Event planners & event designers: who is who.

Some days ago, I was explaining to a couple girls, the very often forgotten difference between event planners & event designers. And, unfortunately, I ended up almost shocking them!

They were so excited about the idea of creating events, decorating venues and placing furniture, flowers, ribbons and decorations…

I felt really bad about ruining such a joyful moment, but I had to be precise about what an even planner and an event designer in the reality are and do.

Event planners and event designers: brothers or…cousins?

In fact, though both belong to the events’ world, those two figures have different roles and diverse professional skills.

Therefore, in this post I am going to explain better the difference between event planners & event designers. So take a seat, be comfortable – maybe with a cup of tea – and read! 😉

The event planner, the master of the logistic

According to BLS, event planner is going to be one of the highest demand careers of the decade, with a growing of the 7%.

The event planner, as the word says, takes care of everything is about the event planning. How?

Well, he/she studies a concept – usually provided by a curator or a customer – analyzes budget and verifies what he/she can really do with that amount.

A planner looks for venues and location, coordinates the site inspection with a technical team, create and manage relations with vendors (taking care also of the legal aspects, such as contract, insurance etc). he takes care of transportations, hospitality, ticketing, hostess services, catering, music, booking.

So, He is the logistic behind the entire event.

And that’s the word that can perfectly explain his/her role: logistic, the most important aspect of an event planner’s job.

Furthermore, being an event planner means also having certain kind of specific professional skills such as organizational, multitasking, attention to detail as well as negotiation and problem solving.

How do you become an event planner?

For sure studying!

There are a lot of good schools releasing certification for master and courses in event planning. Also, some of those, provide direct experiences as internships in event companies, which might be a great opportunity to start your future career.

The designer: the king of the aesthetic

If the event planner is logistic, the event designer is image.

The set up; the display of the location; the scene; everything is a creation of the event designer.

She/he chooses colors, furniture, decorations, flowers, fabrics and set the correct mise-en place of every single table.

Obviously he/she has an aesthetic soul: he is a creative, a designer, maybe with a background in interior or decor design, although not strictly necessary.

As I already said, the event designer might have an interior decorating/designing background and know how to draw, even if drawing it is not strictly necessary, especially now that we have a ton of software for that need.

Nevertheless, as a creator, he follows the trends of the moment knowing how to combine them with retro accents and styles.

He plays with colors and palette and he is perfectly able to mix and match the nuances, assuring the best result (which is the customer satisfaction)

So…Event planner or event designer?

Because i think to know what the next question could be, i try to anticipate you 🙂

First, let me say that usually, and especially in USA, event planner and designer work in coordination with event coordinator and event manager (other two cousins i will introduce you in another dedicated post): clearly different roles and not so similar works.

In Europe this separation of roles is not that clear, but in Italy, for example, a better defined designation of those two profiles has already started.

And – finally – this all to say that, YES, you can find an event designer that can also be an event planner (and viceversa). Sometimes it depends on the studies, sometime on the skills, but it is not unusual (I am!) to find somebody who is both.

The most important thing is being clear about that! 😉

And you? are you planning to be an event designer or planner?