What an event planner website needs

The facts here come from primary sources, checked on November 14, 2026: Google Business Profile Help on service areas and the guidelines for representing your business, Google Search Central's event structured data page, the FTC's Endorsement Guides rule on disclosure of material connections (16 CFR 255.5), and the U.S. Copyright Office's Circular 30: Works Made for Hire. Points marked as our view are our own advice, not rules.

The short answer

An event planner website needs a services page split by event type (weddings, corporate events, private parties, nonprofit galas, whatever you really do), a portfolio of individual event pages, your packages or at least how you charge, an inquiry form that asks for the date, location, guest count and budget range, an about page with a real photo of you and your team, and reviews from past clients. Behind it sit three practical questions: whether you may publish the photos, how you disclose paid vendor relationships, and how to set up your Google Business Profile when you work at your clients' venues.

Services by event type

People search for the event they have, not for "event planning". A couple wants a wedding planner, an office manager wants someone for the company retreat. In our view each main event type deserves its own section or page, with what you handle (venue search, budget, vendor booking, design, timeline, on-the-day coordination), typical guest counts you work with, and where you work.

Be clear about the levels of service. Many planners offer full planning, partial planning and day-of or month-of coordination. Say in one or two sentences what each level includes and what it leaves to the client, so nobody books coordination expecting full planning. If you also do destination events or virtual and hybrid events, say so on the same page.

Portfolio and event stories

A grid of pretty photos shows taste, but it does not show how you plan. In our view the strongest portfolio is a set of event pages, one per event: the type of event, the venue and city (with the client's permission), the guest count, what the client asked for, what you did, the vendors involved and a short client quote. Ten good event pages beat a hundred loose photos.

Group the pages by event type so that a corporate client never has to scroll through weddings to find a conference. Compress the images and give each one a short descriptive alt text; our guide to website image optimization covers file sizes and formats. Photographers face the same portfolio questions, covered in our photography website guide.

Event photos: who owns them

Most of the photos you would like to show were taken by the event photographer, who was hired by your client, not by you. That matters. The Copyright Office's Circular 30 explains that a commissioned work counts as a "work made for hire" only if it falls into one of nine listed categories, there is a written agreement, the parties "expressly agree that the work is to be considered a work made for hire", and everyone signs. The circular adds: "If a work fails to satisfy any of these requirements, it is not a work made for hire." So the photographer usually keeps the copyright, and you need the photographer's permission to use the photos, ideally in writing with the uses spelled out (website, social media, award entries, print).

Guests are the second question. In our view you should ask your client in writing, best in your planning agreement, whether you may publish photos of the event, and leave out guests who asked not to be shown, children, and anything the client marked as private. Our guide to photos and image licensing covers licenses and records, and its section on people in photos explains releases.

Packages and prices as text

Clients want to know whether you fit their budget before they call. You do not have to publish exact prices, but in our view you should explain how you charge: a flat planning fee, a percentage of the event budget, an hourly rate for consultations, or a mix. If you have a minimum fee or a minimum event budget, say so; it saves both sides a call.

Write packages and prices as real text on the page, not inside an image or a downloadable flyer, so they can be read on a phone, by screen readers and by search engines. List what each package includes (number of meetings, vendor booking, design boards, rehearsal, hours on the day) and what costs extra, such as travel or overtime. Our guide to website pricing pages explains how to present totals and "from" prices honestly.

The inquiry form: date, guests, budget

The inquiry form is where most event planner websites lose work: either it asks only for a name and email, or it asks forty questions. In our view a good event inquiry form asks for:

• Name, email and phone, and how they prefer to be contacted.
• Event type and the date, or a range of dates if it is not fixed yet.
• City or venue, if they have one.
• Estimated guest count.
• A budget range, as a set of options rather than a free number, and marked optional.
• The level of service they think they need, and a free text field for anything else.

The date comes first because it answers the first question you have: are you free? Say on the thank-you page and in the confirmation email when you will reply. If you take consultation calls, a booking link after the form saves a round of emails; see our guide to online booking for service businesses, including its section on deposits. Field labels, required fields and error messages are covered in our website forms guide, and spam in stopping form spam.

