10 Tips for Choosing the Best Event Planning Software on the Market

Did you know the average cost for party planning is between $500 and $750 in America? You have to pick a theme, buy decor, book a caterer, coordinate setup and cleanup, design and install decorations, create gift bags, and make everything run smoothly on the day of the event.

Event planning is a lot of work from the prep to the actual day of when everything needs to be ready to go and guests start arriving, and you will need help keeping track of everything. Keep reading and we will guide you through the top ten tips for choosing the right event planning software.

10 Tips For Choosing Event Planning Software

Software for event planning is a virtual way to get help with keeping track of everything that needs to get done for your event. Depending on the type of event you’re having, there’s a lot to consider when finding the best event planning software.

Let’s look at the top ten tips to choosing the right event planning software at the right cost for you and your event.

1. Audience Reach

If you are planning a large event—for example, an event promoting your company—you want to be able to reach a large audience to let them know about the event. When you’re choosing event planning software, you want to make sure that the software offers marketing tools you can leverage to reach your target audience.

You can create marketing campaigns to target groups you want to come, and whether you’re selling tickets for the event or trying to get the word out, you can promote your message using the software. It’s a one-stop shop.

2. Saved In One Space

If you use event planning software, everything will be saved on the cloud or in a safe server that the software uses. You should read through this feature when you’re picking a software to see where everything is saved and if this fits under company policy or what’s most convenient.

For example, if you’re planning a charity event, you may want a software where it’s easily accessible for people to get the information they need to do their job.

3. User-Friendly Interface

Whether you are planning a company event or your child’s birthday party, you want to choose a software that’s user-friendly. You want to make sure that you and anyone else that needs to use the event planning software is able to use it.

It should be a quick and easy learning process. If the software is too complex, you will spend too much time trying to learn it rather than actually planning your event.

4. What Do You Need?

Before you choose a software, you should think through the following questions to make sure you are getting exactly what you need for your event:

  1. What do I need the software for, and will it help my event planning?
  2. What features do I need?
  3. Are there unnecessary features I could eliminate to reduce the price?
  4. How will this enhance my event?

5. Budget

Did you know the global spending on business events was more than $1.07 trillion in 2017? Companies put time, effort, and money into their events because they want them to be successful.

This brings us to the key consideration when you’re choosing software for event planning is budget. You want to spend enough money where the software is worth your while and you’re getting the help you need.

You should think about how many services the software offers, how many you need, and the quality of the services. For example, some softwares have ticketing services or RSVP trackers. This eliminates a job for you and the need for you to hire someone else.

You also may want to see if there’s a feature that tracks your budget. That way, you consistently know where it’s at and can set alerts to remind you how much money you have left to spend.

You will be putting a lot of effort, time, and money into your event, so you want to spend money on software that will be worthwhile and make your life easier when planning.

6. External Collaboration

You will be working with outside vendors, such as caterers, photographers, guest speakers, or talent, to name a few. You want to choose a software that allows everyone to access the information they need from one place.

You want to be able to assign people tasks and due dates, and ask questions through one forum to make it easy on everyone (but mostly you, being the planner who needs to keep track of everything).

7. Mobile Support

Does your software have an app? Is it mobile-friendly? You will be on the go when you’re planning an event. Whether you are looking at venues or tasting meal options, you will want your software to be accessible to you.

8. Reporting

If you are planning a company event where you need to track how successful it was, you should look for the best event planning software with features that generate reports for you.

A few examples of reports are financial summary, inventory, RSVP tracker, email marketing, and survey results. You may not need a lot of reports, so before you pay for everything do your research to make sure you’re only getting what’s necessary for you.

Check out the logistics management and reporting platform for event management solutions.

9. Reminder Tools

You will have a lot of people, deadlines, and tasks to manage. If a task is running behind, you want to make sure that you’re notified of this.

Finding an event planning software where you can get automated reminders will be key to keeping track of everything and everyone.

10. Registration Information

When someone RSVP’s that they are attending, you want to make sure they get all the necessary information for the event and are reminded of the event.

Choosing an event planning software where you can customize this and automate it will save you a lot of time.

Start Planning Today

Do your research and find the best event planning software for your next event.

Don’t stress about people, tasks, and deadlines you need to keep track of. Choose a software that will help do all of this for you.

Choose your software, and keep reading about the latest in technology here.