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Rule #1 \u2013\n VIP guests should be welcomed in certain ways
It\u2019s different when your event is to be attended by high officials, ambassadors, or company top management. That is why there are protocols to be put in place.
\nProtocols are actually standards, customs, and rules laid down in writing that are common at certain types of events and that everyone who is directly involved in the event planning must abide by. When it comes to events that are attended by officials, the event manager is responsible for explaining why things are done a certain way to all internal and external collaborators. In other words, if your event is to be attended by a VIP individual, the protocol must be adhered to from start to finish. What speakers go first, who sits where, who enters when, who should greet who…? Managing this kind of events is not at all easy, especially if it\u2019s not something you do every day.
\nIn any case, it would be good to prepare for this type of event on time. Ministers, representatives of ministries, mayors, general managers, or perhaps even members
\nof royal families could one day be part of your event. And these special occasions require
\nthorough preparations. In this regard, if you adhere to and follow these protocol steps in planning these particular events, everything will be fine.
Rule #1 \u2013As an event manager, you should know that it\u2019s not your job to welcome VIP guests. This part has to be done by another VIP individual who is on the team you are working for \u2013 depending on the kind of the event, this could be the company\u2019s general manager or the highest official who is going to attend the event.
\nFor example: you\u2019re planning an important celebration to mark the launch of a factory, and one of the guests is the Minister of Economy. He should be welcomed and greeted by the General Manager of the factory.
\nYour job is to know the protocol and its rules, and this way help your client or the people you work to navigate the event.
\nIt would be good \u2013 once you learn who the VIP is \u2013 to inquire about where the individual comes from, whether there are any special customs there, if the individuals has any religious beliefs, whether there are any special diet requirements, how long will the individual stay, and what language the individual speaks and accordingly secure an interpreter, etc. The more information you have available, the less room for error. Finally, you would not want the people you work with, whom you are supposed to introduce to the protocol, to be poorly or insufficiently informed.
\n![\"\"](\"https://www.seebtm.com/wp-content/uploads/bigstock-Asian-Chinese-hotel-executive-69085312.jpg\")
Rule #3 \u2013One of the most important things you need to know about the protocol is the seating. If your VIP is also one of the speakers or scheduled to take part in a round table discussion, you need to know where the person is supposed to be seated.
\nFor example: if you need to sit at the table, the VIP\u2019s place of honor is the first seat to the right of the person presiding the event \u2013 the host. The VIP guest subsequent in line by importance should be seated on the left side of the host, and so on. If the individual is only a member of the audience, your job is to clearly mark the person\u2019s seat in the first row (usually with the full name printed on a piece of paper). Also, if it\u2019s possible, you should avoid seating two men or two women next to each other. If the event is a meeting or a conference, the seating is determined by the program and the layout of tables. In most cases, the seating will be British seating \u2013 when the host sits at the head \u2013 or French
\nseating, when the host sits at the central part of the longest side of the table. Other guests are seated according to the protocol, which we explained in the paragraph above.
Just as there are rules for the seating, there are rules for speaking, too. You need to know who should speak first, and who should follow. In most cases, the common practice is for the conference/event to be launched by the host, who then introduces the VIP guest, and then follow all the other individuals in attendance in the order of importance. The reason for this rule is the following: high officials and VIPs tend to have overbooked daily schedules and do not have much time on their hands. It often happens that \u2013 after they finish their speech \u2013 VIP guests kindly thank everyone for attending and excuse themselves.
\nActivities of senior government officials and state representatives are managed by Event Protocol departments. This means that when a VIP individual is attending your event,
\nyou should expect call from some of the protocol advisors who are tasked with going through all the details of the event with you. Be prepared and try to provide as many details and significant information when you answer. In addition, this is always a good opportunity to learn something new, because these people deal with planning these types of events only!
![\"\"](\"https://www.seebtm.com/wp-content/uploads/bigstock-Personal-Concierge-141511469.jpg\")
Rule #6 \u2013If you thought that this was the photographer\u2019s job, you were wrong \u2013 it is not! The photographer only takes pictures, and you have to find a spot for each of the guests. This can be challenging because you need to come up with a good placement in the little time
\nyou have. Bear in mind the following: How many people need to be photographed, who is tall and who is short, what is the background in front of which people are to be photographed, is someone there with a partner, and so on. Not so simple, is it?
All this cannot be done well without good communication and respect between all team members. Teamwork in the event management business is crucial, especially when it comes to events that are not planned every day. All of us who are in this business should strive to learn to become as good a team member as possible, and this can be done only by adopting new knowledge. In this sense, if you know protocols and develop your internal and external communications abilities, can come to be quite a valuable link in the planning chain. Also, this can easily make you stand out from the competition because in the eyes of your client you become recognized for being professional and knowledgeable, which is the most important parameter in any job.
\n\n
The post What Every Event Planner Needs to Know About the VIP Protocol? appeared first on SEE Business travel & meetings magazine.
