Preparing a Thorough Budget – Part 2 of the Statewide and Regional Meeting Series

When preparing a budget, it is best to start with the end in mind. How much money do you want to net from the event? In the second part of our six-part Chapter Leaders Blog series on effectively planning statewide and regional meetings, we’ll outline how to prepare a thorough budget to ensure your event is successful without breaking the bank.

In the case of the Wisconsin APA chapters (4 total), we each take a turn hosting the statewide every four years. Much of the statewide profit is used to manage the chapter for the next four years, so we have to decide how much money we will need for that time period. Next, we start working on expenses. We break down the expenses into the different committees that manage the statewide.

Outlining Your Expenses
For example, here is a list of expenses incurred during the 2019 statewide:

• Venue Rental
• May also include power, IT needs such as screen and projector rental, and decorations
• Extra insurance policy for the venue and the chapter
• Food
• All meals, snacks, and beverages
• Determine if linens, tableware, etc. will be included in the rate
• Communication
• Website fees, name badges, lanyards, materials printing, signage, etc.
• May also include graphic design fees if paying someone for logo design
• Speakers
• Different speakers might have different needs, some of the expenses we have encountered are:
• Travel, speaker gifts, projector, white board, easels, printed materials
• Entertainment
• Activities
• Entertainment personnel (including tips)
• Door prizes
• Community involvement, such as, donations or volunteering activity supplies
• Reserve
• Always assume at least 10% in extra costs that will come up throughout the planning process

Planning for Event Revenue
With the net income and expenses calculated, you can move on to planning event revenue. There are many ways to raise finances, including contracting vendors, charging attendance fees, and selling additional items.  Reviewing what has happened in the past is a good way to make assumptions about future sources of income.  Although it is hoped to increase the number of vendors and attendees, for budgeting purposes, it is wise to assume flat year over year. 

Determining Your Attendance Fee
The final step in creating the statewide or regional meeting budget is to calculate the attendance fee based upon the planned number of attendees. If it is grossly higher than in previous years, attendance will likely suffer, so consider lowering your expenses in those instances.

After the event is complete, a budget to actuals should be prepared to see how much profit the event netted.  This can also be used in future years to budget for the next event.

This article is the second of a six-part series on effectively planning statewide and regional meetings, authored by Statewide Coordinator and Past President of the Northeast Wisconsin Chapter, Stephanie Ernsting, CPP. Subscribe to the blog for weekly updates!

Read Part 1 on Finding the Right Venue Using an RFP.