Easily Build Your Event With Inspherio

There is one word to describe the event industry and that word is ‘chaos’. Even the most professional wedding planners can have something go wrong, or get so busy that key details fall through the cracks.

Don’t get caught up in a hectic frenzy, while trying to manage guest lists, pay vendors, keep up with the event activities, and more. Instead, stay on top of your event and easily manage every aspect of it with Inspherio.

What’s Inspherio?

Inspherio is the business management solution for all professionals in the event industry. From wedding planners, DJs, photographers, and more, Inspherio is the perfect assistant that simplifies managing your event. It’s full of innovative features for online payments, event progress, online
marketing, contracts, and more.

Building Your Event

Before planning an event it’s important to know what your clients want, which is why Inspherio makes it easy to learn about what your clients want by having them fill out the Know Your Event form. They can log into Inspherio and answer questions about what time of day the event is, the venue location, if anyone is a vegetarian, and more. You can also customize the know your event form by adding your own questions.

Then you can create contracts for your clients to sign online. The information from the know your event form will auto-fill on your contract, so you won’t have to enter in all of the information yourself. You can create custom payment plans with your contract, and your clients can log in to securely sign the contract online, and make payments.

Invoices for your event will be automatically created based off of the payment plan created with your custom contract. You’ll receive reminders for invoices that haven’t been sent out, and for outstanding payments. You can also create invoices for lost or damaged rental equipment.

Make sure your event runs smoothly with an itinerary that you can check on location right from your smartphone. The itinerary has pre-made templates that you can customize for your event, and you can share it with your staff, vendors, and clients to make sure everyone is on the same page as far as knowing when and where to show up. The itineraries can also be easily printed or mailed.

Are events even possible without guests?! Prepare an organized guest list with your client online, and even send out invitations directly from your Inspherio account. As more guests RSVP you’ll know how many people to expect, and how many guests to bill your client for. Plus, you can pull up the guest list from the Inspherio app no matter where you are to quickly make any changes that your client needs.

Events are expensive, easily keep track of expenses with Inspherio to avoid letting them get out of hand. Record each expense in relation to different events, keep up with which of your employees incurred expenses, and keep track of when you reimburse those employees for those expenses right from the palm of your hand.

Make sure that you have the right inventory to cover an event, and add these items to your contracts. Once an item is added to an event it can be checked out and can be checked back in later. These items will be added to your load list so you can make sure you have everything when preparing for the event. Also, when you return items to your inventory you can add notes about any damages and the condition of your items.

Manage your contacts. Keep track of your staff by adding them to events and assigning them tasks, and keep up with the payroll to make sure they get paid for their hours. Also, organize different vendors into groups related to different events and easily pull up their contact information in a matter of seconds.

Give Inspherio a Try

Enjoy a complimentary 30-day free trial to take advantage of Inspherio’s intuitive features that will help you plan and manage your event with features for managing guest lists, keeping track of vendors, keeping note of your inventory and it’s condition, email marketing, and more.

Read More »

Winter Wedding Trends

Now that the fall wedding season is winding down and we are saying goodbye to the fall trends with pumpkin centerpieces and warm shades of red and orange, it’s time to make way for the up and coming winter 2016 trends.

Winter Wonderland Style

First let’s check out the new dress trends that involve hints of vintage, rustic, victorian style. Many brides are choosing dresses with long sleeves for a graceful royal look, like Kate Middleton’s dress, and for warmth.

Shoulder straps are coming back, along with open back dresses and deep Vs in the front for a modern twist on classic dresses. Also, were starting to see more and more sheer dresses with sheer lace and crocheted cloth to give brides an elegant textured look, while showing off modest amounts of their legs.

Bridesmaids can be found in cream and pale colored dresses. Pale teal, greens, and purples are popular, as well as creamy shades of pastel pinks and oranges. Vibrant shades of jewel and velvet accessories that add pops of color to winter wonderlands are also trending.

Plus, to stay warm brides and bridesmaids are wearing faux fur coats. Usually the bride wears a white coat and their bridesmaids wear brown, but shades of grey and black are popular too.

