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Business, Your Event Career

The Event Planner’s Salary: What to Expect in 2020

2020 will be the year of the professional event planner!

Okay, maybe not. But it’s going to be a great year for planners in most parts of the world! You can expect your wages to increase, and if you’re running your own event planning business, you can expect a steady growth in clients (if you can handle them!). Here’s a quick breakdown.

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Higher Wages

The BLS (US Bureau of Labor Statistics) doesn’t yet have numbers for 2019/2020. However, the outlook for a 7%+ growth rate over the next 10 years is still looking good. In other words, the demand for event planners is on the rise – and rising faster than expected. This means higher wages for professional event planners, and especially for very experienced ones!

According to our research of job postings, a professional event planner in a large US city (with at least 1 year of job experience) can expect a median salary of $58,000 USD in 2020. On the high end of the range, this same event planner can have a salary up to $127,000 USD! Keep in mind, of course, that this will vary based on your location.

Increasing your rates

Whether you’re already a professional event planner or just breaking into the field, it’s good to know that there are many ways you can increase your rates. This means you can charge more for individual jobs, or earn a higher hourly salary.

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More Jobs

Millennials are getting married, having kids, and buying houses. These days, they’re among the group that’s most likely to hire professional event planners for their special occasions. Not to mention, all the baby boomers who are retiring from their jobs (hello, retirement party central!).  Bottom line: it’s a great time to be an event and wedding planner.

There is plenty of work to go around, so you don’t have to fight other planners for contracts or clients.  This also means you can set fair prices for you work, and have more freedom to choose the clients and jobs that will contribute the most to your portfolio.

You can best prepare yourself and your planning business by taking the following into consideration:

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New Opportunities

2020 will be a great year to expand your business and network for more jobs. Even if you’re just starting out, pay close attention to the event planning landscape in your area. Odds are, there’s a section of the industry that’s being under-served.

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All in all, 2020 will be an exciting and busy year for event and wedding planners. Play your cards right, and there are countless opportunities for you to expand your business and increase your salary.

Are you ready?

In such a competitive market, it helps to give yourself an edge over the competition. Click here to read our top 4 tips to make yourself stand out!

One response to “The Event Planner’s Salary: What to Expect in 2020”

  1. Jodywatters says:

    Wedding planner info please

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