Start A Sustainable Event Planning Business - Business Ideas

Pat Walls

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Updated: September 16th, 2022

Start A Sustainable Event Planning Business

Please note that the data provided in this article are estimates and may vary depending on various factors, and should not be considered as perfect or definitive.

A sustainable event planning business is a business that focuses on creating and organizing events that have a minimal environmental impact. This can include anything from corporate events and conferences to weddings and festivals. The key to running a successful sustainable event planning business is to focus on eco-friendly practices and sourcing environmentally-friendly products and services. This can include using recycled materials for decorations, sourcing local and organic food and drinks, and using renewable energy sources for lighting and power.

To start this type of business, it is essential to have a strong understanding of sustainability and the impact that events can have on the environment. Having strong organizational and communication skills and the ability to manage budgets and work with various vendors is also necessary.

Some tips for running a successful sustainable event planning business include:

Research and stay up-to-date on sustainable practices and products.
Build a network of eco-friendly vendors, including caterers, florists, and rental companies.
Communicate the importance of sustainability to clients and partners and educate them on the benefits of eco-friendly events.
Use social media and other marketing channels to promote the sustainability of your events and attract environmentally-conscious clients.
Track and measure the environmental impact of your events and continually work to improve and reduce their effects.
By focusing on sustainability and eco-friendly practices, a sustainable event planning business can create memorable events, positively impact the environment, and contribute to a more sustainable future.

Starting a sustainable event planning business requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.

If you're interested in how to sell sustainable event planning services, or selling sustainable event planning services online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.

Key Stats

market size

$4.9B

starting costs

$11.7K

gross margin

90%

time to build

210 days

Startup Costs

	Min Startup Costs	Max Startup Costs
Office Space Expenses	$0	$7,000
Employee & Freelancer Expenses	$150	$250
Website Costs	$223	$7,015
Business Formation Fees	$600	$4,700
Software Expenses	$162	$2,894
Advertising & Marketing Costs	$0	$1,400
Total Startup Costs	$1,135	$23,259

See all startup costs ➜

Successful Businesses

Business	URL	Rank
Reuters Events	reutersevents.com	57,629
MPIWeb	mpi.org	196,390
Sustainability Victoria	sustainability.vic.gov.au	277,545
Business Roundtable	businessroundtable.org	304,971
Endless Events	helloendless.com	359,017
SustainAbility	sustainability.com	563,326
ISSP	sustainabilityprofessionals.org	727,221
Events Industry Council	eventscouncil.org	731,763
The Sustainability Consortium	sustainabilityconsortium.org	1,059,678
Minneapolis Northwest Tourism	minneapolisnorthwest.com	1,354,739
SustainableSA.com	sustainablesanantonio.com	1,386,816

See all businesses ➜

Pros & Cons

Pros	Description
Flexibility	You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own.
Ability to start your business from home	It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning!
Little startup costs required	The cost to start a sustainable event planning business costs significantly less money than most businesses, ranging anywhere from 62 to 23,259.
Rewarding work	Starting a sustainable event planning business can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.
Scalable	With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers.
No overhead costs	To get your sustainable event planning business started, there are no costs associated with overhead, storage, packaging, etc. This will save you a lot of time and money!

See all pros ➜

Cons	Description
Crowded Space	Competition is high when it comes to your sustainable event planning business, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.
Longer Sales Process	A sustainable event planning business can be a big time and money investment for your customer, so it's important you plan and predict a longer conversion funnel and stay in communication with potential customers.
Work can be inconsistent	As a sustainable event planning business, the amount of work assigned to you and schedule tends to be more inconsistent, which may make your income less stable. It's important to set boundaries and budget accordingly based on the amount of work you plan to have.
Lack of benefits	With a sustainable event planning business, you are typically self-employed and responsible for finding your own insurance, which can be quite costly and time-consuming.
Isolation	Often times, as a sustainable event planning business, you typically work alone and do not have much face-to-face interaction with other team members.
Taxes	As a sustainable event planning business, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it.

See all cons ➜

Marketing Ideas

1

Affiliate Program

Affiliate marketing is a great way to bring in a new revenue stream, especially when you don't sell products or services.
Simply put, an affiliate program is an agreement where a business pays another business or influencer ("the affiliate") a commission for sending traffic and/or sales their way.
The affiliate typically gets a unique link where clicks and conversions can be tracked.

Learn more about affiliate program ➜
2

Direct Sales

Direct sales strategy implies a direct contact between a seller and a consumer without the involvement of any third party. Direct selling is popular in sectors where sellers communicate with their clientele personally. The sales technique occurs at non-store locations which include at home, work, or online.
For direct selling to succeed, hire a few (or many) salespeople to support the sales conversion process. It's critical that you assign them specific roles and responsibilities to nurture the client and provide excellent support.

Learn more about direct sales ➜
3

Word of mouth

Word of mouth is when a consumers reflects their interest in a company’s product or service in their daily dialogues.
Therefore, word of mouth advertising is essentially a free advertising triggered by the customers experience.
According to Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family.
Therefore, in today’s hyper-connected world, a single recommendation through a word of mouth can have a huge impact to your business.

Learn more about word of mouth ➜

See all marketing ideas ➜

Key Stats

Startup Costs

Successful Businesses

57,629

196,390

277,545

304,971

359,017

563,326

727,221

731,763

1,059,678

1,354,739

1,386,816

Pros & Cons

Marketing Ideas

Affiliate Program

Direct Sales

Word of mouth