Do’s And Don’ts Of Organising A Corporate Event

Source- https://in.pinterest.com/pin/346214290120586337/

Corporate event planning is often staged to convey several company strategies. Whether it is transformative internal behaviour, the inauguration of a new product or service, a training session, or customer behaviour towards the brand, success comes with efficiency.

Corporate events usually involve company employees, marketing or sales initiatives, incentives for team accomplishments, or amusement for senior managers.

Corporate event planning is more than just a meeting between more than one party. You may arrange corporate hospitality, entertainment, exhibitions, conventions, and employee events. On the other hand, planning a for a successful corporate event takes months. It is not a simple task to execute for unprofessional or inexperienced person.

To support you in navigating a business event organization checklist of dos and don’ts, here is everything you need to know:

Types of Corporate Events

As we have summarized before, corporate events can include everything from company conferences and seminars to team recognition and client hospitality. Therefore, it is important to understand the range and purpose when planning any type of corporate event.

1. Micro events, also known as simple events, include up to 100 delegates and often form outlines of meetings or more private training sessions. Sometimes, these micro-events may include up to 50 senior managers, which is as complicated as planning for a conference of 500 representatives. Arrangements include room booking, hospitality, presentation facilities, refreshments and registrations.
2.  Small events are categorized according to the number of attendees, which ranges from 100 to 250 delegates. The corporate event planning for these small events may include arranging several seminars, booking town halls, training facilities, or departmental conferences.

Apart from the planning, organizers may need to operate a main stage, audio-visual facilities, itinerary along with a meal, refreshments, online registration management and transport.

3. Midsize events depend primarily on technology. A midsize event signifies company-wide conferences which are attended by up to 1,000 delegates. It includes leadership summits for clients to meet with senior leaders.

An event planner needs to execute a branded website, a prelude communication, and a compatible mobile application within a budget. Invitees may need hotel accommodation and transportation services.

4. Large events include accommodations, transport services, and hospitality for at least 10000 delegates. These usually require business technology tools to manage hotel room bookings, flight bookings, budgets, and online registration. A large event runs for more than one day and includes offsite activities, arranging meals, award ceremonies, etc. 

Best Practices For Organizing A Successful Corporate Event

1. The Budget 

The estimate of budget can affect every facet of corporate event planning, from venue selection and organizing catering service, amusement, technology, and staffing.

To avoid corporate event mistakes, fix if the budget is crossing the estimate or ensure you will be able to increase it with revenue from exhibitors, sponsors or external revenue.

As an event planner, have you ever experienced this kind of project? If so, then you can take referrences from the previous experiences to set a baseline.

Every event budget must require flexibility. Unexpected expenditures are expected, and supplier costs are often counted within the estimates rather than fixed prices.

Once you receive the costs, make a complete outline within the budget, including venue booking, accommodation and travel, AV, food and beverage, technical facilities fees, staffing expenses, and marketing and service fees.

For more extensive budget planning, you may check corporate event management software. This will provide accurate information related to budget management and track expenses easily, develop budget reports, and demonstrate the ROI of your event.

2. Event Objective

The event objective or the purpose is the next question once you sort out with budgeting, or this could be the first question to ask when you receive a request. Acquiring an in-depth knowledge of the deliverables will effectively assist you in planning and communicating your ideas with the client and your seniors.

Once you realize the goal of the event, for example, brand awareness, business strategy, boost company strategies, or product launch, create a checklist.

When you have your objectives behind the planning of a corporate event, planning, advertising, and sticking to your budget will be your motto. 

 SMART: A Strategy For Event Planning

• Specific: What is the expected result, and when will it be taken place?
• Measurable: Return on Investment or ROI… or both?
• Achievable: Make sure that the purpose of the event is achievable otherwise senior managers will think it a failure.
• Relevant: Throughout the planning process, the overall objective needs to remain related to the company’s goals.
• Timebound: The target is to complete the event between two periods. This may need to follow training seminars or a follow-up routine to evaluate the outcomes.

3. Venue Sourcing

The event’s goals may also define your selection of venue. If stakeholders demand to create a lasting impression on prospective clients, you must focus on some particular aspect. In general, venue selection is the centre of attraction.

