FAQ's

We plan events of any size, ranging from 15 people to over 5,000 people.

Our team works remotely to serve our clients as efficiently as possible and to provide the best work/life balance for our valued team members. Our “home base” is in Providence, Rhode Island but we service every time zone in North America.

That depends on your vision, your objectives, and the scope of your project. If you are having an event for which the execution must be flawless, your budget needs to go as far as it can, or you need to really wow your audience, it’s probably a good idea to hire a professional event planner. At Simple Meeting Solutions, we have both the skillset and the network to create value for our clients by providing options and services that would be difficult for a non-event planner to find. And we also have access to price points that the general public does not, generating cost savings that offset the cost of paying for a professional planner.

Every event is different and we provide a custom scope of work and price quote to each client for each project. We follow a flat rate pricing model based on the time we think your event project will take. We believe that a flat rate makes budgeting easier on our clients so there are no unexpected overages or variable costs. We do not upcharge for any of the products or services we source for you.

Experience matters more than anything in the events industry. Just about anyone who has planned a baby shower or birthday party can hang out a shingle for event planning but true professionals in this industry are distinguished by their experience, their credentials, and their network. We recommend you look for an event planner who specializes in corporate meetings or events (“special events” are different than “corporate events”) and preferably someone who has their CMP credential, which shows that they have worked full-time in the events industry for at least 3 years and possess the knowledge required to pass a rigorous certification exam.

That depends on who your audience is, what location you are considering, and your level of risk tolerance. We highly recommend that anyone considering hosting an in-person event follow the CDC and WHO guidelines for in-person gatherings. If you do choose to host an in-person gathering, establish a safety protocol and find an event planning partner who is familiar with onsite protocols and best practices (like Simple Meeting Solutions).

We will plan a meeting or event in any destination that our clients want to go.

Many event venues and hotels will offer you an “Event Coordinator” as part of the price you pay for your use of their space. However, while this person is helpful in navigating the venue, he or she is not intended to be a resource through the planning process or an advocate for the client’s best interests. An event coordinator employed by the venue is tasked with advancing the venue’s best interests, not the client’s, as that is who pays their paycheck.

No! There are so many great alternative venue options for meetings and events these days that are not hotels and can result in some major cost savings. Size of group matters most when assessing your venue and sometimes hotels are best suited to larger groups but smaller groups have a lot of flexibility in utilizing alternative venues that can be more unique and budget-friendly than hotels. If you partner with Simple Meeting Solutions, we will make sure you know all of your venue options including hotels and beyond.

Hybrid events are the future of the events industry but these events have a unique set of challenges and considerations. A professional event planner will be able to expertly guide you in navigating the design of a hybrid event. A hybrid event isn’t just about putting your in-person content online – you will need to strategize how to meaningfully engage both your in-person and virtual audiences. Simple Meeting Solutions can help you do this.

Beyond the safety and risk reduction factors of hosting a virtual event, a digital format may be a good strategic choice for your event for a few reasons. First, virtual events have a much broader reach for fewer dollars. That’s not to say that a virtual event will be cheaper than an in-person event, but the spend per person could be much lower, allowing you to include more attendees than you could have ever included in person. Second, virtual delivery may be more efficient for your audience, resulting in better engagement. Do you really need to require travel and time out of the office and away from family or can you successfully deliver your message virtually and save your attendees precious time and money? Lastly, switching to a virtual format may allow you to invest more of your budget into producing high quality content since you don’t have to spend money on categories like sleeping rooms, food, and transportation. You could design a television-quality production if you can reallocate your dollars and virtual allows you to do just that.

Not necessarily. While there are cost savings on certain line items like sleeping rooms, transportation, and food and beverage, other cost centers like production quality and content are critically important in a virtual setting and can take up a lot of your budget. Whether a virtual replacement for your in-person program will be cheaper depends on the scope of your virtual program and your event objectives.

The right platform for your event is determined by your event objectives and your audience’s needs. We don’t believe that every client needs to buy the latest cutting-edge virtual platform with all the bells and whistles just to have a virtual event. Fortunately, there are a lot of choices for virtual platforms and we help our clients find the one that fits them and their event just right. It doesn’t have to be fancy – it just has to work.

The right platform for your format, a thoughtfully constructed agenda, compelling content, and a professionally run production. Read more about our strategies for virtual event success here.

Improved production quality, smoother show flow, and better content. Planners who have experience in virtual events can level up your event with their expertise and network. Because you cannot control your attendees’ environments in a virtual event like you could at an in-person event, the quality of your production matters so much more to hold their attention and keep them engaged. A professional planner with experience in virtual events will guide you in building a virtual-friendly agenda, source programming optimized for a virtual environment, and direct a smooth-running production from which your attendees won’t want to look away.