Meeting Planner Careers

There are many jobs that are disappearing every day, and many of them will not return in the immediate future. In fact, some economists think that some entire industries may be undergoing serious transitions in who they employ and how they handle those employees to the point where some jobs will probably not return in our lifetime. Thankfully, that does not seem to be the case for meeting planners. In fact, meeting planners are probably safe for a few reasons:

• There have been freelance meeting planners for decades now, so even if corporate or SMB meeting planners start to be downsized, there are plenty of opportunities for moonlighting. It is even likely that mixing and matching a day job as a meeting planner and a side job as a freelance meeting planner would work out.
• Companies are striving more than ever to create effective meetings and presentations, and thus meeting planners that are willing to work hard are going to be in more demand than ever. In fact, there are probably more meeting planners moving up the corporate ladders now than ever before.
• Even smaller companies are starting to understand that they are their image, at least to a point. That means that they need meeting planners just as much as they need PR people.

If you are looking for an interesting career that will literally take you places, then you should consider being a cruise event planner. A cruise event planner may work for a cruise company, a travel organization, a concierge service that handles event planning, a hotel or a company that owns at least one chain of hotels and/or cruise ships, a large corporation, or even be self-employed. Here is what the job entails:

The ability to multitask on a large scale – Every little detail needs to be perfect for each and every event, and that is a lot of details to handle! Don’t worry though, after a few months perfection will all become routine.

An eye for detail – Being able to spot a very small problem before it becomes something a customer notices is a valuable asset to any cruise event planner.

A creative mind – Parties and events always need a touch of creativity.

A willingness to socialize and work hard – Working hard and playing hard are part of the job description. You just need to know when and where to draw the line.

A bank account – You are going to be earning a salary that salary.com, indeed.com, and other sites suggest start at nearly $43,000 a year!

Learn how you can easily plan successful cruise events at Seasite.com, your one stop for planning meetings at sea, and any type of group cruise. With just one electronic RFP you can source a group cruise across all cruise line brands. Why not take a look now and see all of the tools and resources available to cruise event planners.

Success comes to those that know how to attain it, and sadly many meeting planners do not really know how to do this. The problem is not the fact that they are not good at their jobs, but rather that they are allowing themselves to be pigeon-holed into a single role.

Here’s how to break out:

Ask to take part in meetings – If this raises objections, offer to sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) and/or suggest that learning about what happens in a meeting can make you more effective at planning future meetings.

Do not ask questions about venues until you have researched options – Many bosses prefer to have options presented to them, not half-researched problems. Always take a few minutes each day to look at the pricing and options at different venues, catering companies, and so-on.

Be valuable because you are connected – Cultivate contacts that can get things done when nobody else can or at prices that nobody else gets. Be sure to let the powers that be about these connections so they see the value in your work.

Always ask for feedback – Change the meeting format or venue in some way every so often to test things out. Be sure to ask for feedback, as it makes you seem interested and connected as well as progressive.

Meeting planners that are considered to be extremely successful do not get to be where they are simply by accident. They get to be known as effective meeting planners because they know a few secrets that their less-well known counterparts do not. Here are the top three secrets of effective meeting planners.

Names – Never forget a name of anyone. This is true of the most high-powered executive or politician right down to the bellhop at the hotel everyone is staying at. Why? People love their own names and meeting planners who remember names are statistically more likely to be viewed in a positive light than those who do not.

Shake it up – Meeting planners that plan the same kind of meetings should expect the same kind of results. This may not be bad if the results are already stellar, but repetition does get old. A change of venue or a new catering company could be just what it takes to make an event more memorable.

Never forget an appointment – A Smart Phone and/or netbook may be required to keep a schedule, but that is a small price to pay for being effective. Learning to take notes while listening or offering feedback is important.

Smile – Believe it or not, studies show that people who smile more get promotions and assignments more often than those who do not. This is true regardless of skill or aptitude.

Most meeting planners are offered not only a generous salary, but other incentives to keep them interested and working hard. This is true in almost any industry that uses meeting planners, but what might vary from one industry to the next is the type of incentives offered to meeting planners. Some industries have special individual and/or group incentives, depending upon how their meeting planners operate. These incentives are typically goal-based, such as reaching a certain level of performance.

Most corporate and business-level meeting planners receive health benefits, and many receive a combination of retirement and/or educational benefits as well. These might seem like great perks for some, but freelance meeting planners have their own incentives: the opportunity for as much work as they can handle.

Extra work means extra pay, and it is entirely possible for highly skilled freelance meeting planners to make well over twice the salary of their office-bound counterparts. This does come with a price in terms of establishing connections and hard work, but nothing is free.

Whether one decides to work as a freelance meeting planner or get a job in the corporate towers downtown, one of the biggest perks of the job is always the relationships that are built. Meeting planners get to rub shoulders with important people on a daily basis, and that alone is enough excitement for some to consider becoming a meeting planner.