Other corporate event mistakes that will impact your selection of venue include allocation, capacity, area, availability, transportation, and logistics. Precise communication over the requirements will demand a shortlist of several venues, proposals to be sent out, and site visits to be arranged.

Some locations provide seasonal pricing, so the cost may vary according to the specific times of the year. Search for what is the best price for your venue of choice on the desired date. If you have the flexibility on choosing the date, you may end up securing a better deal at your preferred venue.

Source Venue With Three Steps

Step One: Search for compatible options

According to the meeting objectives and requirements, choose a venue by checking feedback and reviews from the attendees. Talk personally with the manager for eminities and hospitality, highlight important requirments that you are expacting.

Step Two: Craft a perfect RFP

Once you acquire an idea about the general objectives of the event, it is time for RFP or request for proposal. Give the information they need and the purpose of the event to the authority of the venue. Provide a clear idea about what this event demands and hopes to achieve. Handle the budget negotiation skillfully, as the venue is one of the highest costs of an event. Mention the deadlines and provide enough time to respond to your proposal. Be prepared to answer any queries from their end.

Step Three: Send and evaluate proposals

Once you share the RFP, use a venue-sourcing tool to search and filter venues. You can repeat the process with multiple venues at once. Make a list of the most and least important factors. Do not forget to check meeting rooms, layouts, and technical facilities.

4. Event Marketing

To make the attendees and stakeholders engaged with the investments, include marketing campaigns in corporate event planning. Moreover, it will allow you to interact with key instructions and information which will indicate that your audience is already engaged.

Event marketing includes teaser emails, previews in social media channels, a branded website, and a mobile event app. For offline marketing, design posters, banners, flyers, handbills, and other accessories to keep the event front-of-mind and suspense high.

If you are planning to design an event website, it is important to ensure that you pay special attention on the process.

With the most delinquent corporate event management software solutions, one can easily create a custom event website. Even the knowledge of HTML or any hardcore technical expertise is not required. You can build an excellent website from complete scratch.

5. Attendee Engagement

According to a survey, there are aspects like age, persona and region differ te expectations of attendees. For instance, Millennial from UK are completely different from the Baby Boomer generations from Germany regarding the event expectations.

To include every attendee in providing an amazing and exciting experience, solid planning is important for common corporate event planning mistakes to avoid. If a corporate event fails to generate engagement, it will influence the attendees’ proficiency in retaining information.

The human engagement span has decreased greatly in this advanced digital era. To cope with the age, corporate event planners must shift away from PowerPoint presentations to more creative session structures.

Utilizing suitable event technology devices, executing feedback techniques like live polls, negotiating goals and anticipations, and remaining faithful should all be top preferences.

The big four types of attendee engagement

1) Engagement With Content: This implies giving attendees the proper sessions, presentations and other actions to maximize learning and the importance of their attendance.

2) Engaging Building Network: Most employees attend corporate events to increase their network, whether face-to-face, virtual, or in groups. Planners can take this advantage and promote networking to create a more valuable experience for attendees.

3) Engaging with sponsors: If you have pledged sponsorship at the event, then those who paid will look for connections with the attendees — rather than just signage.

4) Engaging with you: Communication works in both ways. Being an event organizer, you can effectively interact with your attendees for promotional, consultative or logistical purposes.

Joint Corporate Event Planning Mistakes To Avoid

• Don’t forget the importance of entertainment in corporate event planning. Even some valuable professional meeting do need some fun break whether it is a buffet or other. To make a corporate meeting encouraging, you may consider a live performance of a music band or a stand up comedy show.

• Don’t overlook the official venue walkthrough. Photos or videos do not give you proper layout about the venue. Besides, it gives you the opportunity to check the availability of the technologies and acomodation fecilities. Enquery about parking capacity, cleaning crews, and maximum occupancy.

• DON’T use your corporate office as the event venue. If the allocated budget allows you to host the event off-site, plan it! It is also important for the employees and the invitees to mingle outside of the office. A fresh space inspires new thoughts and gives the stress a break.