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Day in, day out, an event planner's job is to conjure up unique and exciting details that give fresh spins to the tried and true. Certainly you call upon your industry knowledge for making logistics work. But where do you find the inspiration to make every event a stand-out success in the creative department? From browsing art galleries and surfing cool websites, to personal travel experiences or simply people-watching, when those creative antennas are working, it is amazing the power with which small details in daily life can turn on that ideas light bulb. TSEvents XS asked a few industry pros for the inside scoop on where they look for inspiration:
“Be a sponge and extract elements from the fashion runways, walking a trade show for new products, reading design magazines, window shopping, going to movies, travel magazines, new names for paint colours. Keep a file of eloquent wording to evoke emotional responses in proposal writing. No idea is a bad idea; if you keep that mandate you will get wild, out-of-the-box, no-limit-to boundaries ideas.” “Keep learning is the key to keeping creative juices flowing--take courses, source new suppliers, read, go to trade shows, and become certified. A few years ago I asked some of my favourite creative gods and goddesses from different areas of the industry to brainstorm around five questions. The response was fantastic and we compiled 25 new ideas which have been a collective source of inspiration.” “There are core ingredients that are key to any successful event. But being attuned to trends around you helps with the special touches, tweaks or creations you can implement for a new theme or reinvention of what's been done. For me, my major source of inspiration comes mainly from dreams.” “Literally everything around us is an inspiration: a television commercial, architecture, a conversation with a friend, people on the street, a great meal, and, of course, Mother Nature — a major creative source for me. I also look to old movies, new movies, books and magazines. I keep a journal by my bed to record my midnight thoughts and ideas. We'll also frequently sit down with our team, an amazing and diverse group of people, for brainstorming sessions that give us some really unique perspectives.” “At Much Music, I'm right in the thick of pop culture with easy access to the happening aesthetics, fashion trends and hot music that I make events reflective of. I'm constantly watching the streets and the retail scene for ideas. I subscribe to over 20 magazines—some trade, some consumer—that I've chosen for the different perspectives they provide. A lot of time, we simply start with words: what's the vibe, look, feel, texture—clean, sexy, smooth...When you're constantly absorbing, creativity becomes very instinctual.” “Inspiration often starts with what inspires the client. Is it a venue, a colour, a favourite song, an era, even? That info gathering helps jumpstart the creative you then layer on. My background is fashion and my partner's is theatre—two constantly changing industries. It's a very visual combo that makes for terrific brainstorming.”
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