I have been following Howard Givner’s blog for almost a year now, and I recommend that you follow him also.  I think you will find him to be very honest and encouraging   He is an event industry consultant with over 20 years experience in event planning, the President of the NY Metro Chapter of ISES, and the creator of a great new app for iPhone and iPad called Super Planner.

http://howardgivner.com/super-planner-iphone-app

This app is pretty amazing.  With calculations for Food & Beverage, Audio Visual use and Venue Capacity, it is sure to be your new BFF.  I’ve found the food and beverage calculator to be especially helpful the last several weeks while taking clients to meet with various caterers.  You’ll find reference for tablecloth sizes and recommended number of chairs for each size table and even a place setting guide.

Working on a floor plan for a client?  Super Planner has guidelines for dance floor size based on your number of guests, as well as recommended room square footage based on the details of your event.

Now, let me say that I rarely pay for apps.  With all of the free options out there, I can usually find something that works, and occasionally I will upgrade or try a paid app on the recommendation of a friend.  This app is worth every penny.  To have the ability to run these kind of calculations at your fingertips is invaluable. 

My only complaint would be that you cannot save the information for each individual client.  Just remember to write the info down before you enter new info for a different client and then record the new info as well.  It would be neat to see a summary on one screen of all the info I have entered for each client such as per person catering costs, number and sizes of tables, number of staff, dance floor size, etc.  Even better, if the summary could be easily emailed to my client or other vendors as needed.  For in house purposes, you could always take a screen shot and email it to your self.

When it comes to catering and floor plans, there are so many numbers to remember when working with your clients.  Having this reference and calculating tool will make your life so much easier.

If you’d like to see the app in action prior to making a purchase, Howard has a great demo video on the website link above.

Happy planning!