Corporate events are business activities that are curated and planned to achieve specific event objectives. They can be demonstrated in many types, for instance they can be a conference, seminar, team building, trade show, product launching or even annual celebrations.
There are various ways to roll out a corporate event plan, it depends on the event types and company goals. To make sure you keep away from a failure and ineffective event planning, it is crucial to clearly understand everything before you get started to make any arrangement for your event.
Be sure you are clear about the very basic but important information before you start out the event plan, such as event date and budgets. Once you have that information, then you can move on to the event details. Follow these useful tips as below to help you be well organized and make the event go as smoothly as possible.
Set the event budget
When deciding an event budget, take every aspect of event planning into consideration. From the choice of catering to the event venue, entertainment program, guest management system, speakers, promotions and staff. Referring from past event budgets are useful in providing practical and clearer pictures of suppliers’ charges in actual. Use these to prevent unrealistic budget allocation and make sure you are not being overcharged by suppliers.
In spite of that, a feasible budget also needs flexibility to deal with unpredictable changes or unanticipated expenditure. Sometimes, instead of a fixed price some items or equipment are rented at floating prices depending on the market demand. After you have sourced all supplier costings, make a comprehensive list of all the budget items that will be used in the event lifecycle.
Define the event objective
The first step to get started with successful corporate event planning is to define a clear and measurable goal and objective and be sure you understand the requirements of event key stakeholders. By doing that, it will enable you to consolidate creative ideas effectively while avoiding wrong communication between team members.
When you have understood the event goals and objectives, for example, increase brand awareness, communicate business strategy, reward and motivate, or launch a new product or service, you can then define goals, put the right metrics in place to track results, and determine who the attendees will be, along with their expectations. Once you have well-defined goals and objectives for your event, planning, promoting, and sticking to your budget all become much easier.
Create a Timeline
Every event plan has a schedule and timeline to follow, make sure each project leader is aware of deadlines and everything can be run on time. When designing the event timeline, it is better to allow 10-15% more time to sort out with unpredictable schedule delay, such as misspell of event details on printing material, wrong colour of decoration flowers, transportation breakdown, etc.
Engage with event guests
Once you have set the event budget, define objectives and created a schedule, now is the right time to start curating an event guest list. If it is a by invitation event, make sure you have the guest list in advance, whereas build an online registration webpage to collect attendees details, if it is a pre-registered event.
An easy and time saving way is building a beautiful online event registration page which allows attendees to submit their details online. Meanwhile, use a comprehensive event guest management app to collect and link all registered guests details to the system. Therefore, you are able to monitor and track event guest list and statistics as all data will automatically synchronise to the guest management app.
In addition, it is great to send a sms or email with the attendee’s name, assign seats, and check-in QR code to remind attendees regarding the event details prior to the event. Make sure attendees know accurately when and where to go.
Venue Sourcing
Now that you are done with the event guest list, sourcing an event venue is the next step. Being clear on what expectations the venue needs to align with your event objective can really help narrow down the search. This also needs to be weighed against the number of guests and your budget.
Choose a valid date by avoiding significant holidays and book the venue days beforehand to avoid any last-minute complications.
Event Marketing
Event marketing includes pre-event emails, social media promotions, a branded website, and a mobile event app. You may also wish to design and create posters, flyers, pin-badges, and other accessories to keep the event front-of-mind and anticipation high.
Create a beautiful online event registration page to encourage attendees to register online. And a clear communication regarding the event registration and check-in process will be essential to ensuring a smooth experience. Send a Personalised email with attendee’s name, assign seats, and check-in QR code meanwhile remind attendees regarding the event details prior to the event.
To make sure attendees know accurately when and where to go, include key details such as check-in hours, guide them how to go to the check-in place, and anything they should bring with them. By providing this information in advance will ensure attendees come prepared and the event check-in process is as smooth as possible.
Track and Evaluate
Last but not least, remember to keep track of your event budget, goals, schedule and other factors that will impact your event. Consider those measurable metrics you set in the event goals and objectives, be sure that everything is on track. This is one of the most important aspects of organizing a corporate event.
Don’t forget to evaluate your event’s success by determining if your attendees are enjoying it or not. If not, take feedback and make necessary arrangements to uplift the mood of the attendees.
Planning an event isn’t easy, but it can be a fun and easy task if you understand what needs to be done and take care of them accordingly. By taking the right steps, staying efficient and having a road map of each stage to help you stay organized , and throw a great corporate event!
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