Whether you’re planning a big event or a small one, event planning logistics can be a nightmare – requiring detailed organization, tons of patience, the ability to pivot on the fly, and multi-tasking galore! The good news is that we’ve broken down the essential steps for planning your corporate event below.
Clarify Your Event Goals Ahead of Time and Get Stakeholder Buy-In
Corporate events come in all shapes and sizes. They can be internal (geared towards employees) or external (aimed at customers, clients, or the general public). Whichever yours happens to be, make sure to clarify what it is you want to accomplish from the event from the start and get stakeholder buy in before beginning your planning.
Develop Event Budget
At a minimum, expenses will include logistics, venue, food and beverage, and signage/décor. Depending on the type of event you’re planning, they might also include speaker fees, marketing, gifting, and entertainment. Importantly – no matter how much you allocate towards your budget, work in an extra 10% buffer line item because stuff happens. When planning events, always expect the unexpected.
Create A Timeline/Project Plan
Create an event logistics timeline that has deadline dates to keep you and your team on track. Simply Food Trucks has created a free event planning checklist to help you organize and track the planning tasks for your next corporate event.
Select a Venue
You’ll need to consider the attendance, duration of the event, venue capacity, and cost as well as location, weather, parking, Wi-Fi/technical support, and available food and beverage options. Once you have begun sourcing venues, request layouts and diagrams to ensure the space will suite all of your needs, and consider giving yourself room to grow in case your attendee count increases over projections. Walk through the space you will be using to ensure it can accommodate all of your needs.
Venues might include a hotel, special event facility, country club, restaurant, or even your own office – a great way to save money. A vendor like Classic Tents & Events can provide much more than tent rental, such as tables, chairs, lighting, and other equipment you’ll need if your venue doesn’t already come fully equipped. Importantly, Steven Eisenstein, CEO of Classic Tents reminds us, When planning an outdoor event, you should always have a contingency plan, just in case.
Technical Setup/Presentation
What’s the nature of your event? If speakers and screens will be involved, make sure to work through your setup and what equipment you’ll need well in advance, because you definitely don’t want to be dealing with technical glitches on event day. Depending on the scope of the event, you may decide to enlist the help of a full-service AV production company to set up and run AV and lighting on the big day.
Branding and Signage
Signage is a great opportunity for branding, and is also necessary to direct your attendees to where they need to be. Make sure to have plenty of clear signage to direct your attendees and to represent your brand. Holland Muscio, owner of Balloonacy, has been creating décor, welcome arches, and directional pillars for the past 20 years. She encourages event planners to share details large and small with their vendors.
Don’t forget to notify your decorator about themes, brand colors, and any ideas you might have. It can make a world of difference in getting a finished product that is exactly what you want and makes you look great in the eyes of your stakeholders.
Food and Beverage
There are multiple factors to consider when feeding a large group, such as menu, pricing, sustainability, health and wellness and more. Select a menu and snacks that appeal to a wide variety of tastes and dietary restrictions. Include a mocktail for non-drinkers and designated drivers if you’re serving liquor.
And, don’t forget to make sure there’s plenty of water! Simply Food Trucks can help you identify a variety of catering options to fit the bill.
Entertainment/Engagement
Events are experiences and should engage your attendees. When designing your event, think about a meaningful theme, compelling content, opportunities for group participation and interaction, and a chance for attendees to get to know each other.
Jammin DJs provides a high-energy experience for your event including music, Master of Ceremonies, intelligent lighting, a photo booth, and atmospheric effects. Not to mention their attention-grabbing JAMMbulance for outdoor events.
"The skys the limit. If you can dream it, we can do it," says CEO John Murray.
Gifting
Corporate gifting is an amazing way to interact and show appreciation to your employees, customers, clients, and partners. Not only do gifts make people happy, but they can create a close relationship and a strong connection between your company and the guests you’re hosting. What better way to hype up your prospects before a conference in Atlanta than with a custom event gift basket inspired by the flavors of the Peach State? Or welcome your guests to town with a collection of hotel amenities and snacks!
Even a timely delivery of a Sensational Basket to enjoy together during a virtual event shows that you care enough to go the extra mile. The variety of gifts and price points runs the gamut, but whatever your budget, choose high-quality gifts that can be truly enjoyed, remembered, and used to keep your company top of mind.
Confirm Everything Ahead of Time with Vendors
Every venue and vendor you work with will have their own event logistics to manage. Finalize and confirm all details with your vendors to ensure everyone is on the same page. Load in/Load out times, power requirements, staging and storage areas, etc. Relevant details should be communicated to all parties involved to avoid glitches on event day.
Evaluate Results
It’s important to take the time after an event to debrief with the team to talk about what went well and what didn’t. Did the event achieve its goals? How can you make things better next time? What worked well that you want to repeat for the next event? And, what did your attendees think? Don’t forget to ask them with a post-event survey. This will be a huge asset for planning future events.
Whether your event is big or small, Simply Food Trucks is your turnkey partner to help make event planning as painless as possible. We work with amazing vendor partners!
Reach out to us today for a free corporate event planning checklist.
