As a meeting planner or event manager, running an event requires exceptional organization, impeccable timing, and the ability to multitask. However, there are only so many details one can oversee simultaneously without diluting their attention.

This is where an audio/visual producer can come alongside to handle specific details of what happens during the sessions, freeing the event planner for their other responsibilities.

At VIP Audio Visual, we regularly hear from our clients about the terrible experiences they've had with AV providers at other events. Sloppy setups, poorly configured equipment, missed cues, and a general lack of attention to the details seem to be a common thread in these stories. Unfortunately, many clients (and their audiences) have come to accept this as normal.

If you have spent any time at all reading our content, you know that VIP Audio Visual can create amazing experiences for your next corporate event. The events we handle range from super basic, to completely over the top. Our entire team is dedicated to providing the best possible experience for each customer, no matter the scope of their event or their budget.

Before we start doing our wiring diagrams and designing sets, we need to handle what for many clients is the most important part of this process: the quote. The crew and equipment we include in our estimate will be based on the information you provide to us, so it's important that we know as much as possible about your event before we start providing budgets.

We can “do” AV at a lot of different levels. At VIP Audio Visual, we work with every client to understand the scope of their event, and the level of the show that they want to produce.

When we provide a quote, we do our best to match the equipment we're providing to the client's needs as we understand them. Many times we get questions from a client wondering why we’ve chosen to include a certain piece of gear. On the surface it may appear that we can get by without that equipment, but our years of experience in the industry have helped us recognize the most common problems that are likely to arise, and the tools we need to avoid them – creating a flawless event for you and your guests.

If you’re an event planner, you’ve got a million things to look at when you do a site visit. In the audio/visual world, we’ve got some very specific things that we like to know before we walk into a venue. If we have the opportunity we always like to do our own site visit, but that’s often not possible.

With that in mind, here’s a meeting planner’s site visit checklist that is sure to keep your A/V crew happy.

It seems like it should be an easy thing, but in our experience the most-often bungled part of a presentation is the handoff from one presenter to the next. There have been countless scenarios where we’ve seen a speaker finish their talk and just walk offstage, leaving awkward dead air while everyone tries to figure out what to do next. Or, they’ll finish the presentation and look helplessly at the emcee for direction.

Avoid these scenarios by planning how you want to handle your transitions ahead of time. There are a lot of different ways to do this. No one option is better than another - the right answer just depends on how you want to run your event.

No, it’s not a hum in the audio system. It’s the sound of your attendees stomachs rumbling in unison as the speaker drones on 45 minutes past their lunch break.

How do you, as the event organizer, prevent this from happening? In this article, we’ll share some techniques that we’ve learned over decades of producing, managing and operating both large and small events.