Planning Tips, Your Event Career
How Stylized Photoshoots Can Lead to Event Planner Jobs
When first entering the world of professional planning, you may not really know how to find event planner jobs. Where do you start? How can you start acquiring clients, so you can begin to assemble your portfolio and resume?
At first, this all may feel a bit overwhelming; maybe even daunting. But it doesn’t have to be this way!
Once you’ve gotten a certification under your belt, there are tons of ways you can hit the ground running and immediately begin finding work. The most obvious option is to offer your services to anyone you personally know, who may have an event coming up that could use organizing.
But another opportunity you may not know about is taking part in stylized photoshoot!
What’s a Stylized Photoshoot?
It’s pretty much exactly what the name implies: it’s a photoshoot that’s styled in a specific way. It can reflect a given theme, type of event (or even wedding), target a specific audience, etc. A stylized photoshoot is accomplished thanks to the collective efforts of industry professionals, all chipping in and providing their own unique service to the mix.
Examples of the types of professionals who typically take part in stylized photoshoots include:
- Photographers
- Models
- Makeup artists
- Hair stylists
- Fashion stylists
- Florists
- Venues
- Bakers/Chefs/Caterers
- Event decorators
- And so much more!
Where do YOU fit into this?
As an event planner, it will be up to YOU to organize the stylized shoot! You’re essentially the maestro, your fellow industry pros are the invaluable instruments, and the photoshoot is your grand symphony.
Although anyone can get the ball rolling for a stylized shoot (such as putting a call out online for others who may be interested in collaborating), it’s the event planner who’s responsible for bringing everything together.
Duties Required When Planning a Stylized Shoot
Same as with any event, putting together a stylized photoshoot can be a timely process. So, make sure you put those organizational skills of yours to good use! If your personal affairs have made you busy for the time being, then don’t take part in a shoot until your schedule is a bit more forgiving. You’ll need to give the shoot the time, care, and dedication that it deserves… for everyone’s sake!
Once you’ve committed, your typical responsibilities would include:
- Secure the location or venue
- Secure any vendors/suppliers that are needed for the shoot
- Schedule the date and time for the shoot to take place
- Keep in contact with all parties, so everyone is on the same page
- Put together and provide the timetable for the day of the shoot
- Keep everything running smoothly (and on schedule) on the day of
How a Stylized Shoot Can Result in Event Planner Jobs
So, here’s the thing about stylized photoshoots: more often than not, they’re unpaid.
‘But wait,’ I’m sure you’re suddenly thinking, ‘how is this supposed to help advance my career if I’m not making any actual money from it?’
The short answer is that stylized photoshoots provide you with OTHER profitable advantages. Just because it doesn’t pay you, doesn’t mean it isn’t any less beneficial to bringing in work that will pay you!
Here are just a few of the ways it can do this…
It Builds Your Event Planning Portfolio
As a professional, you’re going to be expected to have a portfolio with images of your past work. Nowadays, in such a competitive market, potential clients are going to want to physically see your skills before they choose to hire you.
When first starting out, your options for building this portfolio will be a bit limited. After all, you can’t expect to start booking paying clients right away until you’ve gotten your name out there and gained some experience.
While you can put together events for friends and family, there may not be a professional photographer involved to snap some high-quality photos. If there is a photographer, you may have to pay them for a copy of the shots. For those of you starting your event planning business on a budget, this may not always be ideal in the beginning (even if it’s still doable).
The awesome thing about stylized photoshoots, on the other hand, is that all professionals involved get a copy of portfolio-ready photos at NO charge! This is the benefit to all professionals pitching in for a common cause. Everyone walks away with a set of professional-level, high-quality photos.
Professional-looking photographs are a MUST for any respectable event planning portfolio, so this is a winning situation for you!
It Demonstrates Variety in Your Portfolio
Do you want a vast clientele? Do you want to be able to organize anything from private events, to birthday parties, to weddings, and more?
Then your portfolio should demonstrate to any of these potential clients that you’re capable of making their visions come true!
Being really good at one type of event is fine – but it’s going to potentially limit the number of event planner jobs you can book. It’s better to expand your skill-set, so you can offer a greater variety of planning services. The more types of organized events you can highlight in your portfolio, the more types of clients you can ultimately attract.
Since stylized photoshoots are artificially created from scratch, you can tailor them to the different event planning areas you want your portfolio to showcase! For example, if you want to show clients that you’re trained in wedding planning, put together a bridal or wedding-styled shoot. If you want clients to know that you can organize a wicked anniversary party, arrange a photoshoot reflecting that.
Stylized shoots open up doors to you that may otherwise have remained closed. You and your fellow industry professionals can get as creative and as eclectic as you want. The sky is your limit!
It Helps Build Your Professional Network
The event planning industry can be incredibly close-knit. Because you’ll be frequently working with all sorts of venues, vendors, and suppliers, you’ll quickly form professional relationships with them. This will build your network.
A stylized photoshoot is a golden opportunity to get your foot in the door. It allows you the chance to create connections between you and those you collaborate with, and start getting your name out there. Since it’s often an unpaid process, stylized photoshoots are a great lesson in teamwork; working together for a common goal, in a way where you all mutually benefit each other.
How can this lead to more event planner jobs for you down the road? Through word-of-mouth, of course!
The beauty of your network is that you can not only use it to assist future clients (such as recommending them a vendor you’ve previously worked with) – it can directly benefit YOU as well! Word of mouth and personal recommendations are huge within this industry. Make the right impression and build the right network, and these are the people who will wind up dropping your name to their own clients in need of a good event planner.
The bigger your network, and the more stylized shoots you give your time to, the more clients who will be recommended your way!
Have YOU ever organized or taken part a stylized photoshoot? Share your experience with us in the comments!
