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When hiring entertainers, do not always go for
lowest price. Whoever you hire, he/she will affect your image. Reliability and follow-through are more important than a lower bid. You can find great magicians by looking for example at web site of local chapter of Society of American Magicians (http://www.magicsam.com/samweb.html). When working on program, don't save best for last. At end of event, guests may be tired, hung-over, or worried about getting home.
6. The Drinks The best holiday gift you can give to your guests is preventing them from driving after they have been drinking alcohol. Provide enough low-alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks, for both underage and non-drinking attendees to have plenty of options. Display these options as prominently as alcoholic beverages. Using smaller cups help your guests to keep their alcohol servings to an appropriate size. Create little stickers like "designated driver" or "I enjoy non-alcoholic drinks" that drivers can wear during party. Have your guests sign up for alternate transportation at beginning of your event in case they decide to drink. Provide a "check-in" for car keys. Collect and tag each guest's car keys, and at conclusion of party, only return keys to designated drivers. And stop serving alcohol at least one hour before party is over.
7. The Food The theme, date and place will make ultimate difference to type of food you will decide to serve. A mouth-watering buffet is sure to keep people's attention, not to mention help their bodies absorb alcohol they consume. Especially high protein and carbohydrate foods like meats, cheese, veggies, breads and light dips are very good. They taste great and do not make your guests thirsty. Make sure you have options available for alternative diet needs.
8. The Analysis After every event, do an "event analysis." Write down what was good, what went wrong, what you would do differently next time, and who vendors were that made your life easier.
Planning for a successful event requires a tremendous amount of effort, time and energy. Every event is different and if you want your holiday party to be unique, you have to be bold and make a leap. If you don’t have time, talk to some of events planner about your ideas. They are in business to help you.
Best-selling author, mentalist and master magician Pit Finn (aka Peter Togel) is a frequent guest on radio and television shows and a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, the Fellowship of Christian Magicians , the PSI-Clones, as well as the Society of American Magicians. He can be reached at peter@pitfinn.com (http://www.pitfinn.com).
