Hire the Best Event Planners in Chicago, IL

I specialize in creating flawless, exciting events, with a proven track record of managing complex logistics. My experience spans end-to-end planning for conferences, meetings, and other gatherings ranging from 30 to 1,000 attendees. I am also a highly capable and effective administrative assistant, with copious experience in calendar management and project work. Event Expertise Highlights Complex Logistics: I have managed challenging remote planning, including a highly successful three-day executive meeting in New Orleans during Mardi Gras—coordinating venue sourcing, high-end hospitality, travel, and safety protocols from states away. Budget and Contract Negotiation: I consistently deliver significant financial results. For example, I successfully negotiated contracts and room blocks that brought a six-figure budget 44% under target for a three-day, high-end 30th-anniversary celebration. Technology Mastery: I am an expert and enthusiastic user of Cvent for comprehensive logistics, registration, and on-site management. I am also highly skilled in virtual platforms like Zoom, GoToWebinar, Microsoft Office, Salesforce, and Asana. I am quick to learn new softwares. Webinars and Lead Generation: I managed frequent webinars (500+ attendees), overseeing the full cycle from aligning presenter objectives and collaborating on marketing campaigns to managing the live platform and preparing post-event reports for Sales transition. I am in the process of obtaining my Certified Meeting Planner Certificate (CMP) and am eager to continue to deliver exceptional results in the event planning industry.

Picture this: circa 2002...a six-year-old with an old VHS-C camcorder, herding family and friends into the spotlight for indie homemade movies. That was me, on the cusp of a lifelong love affair with storytelling through video & media. Fast forward to my college years at Columbia College Chicago, where I charged headfirst into the world of Television & Media. At the student-run TV station, I wore many hats as a Project Coordinator, Executive Producer and Video Producer/Editor. At the age of 21, the web-based talk-show I was the Executive Producer for, “The 30 with Joshua Short”, was nominated for a NATAS Midwest Student Emmy. Since graduating, I've been on a journey filled with diverse projects and roles—videographer, director, producer, social media guru, event planner, sparkle fairy, you name it! But what truly fills my heart with joy is the chance to collaborate and create with like-minded individuals and community members. Whether it's creating heartwarming wedding videos or breathing life into a local café's online presence, I pour my heart and soul into every piece of content.

𝗝𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝘆𝗸𝗮𝗻|𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗽𝘆𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿 | 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆-𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗽𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲, 𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 Your website visitors leave because they don't feel seen, heard, or understood. I fix that. After 20 years in corporate retail marketing (where I increased sales by 26% with a single messaging shift), I've developed a proven 3-step process that uncovers what your customers are really searching for—then crafts the words that make them think: "This is exactly what I've been looking for." Here's what makes my approach different: 𝙄 𝙙𝙤𝙣'𝙩 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪—𝙄 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 (𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙨). 𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙤𝙣 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙘 𝙘𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙧, 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙝𝙣𝙞𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙨. 𝙄 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙜𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠. What you get: ✅ Website copy that connects with your ideal customer's real needs ✅ Email sequences that guide prospects from curiosity to conversion ✅ Marketing materials that sound authentically like your brand ✅ UX wireframes showing exactly how your copy will look on your pages ✅ A clear messaging strategy you can apply to all future content My 3-step process: 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿- Laser-focused on what solution your customer is searching for 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 - Create strategic copy with UX context (no surprises) 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 - Deploy across email sequences, sales funnels, and marketing materials I specialize in helping business owners who are tired of throwing "word spaghetti at the wall" and ready for copy that actually works. Perfect for: SaaS companies, coaches, consultants, e-commerce brands, and service-based businesses ready to stop second-guessing every word. S͟k͟i͟l͟l͟s͟ Website Copywriting Email Marketing Sales Funnel Copy Landing Page Copy Brand Messaging Strategy Customer Psychology Conversion Optimization UX Writing Marketing Strategy Content Marketing Set up a quick 20 minute Discovery Call with me, and we can go over the scope of your project together. I'll follow up with a personalized proposal within 24 hours. Project rates start at $850.

