1. We Get ish Done. I say that in the most professional way possible! There are planners out there that charge a lot and do a little. But we walk our talk at SwaLaRue Events. If you’re on a tight timeline or your budget has a very firm ceiling, we work within the constraints you have to still help you execute a well-planned event. We offer recommendations without being pushy (because ultimately it is your event) and our Lead Planner (me) is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). Let me tell you something…when you combine a passion for experential events with a project management background, your event has so much more attention to detail, in-advanced scheduling and planning as well a detailed discussions about the methodology behind the approach we will use for your event. We love what I do and simply put…we get ish done!

2. Budgets Are Our Passion. Because of my own personal experience with planning an event and investing 50k in ONE DAY…I know first hand that there really are many many ways to approach your event. And as soon as you get serious about how much you want to spend (or are comfortable spending) we are passionate about keeping you within those left and right limits! I always educate my clients that you need to understand how much events cost before you can truly establish a budget but once you know how much it costs and couple that with how much you want to spend…it is GAME ON! I will leave no stone unturned to find a way to fit what you want within the amount you want to spend. I did not have to spend as much as I did on my wedding…there were ways to cut costs but I had the bright shiny object syndrome and told myself…if I really wanted it I just was not going to look at the price tag and get it anyway. While I did conserve in some areas, I did not conserve in as many areas as I could. Now that I am a Senior Certified Wedding and Event Planner and a Certified Corporate Event Planner there is so much more I know about budgeting and researching vendors that would have saved me time and money and I can’t wait to apply those rules of law to helping you execute your special day. And by the way…budget does not mean cheap, it simply means we all have finite resources we wish to spend or have to spend on an event. You can be a millionaire but still only wish to spend 75k on your wedding…that means your budget is 75k and it’s my job to make sure you don’t go over it by one red cent!

3. Our Timelines are Second to None. I love learning. From music memory contests in Elemenatry School to reading entire regulation manuals in JROTC to the really intense Thayer Method of teaching I learned at West Point, it is just ingrained in me to constantly learn new things. Whether its reading up on leveraging AI or taking a continuing education course in the Wedding Industry to keep my skills sharp -I am going to alway learn something new. But over the years, no matter how many symposiyms I attend about building event timelines, I must say that there aren’t any tips out there that are better than the principles I’ve applied to my event timelines. It may be attributed to my mliitary background or passion for project management but my timelines are second to none. My weddings ALWAYS start on time and in the small chance they don’t it is because a very important guest hasn’t showed up yet and my clients insist on waiting for them. It is never because of hair and makeup or room setup not being complete. Even when a makeup artist cancels on us the day of the event…(yes I could write a book on all the things that have gone wrong behind the scenes of an event!) I have learned how to be over-prepared and baked time into the right places of timelines to make sure the flow of my events are a well-oiled machine.

4. We Move in Silence. This is a blog from the heart so I’m just going to come out and say it….there are some planners out there that are really full of themselves. They are like a peacock that has to show their feathers and let everyone in the room know they are in charge. But there is an art to this event planner thing. Whether a corporate event or wedding…there is a way we as planners need to carry ourselves so that we are moving all the pieces on the chest board, providing leadership to the vendors and guidance to our clients without being the loudest one in room or letting everyone know we’re in charge. What I’m saying is a coordinator shouldn’t really be ‘seen’ at an event. It’s not our event, it’s yours. I believe we should melt into the background, being gracious to the kitchen and wait staff, asking if anyone needs water or other forms of support; checking in on the guests and watching their facial expressions for concerns, comfort and enjoyment; making sure our clients are enjoying themselves; making sure restrooms don’t need to be serviced and the vendors have what they need to deliver. Planners should not be drama queens or kings that let everyone know they are the ones that hold the timeline and the key to the events’ success. SwaLaRue Events has a certain meekness about us. We will be firm when needed and lead to ensure the best execution but we are not going to take over your event – it is your event and your investment, we make sure YOU are the star!

Now don’t get me wrong…there are many more reasons to chose to work with SwaLaRue Events – but instead of continuing to read about why you should hire us, why don’t you schedule a consult and get a real live response? I hope to hop on a call with you soon to discuss your needs.