It’s Prom season and we at Pierce Events have teamed up with students and staff to create wonderful events that take the worry out of what might occur. Our “Clean Beats” shows have grown very popular and as word gets out more and more people want to learn more.
While we can’t do every Prom, we can share some tips on how to make you Prom Party successful.
The biggest social event for most teens is the Prom. Proms have a mini-industry of its own with almost $1.8 billion spent on prom-related purchases.
All too often Proms make national news for all the wrong reasons. Drinking, lewd dancing, fights and even DJ’s who play raunchy and offensive music often are part of the story. It’s gotten so bad at times that school have cancelled Prom all together. So here are some Prom Planning tips to avoid problems:
The venue is by far the first thing you want to take care of. All other things flow from the choice of venue. You cannot set the date, hire entertainment, hire security, or plan a budget until your venue is set.
A good rule of thumb is to start looking at your possible venue choices as early as possible and no later than at the end of January before your spring Prom. Early planners will usually get the dates they want, while Prom committees that start the planning process later usually have to juggle their schedule to accommodate the venue they want or stick to their date choice and settle for a venue of lesser caliber. Looking at venues even a year ahead of time is not inappropriate, especially in areas where there is competition for the best sites.
The décor choices you make have only one major limiting factor: finances. If your budget allows you to create a virtual movie studio, then by all means go for it. If your budget is more limited, then you must figure out what part of your budget you can spend on decorations and make sure you do not exceed this amount.
Food is usually tied to the venue, in that almost all hotels and banquet halls have either an in-house catering department or a preferred list of caterers. Your main decision about food will be whether to have a sit-down dinner, a buffet-style dinner, or just have appetizers readily available for students throughout the night.
Entertainment Is Very Important! The subject of entertainment is greatly misunderstood when it comes to budgetary planning. The mistake some groups make is to blow their budget on the venue, décor, and food, and not have enough left for quality entertainment. This is the biggest mistake that a Prom committee can make, as the choice of entertainment will determine the quality of the evening.
If your Prom DJ is great, people will say they had a great time. If the entertainment is bad, your guests will remember the event as a dud. I’ve seen plenty of Proms where the décor and food was not up to scratch but the attendees still considered it a success because of the quality of the entertainment. The trick is to find a DJ company that specializes in high-end events – such as your prom. Find someone who uderstands limitations and concerns. If offensive music is a concern make sure you put all expectations in writing and have the DJ agreee to the contract terms. Find an experienced DJ company that will provide you with the world-class prom entertainment that you require. Don’t settle for less when you deserve the best.
Some sort of a security team is always a good idea at your Prom. Schools often hire off-duty police officers and have them show up in uniform. Some ever administer breathalyser tests before entry. A good show of force will eliminate a lot of the problems before they even start, and for those problems that still occur, the officers are there to solve them
The major overriding concern of every planning decision you make will be whether you can afford to do it. After fundraising efforts by your class, the major source of revenue for Prom expenses is your ticket sales. When making decisions about cost, you need to decide whether or not the incremental increase in the price of the ticket is worth the expense.
For example, let’s say you have 500 people coming to your Prom. You have a choice of an okay DJ company for $750 for the night or an amazing DJ company for $1,500. Your incremental ticket price for the okay company is $750/500 = $1.50 per ticket, and for the amazing DJ company it would be $1,500/ 500 = $3.00 per ticket. Base your decision on whether the increase from one cost per ticket to the next is the best decision for your group.
We are always available to speak to you about your needs and concerns. Our “Clean Beats” program is designed for school events and Proms and we would love to talk to you about your event. www.pierceevents.net
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