Planners Haunted by Event Mishaps!

Admit it — some days, a job as high-pressure as event planning can feel like one scary story after another. Even though your attention to detail and gift for communication do everything to ensure that your events come off flawlessly, there is, occasionally, a little itty-bitty thing (or two) that escapes your control and threatens to upset the entire carefully orchestrated masterpiece.

Because of the time constraint of the event date, the pressure of a live audience and the necessity of involving many other partners to ensure that the event is realized according to your and the client’s vision (not to mention, often, the unpredictability of weather), there are infinite opportunities for things to slip through the cracks.

And that’s what you’re there for.

Even so, we all have one moment that makes us shudder in horror every time it crosses our mind. We break into a cold sweat when someone says something that reminds us; we wake with a start in the middle of the night and wish anew that it had never happened.

And yet, those moments often coincide with great insight. What doesn’t kill you, as they say, makes you stronger. For this reason, and in honor of Halloween, Event Solutions asked planners to share some of the spooky stories that haunt them to this day. So lock the doors, turn on all the lights, and get ready for some truly terrifying tales.

I was managing the national sales meeting for a luxury manufacturing company on a beachfront property. We had organized a team building program on the beach, and to get the group excited, I hired a plane to fly overhead with the company’s name on a banner. I was back at the hotel awaiting the arrival of the company’s president (after whose family the company is named) when my colleagues radioed me that they could hear the plane coming. I ran outside toward the beach and spotted the plane just as everyone else did — only to see that the banner was misspelled. The pilot had had to slide the letters into the clear banner, and he had transposed a few of them. I ran back to the hotel to call the plane company, and got them to radio the pilot to turn around. He had just disappeared from view when the president arrived.

— Project Director, Georgia.

I have a ton of scary stories, but one will always stand out. When I was in college, I worked in the University Development/Fundraising office. We worked with hundreds of “big” donors and we had a policy that whenever one of these donors would receive a secondary degree (most commonly a doctorate), we would send a congratulatory letter.

Once I was asked to do the quarter’s mail merge of letters and in an effort to impress my boss, I rushed through them and delivered them for signature in record time.

About two weeks later, I was answering the phone and received a call from a gentleman who had a complaint regarding a congratulatory letter he had received. Terrified, I asked him what was wrong. In a very stern and foreboding tone he asked me if we commonly addressed people with their new designation — “Dr. Jones,” for example. I cautiously told him yes. He began to laugh and said, “Well, you may not want to do that for MBAs.” I asked him why and he said, “My name is Robert Bates and my letter was addressed to Master Bates.”

Oh the horror…

— Planner, Washington, D.C.

It was cold that January night — colder than usual. That should have been a warning. About 65 guests were dressed to the nines for an awards gala located in a historic hall built circa 1840. While the venue was not rumored to be haunted, one never knows. The centerpieces were tall, over 13 feet high, made up of spring blossom tree branches set inside glass vases atop table centers elevated on PVC pipe. Did anyone test their stability? Anyone? What would happen if a guest knocked a table leg — or a ghost decided to be tricky? As the lights flickered from the oncoming storm, everyone’s heads turned at a loud crash — and it was only the first course. Fortunately for my frazzled nerves, it was only a server dropping a tray — the centerpieces remained untouched for the rest of the night.

— Director of Events, South Carolina

We hired what we believed was a reputable person and well-known in the industry to handle all A/V and lighting requirements for a fundraiser. The technical budget was very substantial. Due to the nature of the venue, the setup time was quick. While the individual received all of their money upfront, as requested in the contractual terms, they apparently ran out of money and provided only one A/V screen when there were supposed to be two. During their setup, the individual never made mention of this shortfall, and it was only one hour before the event start that we became aware of this situation. We lost the client, and obviously vowed to never work with this individual in the future. While we took responsibility with our client for hiring this individual and refunded the client money for this error, what we learned was that just because an individual is well-known in the industry or belongs to a professional organization does not necessarily guarantee that they are reliable. On the flip side of the coin, if a supplier runs into problems, they should be upfront with the planner and give us ample opportunities to make adjustments!

— Event Producer, California.

According to the Epilepsy Foundation, “exposure to flashing lights at certain intensities or to certain visual patterns can trigger seizures.” So what do you do during a surprise lighting and laser spectacle in Berlin for 1,200 physicians from all over the world when 36 of them could have photosensitivity? What do you do when the special effects designer ensures this is a rare phenomenon and the client assures her superiors all will be fine? This producer had an emergency medical technician on standby, and luckily, only one guest had to use his services.

Know your special effects and educate your client in advance!

— Event Producer, Illinois.

When I worked in the entertainment industry, I routinely scheduled international and domestic travel for eight to 10 clients weekly. I became so comfortable with the acronyms for airports that I booked with our travel agent in shorthand over e-mail. Sure enough, my haste and cockiness led to booking a major client and the three people traveling with him right into the wrong airport. He had media appearances and a performance several states away. He was a large man who could not travel comfortably in a coach seat. While doing my usual itinerary and show review before the weekend, I froze in horror as I realized the drama that was about to unfold when I had to confront him with the error. I discovered the disaster less than 48 hours before they were to board their expected first-class seats. It was a rough two days. Our husky client squeezed into his coach seat and our company ate the price of the airfare. He made his media and show appearances. I survived. I learned.

— Event Planner, California.

I recall I was asked to design an appreciation dinner and gala to recognize employees for succeeding in extraordinary ways. My client required the event to be colorful, bright, entertaining and fun. I decided to go with a Cirque du Soleil theme. I hired a décor designer to provide colorful linens, spandex table treatments and arrangements made of feathers and beads. At the entrance to the event, we distributed colorful masks as a hint of what was to come. Once the evening began, we featured aerial entertainers who would perform from the rafters of the venue. The evening was running extremely well — the first two of three performers were fantastic. The crowd was wowed. As the third and final act was announced, I was hearing a lot of commotion. I directed my attention to the stage area and to my surprise, I noticed that the aerial performers were nearly naked. I was shocked and horrified. Of course, I instructed the show director to find a way to end the act quickly. And I had to explain to my clients why the entertainment was wearing hardly any clothing. What I found out later was that the performers were required to perform in minimal clothing. I understood, after the fact, that less clothing helps eliminate mistakes or accidents. I learned a valuable lesson: Ask simple and obvious questions when hiring entertainment. There are no dumb questions. I had assumed that all acts would be dressed in some form of costume.

— Corporate Planner, Texas.

We had been working with a client to stage an outdoor event for 500 guests, and the day before we were scheduled to travel to the site to begin installation, the tent company called in the late afternoon and informed us they did not get the permits from the city to erect a tent as part of our rain plan. Take into consideration that the tent company’s package included fees for permits, and they had requested their final payment earlier in the day. They never made mention in any conversations, either in the planning phase or prior to receiving final payment, that they had not received the permits. We immediately contacted our client to inform them of the dilemma. Unfortunately, when the tent company informed us of the situation, all city offices were closed.

Well, we got on the road — keeping our client informed of the situation — and rain was projected in the forecast. While traveling, we placed several calls to alternative event sites, and found one that would work with our client. When we asked the tent company to help offset the cost of paying for the new site, they responded, “Your problem is not mine.” The solution was to serve our client’s needs.

We paid the deposit and additional costs for the new site, which was a delight to our client. In addition, the event went off without a hitch. The lesson we learned? Always stay calm, serve the best interest of your client and settle the dust with the supplier at a later date.

— Partner, California.