General Tips, Your Event Career

5 Niches That Can Increase Your Event Planner Salary

As a professional event planner, standing out in such a competitive industry can sometimes be a difficult task. But when you and your business have a unique niche, it’s a LOT easier to set yourself apart! So, if you’ve been looking for find ways to make a name for yourself and boost your event planner salary, you’ve come to the right place! Let’s take a look at 5 awesome niches – and why they’ll help you better your bottom line!

What is a Niche?

If this term is brand-new for you, don’t worry! It’s actually quite simple to explain. Merriam-Webster defines a niche as “a specialized market“. To build off this, think of a niche as that special something that makes a thing different from all the others. KFC’s niche, for example, is their ‘secret blend’ of spices. The company, Lefty’s, made its mark by catering their products specifically to left-handed clients. When a business has a niche, it’s basically saying to the world, “I have this one thing that my competitors don’t.”

Since that ‘one thing’ tends to be a sought-after service that can otherwise be hard to find, you can understand why niches tend to be so attractive to potential clientele. Similarly, it only makes sense that if you provide a rarer type of service, you’ll be able to increase your clientele and overall event planner salary.

Finding Your Niche as an Event Planner

As you launch your career, it’s first important to know the kind of event planning business you want to run. Only once you understand this can you narrow down and determine what you’d like your niche to be. Here are some questions you should ask yourself:

• Which area(s) of the event planner industry do I want to work in? E.g. wedding planning, party planning, etc.
• Who do I want my target clientele to be?
• What sort of event planner salary do I ideally want to make?
• How high is the demand for event planners in my area?
• Would it be worth it for me to target clients outside of my area, too?
• Is there a lot of competition where I live? If so, who are my competitors and what do their businesses offer?
• What can I bring to the table that my fellow local competitors do not?
• Which areas of the planning industry am I most passionate about?
• What am I most passionate about outside of the industry? Is there a way I can somehow incorporate this into my business?

Got your answers in mind? Good! Now let’s move onto 5 niches that can help you better your business, attract more clients, and increase your event planner salary!

Increase Your Event Planner Salary With These 5 Niches!

Niche #1: Proposal Planning

We always tend to think about engagement party planning and wedding planning – but what about the proposal itself? There’s a HUGE market out there of clients who want to pop the question in the most memorable way possible. Plenty of people know what they want to say, but are not sure how to coordinate the big moment, make the proposal extra special, or decorate the setup. Proposal planning has gained steadfast popularity over the past several years, but there are still a lot of planners who haven’t yet incorporated such a service into their business. With this sought-after service, your business, clientele, and event planner salary will be sure to get a big boost!

Interested? Well guess what! With QC Event School’s Event & Wedding Planning Course, you’ll learn all the skills you need to offer proposal planning services to your clients!

Niche #2: Corporate Event Planning

When people think of a professional event planner, the go-to image is someone organizing a birthday party, baby shower, wedding, etc. However, one huge area of the planning industry lies in the corporate world. As a corporate event planner, you’ll be able to offer your subject-matter expertise to businesses everywhere – whether they’re start-ups, major corporations, and everything in-between! You can get hired to put together employee retreats, holiday parties, product launches, conferences, and so much more. Furthermore, you can tailor your services based on whether you wish to specialize in internal events, external events, or both.

Plus, there are so many options in terms of how you’d prefer to be hired. Want to devote your corporate planning niche to one particular business? Become their in-house planner! Would you prefer instead to work on a freelance basis? This can be done, too!

Our point is: corporate event planning is a secret weapon that many planners either don’t know about or don’t offer… which is quite a shock to us, consider how well of an event planner salary the job can pay! Why not corner this area of the market and be the corporate planner your area has always needed?

Pro Tip: Did you know that QC Event School offers an internationally-recognized, online Corporate Event Planning Course? Learn more about it here!

Niche #3: Festival and Live Event Planning

The end of the COVID pandemic is finally on the horizon. Once large in-person gatherings are welcomed back with open arms, there will likely be a MASSIVE increase in festivals and live events. Why not use this to your advantage by targeting this area of the industry as your niche? Use this time to get professionally trained in a Festivals & Live Events certification course (such as the one offered by QC Event School). This way, as soon as the opportunity presents itself, you can hit the ground running, put your skills to good use, and make a great profit in return! In terms of forward-thinking ways to increase your event planner salary, this is one possibility that’s definitely worth keeping in your back pocket!

Niche #4: Luxury Wedding and Event Planning

Is it hard to believe that a job title with the word “luxury” in it would help you increase your event planner salary? We don’t think so! The proof, as they say, is in the pudding with this one. Luxury weddings and events are, by their very nature, lavish (and expensive) affairs. Typically, a luxury client’s budget will be much higher – as will the amount they’re willing to pay for an experienced industry expert such as yourself.

Fun fact: our very own Luxury Wedding & Event Planning tutor, Mwai Yeboah, specializes in luxury events, and her career has been a remarkable success. In fact, this niche pays so well that many luxury event planners only need to organize a handful of weddings or events per year, while still making an attractive annual income!

Niche #5: Virtual Event Planning

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, event planners have needed to find innovative ways to supplement their salary and keep their businesses running. One discovery the industry has made over the past year and a half is that a LOT of event/wedding planning services can actually be offered online, rather than in-person. These days, client consultations, event planning processes, and even events themselves can all be held digitally! While virtual services have allowed event planners to prosper during a time of social distancing, they’ve become so popular that we’ll likely continue seeing them long after the pandemic is over.

Until COVID-19 is over, becoming a virtual event planner will allow you to continue growing your business and service customers from the comfort of home. Post-COVID, you can maximize virtual services in order to expand your client reach and offer your services on a national – or even global – scale! Location will no longer pose you or your clients any difficulties, and neither will travel costs. In terms of flexibility, this is easily the best way to boost your event planner salary!

Pro Tip: Discover how to take your business online with QC Event School’s Virtual Events Training mini course!

Now we want to know: which of these 5 event planner niches is most enticing to you? Do you have any others to add to this list?

Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

The single best way to increase your event planner salary? Getting professionally trained and certified! Enroll with QC Event School today and graduate in as little as 3-6 months!

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