Six Ways to Make Your Event Dollars Go Further
Events remain one of the most effective B2B marketing activities, with 86.4 % of B2B marketers planning to maintain or increase their live-event schedules in 2024. Yet events are also among the costliest marketing investments—meaning companies can’t afford to get them wrong.
Drawing on nearly 50 years of event planning and corporate-video production, we’ve identified six tactics to maximise your budget, improve event quality and reduce stress.
1. Create More Accurate Budget Estimates Up Front
Many planners still budget as if it were 2019, but essentials such as food, lodging, transport and labour have risen sharply. Hybrid events add extra staff and technology, and you need a contingency for emergencies. Conservative estimates up front protect you from overruns later.
Many planners are still budgeting like it’s 2019, but core costs—food, lodging, transport and labour—are far higher today.
2. Give Yourself Enough Lead Time
Starting late is common—and costly. We recommend at least 12 months of lead time to secure top production talent, negotiate venues and develop cohesive themes. Last-minute planning means paying premiums for “left-overs”.
3. Involve Stakeholders Early
Engage keynote speakers, senior leadership and labour partners early. Contract riders, executive feedback and union requirements can all add cost if discovered too late. Early communication prevents expensive surprises.
4. Negotiate Room Capacity, Power and Internet Needs
With adequate lead time you can negotiate contract terms and avoid hidden charges. Venues may overstate ballroom capacity or oversell power and bandwidth. Stagedge once reduced a proposed 600-amp charge to 100 amps—saving the client thousands.
When it comes to event planning, starting late is a common—and costly—mistake. Give yourself at least a year of lead time.
5. Don’t Cut Corners on Homework and Preparation
Measure twice, cut once: verify ballroom dimensions, truss points, dock heights and service-lift sizes. Build extra time for setup, strike and rehearsals—otherwise overtime costs and mistakes skyrocket.
Giving production crews an extra day prevents overnight builds, costly overtime and rushed speaker rehearsals.
6. Make a Plan to Repurpose Content
Capture keynotes, breakout sessions and on-site interviews for future webinars, social clips or training modules. Repurposed content extends ROI long after the event ends.
One of the most effective ways to stretch your budget is to adapt event content for other uses. Capture not only speaker videos but also professional photos, breakout-session recordings, B-roll interviews, and opening- or recap-moment footage. Repurposed content can fuel campaigns throughout the year—highlighting this year’s event and promoting the next via blogs, articles, podcasts, and social-media clips. Decide on photo and video capture before the event begins; late decisions drive up costs and add post-production work.
Repurposed content powers blogs, articles, podcasts, and social-media clips all year long.
Yes, costs are rising and attendees expect hybrid options, but with planning, foresight, and communication your budget can meet new demands and still leave a contingency cushion. Good practices make good budgets.
Learn more about event budgeting in our online resources, or contact us to discover how Stagedge can streamline and maximise your event—from development to showtime.
Stagedge: Creating Immersive Experiences for 50 years—Boston’s leading full-service event-production company, delivering live, virtual and hybrid brand experiences worldwide.