Planning a conference or corporate retreat? Need help researching opportunities or streamlining business processes? I’m here to help make it happen! Hi, I’m Sarah Williams! Your Creative and Strategic Business Partner with over a decade of experience helping businesses design, execute, and optimize initiatives across events, marketing, and operations. I offer a diverse range of services all aimed at turning your big ideas into actionable plans and making your vision come to life. Where there is a 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍, there is a way! My approach helps create impactful content, optimized systems, and memorable experiences by emphasizing 𝟱 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀 throughout each project: 【1 】Effective stakeholder management to align on goals and KPIs that will guide our work 【2】Extensive research, data collection, and analysis 【3】Meticulous planning and execution to ensure every detail is accounted for 【4】Blending creativity & data-informed strategy to solve problems and deliver results. 【5】Feedback processes to identify areas of improvement and ensure continuous growth 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗠𝗲? ✔︎ 10+ years of experience across events, marketing, and operations ✔︎ Flexible availability across time zones ✔︎ Proficiency in several tools and software, quickly adopts new systems, skilled in automation ✔︎ Excellent written & verbal communication skills ✔︎ Builds strong relationships with clients, vendors, and colleagues ✔︎ Effectively manages simultaneous projects within fast paced environments ✔︎ Resourceful, innovative problem-solver - Where there’s a 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍, there’s a way! 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗩𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗦 🔷 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 🔷 ▪️𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 & 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲: Concept development, budgets, sourcing, stakeholder alignment ▪️𝐋𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 & 𝐎𝐩𝐬: Venue/vendor coordination, contracts, booth design, catering, AV, housing, registration, travel, swag ▪️𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 & 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐬: Program development, speaker management, digital & print collateral, app/web content, emails, social ▪️𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐄𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Sponsorships, lead tracking, promo items, ancillary events, sales and speaker prep (talking points, executive bios, briefs) ▪️𝐄𝐱𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Live/remote support, staff/attendee direction, vendor oversight ▪️𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐫𝐚𝐩-𝐔𝐩: Follow-up, surveys, analysis & insights, reporting 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐓𝐲𝐩𝐞𝐬: Meetings, conferences, retreats, virtual webinars, town halls, client dinners, networking events, tradeshows, internal events, festivals, bar crawls, tastings, and fundraisers. 🔷 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗞𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 & 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 🔷 ▪️𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭: Creative direction, content strategy, speaker management, internal/external comms, program development, newsletters, talking points, reports, social, event pages/apps ▪️𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 & 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧: Slide decks, event pages, invites, guides, social graphics, sell sheets, signage, business cards, branded merch 🔷 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 & 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗔𝗚𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 🔷 ▪️𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 & 𝐎𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: SOPs, systems, knowledge management, automated workflows, software implementation ▪️𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Timelines, scope, resources, risk, team/stakeholder management, quality, and tool-based tracking 🔷 𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛 & 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗖𝗜𝗡𝗚 🔷 ▪️𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 & 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: Industry trends, events, vendors, tech, resources, opportunities, competitors ▪️𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠: Venues, vendors, speakers, products, software, merch 𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗛𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗦𝗞𝗜𝗟𝗟𝗦 & 𝗦𝗢𝗙𝗧𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗘 ▪️𝐀𝐈 & 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: ChatGPT, Claude, Copy.AI, IFTTT, Make, Zapier ▪️𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧 & 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Google Suite, Microsoft Office, Slack, Teams ▪️𝐂𝐑𝐌 & 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: Givebutter, Google Analytics, HubSpot, MailChimp, Poppulo, Raiser’s Edge, Salesforce, Shopify, Squarespace, Wordpress, Workshop, Zendesk ▪️𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 & 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Confluence, Excel, SAP, SharePoint, Trainual ▪️𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧: Canva, CSS, HTML, Figma, Adobe Photoshop, PowerPoint, Squarespace ▪️𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Cvent, Eshow, Eventbrite, GoTo Meeting, Rainfocus, Teams, Webex, Whova, Zoom ▪️𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Airtable, Asana, Basecamp, ClickUP, Monday, Miro, Notion, Smartsheet Ready to elevate your brand and streamline operations? Reach out today to discuss your business needs and how we can work together to achieve your goals!