Event Planning Client Questionnaire Template
Most quotes are wrong because the brief was thin, and most briefs are thin because nobody asked the awkward questions. A questionnaire does that for you, in writing, before a price has been discussed and while asking is still normal.
See the coursesEverything on this page is yours to copy and adapt. The courses cover the decisions behind it: what to charge, what to promise, and what to put in writing.
What yours needs to cover
- ✓ The occasion, the date and how fixed that date really is
- ✓ Guest numbers, and how confident they are in the figure
- ✓ The budget, asked directly, with a range offered so the question is answerable
- ✓ The two or three things that matter most to them, which is what you will be judged on
- ✓ What they do not want, which is often more revealing than what they do
- ✓ Who else has to approve decisions, and how quickly they can be reached
How to use it
- Send it before the discovery call, not after, so the call is a conversation rather than an interview.
- Ask about budget directly. A questionnaire that avoids it produces a proposal that is guessing.
- Ask who signs off. A plan approved by one person and vetoed by another is a fortnight lost.
- Keep the answers, and check the finished plan against them before the event.
Event Planning Client Questionnaire Template FAQs
How do I ask a client their budget without putting them off?
Offer ranges rather than a blank field, and explain why you are asking: the same event is planned differently at different budgets, and quoting without knowing wastes both of your time. Almost nobody objects when the reason is given.
What if the client does not know what they want?
Many will not, and that is normal. Ask what they do not want instead, which people answer far more easily, then ask about events they have been to and enjoyed. Unit 5 covers running that conversation.
Should the questionnaire go out before or after the proposal?
Before, always. A proposal written without the answers is a guess dressed up in a nice document, and it is the most common reason a proposal is politely declined.
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