The top 3 things to look for when choosing an event company

Sept. 25, 2014 - PRLog -- The events industry is notorious for fly-by-night organizations that set up shop without appropriate experience, expertise or credentials.  We hear horror stories about clients that have been left in the lurch or had money embezzled from them, so it is understandable that choosing an events organization company becomes a stressful process. What should you look for when choosing a reliable, credible events company?

The most important criteria in choosing who you want to work with is trustworthiness.  A primary indication of this is the company’s credentials.  This includes, amongst other things, compliance with codes of good practice, a client list that demonstrates a credible track record, and good corporate governance.  In South Africa, BBBEE (Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Codes of Good Practice) ratings show a company’s commitment to investing in the triple bottom line, and as well as broader socio-economic development through preferential procurement, for example.

In addition, you want to look at how long has the company has been in business.  A well-established events company demonstrates a solid track record and financial stability.  If the events company claims to have a good reputation in the industry, it should be happy to provide an extensive list of clients that you can contact to discuss their experiences in working with this company.   An excellent referral, and testimony that another client prefers to work with this events company on an on-going basis is a great indication of the caliber and quality of this company’s work.

With increasingly tight marketing budgets, clients need to be able to account for every cent spent.  It is vital that the events company that you choose to work with becomes your partner in accountability and transparency by doing the following:

·   Transparently showing all management fees and a detailed breakdown of costs in the quotation presented to you, the client.  Keep in mind that it is in your interests that this original quotation will attempt to take all eventualities into account so that there are no nasty surprises or come-backs;

·    Negotiating with all suppliers in order to secure the best pricing possible and keeping clients updated on any savings that have been agreed to with suppliers;

·    Delivering according to budget;

·   After the event, reconciling any savings back to the client and being able to account for all expenditure.

Naturally, there will be other things that you will look for in an events organization company, but these should be among the most important.  As the client, you are under scrutiny when it comes to measuring your performance.  That makes your choice of supplier all the more important.