Planning a corporate or business event can be a fraught experience if you have either never done it before, or if you are struggling with a particularly tough event.
We know that there is a lot to do, a lot to think about a whole lot to make sure you have taken care of properly. The last thing you want to do is to get to the night of the event and realize you have forgotten something!
In order to help you run the best business event ever, we have brought together a list of how to go about planning and executing your next shindig.
Know the purpose of your business event.
Too often a business or company will decide to throw an event which has the purpose of generating sales, but then they’ll run the event as if it were for an entirely different thing.
If you know what you are trying to achieve you’ll find it a great deal easier to measure your success. Perhaps you’re trying to attract more employees, or perhaps you’re looking to raise awareness of a new product.
Whatever it is, this needs to be abundantly clear to all who attend.
As people, we want to understand things, and we want to know the ‘why’ behind everything.
Give your attendees the biggest answer and make it abundantly clear what you’re trying to achieve so that they can then spend their attention and time dedicated to what you want.
Plan your event.
Once you know why you’re throwing your event, you need to then plan the ‘how’ and this comes down to many things, from the event venue, through to the food, the entertainment and anything else related to how you’re going to throw your event.
You need to have a plan written down and the various people responsible for each element of your event accountable for certain things.
That way you don’t miss anything and it saves you scrambling around for a whiteboard on the night of your event because someone from accounts forgot to bring it!
With your checklist and event plan, you can check if that person has brought the whiteboard the requisite two hours before the event has started, and then source a replacement if she hasn’t done her duty.
Read also: 7 Event Transport Tips to Make Your Guests Feel Comfortable
Delegate.
As we kind of mentioned above, you need to make sure you’re not taking everything on yourself and that you are spreading out the responsibility among your team or staff.
Sure, it’s important to have someone in charge, and if that’s you, then no problem. But make sure that the responsibility for the event is shared among many people. Have them all accountable and then budget time for each person to do their job.
Talk to each other.
You need to be talking to the caterers who need to be talking to the AV people who need to be talking to the keynote speaker – and everyone needs to be talking to the event organizer.
For a successful event to come together, everything needs to be done as it should be. To ensure this, appoint a key organizer and make sure that there’s an email or communication method that covers all bases.
Follow up.
Many events are held to get more customers.
You want to plan for this and follow up with the people who attend your event. If your attendees have only submitted their emails as confirmation of their attendance, then you need to email them and lock them in to attend. If they have given their phone number with their details then guess what? Give them a call!
6 Great Ideas for Organizing Corporate Events
Organizing different corporate events takes planning and lead time.
Corporate events can include:
- Special incentives for key personnel
- Meetings held offsite at a resort or other location
- Team building activities
- Award banquets and presentations
- New product introductions
- Annual picnic or other activity for all employees
Planning and organizing the event includes:
- Establishing a time for the event when all participants are available.
- Selecting a location that is accessible for participants
- Deciding on events that include interaction
- Selecting food and catering services
- Selecting entertainment that will appeal to everyone
- Providing transportation when necessary
The time may be seasonal for a product introduction or an awards banquet. You may pick an off-site location that everyone can reach. This can include a hotel, restaurant or resort.
Most corporate events are designed to get people to meet and interact with each other. Employees from one division or region can meet with people from another district and exchange ideas. There are several ways to “break the ice” and help individuals interact.
The virtual graffiti wall is a popular activity that encourages interaction. The wall is a large photograph of participants with any type of background. This super-size photo is pasted to a wall. Participants, usually people in the photo, are given a can of spray paint. They can write or paint on the wall over the their own photo or that of another participants.
This lets people be creative and have fun. Everyone understands that the paint goes on the photo, not another person. Usually four people at a time can appear in one photo.
This is also a fun activity for award banquets, picnics, incentive events and off-site meetings at restaurants and resorts.
Food, Entertainment and Transportation
The catering services will recommend meals at various locations. In some cases, their specialties may be the reason for selecting the location. Planners have to take into consideration any diet restrictions from participants. Generally, the better the food, the more memorable the event.
Transportation should be arranged for people who need it.
This may mean chartering a coach service or even an airplane for special events. The event can be on board a special tour boat with catering services.
Entertainment can include a live band and dancing, a film, recital or a colourful presentation on a new product.
Product Introductions
The graffiti wall could also be used for some product introductions. The item(s) are photographed and employees can comment on the item with their spray cans. This can work with small appliances and specialty products.
Product introductions are often corporate events for sales personnel. Sales people should have an opportunity to carefully explore the product with all of their senses. If the new introduction is an edible product, participants will have the opportunity to taste it. They should be able to feel the product and even use it in some way.
Team Building Events
Wall climbing, sailing and team games are popular events for corporate team building. This works for project managers and their teams. The objective is for participants to learn how to support each other.
Experiential team building games help people communicate and solve problems. There are many games available that don’t involve too much physical activities while others are mainly physical. The decision on the type of team building activity will depend on the company and the abilities of the people involved.
Team building events are also designed to improve communications among participants while they learn about each other.
Corporate events should be interesting and exciting, giving people something to anticipate as a fun experience.
Get your next event happening with awesome catering, entertainment and a killer location, and then sit back and enjoy the increase in business or brand that is sure to come when a well-executed event takes place.