Planned has created an event planning platform that completely transforms the event industry. Its intuitive features and helpful filters allows the user to quickly discover the exact type of suppliers that they need for their event. The marketplace is filled with over 20,000 unique venues and highly talented vendors to enable clients across North America to host memorable and unique events. One big piece of the Planned marketplace is the different categorization of the suppliers.
Creating categories within a marketplace promotes efficiency; rather than endlessly searching on Google, users can quickly choose a category that they are looking for, use the filters within that category, and almost instantly have access to what they are looking for. The categories we’ve chosen to include in our marketplace are: Venues, Experiences, Gifts, Speakers, Food & beverage, Equipment & decor, AV, Photo & video, Staffing, and Transport.
However, these categories were not blindly chosen. After having hundreds of conversations with professional event planners in Los Angeles, Vancouver, Toronto, New York, and other major cities, we deduced that these categories are the essential components to any successful corporate event.
The breakdown of each category is as follows:
Venues: This should go without saying, but every in-person and hybrid event needs an on-site location.
Experiences: This category allows users to browse entertainment, team building opportunities, virtual experiences, and any other forms of activities for their event.
Gifts: Within the corporate event planning industry, sending gifts to leaders, clients, and employees plays a large role in expressing gratuity.
Speakers: It’s very common for enterprises to enjoy hiring keynotes speakers to share insight and advice on business leadership, motivation, health & wellness, and other important topics.
Food & beverage: Oftentimes, over 30% of the budget for an event is dedicated to food and beverages.
Equipment & decor: To make a good first impression, it’s important to prioritize the little details of any event, whether it’s a flower wall, vintage furniture, or hand-printed name cards.
AV: When hosting a conference, meeting, live music, or similar events, it’s crucial to ensure that the audio and visual components are handled properly and of high quality.
Photo & video: It’s always nice to capture the event by hiring a professional photographer or renting a photobooth for the guests’ entertainment, so everyone can look back at these memorable events.
Staffing: Hosting an event that runs smoothly requires all hands on deck. Staffing allows for the host to ensure the bar runs efficiently, creative branded designs are on display, and the EMCEE keeps the crowd entertained.
Transport: Whether a company is hosting a retreat or trying to impress a potential client, transportation to and from the event is essential.
