Planning any kind of event can be a stressful time, especially if it was dropped on you by your boss out of the blue. The key to being successful in business is preparation, though, and it’s no different when you’re planning a corporate event. Here’s a few tips to make sure everything goes as planned.
Who Is the Event For?
Whether your event is to create product awareness or improve customer relations, the first thing you should ask yourself is “who is my target audience?” When you know this, you’ll have a better idea on the other decisions you’ll have to make from the content, choice of venue, or even a theme. A theme is a popular way to try and make your event stand out and with the holidays soon approaching this might be something you’re thinking about. Make sure it’s appropriate for the event though. You want your attendees to relax, have fun, and network amongst their peers in the industry, but it isn’t a party.
Choosing the Venue
Hosting the event on your own premises is an option if you’re fortunate enough to have the space. However, choosing a unique off-site location could be one the memorable images that keeps your event in lasting memory. Event specialists Neptunus specialise in temporary buildings and could build you a custom-designed venue perfect for your event, whether it’s a corporate meeting or a product launch. When it comes to off-site locations, however, remember to find out if the venue includes catering, audio and visual equipment, an option for a laptop rental and security personnel. When picking a date for the event, try not to pick something on a popular holiday. It might be perfect for you since you’re off work, but so is everyone else and they might have other plans. You should also be aware of any similar events from your competitors also happening.
Sticking to Your Budget
Planning any kind of event can get our creative mind going. Unfortunately, our creative mind doesn’t always factor in the price of its ideas so remember to stick to a budget that you set out early on. Be aware of what can be realistically done with both the budget available to you and the length of the event. A focused approach that carefully examines a subject is always preferable to lots of haphazard ideas that leave the audience with more questions than answers. Your budget should factor in the cost of the venue, merchandise or free samples you plan to give away as well as any entertainment or guest speakers you have scheduled.
What the attendees don’t always realise is that a memorable event doesn’t simply happen on its own. It takes a lot of preparation and even the occasional late night to make sure everything is handled seamlessly. For more ideas, take a look at our Event Talk series of podcasts.