Event coordination can be a monster to take on. Whether you’re planning a trade show, conference, corporate event, sales kickoff, or even just a team outing, managing an event is different from managing a project. Every event requires meticulous planning and collaboration, not to mention exceptional budgeting, resource allocation, time management, and flexibility to roll with the punches. Keeping track of deliverables, vendors, deadlines, and more is overwhelming and nearly impossible to do without an event planning timeline template.
Having a checklist for event planning at your fingertips makes it easier to track all that needs to be done without accidentally leaving something out. What’s even better is a checklist within a collaborative tool that empowers you to recreate successful events again and again. With an event checklist template, team members who get involved at different stages can easily view event information and track deliverables all in one place. They can jump right in without getting overwhelmed playing catch up through forwarded emails, disconnected spreadsheets, and IM chats.
There are a ton of event planning tools out there. However, with Wrike, you already have the only event planning software — and event checklist template — you need to put on your best event yet!
You can hop right into our Event Management Wrike Template which includes a free 14-day trial. But first, let’s walk through setting up your event from the ground up and make sure you have all the best practices in your back pocket.
Step 1: Create an events folder
This is where you’ll house all of your events so you have each event documented in a central location. If you're only planning a one-off event, you can skip this step and just create a project.
Step 2: Create a project
Title the project "Event Template" or the title of the event. For this example, we're going to create a “Trade Show” Wrike template.
Step 3: List tasks
Next, you're going to start listing the who, what, and when involved in the upcoming event. Create clear subtasks for each to-do or deliverable required for the event.
Step 4: Add subtask details
Once you start the event planning process, make sure each subtask has a date and clear description of all that's involved. Any files with requirements, applications, or guidelines should be attached as well so your event management team is on the same page.
Here’s a list of other common events and tasks you can add to your event Wrike template:
Team Kickoff Tasks:
- Reserve lodging
- Finalize logistics
- List sessions/speakers
- Finalize activities
- List meals/menus/restaurants
Executive Roundtable Tasks:
- Write invitation emails
- Finalize invitation list
- List attendees
- Finalize location/logistics
- Collect all presentation decks
- Finalize itinerary
- Prepare gift bags
Office Party Tasks:
- Buy decorations
- Find caterer for food/drinks
- Finalize entertainment
- Buy prizes for contests
Seminar Tasks:
- Get commitment of speakers/presentations
- List attendees
- Finalize agenda
- Get suppliers for food/drinks
Board Meeting Tasks:
- Collect presentations
- List attendees
- Finalize agenda
- Buy food/drinks
How We Used Wrike to Plan Our First User Conference
Here at Wrike, we like to drink our own Champagne. We use Wrike to help us collaborate and execute highly successful projects. Last year, we relied on this event planning timeline template to pull off our biggest collaborative project ever — our annual user conference Collaborate!
Between 59 Wrikers across 2 continents, we planned 29 sessions with 34 speakers. The event had 302 attendees, 4 sponsors, and 6 vendors. Guess how many tasks it took? 609! Phew — that’s a lot.
In the end, it was a huge success and our attendees left with key insights to superpower their own projects. Wrike was the real hero though. It helped us nail down all the details and stay aligned throughout the process.
Ready to start planning your next event?
Download our Event Management Template and start your free 14-day trial of Wrike today!
This free event plan template is pre-populated with folders, tasks, and dashboards ready to help you easily kick-start your project. We help you break your event into stages and assign the right people to the right tasks.
Bonus: Just like our other Wrike templates, this one also includes an interactive Gantt chart, dynamic calendars, and multiple work views to help you visualize your project, identify bottlenecks, and track progress.
Additional event planning tips and tricks
- The Event Marketing Evolution (HBR) — A year's worth of event management wisdom, all in one place. We've reviewed the ideas, insights, and best practices from the past year of Harvard Business Review.
- The Event Planning Recipe for Success (Entrepreneur) — Get all the latest and greatest event planner tips here.
- 100 Event Trends for 2019 (Event Manager Blog) — Want access to the latest ideas changing the way we plan and execute events? Here are 100+ event trends transforming the industry.