We can’t forget to mention something blue! Shimmering shades of blue can be found everywhere. For example, winter brides are wearing blue eye shadow, and bridesmaids have blue ribbons around their waists and bouquets. Even grooms are wearing blue jackets and ties. Blue is simply the color you can’t go wrong with this season.

Flowers for bouquets are going back to the basics, with simple white flowers with vibrant green stems. It’s also popular to have a few winter berries in the bouquets, along with a vertical, trailing shape.

Winter Wanderlust Decor

Sometimes less is more, which is why more and more weddings have uncovered wooden tables and chairs, for a natural woodsy look. They’re also sticking to natural color schemes for seating, with furniture that’s gray or black.

As far as cloth goes textured, crochet linens are in, but they don’t have to cover the entire table because a simple table runner will give the space the pop of color that it needs. To do something different check out metallic and shimmering table cloths in shades of gold and silver that will add to the winter magic of your wedding.

Big, blooming, centerpieces may be an accessory of the past because more and more wedding planners are arranging simple displays with succulents and sprigs of lavender or wild flowers.

Also, natural items from the winter landscape like pinecones and evergreen needles are being used as decorations. Pinecones can accent centerpieces and be used as card holders for seating arrangements. Evergreen leaves and branches can be crafted into wreaths, added to centerpieces, or used to garnish drinks. The creative possibilities are endless.

To create a romantic, elegant feel your lighting need to be simple, twinkling and warm. Single bulbs on a string or rows of white lights can create a snowy effect. You can also use chandeliers with small light bulbs and crystals hanging down for a dazzling winter affect.

Winter Wedding Refreshments

Weddings are meant to celebrate the love of two individuals who have found one another, but let’s face it, the food is exciting too, especially because wedding food is becoming more and more creative and hands on.

Not only are self-serving food stands popular, but now rolling food trays are in. Members of the waiting staff can push carts of food to different tables and guests can customize their own order. For example, at your wedding, you could serve customizable tacos or salads.

Plus, cake and dessert options are seemingly endless. Simple buttercream frosting is coming back and fondant is on its way out. Instead of lots of frosting roses, cakes are being topped evergreen branches and pinecones. Some people aren’t even serving cake, they provide macaroons, iced cookies, chocolate covered cranberries and fruit, and more instead.

Magical winter cocktails aren’t complete without sugar rimmed glasses and vibrant colors. Consider serving tequila cocktails with simple syrup, peach cocktails with a blush pink glow, or vibrant punch. You could also have a hands on, serve yourself bar where people can make there own mimosas or punch, garnished with a variety of different fruit to choose from.

One of the fastest growing trends is to have a hot cocoa and coffee bar set up, so your guests can cozy up with a warm beverage. Make sure that your cocoa bar has bursts of holiday flair with candy canes and marshmallows that can be added to drinks.

Need a Little Help Planning Your Event?

Now that you’re up to date with the hottest winter wedding trends use Inspherio to help you plan and manage your events. Inspherio is the management solution designed for event industry professionals with innovative features to keep track of vendors, online payments, day of event tasks, and more. Use your complimentary 30-day free trial to see how Inspherio can help you save time while managing and growing your business.

Read More »

The Perfect Tracks for a Father Daughter Dance

Whether it be a wedding, a sweet sixteen, or a quinceañera, daddies and daughters come together and take on the world step-by-step. Choosing the proper song for this rite of passage can be a bit tricky because you want to ensure that you’re giving off the right tone. Do you want to be sweet and cute? Or do you want to break it down on the dance floor?

First, consider the relationship you have with your dad. Are you constantly laughing? Do you share a more serious bond?

