Event Planning Checklist – start planning your event with our checklist. We divided event planning activities for several stages:
planning your event
preparing your event
day before the event
one hour before the event
during the event
after the event
Whether you’re a seasoned event planner or not quite sure where to start, an event planning checklist will always be your best friend when planning a private or corporate event. It’s all too easy to overlook the small things when planning an event, and a checklist will ensure everything is under control at all times – so you can stress less.
Here at CHEFIN we’ve organised and catered for countless events, and we know the ins and outs of every bit of the process. We’ve created this checklist as an easy way for you to manage and plan your event, from beginning to end.
How to use the event planning checklist
he last thing you need when planning an event is a difficult checklist that makes things even more confusing. Our checklist is simple and easy to use. Divided into three sections (before the event, during the event, and after the event), the checklist covers every necessary task that needs to be performed.
Print out the checklist and have a good look at all the different sections before beginning to plan your event. You can highlight each task depending on priority (e.g. high priority tasks pink, low priority yellow), and then cross them off as you go along.
We’ve included a handy guide here summarising each step, with the event planning checklist in ready-to-print form at the end.
When planning your event, you want to first consider a theme. If you don’t have or need a theme, consider a colour palette. If you plan on using an event decorator, this is the time to find and secure a decorating service.
Consider the time of day your event will take place, guest list, VIPs, and whether you will need an MC. If so, find and contact someone appropriate, working out times and prices beforehand.
If you will need to hire a venue, consider your budget. If you plan on serving food at your event, consider your food budget and find a good catering service.
2. Preparing your event
Now it’s time to prepare for the event. Consider your dress code, secure the venue, and send out invitations to all guests notifying them of the time, location, theme, etc. Be sure to ask about any dietary requirements. Work out a suitable food and beverage menu with your caterer, and agree on who will be providing glassware.
Find loading dock/parking instructions and ensure there’s enough seating and tables for all your guests. Consider whether you want music and photography, and find a suitable DJ/photographer for your event if required.
3. A day before the event
Send a reminder to all your guests, confirm all details with your venue, staff, photographers/DJs, caterers, etc. Check that the venue kitchen is suitable for your caterers, and be sure to leave space in the fridge!
Have your venue fully decorated and ready to go by the end of the day. Put up all necessary seating and signage, and if there will be kids at the event, consider entertainment, toys, and snacks.
4. One hour before the event
Check that the caterer has arrived and food is under control. Make sure that reception is ready to greet guests, and test the microphone and speakers to ensure they’re working.
Look over all facilities, including emergency exits, bathrooms, lifts, lights, and so on, and contact the venue manager for information on emergency procedures. Finally, make sure all staff is in position and ready to go.
5. During the event
Meet and greet your guests, introduce them, allow them to network. Liaise with waitstaff to ensure food is equally distributed to all guests in the room, and rubbish/plates are put away promptly.
Organise to have someone at the back of the room to keep the audience quiet during speaking. If you see any guests who are alone or look shy, approach them and make them feel welcome.
After the event
6. After the event checks
Check the venue for any belongings left behind, and make sure the caterer cleans up after themselves. Send a follow-up email to your guests thanking them for attending, and include a call-to-action. Get photos/videos from your photographer and share with guests.
Too much hassle finding and dealing with caterers? Contact us! No event is too big or small, and with tonnes of experience in event catering, our process is easy. So you can have one less thing to worry about for your event.
Need more help or information on choosing the best dining style for your corporate catering event? Get in touch with us today for advice and an obligation-free quote.
You certainly can! If you are needing to add requirements or remove guests from the guest list, then we ask that let us know at least 3 days before your event so we can accommodate your needs. This would include things like changing menu requirements, adding additional equipment hire, etc. If you need to add guests to the list, then these changes can be made within 36h of the event.
You can notify us of your additional requests or guest list changes via email or phone. Feel free to shoot us an email over at hello@chefin.com.au. You can also give us a call at 0477 666 351, and we’ll take care of everything over the phone.
If any major changes need to be made before your event, please be aware that on rare occasions we may not be able to cater to them. We’ll always do our best to help you pull off an incredible event, but sometimes it just isn’t possible. That said, we can pretty much always cater to amendments – just get them in 3 days beforehand 😉
The private chefs at CHEFIN won’t be offended if you want to bring in small amounts of snacks into the event. They’ll also expand the invite to include homemade desserts, fruit, and water – it’ll still allow them to be the star of the show with their lavish menu.
But please don’t bring in any additional meals to an event that’s NOT catered by one of our private chefs. Use your judgement here. If the food is supplementary, small, and otherwise unable to have been made by the chef, then consider it OK. If you’re bringing along a meal of equal size to the chef’s creations, that could have been made by the chef, then we ask that you leave it outside.
Please note the above rule excludes any food and beverage items for guests with special dietary needs, food allergies, and baby food. We understand that sometimes our chefs cannot cater to everyone at an event, and we absolutely allow them to bring in their own meals.
Of course, you can! We don’t like to restrict the creativity of our hosts here at CHEFIN, and we know that decorating the venue is sometimes the most entertaining part of an event. Don’t let us get in the way…
That said, you will have to include the time for decorating the venue as part of your booking time. For example, if you want to book the venue for a 4-hour party, you’ll have to include the decoration time as part of that, so you may want to hire the venue out for 5 hours instead. This will give you plenty of time to put the decorations up, and remove them once the event is over.
Of course, the time spent putting up/removing decorations will depend on how fancy you’re gonna get, so please allocate enough time to ensure you’re able to get everything up/down on time.
We ask that you try to make all private chef bookings at least 24 hours prior to your event. This just helps give our chefs enough time to accept your booking and prepare the meal of your dreams.
That said, we know that sometimes you need a last-minute chef, and if you do need to book a chef for an event within 24 hours then please contact us directly on 0477 666 351. You’ll still get the meal of your dreams, but there’ll be a lot more hurry involved.
It’s easy to book a chef for your event with CHEFIN. Our online booking community is fast and easy and takes care of all your event requirements. Head to our Private Chefs page to get to know our team, our Experiences page to learn about our food journeys, and our Corporate Catering page if you’re planning a large event.
