Zoe McKeown is an Academy tutor with our UK campus, as well as the owner of her successful wedding planning business, Cherish Weddings. This week in our Tuesday Tutorial, Zoe reveals her top tips for successfully changing to a career in the events industry.
Research the Industry and decide what you would like to focus on – weddings, events, planning or design. What would be your dream job, might as well aim high if you are going to do it.
Experience can be found in many different ways. It is not necessary to have any formal experience before you start our courses but if you have been involved in planning your own wedding or organising a party at work, this will all be useful for you.
Qualifications are really useful in the industry. They definitely help you to have more knowledge and confidence to perform better at job interviews or be more efficient at starting your own business. They also allow to learn from the beginning up and see if the job will be all you expected. Find out more about the courses we have on offer, to help you launch your new career in the special events industry.
Social media and networking is a great way to start. Meet up with other planners, suppliers, brides and venues. You won’t lose anything by just introducing yourself and being honest about your new career path.
Start a blog, get noticed on facebook and twitter. Keep up with trends and get your name out there. Do not leave it to chance, get your name out there in as many different ways as you can think of.
Motivation and determination will be essential, decide you are going to do it and make it happen.
I remember what it was like starting out, get some advice from a professional and don’t ever think of giving up. You can do this, so offer to help for any and all events you hear about and get your name known. Stop procrastinating and give it a try.
Plan for success. Find your brand or target market and plan for that, you may need to diversify/ be creative to find ways of getting yourself into the industry and be noticed (offer hire items, have a launch party, do a styled shoot)
I made sure I told everyone about my new venture as an incentive to myself, as I did not want to be seen to fail. I am sure people doubted me but I believed in myself and thought if there are successful planners out there, who was to say that I can’t be one too.
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