Anyone who has planned an event will know that meeting financial objectives can be one of your toughest challenges. To make a profit or break even, you need be very aware of costs, prepared for unplanned changes and still find ways to get the most value for your dollar.

Budgeting is an integral part of event planning and needs to be undertaken at a very early stage in the process. Below are some things to consider.

Essentials to Include in Your Budget

• Venue Hire
• Food and Beverage
• Staffing
• Hiring
• Production (Staging, lighting, audio, audio-visula
• Devliery and et up charges
• Décor (including cloths, centrepieces, backdrop)
  

Additional Items to Consider in Your Budget

• Special permits - through venues/Council
• Scissor lift hire
• Deposits - including refundable bonds
• Crew meals
• Cleaning
• Rigging for aerial acts
• Generator
• Piano hire and tuning
• Flooring of marquee including dance floors
• Printing - invitations, entrée cards, menus
• Special flooring for dancers (tap, ballet etc)
• Performers travel, accommodation & expenses
• Additional marquees for catering & performers
• Wet weather contingencies
• Toilet hire and dressing ie flowers, handtowels
• Heaters/fans
• Communications (headset radios)
• Performers riders - meals, spirits, mirrors
• Staff costumes
• Insurance
• Signage - design, production & rigging
• Cloakroom - personnel and equipment
• Speakers/presenters and MC
• Special effects - pyrotechnics, balloon drops, lasers, gobos
• Risk Management - security, first aid on site, St John Ambulance, fully equipped ambulance, fire extinguishers, allowance for breakages and losses
  

Top Tips to Avoid a Budget Blow-out for Event Organizer:

• Attention to detail
• Think through the whole event from start to finish
• Keep an accurate record of your expenses and review regularly
  
• Allow a contingency

What if Budget Blow-out Occurs?

• Don’t sacrifice the quality of your venue or food and beverage
• Cut down or simplify décor and performers
• Add more creative thinking

Contingency Funds

When you do not have a confirmed cost for items or components, you need to do research to find a ‘guestimate’ figure. This is where the contingency fund comes in. Generally, a contingency should be a percentage of the total budget amount ranging from 1-2% through to 15%. Increase the amount you allocate in your contingency dependent on the accuracy and size of ‘guestimate’ figures you reach. Your contingency fund allows you to have a cushion or buffer if your ‘guestimates’ are on the low side. This will hopefully allow you to still come in on budget

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To come in under budget helps to boost your credibility - the opposite also applies so it is best to keep ‘guestimates’ to a minimum.