Tariffs on imports — specifically from countries like China, Canada and Mexico — are already increasing prices for event materials including aluminum, copper and textiles, which are commonly used for staging, signage and promotional items.

Stretching your event budget doesn’t mean you have to cut corners or sacrifice the experience you’re hoping to create.

Event planners are rethinking travel management, viewing it as an integrated part of the entire event experience, not just a logistical hurdle.

Under the best of circumstances, a meeting planner’s job is fraught with challenges. How does one choose the right destination, and venue(s) — not to mention food & beverage, educational content and entertainment — to meet or even exceed a group’s goals, and do it within budget?

Weighing the benefits and drawbacks of using an in-house AV team for meetings or corporate events versus choosing an outside production company revolves around a host of factors.

Today’s corporate meeting planners recognize that budgeting constraints require a level of creativity that will allow for a similar experience that attendees that have become accustomed to.

Whether there is an in-house planner, third-party event planning company or a combination of the two, a well-executed budget plan must be in place.

The skies may still be friendly, but price increases have also made them costly.

Budgeting for the audiovisual costs of a meeting can be as nuanced as pricing a meeting’s food and beverage package.

Planners who apply their experience and creativity to events are seeing success by putting in the hard work, especially when it comes to sorting out budgets after the pandemic.