Fundamentals Course

✓ Six units covering everything you need to take your first paid booking
✓ Worked fee calculations and the clause-by-clause anatomy of a client contract
✓ Run sheets, timelines and supplier briefs you build as you go
✓ 30-day money-back guarantee
✓ Flexible, self-paced online learning with lifetime access
✓ Instant access to course materials
✓ Priced in USD

Course last updated: August 2026

100% onlineLearn from anywhere

Lifetime accessNo subscriptions

C.E.P.P. certificateEarn the credential

30-day guaranteeMoney back, no hassle

Here's what you'll learn in our Fundamentals Course

Unit 1

The Event Planning Profession Today

Separating the planner role from the venue, the caterer and the stylist
Comparing the corporate, wedding, private celebration and non-profit markets
Judging which market suits your network, your schedule and your temperament
Understanding what a client is really buying when they hire a planner
Setting realistic expectations for your first twelve months

Unit 2

Setting Up Your Event Planning Business

Choosing a business structure and registering the name you will trade under
Understanding public liability cover and why venues ask to see it
Opening a business account and keeping client deposits straight in your books
Deciding what belongs in your service agreement before the first booking
Setting your deposit, payment schedule and cancellation terms

Unit 3

Pricing and Quoting Events

Comparing the four fee models: flat fee, percentage of budget, hourly and per guest
Costing your own planning hours before you decide what to charge
Deciding when a percentage fee helps you and when it works against you
Handling supplier commissions and disclosing them honestly
Presenting a quote that reads as a plan rather than a price list

Unit 4

Timelines, Logistics and Run Sheets

Working backwards from event day to a dated planning timeline
Writing a run sheet a supplier can follow without calling you
Reading a floor plan and checking capacity, access and power
Sequencing bump-in and bump-out so suppliers do not collide
Planning the contingency for weather, a late supplier and a no-show

Unit 5

Clients, Briefs and Expectations

Running a discovery call that surfaces the budget and the real brief
Turning a vague idea into a written brief both sides have signed off
Managing scope creep and pricing a change once the plan is set
Communicating on the day so the client can enjoy their own event
Closing out an event with a debrief that earns the next booking

Unit 6

Winning Your First Bookings

Building a portfolio when you have not yet run an event of your own
Approaching venues and suppliers so they refer work to you
Writing an introductory offer that is attractive without being underpriced
Running the inquiry-to-booking conversation with confidence
Turning every completed event into photographs, a review and a referral

Unit 7Fast Track Course only

Marketing an Event Planning Business

Building a simple site whose job is to turn a visit into an inquiry
Using Instagram and Pinterest for a business that sells a look
Appearing in local search and on the directories clients actually use
Photographing your own events so you own the images you market with
Deciding when paid advertising is worth it and when referrals are cheaper

Unit 8Fast Track Course only

Venues, Suppliers and Negotiation

Building and vetting a supplier bench you can put in front of a client
Reading a venue contract for the terms that cost money later
Negotiating rates, minimums and inclusions without damaging a relationship
Handling commissions, kickbacks and disclosure ethically
Managing a supplier who is late, wrong or under-delivering on the day

Unit 9Fast Track Course only

Systems, Software and Your First Hires

Choosing event management software that fits a business your size
Templating the documents you rewrite for every single event
Knowing when to hire your first coordinator or contract assistant
Briefing and training on-the-day staff to your standard
Handing over an event you are not personally running

Unit 10Fast Track Course only

Scaling and Long-Term Growth

Packaging your service so it can be sold more than once
Winning corporate and annual accounts for predictable revenue
Managing seasonality and cash flow across a planning year
Adding revenue that is not your own hours on site
Building a brand and a business that could run without you

What it costs to be wrong

Quote an event in an afternoon and know the fee covers your hours

6 units and one exam. Unit 3 works all four fee models against a real event budget, so the first quote you send after it is one you can defend.

Enroll now ($247)

An event planner standing at the edge of a reception room she has set

Quick and easy online exam

When you finish the training you sit a short, open-book online exam covering the six core units. Pass it and you earn the Certified Event Planning Professional (C.E.P.P.) credential, with a personalized certificate and a verification ID that a client, a venue or a supplier can check for themselves.