\n", "content_text": "Planning VIP events isn\u2019t something we encounter every day. These events are special, and the rules that apply are special and new. In particular if the VIP individual is from another country, with entirely different customs or standards we\u2019re not familiar with.\nIt\u2019s different when your event is to be attended by high officials, ambassadors, or company top management. That is why there are protocols to be put in place.\nProtocols are actually standards, customs, and rules laid down in writing that are common at certain types of events and that everyone who is directly involved in the event planning must abide by. When it comes to events that are attended by officials, the event manager is responsible for explaining why things are done a certain way to all internal and external collaborators. In other words, if your event is to be attended by a VIP individual, the protocol must be adhered to from start to finish. What speakers go first, who sits where, who enters when, who should greet who…? Managing this kind of events is not at all easy, especially if it\u2019s not something you do every day.\nIn any case, it would be good to prepare for this type of event on time. Ministers, representatives of ministries, mayors, general managers, or perhaps even members\nof royal families could one day be part of your event. And these special occasions require\nthorough preparations. In this regard, if you adhere to and follow these protocol steps in planning these particular events, everything will be fine.\nRule #1 \u2013\n VIP guests should be welcomed in certain ways\nAs an event manager, you should know that it\u2019s not your job to welcome VIP guests. This part has to be done by another VIP individual who is on the team you are working for \u2013 depending on the kind of the event, this could be the company\u2019s general manager or the highest official who is going to attend the event.\nFor example: you\u2019re planning an important celebration to mark the launch of a factory, and one of the guests is the Minister of Economy. He should be welcomed and greeted by the General Manager of the factory.\nYour job is to know the protocol and its rules, and this way help your client or the people you work to navigate the event.\nRule #2 \u2013\n If the VIP individual is from another country…\nIt would be good \u2013 once you learn who the VIP is \u2013 to inquire about where the individual comes from, whether there are any special customs there, if the individuals has any religious beliefs, whether there are any special diet requirements, how long will the individual stay, and what language the individual speaks and accordingly secure an interpreter, etc. The more information you have available, the less room for error. Finally, you would not want the people you work with, whom you are supposed to introduce to the protocol, to be poorly or insufficiently informed.\nRule #3 \u2013\n Where will the VIP sit?\nOne of the most important things you need to know about the protocol is the seating. If your VIP is also one of the speakers or scheduled to take part in a round table discussion, you need to know where the person is supposed to be seated.\nFor example: if you need to sit at the table, the VIP\u2019s place of honor is the first seat to the right of the person presiding the event \u2013 the host. The VIP guest subsequent in line by importance should be seated on the left side of the host, and so on. If the individual is only a member of the audience, your job is to clearly mark the person\u2019s seat in the first row (usually with the full name printed on a piece of paper). Also, if it\u2019s possible, you should avoid seating two men or two women next to each other. If the event is a meeting or a conference, the seating is determined by the program and the layout of tables. In most cases, the seating will be British seating \u2013 when the host sits at the head \u2013 or French\nseating, when the host sits at the central part of the longest side of the table. Other guests are seated according to the protocol, which we explained in the paragraph above.\nRule #4 \u2013\n Start of the event and the VIP guest\nJust as there are rules for the seating, there are rules for speaking, too. You need to know who should speak first, and who should follow. In most cases, the common practice is for the conference/event to be launched by the host, who then introduces the VIP guest, and then follow all the other individuals in attendance in the order of importance. The reason for this rule is the following: high officials and VIPs tend to have overbooked daily schedules and do not have much time on their hands. It often happens that \u2013 after they finish their speech \u2013 VIP guests kindly thank everyone for attending and excuse themselves.\nRule #5 \u2013\nThe art of communicating with the staff of other Event Protocol departments\nActivities of senior government officials and state representatives are managed by Event Protocol departments. This means that when a VIP individual is attending your event,\nyou should expect call from some of the protocol advisors who are tasked with going through all the details of the event with you. Be prepared and try to provide as many details and significant information when you answer. In addition, this is always a good opportunity to learn something new, because these people deal with planning these types of events only!\nRule #6 \u2013\n Who should be standing where in photos?\nIf you thought that this was the photographer\u2019s job, you were wrong \u2013 it is not! The photographer only takes pictures, and you have to find a spot for each of the guests. This can be challenging because you need to come up with a good placement in the little time\nyou have. Bear in mind the following: How many people need to be photographed, who is tall and who is short, what is the background in front of which people are to be photographed, is someone there with a partner, and so on. Not so simple, is it?\nAll this cannot be done well without good communication and respect between all team members. Teamwork in the event management business is crucial, especially when it comes to events that are not planned every day. All of us who are in this business should strive to learn to become as good a team member as possible, and this can be done only by adopting new knowledge. In this sense, if you know protocols and develop your internal and external communications abilities, can come to be quite a valuable link in the planning chain. Also, this can easily make you stand out from the competition because in the eyes of your client you become recognized for being professional and knowledgeable, which is the most important parameter in any job.\n \nThe post What Every Event Planner Needs to Know About the VIP Protocol? appeared first on SEE Business travel & meetings magazine.", "date_published": "2017-06-19T13:03:17+02:00", "date_modified": "2017-12-13T12:30:37+01:00", "author": { "name": "Milica Novak", "url": "https://www.seebtm.com/en/author/milicanovak/", "avatar": "https://www.seebtm.com/wp-content/uploads/Milica-Novak.jpg" }, "image": "https://www.seebtm.com/wp-content/uploads/naslovna-2-1.jpg", "tags": [ "event manager", "event planner", "protocol", "VIP person", "VIP Protocol", "Hot topics", "NEWS" ] } ] }