Vendor pages and referral fees

A page of preferred vendors (caterers, florists, photographers, DJs, rental companies) is useful for clients and good for your relationships. If a vendor pays you a commission, a referral fee or gives you free services for recommending them, that is a material connection under the FTC's Endorsement Guides. Section 255.5 says that when a connection "might materially affect the weight or credibility of the endorsement" and is "not reasonably expected by the audience", it "must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously." The rule adds that material connections "can include a business, family, or personal relationship" and "monetary payment or the provision of free or discounted products".

In practice: say on the vendor page, near the list and in plain words, which vendors pay you a referral fee or commission, or that some do, and how that works. Do not bury it in the terms. Our guide to reviews and testimonials on websites covers the related rules for reviews and endorsements. Florists and venues on your list may find our guides to a florist website and a wedding venue website useful.

Google Business Profile for a planner

Most planners work at their clients' venues, not at an office clients visit. Google Business Profile treats that as a service-area business, which it defines as one that "visits or delivers to customers directly but doesn't serve customers at their business address." The guidance is direct: "If you don't serve customers at your business address, remove your address from your Business Profile." You set the area by city or postal code (Google allows "up to 20 service areas"), and "The boundaries of your overall area shouldn't be more than about 2 hours of driving time from where your business is based."

If clients do meet you at a studio or office, you can be a hybrid business and show the address, but the guidelines say such a location "should be staffed by your team and able to receive customers during its stated hours", and that a service-area business cannot list a virtual office "unless that office is staffed during business hours." Use your real business name, the same one as on your website. Our guide to Google Business Profile reviews explains how to ask past clients for reviews within Google's rules.

Event markup: when it fits

It is tempting to add Google's Event structured data to your portfolio pages, but Google's guidance limits it to events people can actually attend: "Events must be bookable to the general public. Events that require a membership, or invitation prior to purchasing the ticket or attending the event are ineligible for the event experience." A private wedding or a company party does not qualify. The page also says "Avoid marking non-events as events" and gives examples such as trip packages, so your planning packages should not be marked up as events either.

If you organize a public, ticketed event, such as a charity gala or a market, Event markup on that event's own page does fit. For the business itself, the usual choice is LocalBusiness markup with your name, contact details and service area; our local business schema guide shows how.

Templates and examples

Website builders offer event planner templates, and a template is a fine start if it lets you build separate event pages, write packages as text and connect your own inquiry form. When you look at other planners' sites for ideas, notice how fast you can find three things: what kinds of events they plan, roughly what they cost, and how to ask about a date. Copy that clarity, not their photos or text. Whatever you start from, put the site on your own domain; a directory or marketplace profile is useful, but it is not a site you control.

A short checklist (our view)

• Services split by event type, with clear service levels.
• One page per event in the portfolio, grouped by event type.
• Written permission from the photographer and the client for every photo you publish.
• How you charge, and packages written as text, with extras listed.
• An inquiry form that asks for date, location, guest count and an optional budget range.
• A vendor page that discloses referral fees and commissions in plain words.
• A Google Business Profile set up as a service-area business, unless clients visit a staffed office.
• Event markup only on public, bookable events.

Venues have a matching guide in what a wedding venue website needs. If you want help building or rebuilding an event planning website, see our website development service or the full list of services.

Frequently asked questions

What should an event planner website include?

Services by event type, a portfolio of individual event pages, how you charge or your packages, an about page, client reviews, and an inquiry form that asks for the date, location, guest count and budget range.

Should an event planner list prices on the website?

It is your choice, but in our view you should at least explain how you charge (flat fee, percentage of budget, hourly) and any minimum, written as text on the page.

Do I have to disclose vendor referral fees?

If a vendor pays you or gives you something for recommending them and visitors would not expect it, the FTC's Endorsement Guides (16 CFR 255.5) say the connection must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously. Put it on the vendor page in plain words.

Can I use Event structured data for weddings I planned?

No. Google's event structured data is for events bookable by the general public. Private, invitation-only events do not qualify; use it only for public, ticketed events you organize.