There are many reasons why becoming a meeting planning might be attractive, but the top four reasons to consider a job as a meeting planner are:

1. The Salary – data gathered from salary.com, Indeed.com, and other sources all indicate one thing: meeting planners can make a great deal of money. The median average varies by site, but all sources seem to agree that salary expectations of $52,000 to $61,000 per year are quite reasonable.
2. The Benefits – On top of a very reasonable salary, meeting planners also tend to receive generous compensation packages. Bonuses based on performances are very common as are medical and even retirement assistance options.
3. The Job Itself – A meeting planner has to be detail oriented, but it is fundamentally a job for social people. It may not be possible to chat the day away every day, but one can plan on spending a good deal of time using both sides of their brain during any given day on the job. How many people can honestly say that about their career choice?
4. The Relationships – It is not uncommon for meeting planners to build strong relationships with clients, vendors, suppliers, and other important people. These connections may prove to be a useful safety net as well as a source for future opportunities.

Many people are striving to “live green” in every possible way and that can include wedding and honeymoon plans. It can be a dilemma for a couple who don’t want to give up their dreams of a romantic honeymoon cruise. They want the dream but not at the expense of the planet. The good news is that several cruise lines are doing their part to reduce their carbon footprint and working to keep the oceans clean.

The Celebrity Solstice Cruise ship has 216 solar panels that power the elevators and 7,000 LED lights. It isn’t enough to power the ship, but certainly is a step toward the right direction. The vessel is aerodynamic, making her more fuel efficient, and has a water filtration system that purifies water before it is dumped into the ocean. Tin, aluminum, and glass are recycled as well. A Caribbean cruise on the Celebrity Solstice is a good choice for green couples.

The first cruise line to earn a Green Star notation environmental award was the Italian line, Costa. Costa works with the World Wildlife Fund to protect marine habitats, decrease energy use, and educates staff and guests on environmental issues. Each of their 15 vessels is designed to be a floating palace complete with beautiful woodwork, art displays of all kinds, and marble adornment throughout the ship.

To book a group for a cruise wedding, Seasite.com offers group cruise planning.

Have you ever thought about your company’s ethics? Every company should have a policy and procedure manual that provides the company with a moral compass.

What will you do if your next host city is in the middle of a drought? Will you bring the situation to the attention of the conference goers and ask them to abide by the city’s water restrictions or simply ignore the issue since your group will be in and out of the city in a matter of a few days?

The current economy is still tough and it’s more important than ever to negotiate the best vendor and hotel prices available. If a hotel refuses to give a lower rate for your group, will you threaten to pull out altogether as a bluff? Do you consider this an ethical problem or just a way of doing business? If the hotel calls your bluff and you relocate, you may well have to pay cancellation fees as well as bear the burden of a tarnished reputation.

A perennial ethical dilemma is the familiarization (FAM) trip. Would you accept an all expense paid trip to a location that you will never use? Would you use a FAM as a vacation with your spouse and children?

A well-defined company protocol helps meeting planners face ethical challenges and stay within the law as well as protect their reputation. It may not cover every situation, but it provides a framework for new ethical challenges.

When preparing for a different career, one of the most crucial aspects you must consider is the salary. Meeting planner income varies broadly depending on the specialty, but there are a few common guidelines to check when deciding on a career.

National Statistics

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.Bls.Gov) reports that in May of 2006 a convention planner's median annual wages were $42,180, with the bottom end of the income scale at under $26,000 and the upper ten percent making more than $70,000. The agency further separated the specialties, stating business, professional, and political event planners made the highest amount, around $45,000, and the lowest wages were earned by persons in the travel industry at $38,270. Salary.Com reports current salaries at $53,532, with variations allowed for location and category.

Salary by Type

The type of planning you would like to do will determine a lot vis-а-vis your income and benefits. Corporate Meeting planners can get paid around $45,000 as the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, but there are diverse types of corporate event planners. For example, meeting and convention planners could make a bigger salary than those who put together department and team building meetings.

Outside the corporate world, employees of nonprofits often have somewhat lesser salaries than corporate planners, but freelancers experience a more tough time — they are self employed and many times labor extra hours as well. College and university event planner incomes may be more in the middle to low end of the event planner income range.

Salary by Location

If you are interested in a definite location for your event planner career, you must look for statistics by state and city. For example, if you presently reside in a little town in Iowa but plan to relocate to the East coast, do a study not only on average salaries, but also on cost of living, commute times, job availability, etc., before you reach your final decision. You may uncover that a city that offers extraordinary salaries also has a high cost of living and it would benefit you to look for an alternative place.

Nonetheless how you make your career decisions, investigation and education are important.