Sometimes all you need in life to be successful is a simple set of rules to follow. Do this. Don’t do this.
When you find yourself planning a corporate event, your number one desire is to be successful in achieving the event objective. Right?
Surely you want to deliver the education, the inspiration, the discussion, the networking opportunities, or whatever other objectives you may set. The only question is how to be successful in hitting them.
Going back to what I’ve just said. It only takes a set of simple rules to help steer you towards success. Your job is then to carry forward the rules and accelerate towards accomplishment.
So today, I’ll be showing you the 5 do’s and don’ts when it comes to event planning.
There’s more than 5 for sure, but these are definitely the most important things you should consider doing and avoid doing when planning a corporate event in Uganda.
5 Dos
Let’s start off with a few tips that when done correctly can significantly boost your chances of success.
Start Early
Event planning is done best when one looks at the details.
If you start planning for an event two weeks before it takes place, you’re definitely not going to get the valuable time that you need to consider details.
Not only that, but the rush makes you more inclined to fall into mistakes and overlook certain aspects of the event.
So it’s best when you get to planning as early as possible.
We’ve even set you up perfectly with our premium guide to planning corporate events here.
Prioritize Your Audience
It does not matter what kind of function you host, if your guests are unsatisfied, you’ve already failed.
Think about it. Almost every single corporate event is centered around the aspect of people.
Some events are to bring people together, others to get people to take an action, others to teach people.
The point is, if events are largely people based, then people at your gathering should be the priority.
You must absolutely make sure you treat your guests in the very best way from their first glance at your invitation, to the minute they enter their car to drive back home from your event.
Do this right, and you’re bound to see success regardless of the event type.
Know Your Goals
I know that you might be tired of the words goals and objectives by now but they are must haves for every event.
Without knowing your goals, you can’t even explain the definition of success to yourself. How could you possibly try to be successful if you don’t even know what it means?
Well the solution is simple. Define your goals and plan your event around them.
Trust me, setting concrete objectives will help you whenever you’re contemplating key decisions later on.
Each decision either does not support the event objectives, or does. All you have to do is pick the latter.
Understand Your Venue
This may be unfamiliar to you but it is very important.
When you arrive at your venue a few hours early on the day of your event, you’ve come to start setting up and checking that everything is done up to the very best standard.
However, if you’ve never been to the venue, it’s only now that you begin to notice certain inconveniences.
A certain door may be unable to open, a window may be letting in too much light. You just never know what it may be.
Small as they are, these tiny little details can accumulate into a big snowball of stress.
Save yourself the struggle and pay a quick visit to your venue before time so that you understand what you need to do to make it the perfect setting for your corporate function.
Consider Risk Management
Most planners forget to consider risk management. That’s the truth.
Managing a corporate event the right way requires for you to look at all possible weak links in the chain and be prepared to fix them as soon as they occur or avoid them altogether.
There’s many risks such as security, weather, guest behavior, food, equipment malfunction, and so on.
Make sure you know them all and put in adequate time before the function to prepare for and mitigate such risks.
5 Don’ts
Let’s move on to the five things that you should definitely avoid doing if you want to be successful in event planning.
Don’t Rush To Make A Budget
Making a budget is the number one thing that amateur event planners worry about.
Yes, it is important, but most of the time, it’s done at the wrong time.
If you rush yourself into setting a budget before you’ve considered all the event logistics, you may just find yourself overshooting the budget or over funding the event. None of which you want to do.
So take the time to understand exactly what your gathering would need to be labelled a success and how much each of those things cost.
Only then can you start building your budget.
Oh! And don’t forget to check out our How-To on event budgeting. It’ll definitely be of much help.
Don’t Forget Marketing
Marketing is your rocket fuel to a full house at an event. Having a full house at your event puts you one step closer to success.
When you have a full house, you can educate, inform, discuss with, and network with more people.
So when preparing for a corporate event, make sure you remember to invest a bit of your time, money, and mental power on marketing.
If you’re looking for some inspiration check out a few tips and tricks from us on effective marketing of corporate events.
Keep in mind that great marketing is 20% action, 80% research. So make sure you keep learning, testing, and trying new tools and techniques as you put your event forward.
Don’t Neglect Food
Food at events can be extremely defining of the host’s brand.
Afterall, one of our senses is taste. To maximize audience satisfaction, you must be in touch with all their senses. Sight, taste, hearing, touch, and smell.
So when planning, take into consideration food.
Ensure that you deliver the best food that you can, paired with the most impressive catering service as we explained in our article here.
It goes a long way.
Don’t Ignore Technology
Though technology has done a great deal of damage to modern day society, some may still say that its benefits outweigh its constraints.
In the event planning and management space, it is clear why people have this opinion.
Technology for corporate events can do a lot. From marketing, to invitations, to security, the opportunities for technology are endless.
Who knows, we could even have AI powered ushers taking over the event scene in a few years’ time.
Technology takes a lot off your back before, during, and after events. So make sure you stay up to date on the latest accessible event tech and try to integrate it into your functions.
Don’t Do It All Alone
Speaking of your back, carrying the load of a corporate event alone puts a ton of pressure onto you.
Logistics, marketing, venues. It can all get overwhelming.
Having someone walk with you along the way keeps you sharp but also reduces the pressure on you.
In physics, pressure is equal to force over area. So if you have a huge event with many things to sort out-that’s your force, the only way to decrease the pressure is by increasing the people-your area.
The best way to do this is by speaking to a professional event planner like us-Tellit Events.
We take your event from concept to reality all while completely taking you out of the pressure equation and replacing your area with our team of highly experienced corporate event planners.
Sound like something you’d like to dive into?
All you have to do is find out more with the button below.
That sums it up for our Do’s and Don’ts though.
Check out some of our other articles if you’re looking for more guidance in event planning.
