Event Planning Form Template

Three kinds of event planning form

The questions are much the same; what changes is who fills the form in and what happens next.

• Event request form

  Used inside a company, university or association. A department asks for an event, and the events team or a manager approves it before planning starts.

• Client intake form

  Used by event planners and agencies. A new client describes the event they want so the planner can quote and propose.

• Planning worksheet

  Used by the team running the event. It records the decisions in one place and becomes the brief for suppliers.

The questions to include

Keep the form as short as it can be while still giving you enough to say yes, no or "let's talk". These are the sections that matter:

Event planning form template

Copy the form below into a document, or rebuild it in your form tool with the checkboxes as multiple-choice questions.

EVENT PLANNING FORM

1. REQUESTER
Name:
Department / organization:
Email:                          Phone:
Approver:
Date submitted:

2. THE EVENT
Event name (working title):
Type: [ ] Conference [ ] Meeting [ ] Trade show [ ] Gala or dinner [ ] Reception or party [ ] Webinar [ ] Other:
Purpose - why hold this event?
Goals - how will we know it worked?
Preferred date(s):              Alternative date(s):
Start time:                     End time:
Format: [ ] In person [ ] Virtual [ ] Hybrid

3. AUDIENCE
Who is it for?
Expected attendance:            Maximum:
[ ] Invitation only  [ ] Open registration
Will attendees pay? [ ] Yes [ ] No   Ticket price(s), if known:
VIPs, speakers or guests needing special arrangements:

4. BUDGET
Total budget available:
Cost center / budget code:
Expected income (tickets, sponsors, exhibitors, donations):

5. VENUE AND LOGISTICS
Preferred venue or area:
Room setup: [ ] Theater [ ] Classroom [ ] Banquet [ ] Reception [ ] Boardroom
Breakout rooms needed:
Accessibility needs:
Accommodation needed? [ ] Yes [ ] No   Rooms / nights:
Parking and transport:

6. FOOD AND DRINK
[ ] Breakfast [ ] Lunch [ ] Dinner [ ] Breaks [ ] Reception
Dietary needs to collect from attendees: [ ] Yes [ ] No
Alcohol: [ ] Yes [ ] No

7. PROGRAM AND TECHNOLOGY
Speakers or presenters:
Outline of sessions:
AV: [ ] Screens [ ] Microphones [ ] Livestream [ ] Recording
Online registration and ticketing? [ ] Yes [ ] No
Check-in and name badges? [ ] Yes [ ] No
Event app or online agenda? [ ] Yes [ ] No

8. MARKETING
How will people hear about it?
Branding or sponsor logos:
Photography or video: [ ] Yes [ ] No

9. RISK AND APPROVALS
Insurance, permits or security needed:
Legal, compliance or privacy review needed:
Approved by:                    Date:

10. ANYTHING ELSE

How to use an event planning form

A form only saves time if it is filled in early and read properly. Set it up like this:

1. 1

   Decide who fills it in

   The person asking for the event, not the events team. They know the purpose and the audience.

2. 2

   Require only what you need to decide

   Make purpose, date, audience size and budget required; leave the rest optional until the event is approved.

3. 3

   Set a minimum notice period

   Say how far ahead requests must arrive, based on your planning lead times, so a request for a conference doesn't arrive three weeks before it.

4. 4

   Review it in a short call

   Read the form, then talk it through. The answers that don't match, such as a large audience and a small budget, are where the conversation is needed.

5. 5

   Turn it into the brief

   Once approved, the form becomes the planning brief: the overview of your event planner and the basis for supplier quotes.

6. 6

   File it with the event

   Keep the form with the final report, so next year's request starts from what actually happened.

Planning form or registration form?

The two are easy to confuse. The planning form is internal: it is filled in once, by the organizer or client, before the event is planned. The registration form is public: it is filled in by every attendee, once the event is open.

They are connected. Many answers on the planning form, such as "collect dietary needs" or "attendees choose a workshop", become questions on the registration form later.

• Event registration forms

  What to ask attendees, which fields to require and how to keep the form short.

  Event registration form guide

• Event proposals

  For planners, the intake form is the basis of the proposal sent back to the client.

  Event proposal template

From planning form to registration in Eventdex

The planning form itself lives in your own document or form tool. Once the event is approved, its answers set up the event in Eventdex:

• Event details

  Name, dates and location, then the logo, category and description, entered once and shown on the registration page.

  Event planning software

• Ticket types

  The audience answers become tickets: admission, speaker, exhibitor, sponsor or staff; public, private or closed; with quantities, sale dates and an optional waitlist.

  Event ticketing software

• Registration questions

  Ask attendees what the planning form says you need, using text, paragraph, single-selection, checkbox, list or scale answers, asked once per order or for every attendee, and marked required where needed.

  Event registration software

• Check-in and badges

  If the form says badges and check-in are needed, design the badge and check attendees in from the same registration list.

  Check-in and badge printing

• Measuring the goals

  Use a post-event survey to check the goals written on the form.

  Event survey software