The event planning checklist
Most event problems trace back to something that should have been done weeks earlier. This checklist is organized by timeline, so at any point you know what to lock next, from the first booking through to the day of. Within each stage, group your own tasks by workstream too (venue and logistics, program and content, guests, catering, production and AV, marketing, budget and vendors) so each team only scans the rows that are theirs, and do not let the lines everyone forgets slip: a confirmed catering headcount deadline, a backup for your single point of failure, signage and wayfinding, and who tears down and returns rentals after everyone leaves.
The Event70 Team · 3 min read
- 1
8 to 12 weeks out: lock the foundations
Confirm the date, venue and a realistic headcount range, since your venue capacity and catering minimums both depend on it. Set the budget and write down the actual goal of the event, not just the format, because that goal decides what you spend on first. Lock the agenda and any speakers or talent early, since good speakers get booked out months ahead, and send save-the-dates so people hold the date.
- 2
4 to 6 weeks out: invitations and vendors
Send invitations and open RSVPs so you start collecting real numbers instead of guesses. Confirm catering, AV and rental vendors in writing, not just a verbal hold, and sign contracts while you still have room to negotiate. Record every deposit against your budget as it goes out the door, so estimated and actual stay in sync. This is also the point to start building your run of show, even in rough form.
- 3
1 to 2 weeks out: confirm everything
Chase outstanding RSVPs on a set schedule and finalize the catering headcount against your caterer's actual cutoff, which is often five to seven business days before the event, earlier than most people expect. Confirm dietary needs, signage, name badges and the floor plan down to table numbers. Brief AV on the run of show in detail and share it with the full team so nobody is seeing cue times for the first time on the day.
- 4
The week of: tech check and rehearsal
Run a full tech check on every mic, screen and cue, then rehearse against the actual clock rather than just reading through the run of show out loud. Print signage and badges with a few spares for names that get missed or misspelled. Confirm load-in and load-out times with the venue in writing, and brief volunteers on their specific day-of roles so nobody is improvising their job on arrival.
- 5
Day of: run the show
Put the run of show live in the room, on a screen or shared device, and have one person, not a committee, own the clock. Track the current cue and what is next at all times, and keep your pre-agreed short list of what you can trim or cut if you slip behind. Resist the urge to renegotiate the schedule live with everyone weighing in; that is what the pre-event planning was for.
See it in Event70
RSVPs
- JAJordan Avery+2confirmed
- SPSam Patel+1confirmed
- RCRobin Cho+1pending
- DNDevi Nair0declined
Event70 turns this into a working plan: a live run of show, an assignable checklist, RSVPs, a budget and the day-of, all on one event.
Frequently asked questions
How far in advance should I start planning an event?
For most events, start eight to twelve weeks out for the foundational decisions: date, venue, budget and headcount. Larger events like conferences or ones with in-demand speakers need four to six months to secure the right venue and talent before calendars fill. Smaller internal events can compress to four to six weeks if the venue and vendors are already known quantities you've used before.
What's the single most common thing people forget on an event checklist?
A firm catering headcount deadline that's actually communicated to whoever is chasing RSVPs. Caterers usually need final numbers five to seven business days out, but planners often keep the RSVP list open until the week of, then scramble to hit a deadline that already passed. Put the caterer's real cutoff on the calendar early and work the whole checklist backward from it.
Should I use a spreadsheet or dedicated software for my event checklist?
A spreadsheet works fine for a single small event with one or two people running it. Once you have multiple workstreams, a team chasing different vendors, or you're running several events a year, dedicated event software earns its keep by keeping the checklist, budget, RSVPs and run of show connected instead of living in separate files that drift out of sync with each other.
What should happen at the very end of the checklist, after the event is over?
Reconcile the budget against actuals, return or ship back any rentals, and send a short debrief while the details are still fresh, ideally within a few days. Note what nearly went wrong even if it didn't, not just what did. That record is what makes your next event's checklist faster to build and your next budget more accurate.
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