We assembled a panel of seasoned partygoers, winning chairpersons and behind-the-scenes professionals and asked them to share their secret ingredients for successful charitable parties. They quickly ticked them off: the right chairperson and committee, the perfect setting, an imaginative theme and decorations, eye-catching invitations, generous sponsors, delicious food, and a minute-by-minute timeline for how the event will unfold on the big afternoon or night. We also asked them to name some of the events that scored high in those qualities this year.

Across the board, our panel told us, charity events in Sarasota had a good year. "The season started a bit slowly and then just charged ahead," says Phil Mancini, one of Sarasota's premier caterers. "As far as I can determine, everyone met and exceeded their numbers; and events that pulled more than 1,000 guests were on the increase. Our town had a very successful season."

To make sure you succeed in the upcoming season, here is our panel's guide to putting together an event to remember.

What's in a Name?

"A great name as the chair or honorary chair is frequently the beginning of a successful event," notes Sally Schule, assistant general manager at Saks Fifth Avenue Sarasota. A good name attracts other good names, and a powerful chairperson can call in favors from all the other committees on which she's served. An experienced chair will sometimes co-chair the event with a gal pal or a less experienced person who wants to learn the ropes. This widens the event's draw even more. An honorary chair, one closely identified with the presenting organization or someone known for philanthropy, can give great cachet to an invitation. Finally, frequent chairperson Margarete VanAntwerpen notes, "You want a working committee that can fill those tables, committee members with plenty of friends."

Jocelyn Stevens, who organizes events for SARASOTA Magazine, advises a chairman to get a loose-leaf binder with index tabs. "Maintain sections on sponsors, committee, food, budget, decorations-every aspect of the event big and small," says the voice of experience. "The night of the party, leave the book in your car and rely on a master timeline to keep everything on schedule. Have emergency phone numbers and a cell phone in your evening bag. A good notebook is a template for the next event you chair."

Our panel singled out several events this season that demonstrated great leadership and expert organization: the University of South Florida's Brunch on The Bay, the Pug Parade (Lakewood Ranch) and the Mad Hatter Tea Party for the Florida Center for Child and Family Development. "That tea party impressed me because the committee had to deal with a cold day for an outside event, a silent auction and a lot of children," remembers Stevens. "Everything went off beautifully, and guests had a wonderful time. The committee did it right."

How Inviting

A successful invitation should be an engaging visual tease that's cleverly packed with useful information. Mary Lou Wingerter, events guru at New College Foundation, cautions, "Make sure the invitation takes a regular stamp and is of conventional size and weight. Otherwise, your postage costs go up, and that's a bad last-minute surprise."

Betty Sandhagen, a frequent chair and committee member, cautions, "An invitation too glamorous might put people off." If people think you're spending your charity's money on expensive invitations, they may refuse to support your cause. And the best invitations remind you of the organization's mission. "I loved the Goodwill T-shirt invitation this season," says Sandhagen. "It tied the invitation to the charitable organization successfully."

Other invitations our panel admired? The invitation for Great Pairs Avant Garde (Ringling School of Art and Design) enlisted the design talents of the school to turn out a document so clever it became an instant keepsake. Other standouts: Night of a Thousand Orchids (Marie Selby Botanical Gardens), Safe Sax at the Casbah (Planned Parenthood), Mad Hatter's Tea Party (Florida Center for Child and Family Development) and Flight of Hope to Shangri-La (Wellness Community).

Corporate Cash

The average ticket price for an evening gala is approaching $200. Yet the ticket price never pays for the event. You want to get the costs of putting on the event donated by businesses or individuals, so the proceeds can go entirely to the charity.