- Not accounting for internal staff costs
Most firms deploying internal staff to event management duties rarely account for their cost in the event’s budget. Employee time, benefits and overhead are easily measured tangible costs but inefficiency, dereliction of primary duties, employee stress and turnover, although extremely costly, are difficult to assess.
Agency Option: Agencies deliver 100% dedication with no benefits or overhead. They are often the most efficient solution for rapid execution and shielding corporations from hidden costs.
- Forgo access to preferential pricing
Internal staffers often do not have access to exclusive agency preferential pricing available through global vendor networks. This can significantly inflate the cost of your event.
Agency Option: Global vendors seek out high volume agency business which they exchange for preferential pricing that can be passed on to you, the client.
- Underestimating attention to details
Specialty meal, tardy transfer, wrong bed type…In an era of social media these seemingly minor details can translate into negative sentiment and significant costs which are easily avoidable.
Agency Option: Professional event planners, through years of experience, have identified high impact irritants and flawlessly shield clients from them.
- Poorly negotiated contracts
Complex vendor contracts that are improperly reviewed carry avoidable hidden costs: Premiums, penalties, as well as opportunity costs of forfeited benefits and concessions.
Agency Option: Event Managers negotiate vendor contracts on a daily basis. They can effectively navigate industry clauses that will yield maximum benefits for clients.
- Inflated legal costs
Internal staffers may have difficulty reviewing complex vendor contracts so they often enroll the assistance of lawyers whose costs are seldom factored into an event’s budget. Ironically, lawyers often fail to secure concessions and benefits since their main focus is to protect the company from adverse circumstances related to a corporate event.
Agency Option: Event Managers routinely negotiate vendor contracts and all that is ultimately required from a lawyer is a brief overview which saves clients significant legal costs.
- Creativity Gaps
Creating new and interesting events is challenging and the cost of frequently repeating the “same-old” event will translate into lower attendance and reduced engagement.
Agency Option: Agencies invest extensively in research that enables them to provide clients with original and innovative ideas for multiple events.
- Brand blemishes
Event marketing’s objective is to promote your brand which can also be adversely affected during poorly executed events. In addition guests are often reluctant to express negative comments to their hosts which only compounds this costly issue.
Agency Option: Agencies mitigate risks of poorly executed events and their third party status often puts them in a better position to collect objective feedback from guests.
- Budget overruns
Internal staffers do not have a financial stake in events they manage and can often omit critical budget components causing expensive cost overruns.
Agency Option: Agencies present clients with set budgets. Omitted budget items are absorbed by the agency due to its fiscal responsibility to the client.
- Lack of Marketing focus
Internal staffers often focus on easily measured event logistics thereby devoting less time to more important event marketing items like attendance, pipeline, surveys and relationships.
Agency Option: Agencies can assist internal staffers thereby relieving them from stressful, labor intensive event logistics and enabling them to focus on important marketing aspects of events.
- Poor ROI measurement
The dynamic nature of event marketing makes for challenging ROI measurement which must be assessed over the long-term. ROI measurement is event marketing’s most significant hidden cost.
Agency Option: Agencies can manage the logistics of your entire calendar of events freeing internal staffers to dedicate themselves to long-term event marketing ROI measurement.
