality and identity. Once you have confirmed your brand guidelines you will need to remain consistent across all branded materials including your website and marketing materials, to ensure consumers engage with and remember your brand. Learn about how to choose brand colours.
Create a Digital Portfolio. Your portfolio can be used to demonstrate your event planning skills and expertise to potential clients. Use your portfolio to showcase your individual design style and think about what you can bring as an event planner to your potential clients. Consider planning events for friends or family to build your experience and collate content for your digital portfolio.
Explore different platforms to create your event planner digital portfolio to determine which is best for you. Canva Website Builder is a free, visual easy to use tool, suitable for creating stylish one-page portfolios. Wix is best for elegant websites and provides creative design freedom. It is easy to customise and provides various template options to help you get started. Adobe Portfolio provides customisable templates and professionally designed themes to enable you with the flexibility to choose to create a full portfolio website or a single page website.
Portfolio Content Ideas
- Client testimonials – ask people you have planned events for to write a few sentences about your services
- Photos of your events – high-quality photos are essential for demonstrating your work, always take photos at every opportunity during events you have planned
- Event design inspiration – create an image and video gallery displaying your unique event planning style, this will help potential clients visualise your individuality
Networking: To succeed as an event planner, you will need to build a strong network. Attend industry specific conferences and networking events to connect with event planners and potential clients. Utilise social media platforms including LinkedIn to join event planning groups and showcase your expertise. Consider volunteering for local events or collaborating with vendors to establish connections.
Grow Your Network
Event Managers Network Join the Event Managers Network to meet event planners with a passion for delivering exceptional events, find inspiration and stay informed about the latest industry trends.
Eventprofslive This is a networking group for corporate event professionals. The group brings together individuals to learn, grow and feel empowered whilst sharing knowledge and experiences.
Marketing Your Services: Marketing is incredibly valuable to help you drive traffic to your digital portfolio, reach potential clients and grow your event planning business. Explore marketing tactics and strategies to determine how to best utilise marketing to ensure your event planning side hustle business succeeds.
Social Media Marketing – create social media profiles for your business
- Consider the various social media platforms available including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok and determine which platforms your customers are most likely to use, to focus your efforts effectively
- Engage with potential and existing customers on social media to build relationships, display your brand and convey the unique event planning attributes you can offer
- Consistently post compelling and relevant content to drive engagement and interact with clients. Provide valuable content including industry trends, event planning tips, special offers and business updates. Interesting content is more likely to be shared and will therefore contribute to expanding your reach
- Always maintain professional standards when posting on social media. Remember, social media platforms provide you with the opportunity to represent your brand and business
Advertise on Industry Leading Websites – promote your services on established websites to increase awareness of your side hustle business and attract clients. There are various options available. Consider advertising on websites relevant for your specific event planning niche to drive maximum engagement or utilise more general websites to reach a wider audience.
- Hitched is an industry leading wedding planning website providing couples with inspiration and advice covering every aspect of planning their wedding. Advertise on Hitched if wedding event planning are the services you will provide
- Bark is an online marketplace connecting people to various services. Bark is a more general website and can help you reach clients, secure jobs and grow your business
Are you ready to start your side hustle planning events and create memorable experiences for your clients? Event planning offers an exciting and fulfilling side hustle opportunity if you have a passion for organisation and creativity. The benefits of creating an event planning side hustle include flexibility and extra income. By understanding the event planning industry, building a network of connections and developing your skills and expertise you can establish yourself as a successful event planner.