How to present an event proposal on video in 5 minutes
A 5-minute script, what to show on screen and the usual mistakes when recording an event proposal for a busy client.
An event proposal video is a 3 to 5-minute recording where your screen shows the concept, the floor plan and the budget while you appear in a bubble explaining it. It works when the client has no time for a meeting, when the proposal has to travel through their leadership without you in the room, or when you need someone to understand something visual (a layout, a timing) without an 800-word email. The key is a short five-part script, showing only what the client has to decide and ending with a concrete next step.
When to use video and when not to
| Situation | Video? |
|---|---|
| Client cannot find a slot for a meeting | Yes |
| Revised budget after cuts | Yes |
| Client has to forward it to leadership or procurement | Yes, far better than a PDF alone |
| Venue answering an RFP with several layouts | Yes |
| Briefing speakers or freelancers | Yes |
| First pitch to a major account | Better in person, with the video as a follow-up |
| Live price negotiation or bad news | No. Call or meet |
Video does not replace the conversation. What it does is make your proposal arrive explained to whoever was not in the meeting, which is often the person who signs.
What you need before you hit record
- A computer, not a phone: recording screen and camera together is a desktop job.
- Camera at eye level. A laptop on the desk films you from below; two books underneath fix it.
- Light in front of you, never a window behind.
- A decent mic. A headset already beats the laptop mic.
- Tabs ready and in order: concept, floor plan, budget. No hunting for files mid-take.
- Notifications off. A chat alert in the middle of the budget is not the look you want.
The 5-minute script
This is the structure we use. Timings are a guide.
| Time | Part | What you say | What they see |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0:00 to 0:30 | Hook | The client’s goal, in their words | Cover or moodboard |
| 0:30 to 1:30 | Concept | The idea and why it answers that goal | Moodboard, references |
| 1:30 to 3:00 | Walkthrough | How guests experience it, arrival to close | Floor plan, seating, render |
| 3:00 to 4:15 | Numbers | Total and split by blocks, what is included | Client version of the budget |
| 4:15 to 5:00 | Next step | What you need decided and by when | Your face, no screen if possible |
Sample script (company dinner, 150 guests, example figures)
“Hi Laura. You told us you wanted a dinner that celebrates the year without feeling like a black-tie gala. Here it is in five minutes.
The idea is a night market inside the hotel: people wander, eat from stalls, and the awards happen in the middle, with no front stage.
Look at the plan. You come in here, the cocktail area takes this side, and the awards island is in the centre. High tables mean nobody has their back to it.
The numbers: the total comes to around €18,000 plus VAT. More than half is catering; the rest is production, AV and entertainment. There is a leaner version without the entertainment.
What I need: confirm the date by Friday so we can hold the room. The PDF is below.”
Notice there is not a single line read from the budget. Numbers are grouped into blocks and the detail lives in the PDF that goes with the video.
What to show on screen
The space
What works best on video is what is hard to grasp in a PDF: the floor plan to scale, the seating with numbered tables, or a render of the dressed space. Tracing the plan with your cursor while saying “you come in here” is worth three paragraphs.
In Murphy OS, the plan and seating come from Scenes and the render is generated by AI from the plan, inside the same project.
The budget
Always show the client version: services and totals, without your costs or margin. It sounds obvious until someone records the wrong tab. In Planner the client PDF already leaves margins out and carries your brand; open it before recording and close the internal view.
If there are versions (initial and adjusted, hotel A and hotel B), show them side by side and say what changes in one sentence.
What you do not need to show
Your inbox, your desktop, the spreadsheet with formulas, forty open tabs. Anything that does not help them decide is a distraction.
Example: a venue showing its layouts
A hotel gets an RFP for 220 people. Instead of sending three spec sheets, it records three minutes on its own floor plan: theatre, classroom and cocktail, one after another, saying how many fit, where the stage goes and where coffee is served. Then the budget for room hire, breaks and lunch with VAT.
Why it works: the planner forwards it to their client as is, and the venue arrives explained at a meeting it is not part of. More ideas in venues, hotels and DMCs.
Example: briefing speakers
For a convention with internal speakers, a three-minute video saves twenty emails:
- How long their slot is and what happens if they overrun (show their line in the run of show).
- How to send slides: format, aspect ratio, deadline and to whom.
- Video and audio: embedded in the deck or separate, as AV requires.
- Rehearsal: day, time and room.
- On stage: which mic, where the time cards are and which side they enter from.
Send it once to everyone, and again to whoever asks the same question.
How to record it without pain
- One take, no editing. Stumble in minute one, start again. A small slip in minute four, keep going: it is a work video, not an ad.
- Bullet-point notes, not a script read word for word. Reading always shows.
- Scroll slowly. What feels like a quick flick to you makes viewers dizzy.
- Your brand on top. A frame with your logo keeps the video yours even after three forwards.
- Watch it once before sending. At normal speed.
Plató is built for exactly this: your screen full size, you in a round bubble and your brand frame, in your desktop browser with nothing to install. Few buttons: choose what to record, record, stop.
Mistakes that sink a proposal video
- Going past 6 minutes. The client stops halfway and never reaches the numbers.
- Reading the budget line by line. That is what the PDF is for.
- Recording the internal view with costs and margin.
- Opening with yourselves (“we are an agency with 15 years…”) instead of their goal.
- Ending without an ask. With no decision date, the video becomes “looks great, we will see”.
- Sending it with no text. The email needs three lines: what it is, how long it runs and what decision you expect.
Your next step
Take the next proposal you were going to send as a PDF and record it with the five-part structure: hook, concept, walkthrough, numbers, next step. Write the five key sentences first, line up three tabs and record. The first take will not be the one; the third probably will.
Frequently asked questions
How long should an event proposal video be?
Between 3 and 5 minutes. If you need more, you are probably reading the budget line by line instead of explaining it.
What should I show on screen?
What the client has to decide: the concept, the space (floor plan, seating or render) and the numbers in blocks. Always the client version of the budget, never the internal one with your margins.
Does it replace the pitch meeting?
Not always. It works very well for clients with no free slot, for a revised version or for a proposal the client will forward to leadership. Live price negotiation or bad news is better in person.
Do I need to edit the video?
No. One clean take with your notes in front of you is enough. If you stumble a lot, start again: the second or third take is usually better.
What should I record it with?
Any tool that records screen and camera at the same time. Murphy OS Plató does it in your desktop browser, with your brand frame on top and nothing to install.