Meeting Planner Careers

The benefits of volunteering and community involvement are vast, including the opportunity to do something positive for your local community, give back and help others. Getting involved in the community also provides plenty of networking opportunities and will assist you in increasing awareness of and good will towards your brand.

Almost every non-profit organization is in need of volunteers, making this a great place to start if you are just beginning to look for ways to get involved in your community. From phone banks, mailings and administrative tasks to hands-on volunteer opportunities organizing fundraisers, working with children, feeding the homeless or knitting scarves to support the local women’s shelter, there are volunteer opportunities to fit anyone’s schedule and preferences.

If hands-on opportunities do not sound appealing to you, or you are not sure how you could fit them into your schedule, you can also donate much needed funds to support local organizations or donate your services to be sold as an auction item at a gala or given as a raffle item at a fundraising event. Making donations of your services or money that have your name attached to them offers the additional benefit of increasing awareness of your services and assisting you in becoming locally known as a professional that gives back to the community.

One of the best things to happen during the first decade of the 21st century is the prevailing idea that we need to be better stewards of the earth. As an event or meeting planner, you can contribute to the betterment of our planet by following these five simple steps.

1. Recycling – Check with the garbage company that services your event venue and find out whether or not they recycle. If they do, decide on which materials should be separated. If they do not, determine a way to collect the recyclables and find transportation to a recycling facility.

2. Packaging – Speak with vendors and ask for their cooperation in this matter. See if they are willing to sell items with less packaging or recyclable packaging. Another step to take is to recycle palettes and boxes that are used for the event supplies.

3. Easy Access – Communicate with the event staff to ensure that trash receptacles and recycling bins are placed in easy-to-find places and in plain view.

4. Promote – Be sure to place “green” messages within all of the promotional materials. This will ensure that the attendees know the event is a “green” event.

5. Volunteers – Roughly 10 to 20 volunteers are needed per 1,000 event attendees. Be sure to recruit enough volunteers to help with the event and if the event takes place over several days, determine how many volunteers will be needed per shift.

Going green can be as easy as you want it to be and in the end, you’ll know you’ve had a positive impact on helping the planet.