Events are perfect opportunities for a company to branch out and gain a higher audience. Corporate events represent an important milestone in any company’s development, where they celebrate achievements, present new and exciting products, and show each customer how much they appreciate them. It’s always great when something is happening, and people love mingling. So, here is what you need to get started right away!
1. Eyes on the budget
Whenever a company starts to plan for an event, they inevitably begin big, lavish, and plan to go all out! Overestimating your event is never a good business practice, as a large empty hall leaves a sour taste in your visitor’s eyes. A tightly knit and well-organized event inside a small retail space speaks volumes. It’s also budget-friendly and easier to organize your event in an adequate space.
Set realistic goals and what you are out to achieve, and your budget will pan out accordingly. Sometimes companies host events to raise money or as an investment opportunity. In other cases, events have a celebratory or informational intention. Whatever it is, your budget must follow the intention.
2. Add value to your visitors – workshops
We have now established the “With what?” and the next is “Why?”. Why should your potential visit your event, and what’s in it for them? Adding value to visitors and planning fun activities goes hand-in-hand with your brand identity, where your company values can dictate what booths, stages, themes, and activities your event will have. Never forget that each visitor has made time to participate in your corporate event. Honoring their time and effort is crucial, which you can do with rewards. Offer something in return for their participation, and you’ll get positive feedback. Making a first impression leads to a cascade for years to come.
3. Get a good team!
Now we tackle the question of “Who?”. We know you will have visitors, but the quality of the event is tied to the quality of the hosts! As your company relies on only the best to keep it going, so too does your event rely on having experienced and best staff like Veritas Events to make the most out of your social gathering! Hosts animate, educate, and ensure your visitors have a great time while delivering your intention to the best of their abilities. Companies sometimes rely on their workforce to make the presentation, which is not always a great idea.
Just because someone is a perfect worker does not mean the person has the presentational and people skills necessary for a public event. Skills and abilities that happen behind the scenes and good employee performance rarely directly translate to them being able to present their work and your company to other people, no matter how long said employee works for you. Collaborating with skillful presenters who know how to get the message across, ensures everyone has a good and memorable time.
4. Information is crucial! Create a web page.
We’ve come to the part of “How?” as in, how will your future event visitors get all the information they need? Does an event happen if there is no one there to see it? Of course not! You’re making the event for your customers, so you must go out of your way to inform them as much as possible. Having an event web page specially dedicated to your event raises its status in everyone’s eyes.
And on that web page, you can cram in all the information you can think of! Date, location, time, schedule, events, places to stay, guest presenters, topics, workshops, and anything else that falls on your mind, can appear on the web page. Google Maps is a great and universal way to familiarise each visitor with the local town layout, the best places to stay, and how to get to your event center!
5. Let the world know!
Having a webpage is great, but influencer collaboration is even better! When wishing to attract a wider audience, you can work with the spokespersons and spread the word. Webpages, ads, pamphlets, and messages can only get you so far, but a spoken word is worth a lot these days. Influencers are trusted sources of information inside their tightly built communities, and getting exposure for your event is easy with their help.
You can even sweeten the deal by inviting an influencer to present or livestream your event! The next item on the list is to follow up and check with your confirmed visitors. About one month before the event, you should do a follow-up and see if they are still coming. If they take an airplane or a bus, have a cab pick them up or check if they arrived safely. While this may sound like plenty of work, you’ll be surprised how easy it is to track attendees with an old-fashioned spreadsheet.
6. Food and drinks should be a priority!
Events are social gatherings, and where there are people, there should be some cocktails and finger food. Events can last for several days, and during said days, they are likely to last for a couple of hours. People expect to have event catering. Never forget that food and drinks can elevate anyone’s mood and opinion. You don’t want people leaving with a bad taste in their mouth but with a positive buzz and an appetite for more. Being a good event host means bringing something tangible to the table because people cannot eat or drink presentations.
Events are a great tool in any marketing arsenal! Events are public and personal means to directly communicate with your customers and see the smiles on their faces. Getting feedback, celebrating a milestone, and presenting what the future holds, are all possible within a single event. The sheer variety of possibilities makes it an exciting undertaking for any rising business!
When handled properly and with care, they offer the maximum output for a modest amount of time and money. Taking our step-by-step approach and following tested practices will ensure your first event goes smoothly. After which, it will be incredibly easy to plan your next one!