Or better yet, check out these eight classic songs to describe your father-daughter relationship:  

1. “Cinderella” by Steven Curtis Chapman. This song is perfect no matter what age the daughter may be. Each of the verses takes you through a young girl’s life from playing dress up at age three to the prom to walking down the aisle. This tune is perfect for a slow waltz and may bring the guests to tears.
2. “Father and Daughter” by Paul Simon. You may recognize the cover of this song from The Wild Thornberry’s Movie. We were moved to tears as Nigel put his daughter, Eliza on a plane to England without him. The words ring true to this classic father daughter dance number and make for a great slow song.
3. “Shout” by the Isley Brothers. “You make me wanna shout…” This song is perfect for a father daughter song with a lighter tone because sometimes girls make their dads want to shout.
4. “Butterfly Kisses” by Bob Carlisle. “Butterfly kisses and bedtime prayers…” the line depicts the true depth of the bond between daddy and his littler girl. Guaranteed to make your Nana sob.
5. “Roam” by the B52’s. A song that you’ve heard in your own dad’s car on repeat thousands of times, and secretly know every word to. This song brings on some disco and will get everybody up and moving.
6. “Brown-Eyed Girl” by Van Morrison. Daddy’s little brown-eyed girl is all grown up and ready to start a new part of her life, but is Daddy ready to let her go?
7. “My Girl” by  the Monkees. Dad’s can claim their little girls as theirs forever and always, so why not celebrate with the go to song?
8. “Vienna” by Billy Joel. “Slow down you crazy child…” We all know that’s probably how our parents have always felt. Watching daddy’s little girl stroll down the aisle with him arm in arm makes the memories roll in and he relates quite fondly with Steve Martin in the movie Father of the Bride.

Are you ready to hit the dance floor with these crazy father daughter beats? I sure am! Bring your boogie shoes to the reception!

Read More »

The Best-Kept Secrets All Event Planners Should Know About Wedding Venues

The first question a bride should answer, after saying “yes” to her new lifelong partner of course, should be where she wants her wedding to be held.

And let’s just say—that’s not an easy question to answer.

There are  several factors to consider: do they want it outside or inside, want it in their hometown or in the middle of both families, or are they wanting a destination wedding?

And guess what, event planners? Your clients are going to be looking to you to help them make that decision.

So, we’re here to let you in on the best-kept wedding venue secrets we think all event planners should know.

Secret #1: The style of the wedding dictates the venue

Believe it or not, what your clients choose for their wedding style will really narrow down the venues you look for.

Now sure, we’re not saying you can’t throw a 1920s styled wedding in a rustic barn setting, because you certainly can. However, do your clients want an informal or formal event? Will it be at night or during the day?

When you help your clients start thinking about the type of wedding they want, you’ll really help them narrow down the venue selection.

Secret #2: The number of guests

You guessed it, knowing how many guests your clients want to invite is a sure way to help decide on the venue.

Let’s say your clients want a wedding with 350 guests. Well not much to your surprise, when you have a large guest count there’s a small selection of venues you’ll be able to choose from.

So getting an estimated guest count is a good first step in selecting the venue. And when your clients start thinking about who they want to invite, it will also help them decide on the geographical positioning of the venue—like if they want it in in an area near where the majority of their guests live.

Secret #3: The dreaded, unpredictable weather

When you’re helping your client pick the venue, the one thing you should warn them about is the weather.

And you won’t be the only one warning them. The weather plays a huge part in deciding where your clients’ event is going to be held. If they want a July wedding, is outside really the best option? And if they want it in April, are they ready to deal with the chance of rain?

You can never plan for the weather, so it’s always good to plan around it. Always have a backup indoor location on hand if you need to.

Secret #4: Traffic and driving considerations

We mentioned earlier that sometimes when picking a venue it could be important to your clients to find a centralized location.

Maybe one person’s family lives in New York and the other’s in Tennessee—maybe finding something in the middle could work well for their guests who may be traveling.

Now let’s think on a smaller scale, what if your clients want a venue that’s in downtown Charlotte, on a Saturday, during the middle of a city-wide event, what are you going to do?

You don’t want the guests sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic, or to have to delay the event. Make sure you think about things like this whenever you’re helping choose the venue.

You’ll also want to think about a venue that is too far removed from main roads. Sure, the view might be gorgeous, but is it difficult for the guests to arrive at?

So event planners, there you have it, some of the best-kept secrets when it comes to helping your clients select a venue.

Good luck! We know you’ll be able to help your clients find the location of their dreams in no time.

Read More »