Hey guys, I'm Nicole Aaron for Youniversity.TV and today we're going to find out what it takes to be a convention planner. And Dalton's going to tell us more about it.
[ Music ] Convention planner Dalton Bennington makes sure everything is taken care of.
It's probably one of the most fun, exciting jobs. I think it's often confused for being very glamorous and easy. And it's more fast paced and demanding.
The main function of a convention planner is to coordinate every detail.
We can find site selections were the meeting makes sense for that meeting and or event to take place. And the management of the logistics of that site from arranging for food and beverage, audio visual, how to get print meeting materials there.
The majority of a convention planner's time is spent in the office finalizing details. When not in the office, they're in meetings, scouting locations or running a function. So do you travel a lot then too?
I do. At least about a week a month if not more.
Well, where would you be going, just checking out venues?
Looking at different venues for viability for different meetings as well as to have the actual meetings themselves.
After all the planning is done, you can still expect to work long hours. As a convention planner, you are expected to work the event to make sure everything runs smoothly.
It's definitely not 9 to 5. It's often weekends, during a meeting it's not uncommon to be the first person up well before 5 am and the last person to go to bed after midnight.
In order to start planning, your next step in this career to get a bachelor's degree in marketing, hospitality, or business. Most of the training is done on job.
Experience is a big part of it. The good thing about our industry is that it's very receptive to internships and having individuals work in the industry while they're in college.
Certification is also available after you've had experience in the field.
You don't specifically need to have a certification although it is offered. Once you've been in the industry for three years, you're eligible to get your Certified Meeting Profession designation.
Employment can be found all over for a convention planner.
Certainly hotels tend to be one of the easiest places for individuals to start. And most meetings and events do take place in those types of venues. So it's very helpful. Other venues, convention centers, conference centers, museums.
What does the future hold for up and coming convention planners?
Predictions say that it's going to grow about 20% in the next 8 years. So it is a very strong industry.
With that good news, a student can start out making a comfortable living.
Average salary in this industry for a meeting event planner is about 41000 dollars.
If these seem like the right career choices for you, then you'll need to have excellent written and verbal skills and be able to multitask. Dalton also suggests these qualities.
You have to have a lot of attention to detail and organization.
Well I've got a meeting to plan, hopefully we shed some light into this exciting career as a convention planner. I got my work cut out.
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